The use of social media platforms by small, medium and micro enterprises in the beauty industry in Honeydew, Johannesburg

Abstract

Small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) play a crucial role in job creation and the country’s economy. Developing SMMEs and ensuring that they adapt to the new digital era becomes a necessity to keep up with competitors for sustainability and constant growth. This study investigates the use of social media platforms within the beauty industry; to see if Honeydew nail bar salons use any of the social media platforms to advertise their products and services. Statistics South Africa indicate that 2042 businesses, including nail bar salons were liquidated within a year; January to December 2019 due to severe financial challenges. Research shows that social media is the future of the new digital era required by SMMEs to grow their businesses. Social media have created a worldwide virtual community in which can help SMMEs to compete with bigger businesses by showcasing their products and services to a larger community. Many studies were conducted on nail bar salons. However, they mostly focused on health-related issues, such as the skin diseases that might be associated with products used on customer’s nails. Therefore, this study sought to investigate how nail bar salon businesses can grow from small businesses to larger enterprises. The study focused on what they can do differently to earn more profits for their salons. The study employed a quantitative research methodology to collect data from Honeydew residents who normally do their nails in local salons. There are six nail bar salons in Honeydew and a hundred questionnaires were distributed to the salon patrons. A face- to-face survey was conducted, although some participants preferred to complete the survey online, so the link to the questionnaires was distributed to their email addresses. The study findings showed that the target clients for the Honeydew nail bar salons are young adults in the 18 -34 years age range, who constitutes 55.1percent of the clients. The study also noted that clients are accustomed to social media platforms. Therefore, Honeydew nail bar salons can still improve and attract more male clients to their nail bars, because they also form part of their clientele. The gender record showed 96.6percent females and 3.4 percent males. The study recommends the use of social media platforms to attract more clients of all genders to Honeydew nail bar owners.