Marketing micro fashion enterprises through social media a study of Tailex Ghana and Express Tailor Ghana.

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to determine the role social media play in facilitating the marketing and advertising activities of selected micro-fashion firms in Ghana. It is noted from literature that micro, large, medium, and small-scale fashion enterprises have embraced social media in their marketing and advertising activities. This study sought to identify the various social media platforms used by micro fashion enterprises in their business operations, how these social media platforms are utilized in marketing and advertising, and the challenges micro fashion enterprises encounter in their use of these new communication avenues. Using the qualitative approach, this study triangulated interviews and document analysis to collect data from respondents from two purposively sampled micro fashion enterprises in Ghana – Tailex Ghana and Express Tailor Ghana. The study is underpinned by the Technology Appropriation Model (TAM) and Social Network Theory to explain how the selected micro fashion enterprises adopt and adapt social media especially Facebook to connect with the public (audiences) to market their products and services to attract clients and customers. The study found that micro fashion enterprises use various social media platforms especially WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook for their brand marketing and promotion activities. These social media platforms allow the micro fashion designers to create marketing, advertising, and promotional contents to promote business networks and awareness to attract many customers. However, these two micro fashion enterprises under study encounter several technological and human related challenges. Based on the findings, this study suggests that social media communication is considered by micro – fashion enterprises as critical platforms for their business and marketing of their brands, especially through advertising to attract customers and maximise sales and profits. Given this, these micro fashion designers, especially Tailex Ghana and Express Tailor Ghana must improve the use of social media platforms for marketing communication and promotion activities.