Adoption of Online Advertising by Small and Medium Enterprises

Introduction

Covid-19, which started in China and spread all over the world, has greatly affected the world and the cornerstones of the economic structure. The pandemic, which has had a positive or negative impact on a global scale, has had some consequences in many areas including health, education, advertising, airline industry, and tourism (Taylor, 2020). Moreover, it has caused many changes in e-commerce and digital advertising applications. In addition to the existing digital transformations, Covid-19, which has caused digital transformations in many areas and on a larger scale, has settled in the focus of economic, social, and cultural changes. Consumers, whose movement areas were limited due to restrictions and closures during the pandemic period, predominantly made their shopping online. In addition to the current popularity of online shopping, the dramatic rise of online shopping during the pandemic has also affected investments in e-commerce and digital advertising applications. In the pandemic, in which online advertising is on the rise, serious changes have also occurred in the field of e-commerce, and businesses that have adapted to the process have come to the fore. In addition to shopping over the Internet and mobile applications, the time spent on the Internet and social media-enabled online shopping and communication applications continue in the digital environment. In short, businesses that adapt to digital transformation are trying to cope with the possible negative effects of the pandemic with what the digital age brings. The effects of the pandemic, which varies according to the industry in which businesses operate, have also created many opportunities.

In the 1960s, the concepts of price, place, product, and promotion came to the fore, and again in this period, the communication element advertising included in the marketing system became more functional (Elden, 2018). By the 1970s, the positioning strategy marked advertising and branding studies. According to this strategy, in the market where many brands compete with each other, for a brand to stand out, it must have an effective position in the minds of consumers. The period between the 1960s and the 1970s is known as the period when consumption habits emerged. Technological developments have led to the acceleration of production and the mobilization of the market, thus the spread of consumption and the formation of competition in the markets. This situation supported the development of the advertising industry as a communication tool. After the 1980s, which is characterized as the post-industrial age, the individuals who make up the target groups of products and services are separated by their lifestyles, so applications for differentiating advertising messages according to various advertising environments and target audiences have started to come to the fore. With the end of the cold war in the 1990s, the acceleration of globalization has directly affected many aspects of marketing and advertising. Within the scope of this process, international marketing and advertising gained more importance, using the glocalization strategy, international agencies began to merge with smaller local agencies and include these agencies in their global networks. Again in this period, the implementation of elements such as advertising, public relations, and personal sales with an integrated marketing communication approach has begun. Everything that carries a message such as a price, packaging, place of sale is carried out in coordination with each other. Since the 2000s, the most important developments in advertising have emerged with the development of communication technologies. Along with digital media, the interactive structure of communication media, interpersonal communication opportunities, and the possibility of reaching large target audiences have started a new advertising communication process.

The internet, which is the most effective and widespread communication tool of our age, is increasing its share among advertising channels with the increase in its usage rate every year. Online advertising for enterprises that increase brand awareness in the Covid 19 period; taking part in digital platforms, e-commerce applications; essential for their survival.

This book chapter mainly examines the adoption of online advertising by SMEs. For this purpose, this book chapter section will consist of the titles introduction, background, main focus of the chapter, solutions and recommendations, future research directions, and conclusion.