Strategic Consultancy Services and SME Growth in Nigeria: Evidence From Marketing and Operational Support Practices

Abstract

The primary objective of the current study is to establish the impact of marketing consultancy services and operational consultancy services on the growth of small and medium scale enterprises in Kogi State, Nigeria. The need for the study emanated from the realization that most SMEs lack good market exposure, customer interaction, proper organizational practices, stock control measures, and usage of modern operational facilities. The study employed an exploratory survey research design. The total population comprised 725 registered SMEs' owners/managers in Lokoja metropolis, Kogi State. The Krejcie and Morgan table was applied to arrive at the sampling size which is 254, out of which 230 questionnaires were collected and analyzed. The data collection tool used was a structured questionnaire, and analysis was done through descriptive statistics and multiple regression using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS version 27.0). The results indicated that marketing consultancy services had a positive impact on SME growth but the contribution was quite minimal. On the other hand, operational consultancy services had the highest impact among all the consultancy variables considered in the study. In conclusion, the study found out that marketing and operational consultancy services positively influence SME growth through customer targeting, pricing, promotion, processes, efficiency, productivity, stock control, and ICT usage. Therefore, it was suggested that SMEs need to improve their marketing and operational consultancy, especially in digital marketing and technology use.