Collective Entrepreneurship. Networking as a strategy for business development

The paper addresses the emerging practice of collective entrepreneurship and demonstrate a model of network marketing management in SMEs. The use of cooperation and alliances between local actors has gained increasing attention in the contemporary economy and has been discussed as a strategy for coping with increasing global competition. One example of an area in which this focus has gained acceptance is among actors located in the experience industry and especially in tourist destinations. The focus of this paper is to elaborate on marketing models in a small and medium sized tourism enterprises setting. The problem is considered from the entrepreneurship, marketing and networking perspectives. The result is based on a case study of an horizontal hotel network in the context of a Swedish municipality. In-depth interviews with hotel owners or managers as well as with the local tourism authorities contributed with the main information in the case. The interviews resulted in a visualisation of a powerful web of connections between actors showing the impact of collective entrepreneurship to achieve positive business development. This paper suggests that theories of networks may contribute to a logic that provides a better understanding of contemporary tourist destination marketing practice.

Il lavoro analizza la pratica emergente dell’imprenditorialità collettiva e adotta un modello reticolare di marketing management nelle piccole e medie imprese. L’uso del- la cooperazione e delle alleanze tra attori locali ha ottenuto una crescente attenzione ed è stato indicato come strategia per affrontare la competizione globale, in particolare nel business delle destinazioni turistiche. L’obiettivo dell’articolo è di elaborare modelli di marketing per le PMI turistiche. Il problema è considerato nella prospettiva imprenditoriale, di marketing e del network. L’indagine svolta si basa su un case study di un network di hotel, nel contesto di un comune svedese. L’autore ha condotto interviste in profondità con i proprietari e i dirigenti alberghieri e con le autorità locali. Dall’indagine emerge una potente rete di connessioni tra gli attori locali, evidenziando l’impatto dell’imprenditorialità collettiva al fine di ottenere uno sviluppo positivo del business.

Keywords:Networking, entrepreneurship, business development, tourism, social Capital

• The importance of network coopetition for the robustness of micro-enterprises in times of crisis Kristin Sabel, Cecilia Dalborg, Yvonne von Friedrichs, Andreas Kallmuenzer, in International Small Business Journal: Researching Entrepreneurship /2024 pp.751
  DOI: 10.1177/02662426241228283

Yvonne von Friedrichs, Collective Entrepreneurship. Networking as a strategy for business development in "MERCATI E COMPETITIVITÀ" 1/2010, pp 83-98, DOI: 10.3280/MC2010-001007