Researcher(s)
- Catherine Osinubi, Management Information Systems, University of Delaware
Faculty Mentor(s)
- Edward Hartono, Management Information Systems, University of Delaware
Abstract
Many small businesses have reasons for failure within the early stages. In the beauty industry, it’s very difficult for businesses to beat statistics due to innovation and emerging consumer trends. Among successful businesses one common denominator is the Management Information Systems behind the scenes. Without MIS systems and key functionality like forecasting, analyzing data, and more – businesses could be rendered obsolete or overlooked. To gauge the effect, qualitative research on a black owned skin care brand ,“So Buttery Skin”, was conducted. The initial analysis began with delving into the current system in place: Shopify Point-of-Sale system. Utilizing a convenience sampling survey, responses were gathered from other small beauty businesses to gather input on systems, user interfaces and concerns. This led to evaluating necessary and most effective systems for many small businesses and Shopify was proven useful. After that, a deep dive into competitors and how they leverage data to grow their business was conducted. This provided concerns on suggested POS systems and issues pertaining to navigating websites, targeted advertising, facilitating transactions and more. The results presented an opportunity to cross analyze So Buttery Skin against another Black owned skincare brand gaining popularity and traction. The business practices were evaluated by its community, on a balanced scale. As outcomes, methods of differentiation utilizing social media MIS built-in algorithms and trends were discovered. Along with this were data accuracy, advertising, coordination, and other key benefits. .The points of consideration included the prices, business model, revenue streams, and target audience incomes. Based on the outcomes of this study, one can conclude that utilizing MIS, to create a defined business strategy that will boost operations efficiently, is possible to combat the low rate of longevity of small beauty businesses in early stages.
Keywords: MIS, analysis, beauty, small business