Kampala — BUSINESSES, especially small-and-medium enterprises, need to embrace strategic marketing to be competitive, attract demand and sustain growth, a marketing consultant has said.

David Sempala, the Royal Way Media chief executive officer, said marketing and good customer care were key components in business strategy.

Many small business owners, according to Ssempala, do not appreciate the importance of marketing and fail to plan for 'rough spots' in the business cycle such as off-seasons, or economic downturns.

"Without marketing there are no sales and without sales, there is no revenue. Any business will collapse without revenue."

He was presenting a paper on "the role of marketing in shaping businesses" recently.

Statistics show that nearly two-thirds of new businesses in Uganda fail within their first two years.