The Effect of Marketing Ethics as a Moderator on the Relationship Between Competitor Orientation and SMEs' Performance in Saudi Arabia

This study seeks to investigate the impact of competitor orientation (CO) on SMEs' performance in the manufacturing sector in Saudi Arabia. As well as to demonstrate how marketing ethics (ME) moderates this important relationship. Based on a sample of 408 Saudi manufacturing SMEs, and by PLS-SEM, the links in the proposed model were investigated. The obtained results revealed that actually, CO positively affects SMEs' performance; more importantly, this effect is conditioned by ME. The findings of this study provide advantageous insights for managers and decision-makers for SMEs, as it is expected that they demonstrate a greater commitment to practicing ME in their firms. This has ramifications in that, with the practice of ME, it is predicted that SMEs will be able to fully exploit the potential of CO to increase their overall performance.