Scenarios to Improve E-Commerce SMEs Activity Based on Their Classification: A Case Study on Romania

Abstract

With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, society has increasingly relied on alternative ways to procure goods, leading to an e-commerce boom. This study analyzes the performance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that are active in e-commerce in Romania and provides recommendations for entrepreneurs to improve their efficiency. Through unsupervised learning techniques, three classes are identified according to company performance: (1) a class of high-performing companies whose entrepreneurs took the risk of investing in the business, (2) a class of medium-performing companies that maintained their position in the market and (3) a class of financially weak companies whose managers adopted risk-averse, defensive policies. Furthermore, we present scenarios for moving companies from a lower-performing class to a higher-performing class. The research identifies the strategies that managers need to adopt in order to stimulate the activity of e-commerce companies, provides foreign investors a rubric for making investment decisions, and offers a starting point for an entrepreneurship course in academia.