Acta Universitatis Danubius. Œconomica, Vol 14, No 3 (2018)

Abstract

This research aims to establish Internet web marketing challenges of South African SMEs.  The research design chosen for this research is descriptive research in conjunction with a quantitative approach.  The population includes SMEs in South Africa.  The sample for the study encompasses 500 SME owners who currently manage the SMEs in South Africa.

The conducted research indicated that SME owners utilize the internet web for marketing their businesses.  The research results showed that the wed is promising marketing advertising tool for the future.  The results also revealed that older respondents are more successful in stimulating better sales and customer support through their internet marketing communication efforts than younger respondents while younger respondents are more successful in increasing product awareness and overall productivity of their SME than older respondents.

Past research has proven that the web will not render traditional media obsolete.  This is because traditional media has advantages that advertisers cannot ignore and the web cannot take away.  This results show that the web is comparable to other marketing media.  It is therefore important that SME owners include the web as part of their communication mix since an integrated approach is needed.