Abstract

JIMENEZ ARIAS, María Laura; ARCE GUTIERREZ, Susan  and  FAITH-VARGAS, Margie. CHANGES IN THE DIGITAL MARKETING STRATEGY OF EXPORTING SMES IN COSTA RICA AS A RESULT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. Innovar [online]. 2022, vol.32, n.86, pp.75-87.  Epub Mar 30, 2023. ISSN 0121-5051.  https://doi.org/10.15446/innovar.v32n86.104662.

Exporting SMEs are essential in economies; however, some barriers can hinder their export performance due to their particularities. The crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has become one of those obstacles since it has affected businesses worldwide, leading to new ways of conducting business, such as adopting virtual tools and using digital media as part of the business strategy. This reality shows the importance of digital marketing. Therefore, this paper seeks to evaluate the changes in SMEs' strategy as a result of the pandemic and their relation to the export performance by these firms. The study employed qualitative research through a case study design, in which we conducted in-depth interviews with five Costa Rican exporting SMEs. The main limitations were the difficulties for contacting enterprises and their lack of marketing knowledge. The data were analyzed through the AUAS.ti 9 software, finding that changes in the activities and digital marketing strategies have been essential due to the information they provided, thus allowing SMEs to maintain their marketing actions during the pandemic. These insights may have a bearing on export performance.

Keywords : COVID-19; export performance; case study; marketing digital; SMEs.

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