<![CDATA[The complexity of digital performance indicators in social commerce environments poses significant challenges for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in formulating coherent and actionable marketing strategies. This study develops and evaluates a forward chaining based expert system to support structured, data driven, and interpretable marketing decision-making. A design science research methodology was employed, encompassing problem identification, artifact development, and evaluation. Knowledge was elicited through literature synthesis, expert consultation, and empirical observation, and subsequently formalized into IF–THEN production rules within a structured knowledge base. The system applies a forward chaining inference mechanism to process key indicators, including followers, engagement rate, promotion frequency, and conversion rate, in order to generate prioritized strategic recommendations. Evaluation was conducted using scenario-based testing and expert validation to assess accuracy, consistency, and contextual appropriateness. The results demonstrate complete alignment between system outputs and expert judgment across all evaluation scenarios, indicating high reliability and logical consistency of the rule-based reasoning process. The system also produces context-sensitive and interpretable recommendations aligned with varying levels of business performance. This study contributes by advancing rule-based decision support systems in social commerce and providing an explainable and practically applicable tool to enhance marketing decision quality among SMEs.]]>
