Adoption of Social Media Marketing by Entrepreneurial Ventures in a Developing Economy: Evidence from Calabar South, Nigeria

ABSTRACT : This study examined the predictive influence of Facebook and Twitter (X) marketing on entrepreneurial ventures in Calabar South Local Government Area, Cross River State, Nigeria. Guided by two research questions and two hypotheses, a descriptive survey design was used to collect data from 300 entrepreneurs selected through proportionate stratified random sampling. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, simple linear regression, and multiple regression at a significance level of 0.05. Findings revealed that Facebook marketing significantly predicts entrepreneurial performance (β = 0.834, p < 0.001; R² = 0.695), while Twitter marketing also significantly predicts performance (β = 0.782, p < 0.001; R² = 0.612). Comparative analyses revealed that Twitter has a slightly stronger individual influence, and the joint use of both platforms explains 70.7% of the variance, highlighting the benefits of integrated, multi-platform marketing strategies. The study contributes to knowledge by distinguishing the platform-specific effects of Facebook and Twitter on entrepreneurial performance in a developing economy, providing localized empirical evidence, and demonstrating the role of digital competencies in enhancing marketing effectiveness. The findings extend Diffusion of Innovation and Human Capital theories, showing that adoption and strategic use of social media platforms jointly influence entrepreneurial success. The study recommends that entrepreneurs adopt strategic, consistent, and integrated social media practices, policy-makers and SME agencies focus on digital marketing capacity-building, and future research explore additional platforms and moderating factors such as digital literacy and AI-driven marketing tools.