The role and relevance of marketing in SMEs: towards a new model

This paper presents a new model of the role and relevance of marketing in small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs). The model was developed to explain the apparent mismatch between the need for marketing activities to sustain and grow these companies in a competitive business environment (i.e. relevance of marketing) and the actual marketing efforts used by these organisations (i.e. role played by marketing). The methodology used theoretical development and initial testing of the role and relevance model on a small number of SMEs. Primary data were collected via interviews, questionnaires and observations of the marketing activities of the organisations studied. This paper describes the role and relevance model in theory and shows how to apply the model in practice. The results of the initial tests using a carefully selected number of SMEs are discussed and form the basis of the illustrative case studies presented in this paper.