MARKETING INNOVATIONS IN THE SMES IN BULGARIA AND ICELAND: EMPIRICAL STUDY ON CURRENT SITUATION

It is well known that small and medium sized enterprises play a significant role in the economies and especially in smaller countries and in their economies as they reduce unemployment which has a beneficial effect on the social development of societies. The role of innovations as a new and major factor in economic growth continues to be underestimated and this is valid for Bulgaria as well where there is a deficit of research on the innovation activities of the SMEs in Bulgaria. Тhe main goal of this empirical study is to find out the attitude to innovations in SMEs, what kind of innovations related to marketing are conducted by the Bulgarian SMEs - in product design, packaging and marketing communications, what are the differences in the orientation of the business models to innovations. The main data collection method is an online survey with a random sample of SMEs. Part of the empirical data from survey questions are compared with the data from similar research in Iceland provided to the team by the Institute for Innovations Research of Reykjavik University in order to make possible the comparison. According to the survey data there is a difference between the approaches: the Icelandic companies are more inclined to radical innovations while for the Bulgarian companies is more typical the incremental approach to innovations.It is well known that small and medium sized enterprises play a significant role in the economies and especially in smaller countries and in their economies as they reduce unemployment which has a beneficial effect on the social development of societies. The role of innovations as a new and major factor in economic growth continues to be underestimated and this is valid for Bulgaria as well where there is a deficit of research on the innovation activities of the SMEs in Bulgaria. Тhe main goal of this empirical study is to find out the attitude to innovations in SMEs, what kind of innovations related to marketing are conducted by the Bulgarian SMEs - in product design, packaging and marketing communications, what are the differences in the orientation of the business models to innovations. The main data collection method is an online survey with a random sample of SMEs. Part of the empirical data from survey questions are compared with the data from similar research in Iceland provided to the team by the Institute for Innovations Research of Reykjavik University in order to make possible the comparison. According to the survey data there is a difference between the approaches: the Icelandic companies are more inclined to radical innovations while for the Bulgarian companies is more typical the incremental approach to innovations

INTRODUCTION TO THE VISEGRAD FUND PROJECT: HOW TO PREVENT SMEs FROM FAILURE (Actions based on comparative analysis in Visegrad countries and Serbia)

This issue of Serbian Journal of Management (SJM 14(2) 2019), is dedicated to one very important challenge of contemporary entrepreneurship, that is condensed in single question: How to prevent SMEs from failure ? The articles published in this issue are all addressing different aspects of entrepreneurial activities that can lead to successful and/or unsuccessful operations. Part of the articles pubished in this issue are directly presenting the results of the project: HOW TO PREVENT SMEs FROM FAILURE (Actions based on comparative analysis in Visegrad countries and Serbia), which was financially supported by the International Visegrad Fund. During the projects, researchers from all four Visegrad group countries, as well as researchers from Serbia, were analysing SMEs from their regions, which suffered from some degree of financial distress or have failed in the past. The main purpose of this investigation was to analyse and identify the most important business factors that can lead to failure of the SMEs businesses. Obtained results are presented in this issue. On the other hand, part of the manuscripts in this issue are invited from the authors who are also investigating the SMEs operation and are dealing the factors of success of the entrepreneurial activities, in the region outside Visegrad group or Serbia. The main motive of this issue is to address this highly important challenge - SMEs successful operations

International Conference on Management Business and Economy

UBT Annual International Conference is the 11th international interdisciplinary peer reviewed conference which publishes works of the scientists as well as practitioners in the area where UBT is active in Education, Research and Development. The UBT aims to implement an integrated strategy to establish itself as an internationally competitive, research-intensive university, committed to the transfer of knowledge and the provision of a world-class education to the most talented students from all background. The main perspective of the conference is to connect the scientists and practitioners from different disciplines in the same place and make them be aware of the recent advancements in different research fields, and provide them with a unique forum to share their experiences. It is also the place to support the new academic staff for doing research and publish their work in international standard level. This conference consists of sub conferences in different fields like: Art and Digital Media Agriculture, Food Science and Technology Architecture and Spatial Planning Civil Engineering, Infrastructure and Environment Computer Science and Communication Engineering Dental Sciences Education and Development Energy Efficiency Engineering Integrated Design Information Systems and Security Journalism, Media and Communication Law Language and Culture Management, Business and Economics Modern Music, Digital Production and Management Medicine and Nursing Mechatronics, System Engineering and Robotics Pharmaceutical and Natural Sciences Political Science Psychology Sport, Health and Society Security Studies This conference is the major scientific event of the UBT. It is organizing annually and always in cooperation with the partner universities from the region and Europe. We have to thank all Authors, partners, sponsors and also the conference organizing team making this event a real international scientific event. Edmond Hajrizi, President of UBT UBT – Higher Education Institutio