Social Media Marketing and Business Performance in Brunei Darussalam Amid COVID-19 Crisis

Abstract

In recent years, the highly competitive business environment and changes in a country's economic situation have affected small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has had a significant impact on the global economy and SMEs. The struggle from the pandemic has enabled SMEs to take the challenges to overcome their problems. One way to tackle this problem is that businesses need to improve their marketing strategy by utilizing digital technologies and social media marketing (SMM) platforms, which can improve SMEs resilience and business performance. Therefore, this study investigates the effect of SMM on SMEs' business performance in Brunei Darussalam. Primary data was generated through a questionnaire and analyzed using frequency, descriptive analysis, and regression analysis. The results were further verified through robustness tests using bivariate probit models to account for the endogeneity of the use of social media marketing by firms with better financial performance. We find support for our hypothesis that the use of social media marketing has a significantly positive impact on overall business performance in terms of attracting new customers, brand image building, and brand awareness among the target audience. Furthermore, the perceived usefulness and perceived ease of social media and digital tools positively affect the use of SMM in the overall business and marketing strategy.