Vestindo competitividade com técnicas de marketing : analisando como as técnicas de marketing se relacionam com a competitividade das PMEs do Polo de Moda Itabaianinha/SE

Abstract

Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises play a significant role in economic and social development, particularly through employment generation, income creation, and the stimulation of local economies. Despite their importance, they face resource constraints and increasing competitive challenges, making marketing techniques a strategic element for their survival, especially when examined within Local Productive Arrangements, where geographical proximity and cooperative relationships can enhance outcomes. The main objective of this dissertation was to analyze how the marketing techniques adopted by Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in the Polo Moda Itabaianinha, Sergipe, relate their competitiveness. To this end, a sequential research design consisting of two interconnected studies was adopted. The first stage, of a theoretical nature, was conducted through an Integrative Systematic Literature Review, which analyzed 65 articles and organized the evidence into four analytical categories: marketing innovation, digital transformation, customer orientation, and sustainable marketing, interpreted as organizational capabilities that strengthen competitiveness. In the second stage, of a theoretical-empirical nature, a survey was conducted with managers and owners of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in the Polo Moda Itabaianinha, Sergipe, using a sample of 51 firms selected from the 89 active members of the sector's representative association. The data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling to test the association between marketing techniques related to marketing innovation, relationship marketing, network cooperation, and social media marketing, and organizational competitiveness. The results showed that the network cooperation construct exhibited a statistically positive association with competitiveness (β = 0.53; p < 0.001), whereas marketing innovation, relationship marketing, and social media marketing did not present sufficient evidence. The model explained 63% of the variance in competitiveness (R² = 0.63). The findings reinforce competitiveness as a multidimensional phenomenon and highlight the central role of interorganizational cooperation for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises operating within Local Productive Arrangements, providing theoretical contributions to the field of marketing as well as managerial and public policy implications aimed at strengthening the competitiveness of these organizations.