Efforts to Increase Marketing Performance of Small and Medium Enterprises in Central Java, Indonesia

Abstract

Business competition in the current era of globalization requires companies to have a strategy to win the market. Strategic management has an important role for the survival of the company. The existence of such competition is also felt by small businesses such as Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). The increase in the number of SME units in Central Java was not followed by an increase in average sales of SMEs. This study aims to analyze the effect of distribution channel, ERP implementation and entrepreneurial orientation on marketing performance with competitive advantage as an intervening variable. The population in this study were small and medium enterprises owners in Central Java. Six hypothesis were formulated for this study. To test those hypothesis, this study used 104 respondent. Structural Equation Model (SEM) was applied to this study using AMOS 24 as a tool. The results of this study shows that competitive advantage is the most variable in influencing the marketing performance, while this competititve advantage has entrepreneurial orientation as highest variable in influencing it. This study suggests that if SMEs want to increase their marketing performance, they must increase their competitive advantage. This competitive advantage can be increase by increasing the entrepreneurial orientation.