Impact of conventional and digital advertising on the resilience of MSMEs in southern Tamaulipas during COVID-19

Abstract

Advertising is a part of marketing that has proved over decades, and perhaps centuries, to be effective for business productivity. The COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico, which paused large numbers of economic activities from April 2020 to at least May 2021, has left diverse commercial and business disruptions. These can be seen in the bankruptcy of some businesses and in the birth or development of others. The resilience of enterprises, understood as the capacity to overcome the adversities of the environment has been an important topic during the pandemic. The aim of this work was to determine the extent to which both, conventional and digital advertising impact on the resilience of enterprises. An empirical quantitative investigation was carried out in May 2021, in which a 30-item online questionnaire was administered to a sample of 302 micro, small and medium-sized enterprises located in the southern region of Tamaulipas, Mexico. Results showed that the surveyed companies claimed that they use conventional and virtual advertising in almost the same proportion. In addition, a significant positive correlation was found between the use of the two types of advertising and the resilience of enterprises. Therefore, it is advisable for entrepreneurs to define strategies that lead to the use of all advertising mediums in order to increase the possibility of achieving entrepreneurial sustailiability, especially in adverse circumstances.