Educational Process: International Journal

ISSN: 2147-0901 | e-ISSN: 2564-8020 | www.edupij.com

Educational Process International Journal • Volume 9 • Issue 4 • 2020

A Qualitative Study of Social Media Marketing in Ireland: The Facilitating Role of

Higher Education

Simon Stephens and Christopher McLaughlin

To cite this article: Stephens, S., & McLaughlin, C. (2020). A Qualitative Study of Social Media
Marketing in Ireland: The Facilitating Role of Higher Education. Educational Process: International
Journal, 9(4), 221-234, DOI: 10.22521/edupij.2020.94.3

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.22521/edupij.2020.94.3

Simon Stephens, Letterkenny Institute of Technology, Ireland. (email: [email protected])

Christopher McLaughlin, University of Ulster, Northern Ireland. (email: [email protected])

 EDUPIJ • Volume 9 • Issue 4 • 2020 • pp. 221–234.

A Qualitative Study of Social Media Marketing in Ireland: The Facilitating

Role of Higher Education

SIMON STEPHENS and CHRISTOPHER MCLAUGHLIN

Abstract

In this paper we present a qualitative study of social media marketing by small business
owners in Ireland. We present data from interviews with six owner/managers, six employees,
and six experts. Exploring the three perspectives simultaneously facilitates a three-way
narrative. We apply narrative structuring as proposed by Kvale (2006) in order to provide
insight into the understanding, practices, motivations, behavior, and activities of small
businesses as they relate to marketing; specifically, social media-based marketing. The delivery
of skills to small businesses create challenges for higher education in terms of the design of
curriculum, pedagogy and accreditation. A significant finding of this study is the influence that
the attitudes, knowledge and capacity of the owners have on their propensity to engage with
social media marketing. There is a role for higher education in bridging this gap. However, this
is not just in the delivering of traditional skills, but working as facilitators and developing
student, graduate and employee advocates through a comprehensive provision of experiential
and work-based learning initiatives. This paper presents novel insights and improves our
understanding of the role of higher education in supporting the training needs of small
businesses. In our conclusion we present a series of recommendations on the design of
customized training programs for small businesses.

Keywords: Social media, higher education, marketing, experiential learning.

DOI: 10.22521/edupij.2020.94.3

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SIMON STEPHENS and CHRISTOPHER MCLAUGHLIN 222

Introduction
The role of higher education as a means for facilitating the transfer of knowledge and
skills into meaningful business activity for small business is documented in the academic
literature (Lockett et al., 2008; Suleman, 2018; Wall, 2017). The perceptions of owners have
been studied (Matlay & Addis, 2003; Scarmozzino et al., 2017; Troise & Tani, 2020); as has
the experience of academics (Bieberhofer et al., 2019; Gordon et al., 2012; Hynes &
Richardson, 2007) and those of the business (Adegbuyi et al., 2015; Ahmad et al., 2019;
Öztamur & Karakadılar, 2014). This paper adopts a novel approach by examining the three
perspectives simultaneously. This approach facilitates a three-way narrative and provides
multiple perspectives on the purpose, process, benefits, and challenges of developing social
media marketing capabilities within a small business setting. The rational for this study is
that as the small business sector grows and diversifies so does its training and education
needs. A key element of success is targeted, cost-effective marketing. The proliferation of
social media platforms offers many opportunities for small businesses. However, there is a
need to explore how higher education provision can best support engagement with social
media marketing by small businesses.
Despite developments within the area of digital technologies including social media for
business, there has been little research that has examined how small business owners
engage and sustain their engagement with social media. Nambisan (2017) explained that
existing research has largely neglected the role of digital technologies in entrepreneurial
pursuits, although the emergence of new digital technologies has largely transformed
entrepreneurial processes and outcomes (Jordan, 2020). Social media-based marketing is
rapidly becoming a crucial business management platform, predominantly because it is
accessible, low-cost, and there are limited technical requirements (Ainin et al., 2015; Cheung
et al., 2020; Durkin et al., 2013; Jones et al., 2015). However, as Faherty and Stephens (2016,
p. 351) explained, a typical small business will only have small numbers of staff who carry
out a range of different functions, small operating budgets, and a management team who
are preoccupied with the day-to-day survival of the business, rather than the development
of any social media marketing strategy or campaigns. This is despite the fact that through
social media, small businesses can grow their brand, diversify their offerings, expand their
customer base, and increase their online presence (Chatterjee & Kar, 2020; de Vries et al.,
2018; Inakova et al., 2019).
The challenge facing small businesses, and we propose also facing higher education, is
that the availability of appropriate skills to best utilize emergent technologies, specifically
social media platforms, is an important condition for the competitiveness and the innovation
capabilities of entrepreneurs and small enterprises (Al Sharji et al., 2018). Therefore, in this
paper we address three key research questions:
 RQ 1: What are the opportunities and challenges associated with small businesses
engaging with social media?
 RQ 2: How do higher education institutions design and deliver education and training
to small businesses?
 RQ 3: What new and innovative modes of delivery and methods of assessment can
higher education introduce to support social media marketing in small businesses?

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We begin by examining the issues associated with marketing in a small business setting,
specifically, in relation to the use of social media marketing. Second, we present an overview
of how marketing, and specifically social media marketing, are delivered within higher
education. We then present the data from our interviews, after which we present our
conclusions, recommendations, limitations, and future research directions.
Small Business, Social Media Marketing and Higher Education
The availability of appropriate skills for utilizing emergent technologies is an important
condition for the competitiveness and marketing capabilities of small businesses. We
propose that a small business that cannot or does not engage with social media-related
business and marketing activities will lose competitive advantage, experience a reduced
market share over time, and provide a diminished customer experience. Of course, we must
acknowledge that the focus for many small businesses is on day-to-day issues and economic
survival. The literature (Amabile et al., 2002; Colombo et al., 2012; Dobbs & Hamilton, 2007;
Panagiotakopoulos, 2020; Williams et al., 2018) reports that in the small business workplace
environment there is little focus on strategic issues (such as marketing).
The solution comes in the form of three interrelated options. First, subject to resource
availability, small businesses can recruit a specialist to lead their marketing function. Where
this is not economically feasible, a second option is to upskill an existing member of staff (or
themselves) by registering them for training at a Higher Education Institution (HEI). The third
alternative is some form of student placement, apprenticeship, or graduate internship. We
believe that higher education policy now emphasizes a need for HEIs to collaborate with
employers in the design and delivery of programs of study for both current employees and
potential future employees. There is significant evidence in the literature (Ferrández-
Berrueco et al., 2016; Linehan & Sheridan, 2009; McGunagle & Zizka, 2020; Neier & Zayer,
2015) that until recently, provision in higher education was almost entirely designed to offer
for-employment rather than in-employment education and training. We propose that a
flexible education and training system can support small businesses to maximize their
potential.
Atwong (2015, p. 28) explained that marketing faculties need to provide effective
learning experiences in social media marketing in order to prepare students to meet
industry’s demand for talent. With intense competition for traditional learners, many HEIs
are focusing their attention on those already in employment. Employers want skills delivered
at a cost they can afford and often at short notice. Simultaneously, employees want
initiatives that offer genuine prospects for career progression (Major, 2016; Manning &
Parrott, 2018).
The extant literature (Merrill et al., 2020; Nicolescu & Cristian, 2009; Roth et al., 2014;
Tomlinson, 2017) provides examples of how the alignment between the requirements of
employers in terms of the abilities and skills they need from graduates does not match with
the abilities and skills developed by individuals who attend HEIs. Many government-based
initiatives have been introduced in a bid to bridge the gap between theory and practice.
Indeed, HEIs are engaged in significant work with stakeholders to support the development,
design, and delivery of programs that can furnish learners with the competencies required
by the business community. Furthermore, the preparation of graduates for the workplace by
HEIs through formal learning processes is now increasingly open to scrutiny. The changes
being brought about by technology, specifically, the emergence of social media as a

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specialized platform for marketing, requires us to reassess the role of higher education in
skilling, reskilling, and upskilling small businesses in all aspects of marketing (OECD, 2019).
The impact on the design and delivery of higher education has and will continue to be
significant (Berkovich & Benoliel, 2020; Granitz & Pitt, 2011; Mason et al., 2009; Paul, 2019).
HEIs are now more than ever involved in purposeful engagement and collaboration with
employers (big and small) in the design and delivery of programs of study. Therefore, it can
realistically be expected that in the coming years there will be a surge in demand
internationally for work-based learning (Ferrández-Berrueco et al., 2016; Reeve & Gallacher,
2007). Doherty and Stephens (2019, p. 331) proposed that this expected increase in demand
has been influenced by three factors: 1) the rise in non-standardized work for employees;
2) the recognition by employers that knowledge is a source of competitive advantage; and
3) HEIs seeking exposure to real-life business problems, as well as improving their reputation
amongst external employers. A common aim of work-based learning is to simultaneously
meet the learning needs of employees and the needs of their employer. The extant
literature (Major, 2016; Plewa et al., 2015; Rouvrais et al., 2020; Sobiechowska & Maisch,
2006) presents numerous accounts of the challenges that designing and delivering work-
based learning poses for HEIs and academics who are accustomed to the traditional mode of
teaching and learning. Major (2016) explained that academics gain from work-based learning
by acquiring industry knowledge and exposure to real-life business problems which can then
be passed on to traditional fulltime learners. Billett and Choy (2013) explained that
employees gain by participating in learning that is embedded in the workplace and aligned
with the needs of their employees. In the context of this article we propose that work-based
learning offers small business owners the opportunity to upskill employees whilst
successfully completing work packages that are of strategic importance and sustainable
beyond the duration of the study program (Clifton et al., 2015; Rosenberg et al., 2012).
Methodology
Individual in-depth interviews were conducted with six employers, six employees, and
six social media experts (a mix of academics and consultants). Ethical approval was sought
and received from the respective HEIs of the authors. There were no conflicts of interest
arising. In partnership with our faculty offices we were able to identify 30 potential
participants (10 in each of the three target groups) We made initial contact via email and
then followed up by phone. The initial response was positive and supportive. For a variety of
reasons (time pressures, seasonal issues, holidays, and general calendar availability) not all
the individuals we approached were able to participate.
The owner and employee participants represent the diverse nature of small businesses
in Ireland. The six experts each have extensive experience of working with a wide range of
small business owners and their staff. An opportunistic sampling approach was employed.
The benefits of using opportunistic sampling is that it allows for a cost-effective and time-
effective approach to gaining generalizable insights from a readily available target
population. The interviews were audio-recorded and then subsequently transcribed.
Narrative structuring (Kvale, 2006) was used to encourage the interviewees to recount their
experiences as freely and unguided as possible. This approach enabled the interviewees to
provide highly contextualized and relevant accounts through a narrative (presented in the
findings) which was then structured according to the interview schedule. A profile of the
participants is presented in Table 1.

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Table 1. Participants
Role Gender Age Experience Education Sector
Expert 1 Female 49 24 years PhD Higher Education
Expert 2 Female 42 12 years MBA Government Unit
Expert 3 Male 56 22 years PhD Higher Education
Expert 4 Female 38 11 years PhD Higher Education
Expert 5 Male 33 7 years MSc Policy/Funding
Expert 6 Female 36 10 years PhD Higher Education
Owner 1 Male 55 30 years MBS Consultancy
Owner 2 Female 41 20 years BEng Health & Safety
Owner 3 Female 30 5 years BSc Fitness
Owner 4 Male 32 10 years BSc Computer Games
Owner 5 Male 55 30 years MBS Cafe
Owner 6 Female 40 20 years MBS Prof Services
Employee 1 Female 26 3 years MBS Prof Services
Employee 2 Male 31 8 years 2nd Level Design
Employee 3 Male 34 10 years BBS Prof Services
Employee 4 Female 24 2 years Dip in Bus Retail
Employee 5 Female 32 10 years MSc Building Provider
Employee 6 Male 20 1 year 2nd Level Car Sales
Exploring the three perspectives simultaneously facilitated a three-way narrative. The
result gave 18 differing perspectives on the purpose, process, benefits, and challenges of
adopting social media-based marketing within a small business setting. The structure of the
interviews (which were used to structure the findings) was as follows: with regards to
attitudinal beliefs, the participants were asked about the advantages and disadvantages of
owner/managers using social media as a marketing tool in their business. A further question
was used to identify individuals or groups who might encourage or discourage the use of
social media as a marketing tool. Next, we explored factors which small businesses perceive
as either facilitating or as barriers. Finally, we asked about the return on investment (ROI) for
a small business who invests in social media marketing training.
Findings
The interviews started with a review of the main benefits of using social media (SM) for
marketing in a small business setting. A number of benefits were identified:
If they are trying to enter a foreign market or even their own domestic market, how
does a small company with a novel offering get its head above all that noise…social
media is one of the ways to do that…to punch above their weight. [Expert 4]
It’s the first place people search about us and what we do…but it can be hard to keep
up with the messages…email and phone are still the best. [Owner 2]
SM for a business is available 24x7, open around the clock, even if they are closed they
are engaging with customers. [Expert 1]
People have started using the online marketplace a lot, and so we are able to sell a lot
of materials to homeowners and people doing small projects via our social media
accounts. [Employee 5]

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Social media is great…it puts out a message very quickly, and promotion is a big thing;
that is why you get involved, getting something back, being a known provider.
[Expert 2]
Overall the key benefits that were identified include a lack of barriers to development,
and limited setup costs and an ability to virtually interact with and sell to customers.
However, the interviewees also reported a number of limitations and challenges:
Depends on the business and its adoption of SM: if B2B or B2C…for B2C it’s very
important to promote the business, keeping your customers informed of what’s going
on. [Expert 2]
We have tried to use it but it took a lot of time to set it up and I don’t have the staff to
maintain it…to be honest when you do look at it all the messages are just another
headache. [Owner 1]
I always say to them it’s not always free as you are spending your time monitoring and
managing it…some people’s [SME owner/managers] perspective is strange; they don’t
see their own time as having value. [Expert 5].
It is time-consuming…staff become distracted from their main duties…it’s a balance as
it depends on the SMEs size…having the resources and the time is important. [Owner 4]
SMEs need to understand what they are doing…a lack of understand of the
permanency of what is out there and a lack of understanding of search engine
optimization. [Expert 4]
Bad news, negative comments, one random experience that a customer claims to have
had can become a real problem…I prefer to deal with customers over the phone and
when I visit in person. [Employee 3]
It really is like having another business. I have to spend so much time interacting with
my clients and commenting on their posts…I mean, it all helps but it takes up so much
time. [Owner 3]
It depends on the sector; transport and logistics don’t use it as its more of a B2B sector,
and so SM tends not to be used…maybe they use Facebook just to get their brand out
there. [Expert 4]
Time resources, and manpower, but mostly time, they [SME owners] have a perception
that…they don’t have the time. [Expert 3]
My customers don’t want to use Facebook and tell everyone their problems, especially
if they have a serious issue which we need to handle in private. [Owner 6]
Overall the key challenges relate to the: appropriateness/usefulness for the industry;
the potential for negative outcomes; and most significantly, the amount of time required
either by the owner and/or their staff to manage their social media presence. Next, we
explored how social media was “managed” and by who with the small business setting.
Its peers or people within the same area you’re in…networks, people in your own
groups or networks you’re in…fellow companies or people you have met during the
process [of starting up] would be interested in what you’re doing. [Expert 2]

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That would be peer pressure...in the context of small firms you can ask them why they
did it [engage or adopt with social media]…because everyone else has done it, but they
may not know why they are doing it. [Expert 4]
Like most things here, I do it all…not all day, but most evenings and maybe a blitz on a
Sunday evening. [Owner 5]
Younger family members where family learning can shed some light on the use of social
media. [Expert 1]
Ever since I started I have looked after the Facebook stuff. A colleague does the online
retail side, so I just get people interested and clicking the link to the [online] shop.
[Employee 2]
More specifically, if the younger family member comes in they bring in new resource
and knowledge [social media] into the business. [Expert 4]
I was shown how the online competitions worked and then was just left to sort it
out…the other stuff like messages they are not really bothered about. [Employee 6]
Overall the interviewees reported an eclectic mix of approaches, and a clear lack of
structure and job/task design. The initial time assigned to setting up marketing initiatives
was not matched by the necessary resources for structured and successful management.
Small wins are viewed as a positive, but there is limited oversight and no evidence of any
high-level planning.
Having explored the reality of small business engagement and the utilization of social
media marketing, we next explored the capacity of HEIs to facilitate the adoption of social
media marketing by small businesses. Surprisingly, the focus of the experts was on how HEIs
could adopt the role of advocates by engaging directly with small business owners to first,
explain the value of social media and second, to help with resource planning and ongoing
management issues.
They [small business owners] need things such as vision to add value to the company
and technical competency had emerged. [Expert 5]
It comes down to a lack of education, they [SME owners] thought there were costs
associated with starting up a social media presence. [Expert 3]
Setting up their own [web]pages…thinking that they just had to set up a page, whereas
its much more than that. [Expert 6].
Way of knowing how people [customers] go through your pages online, tracking their
movements, if or how they make a sale. [Expert 1]
Reveal customer attitudes and behavior, and bring in money…new business…new
partnerships and customers. [Expert 4]
More local groups…more research needs to be done, results need to be available for
SMEs to see what is happening. [Expert 3]
A lot of people have no marketing expertise. It depends on your background; more
mentoring needs to be provided, more classes…there is no harm with that. [Expert 2]
As a business school we need to reach beyond our ivory tower…to show that social
media is not just a ‘nice to have,’ not an add-on, but an important tool. [Expert 4]

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For the owners there were a diverse mix of expectations and needs:
Training to keep me up-to-date…there are always new tools and sites that we could be
using. [Owner 6]
Projects with a real outcome would be great…although I am not sure how we keep it
going afterwards. [Owner 5]
Train someone on the job…I can’t do it all but one of the office staff could be given time
to work on it each week. [Owner 4]
I would love a student to come in to completely redesign everything…there must be
loads we things that we don’t do or know about. [Owner 2]
I need to start learning. If I could do a project with classmates and a good teacher then
I would be able to get myself properly organized. [Owner 2]
For the employees (many of whom are graduates of HEIs) there were very specific
needs, mainly around the requirement for an external advocate who could support the
scaling up of social media-based marketing:
I need more training on how to improve our SEO in order that we will attract people to
our website. Then I can link back to Facebook and Instagram to really start getting our
online customer base up. [Employee 1]
I am trying to get my boss to try one big online campaign, so if I did a course then I
would have someone to help me work on a project.. then maybe I could work on
marketing full-time. [Employee 4]
We don’t do anything at the moment…our content is so bad I think it puts people off. If
I had a proper reason to design and package our products [cars] then we could do
much more business. [Employee 6]
It is so frustrating try to get [anyone] to listen to my ideas. Other shops are doing it so
all we need to do is to keep up. I would love to work on it full-time. [Employee 4]
In the final part of the interviews we asked the participants about the value of
experiential learning with an emphasis of what could be delivered through work-based
learning initiatives.
If I had a placement in my postgrad then I could have used my (academic) supervisor to
help me with some of the work they asked me to do at the start. [Employee 5]
A proper well designed project that they [employees] are assessed on but that I can see
something tangible. Then I would consider spending more money and getting that
member of staff to work on it as needs be. [Employer 2]
There is so much we can do. If we had online classes then we could work live on the
social media platforms and get real momentum. [Expert 6]
These three quotes capture the willingness of the participants to engage in some form
of work-based learning. We propose it is HEIs who are best positioned to facilitate this
process.

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Discussion
Previously, authors (Adegbuyi et al., 2015; Cesaroni & Consoli, 2016; Fillis et al., 2004;
McCann & Barlow, 2015) have noted that it is important for business owners to understand
the impact (positive and negative) that social media marketing can potentially have on their
business. Specifically, social media marketing can help small businesses to: generate
increased sales; secure new customers; identify opportunities; avenues for communication;
and increase market presence (Eggers et al., 2017). There is however, a false expectation
that because barriers (including) cost are low (initially), that all business owners will adopt
and resource social media marketing. This is not the case. However, HEIs can play a key role
in providing the knowledge and skills necessary to support the small business sector. Social
media marketing is identified in the interviews as a promotional and cost-effective tool, that,
when used correctly, increases awareness of products or services. The evidence from our
interviews in this study indicate that there is both a desire and willingness among small
business owners to integrate social media marketing into their business strategy. However,
operationalizing social media marketing presents a significant key challenge, as is utilizing its
capacity and measuring its impact through appropriate metrics that can support evidence-
based decision-making. Our findings indicate that limited time and skills shortages can
negatively impact the ability of small business to utilize social media marketing.
Unfortunately, some of the employers and their employees were unaware of the capacity or
functions of social media marketing. Finally, the participants suggested that there are sector-
specific adoption challenges, and that for many small businesses there remains a fear of
receiving negative feedback from their customers.
In terms of the resources that small business require, it is interesting to note that family
members were identified as key advocates and often reported as the individuals who
managed the social media platforms and activities. It is not surprising that finance was raised
as an issue. But of greater significance in this study is the influence of the attitudes,
knowledge, and capacity of the owners. Our experts were shown to be strong advocates, but
there is a role for HEIs in bridging this knowledge gap. However, this is not just through the
delivery of traditional skills, but by working as advocates through consultancy and by
developing student, graduate, and employee advocates through a comprehensive provision
of experiential and work-based learning.
Bensimon et al. (2004) explained that in order to ensure an appropriate link between
research and practice, there is a need to study problems that are of greater relevance to
policymakers and practitioners. Therefore, this paper presents our answer to RQ3 in the
form of the following recommendations to HEIs:
 Biannual seminars or webinars are needed to update owners and their staff on the
latest technology, new platforms, and trends in marketing for small businesses.
 Innovative provision and dual-education initiatives such as the new
apprenticeships and work-based learning are the format of delivery most likely to
succeed.
 HEIs must work in partnership with employers to support extended placements
and rotational programs as part of programs of study.
 Employers must work with HEIs to promote initiatives like company visits, industry
guest speakers and learners collaborating on real life projects proposed by local
organizations.

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These recommendations add to the literature and present novel ways in which HEIs can
better support the activities of small businesses.
Conclusion
This paper contributes to the scholarly debate on how HEIs can meet the training and
educational need of small businesses. The success of partnerships between HEIs and small
businesses can be linked to the relationships that form between employers, employees, and
academics (Cameron et al., 2019; Ferrández-Berrueco et al., 2016; Roberts, 2018; Stephens
et al., 2014). Therefore, we have provided insight from three key stakeholder groups
(experts, employers, and employees) simultaneously; something not previously presented in
the literature. The challenges associated with work-based learning place demands on the
design and delivery of curriculum, pedagogy, and accreditation (Byrom & Aiken, 2014;
Manning & Parrott, 2018). It is imperative that owner-managers are made fully aware of the
benefits of using social media for the purposes of marketing. HEIs and their staff have a key
role in increasing awareness, as do graduates from HEIs. There is a need to change how HEIs
manage their program design process. A greater diversity of offerings in terms of content,
duration, delivery modes, assessment design, and the proportion of work-based learning is
needed.
We conclude by acknowledging the limitations of our study. Our sample size is small and
a greater number of case study organizations would add additional perspective.
Furthermore, an extended longitudinal study may provide greater insights. There is
significant scope for further research. Specifically, further research is needed to explore and
report on case studies that relate to the implementation of our four recommendations and
the associated outcomes achieved within a small business setting.

Notes
Corresponding author: SIMON STEPHENS

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