Volume 4 Issue 1 (2024): In Progress

This study proposes a marketing strategy framework tailored to address the challenges faced by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Uzbekistan. Amidst a fiercely competitive business landscape, SMEs encounter obstacles in establishing brand awareness, attracting customers, and optimizing financial performance. To address these challenges and sustain growth, SMEs can leverage the extended marketing mix, encompassing product, price, place, promotion, people, process, and physical evidence. Employing a combination of descriptive and exploratory research methodologies, this study utilizes quantitative data-gathering techniques, including a survey of entrepreneurs’ perspectives on the implementation of marketing mix strategies by SMEs. Regression analysis, facilitated by STATA software, examines the correlation between marketing mix variables and SME development. Key findings underscore the importance of integrating marketing mix elements to enhance SME marketing efforts, cultivate brand loyalty, and gain a competitive advantage. These findings contribute to a deeper understanding of marketing strategies for SMEs in developing economies like Uzbekistan, offering actionable insights for policymakers and entrepreneurs alike to foster SME growth and economic development.

The emergence of generative artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, such as large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, has precipitated a paradigm shift in the realms of academic writing, plagiarism, and intellectual property. This article explores the evolving landscape of English composition courses, traditionally designed to develop critical thinking through writing. As AI becomes increasingly integrated into the academic sphere, it necessitates a reevaluation of originality in writing, the purpose of learning research and writing, and the frameworks governing intellectual property (IP) and plagiarism. The paper commences with a statistical analysis contrasting the actual use of LLMs in academic dishonesty with educator perceptions. It then examines the repercussions of AI-enabled content proliferation, referencing the limitation of three books self-published per day in September 2023 by Amazon due to a suspected influx of AI-generated material. The discourse extends to the potential of AI in accelerating research akin to the contributions of digital humanities and computational linguistics, highlighting its accessibility to the general public. The article further delves into the implications of AI on pedagogical approaches to research and writing, contemplating its impact on communication and critical thinking skills, while also considering its role in bridging the digital divide and socio-economic disparities. Finally, it proposes revisions to writing curricula, adapting to the transformative influence of AI in academic contexts.