Exploring Business Communication Practices among Small Business Owners: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

This study aims to explore business communication practices among small business owners and examine how communication is used to support daily business activities and maintain relationships with customers, suppliers, business partners, and other stakeholders. The study particularly focuses on the ways small business owners utilize interpersonal and digital communication in managing their businesses. This study employs a qualitative approach with an exploratory research design. Data were collected through in depth interviews with small business owners selected using purposive sampling based on their active involvement in managing their businesses. The collected data were analyzed thematically through data reduction, coding, categorization, identification of emerging themes, and interpretation to identify patterns in business communication practices. The findings indicate that business communication among small business owners serves not only as a means of conveying information but also as an important mechanism for building trust, maintaining customer relationships, conducting negotiations, and fostering customer loyalty. Small business owners tend to adopt communication practices that are personal, flexible, and adaptive to the characteristics of their communication partners. Digital communication, particularly instant messaging applications and social media, is increasingly used to promote products, respond to customer inquiries, receive orders, and maintain business relationships. However, several challenges remain, including limited professional communication skills, unstructured information management, and differences in customer characteristics. These findings suggest that effective and adaptive communication practices are an important component of small business sustainability and relationship management.