Chapter One — 1.1 Background to the Study

In recent years, Social Media Marketing has emerged as a critical factor shaping business survival rate of small and medium enterprises (smes) across organizations operating in and around Selected Commercial Banks in Nigeria. As institutions grapple with the pressures of globalization, regulatory reform, and shifting stakeholder expectations, understanding how social media marketing relates to business survival rate of small and medium enterprises (smes) has become an important area of both scholarly and practical concern.

Selected Commercial Banks in Nigeria presents a useful setting for examining this relationship precisely because the conditions there — structural, regulatory, and behavioural — differ from those typically assumed in the broader literature, most of which draws on evidence from more developed economies.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

Despite a growing body of literature on social media marketing, there remains limited consensus on the precise nature of its relationship with business survival rate of small and medium enterprises (smes), particularly within Selected Commercial Banks in Nigeria. Many organizations continue to make decisions about social media marketing without a clear, evidence-based understanding of how those decisions ultimately affect business survival rate of small and medium enterprises (smes). This gap between practice and empirical understanding is the central problem this study seeks to address.

1.3 Objectives of the Study

1. To examine the effect of Social Media Marketing on business survival rate of small and medium enterprises (smes) in Selected Commercial Banks in Nigeria.
2. To assess the extent to which social media marketing influences business survival rate of small and medium enterprises (smes) within the study area.
3. To identify the challenges associated with social media marketing in relation to business survival rate of small and medium enterprises (smes).
4. To recommend strategies for optimizing social media marketing in order to improve business survival rate of small and medium enterprises (smes).

1.4 Research Questions

1. What is the effect of social media marketing on business survival rate of small and medium enterprises (smes) in Selected Commercial Banks in Nigeria?
2. To what extent does social media marketing influence business survival rate of small and medium enterprises (smes) within the study area?
3. What challenges are associated with social media marketing in relation to business survival rate of small and medium enterprises (smes)?
4. What strategies can be adopted to optimize social media marketing in order to improve business survival rate of small and medium enterprises (smes)?

1.5 Significance of the Study

This study is significant to a range of stakeholders. For policymakers and regulators, the findings offer evidence to guide the design of frameworks that support healthier outcomes around business survival rate of small and medium enterprises (smes). For managers and practitioners within Selected Commercial Banks in Nigeria, the study provides practical insight into how social media marketing can be better managed. Finally, it contributes to the academic literature on entrepreneurship by extending existing knowledge into a specific empirical context, and offers a reference point for future researchers.

1.6 Scope of the Study

The study is limited to an examination of Social Media Marketing and its relationship with business survival rate of small and medium enterprises (smes) within the context of Selected Commercial Banks in Nigeria. It reflects a MSc-level scope of analysis and relies on data and perspectives available within that scope; generalizing the findings beyond this specific context should therefore be done with appropriate caution.