Examining the drivers of marketing innovation in SMEs

Marketing innovation represents a pathway for achieving legitimacy, viability, and growth for SMEs that typically operate with resource constraints in uncertain and competitive environments. However, our understanding of the organizational determinants of marketing innovation by SMEs is limited. We advance the literature by drawing on a longitudinal (5-year) data set obtained through an Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) national-level panel and offering a comprehensive picture of the organizational determinants that affect the likelihood of marketing innovation by SMEs. Logistic regression analysis conducted on 4378 firm-year observations generally supports our theoretical framework and reveals how marketing innovation by SMEs is driven by institutional, resource, innovation, and performance measurement factors. Our findings offer SME managers a clear line of sight between organization-wide practices and innovative marketing practices.