Critical Analysis of the Changing Phases of Microenterprises with the Use of Mobile Phones

Abstract

The use of cell phones in the life of people generally has become a phenomenon and for that matter many people are seen with mobile phones almost everywhere they are. This practice does not exclude the Small and Medium Scale business operators. They see the use of cell-phones in the operations of their business as necessary simple ways of operating business, fitting, and beneficial. For this reason most possibly, they are encouraged to own more than one cell-phone and use them for many purposes. By observation and chatting with some of the micro-enterprise owners, the researcher becomes interested in finding the ways that cell-phones are used and the effects the usage have on the operations of businesses. Descriptive method of research was employed with a sample size of three hundred and sixty (360). Small and medium scale business owners were involved in the research. Questionnaires were administered to the participants sampled randomly. The data collected was analysed using SPSS with maximum consideration of the objectives set to achieve. The study found that all categories of small business operators use cell-phones in the operations of their businesses. They use the cell-phones in various areas of operations including calculating prices, ordering goods, and tracing the path of goods in transit among others. The participants claim that the use of cell-phone reduces production cost and necessitates the expansion of business. Based on the shortfall in the use of cell-phones in the operations of business by the micro-enterprise operators, cell-phone sellers in the country can organize education for their customers to enable the small scale business operators make other uses (especially access to internet) of the cell-phones other than the voice calls and SMS only.

Key Words: Small and Medium Scale Enterprises/Micro Enterprise, Mobile/Cell Phones, Growth, Operational areas, Marketing Activities