This is a literature review examining the impact of marketing research (MR) on the entrepreneurial orientation (EO) of smaller businesses. The main argument is whether marketing research is relevant to the concept of entrepreneurial orientation to boost small-business performance. This article is supported by a conceptual framework. The findings suggest that marketing research is an over-arching business practice which underpins the role of entrepreneurial orientation for the performance of smaller businesses and it is no longer in the domain of only bigger organisations, but also smaller businesses. The implication of the findings is that both smaller business owners/managers and practitioners can benefit from the discussions, as it exposes the benefits of the use of marketing research. The study concludes that marketing research plays an important role in the entrepreneurial orientation of smaller businesses and marketing researchers can now begin to devise ways of attracting smaller businesses to the practice of marketing research.

Keywords : Marketing Research, Entrepreneurial Orientation, Small Businesses, Small Business Owners, Marketing Researchers, Practitioners.