Influence of E-Commerce on The Performance of Small and Medium Enterprises in Abia And Imo States

Abstract

This study focused on influence of e-commerce on the performance of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Abia and Imo States. Three research objectives, three research questions and three research hypotheses guided the study. The study used descriptive survey research design, and questionnaire served as the instrument of data collection. The data collected in this study were analyzed using simple percentage, mean statistic and Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient (PPMCC) at 0.05 level of significance through Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS version 21.0). It was discovered that there is significant effect of e-management on customer patronage in small and medium scale business firms, there is significant effect of e-promotion on customer acquisition in small and medium scale business firms and there is significant relationship between e-payments and retention in small and medium scale business firms. It was recommended that managers of SMEs should continuously research and invest in emerging e-commerce (management, payments, and promotion) and its components because they have been proven to significantly promote SMEs sustainability and performance (as it concerns patronage, customer retention and acquisition). More so, managers and operators of SMEs should also ensure that all online transactions are done with trusted persons whose identities are not anonymous and should use secured websites as well as document receipts of every online commercial activity.