Using the On-line Ad Platforms in the Small Business Commercial Activities

Abstract

The article is aimed at studying the market of on-line ad platforms in Ukraine, as well as the opportunities that it provides to small businesses in the sphere of product promotion and sales. When analyzing and generalizing the scientific works of scholars, it was found that they do not consider the on-line ad platforms as an instrument that can give a new impetus in the commercial activities of small businesses and private entrepreneurs. Given the protracted economic crisis due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the use and research of these platforms appears to be all the more topical issue. The common characteristics of the on-line ad sites as categories are allocated, the related marketplaces are examined. The presented in Ukraine electronic bulletin boards, their features, differences, strengths and weaknesses are researched. Mechanisms for using these platforms in commercial activities of enterprises are proposed. A comparison of on-line ads with the creation of an own website and on-line store is made; advantages and disadvantages of both options are provided. Separately, the creation of an on-line store at the proposed marketplace as a compromise option is allocated. The benefits of paid ads are considered. The possibilities that can be provided through ads for an additional fee are explored. The possible hazards and types of fraud in trading through electronic bulletin boards, as well as ways to avoid them, are specified. Prospects for further research in this direction are to improve the awareness of users about fraud opportunities, as well as development of new mechanisms for identifying users and making payments capable of complicating or, in the ideal case, preventing criminal actions.