Share:


Social media as a strategic capability for startups and the mediating role of social capital

    Atthaphon Mumi   Affiliation

Abstract

Social media have been widely adopted in various organizations. The use of social media for achieving business sustainability and financial outcomes has been addressed in the literature. In the entrepreneurship context, social media have received great attention as the platforms can be one of the cost-effective marketing activities and knowledge accumulation. Despite existing evidence regarding the impacts of social media, the study of social media in the startup’s context is limited. Based on the dynamic capabilities perspective, this study relied on data from 128 startups in the emerging economy’s context to investigate the importance of social media for startups. Particularly, the results from PLS-SEM support the significant influence of social media as firm’s strategic capability toward performance. In addition, social capital consisting of three dimensions – cognitive, structural, and relational – has been found to mediate the direct association of social media strategic capability toward the startup performance. This study advances the social media research on entrepreneurship as well as the dynamic capabilities perspective to enhance the startup’s sustainability through enhanced performance. Especially, it encourages the application of social media with the indirect effect of social capital for startups.

Keyword : startup, performance, social media strategic capability, social media, social capital, entrepreneurship

How to Cite
Mumi, A. (2022). Social media as a strategic capability for startups and the mediating role of social capital. Business: Theory and Practice, 23(2), 302–312. https://doi.org/10.3846/btp.2022.16954
Published in Issue
Sep 5, 2022
Abstract Views
829
PDF Downloads
915
Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

References

Ackaradejruangsri, P., Mumi, A., Rattanapituk, S., & Pakhunwanich, P. (2022). Exploring the determinants of young inclusive leadership in Thailand: Research taxonomy and theoretical framework. Journal of the Knowledge Economy, 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13132-022-01017-7

Adler, P. S., & Kwon, S.-W. (2002). Social capital: Prospects for a new concept. Academy of Management Review, 27(1), 17–40. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2002.5922314

Ali-Hassan, H., Nevo, D., & Wade, M. (2015). Linking dimensions of social media use to job performance: The role of social capital. The Journal of Strategic Information Systems, 24(2), 65–89. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsis.2015.03.001

Arabeche, Z., Soudani, A., Brahmi, M., Aldieri, L., Vinci, C. P., & Abdelli, M. E. A. (2022). Entrepreneurial orientation, organizational culture and business performance in SMEs: Evidence from emerging economy. Sustainability, 14(9), 5160. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14095160

Asikhia, O. (2010). Customer orientation and firm performance among Nigerian small and medium scale businesses. International Journal of Marketing Studies, 2(1), 197. https://doi.org/10.5539/ijms.v2n1p197

Baig, U., Hussain, B. M., Meidute-Kavaliauskiene, I., & Davidavicius, S. (2022). Digital entrepreneurship: Future research directions and opportunities for new business model. Sustainability, 14(9), 5004. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14095004

Benson, D., & Ziedonis, R. H. (2009). Corporate venture capital as a window on new technologies: Implications for the performance of corporate investors when acquiring startups. Organization Science, 20(2), 329–351. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.1080.0386

Bharati, P., Zhang, W., & Chaudhury, A. (2015). Better knowledge with social media? Exploring the roles of social capital and organizational knowledge management. Journal of Knowledge Management, 19(3), 100–140. https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-11-2014-0467

Bocken, N. M., & Geradts, T. H. (2020). Barriers and drivers to sustainable business model innovation: Organization design and dynamic capabilities. Long Range Planning, 53(4), 101950. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2019.101950

Bodlaj, M., & Čater, B. (2019). The impact of environmental turbulence on the perceived importance of innovation and innovativeness in SMEs. Journal of Small Business Management, 57, 417–435. https://doi.org/10.1111/jsbm.12482

Brunner, M., & Süβ, H.-M. (2005). Analyzing the reliability of multidimensional measures: An example from intelligence research. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 65(2), 227–240. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164404268669

Bucher, T. (2015). Networking, or what the social means in social media. Social Media + Society, 1(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305115578138

Bughin, J., Byers, A. H., & Chui, M. (2011). How social technologies are extending the organization. McKinsey Quarterly, 20(11), 1–10.

Carlson, J., Rahman, M., Voola, R., & De Vries, N. (2018). Customer engagement behaviours in social media: Capturing innovation opportunities. Journal of Services Marketing, 32(1). https://doi.org/10.1108/JSM-02-2017-0059

Carlson, K. D., & Herdman, A. O. (2012). Understanding the impact of convergent validity on research results. Organizational Research Methods, 15(1), 17–32. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094428110392383

Cassar, G. (2014). Industry and startup experience on entrepreneur forecast performance in new firms. Journal of Business Venturing, 29(1), 137–151. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2012.10.002

Chen, H.-T., & Li, X. (2017). The contribution of mobile social media to social capital and psychological well-being: Examining the role of communicative use, friending and self-disclosure. Computers in Human Behavior, 75, 958–965. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2017.06.011

Chen, Z. F., Ji, Y. G., & Men, L. R. (2017). Strategic use of social media for stakeholder engagement in startup companies in China. International Journal of Strategic Communication, 11(3), 244–267. https://doi.org/10.1080/1553118X.2017.1298114

Claridge, T. (2018). Dimensions of social capital-structural, cognitive, and relational. Social Capital Research, 1, 1–4.

Eisenhardt, K. M., & Martin, J. A. (2000). Dynamic capabilities: What are they? Strategic Management Journal, 21(10–11), 1105–1121. https://doi.org/10.1002/1097-0266(200010/11)21:10/11<1105::AID-SMJ133>3.0.CO;2-E

Ewens, M., & Marx, M. (2018). Founder replacement and startup performance. The Review of Financial Studies, 31(4), 1532–1565. https://doi.org/10.1093/rfs/hhx130

Fischer, E., & Reuber, A. R. (2011). Social interaction via new social media: (How) can interactions on Twitter affect effectual thinking and behavior? Journal of Business Venturing, 26(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2010.09.002

Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error: Algebra and statistics. Journal of Marketing, 18(3), 382–388. https://doi.org/10.2307/3150980

Gao, H., Tate, M., Zhang, H., Chen, S., & Liang, B. (2018). Social media ties strategy in international branding: An application of resource-based theory. Journal of International Marketing, 26(3), 45–69. https://doi.org/10.1509/jim.17.0014

Gloor, P. A., Colladon, A. F., Grippa, F., Hadley, B. M., & Woerner, S. (2020). The impact of social media presence and board member composition on new venture success: Evidences from VC-Backed U.S. startups. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 157, 120098. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2020.120098

Gopalakrishnan, S., Scillitoe, J. L., & Santoro, M. D. (2008). Tapping deep pockets: The role of resources and social capital on financial capital acquisition by biotechnology firms in biotech–pharma alliances. Journal of Management Studies, 45(8), 1354–1376. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6486.2008.00777.x

Hair, J., Black, W., Babin, B., Anderson, R., & Tatham, R. (2009). Multivariate data analysis. Pearson Education.

Hair, J. F., Sarstedt, M., Pieper, T. M., & Ringle, C. M. (2012a). The use of partial least squares structural equation modeling in strategic management research: A review of past practices and recommendations for future applications. Long Range Planning, 45(5–6), 320–340. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2012.09.008

Hair, J. F., Sarstedt, M., Ringle, C. M., & Mena, J. A. (2012b). An assessment of the use of partial least squares structural equation modeling in marketing research. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 40(3), 414–433. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-011-0261-6

Hair, J. F., Hult, G. T. M., Ringle, C. M., Sarstedt, M., & Thiele, K. O. (2017a). Mirror, mirror on the wall: A comparative evaluation of composite-based structural equation modeling methods. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 45(5), 616–632. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-017-0517-x

Hair, J. F., Matthews, L. M., Matthews, R. L., & Sarstedt, M. (2017b). PLS-SEM or CB-SEM: Updated guidelines on which method to use. International Journal of Multivariate Data Analysis, 1(2), 107–123. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJMDA.2017.10008574

Hair, J. F., Risher, J. J., Sarstedt, M., & Ringle, C. M. (2019). When to use and how to report the results of PLS-SEM. European Business Review, 31(1). https://doi.org/10.1108/EBR-11-2018-0203

Hair, J. F., Hult, G. T. M., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2021a). A primer on partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Sage Publications. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-80519-7

Hair, J. F., Hult, G. T. M., Ringle, C. M., Sarstedt, M., Danks, N. P., & Ray, S. (2021b). Mediation analysis. In Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) Using R: A workbook (pp. 139–153). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-80519-7_7

Hamilton, M., Kaltcheva, V. D., & Rohm, A. J. (2016). Social media and value creation: The role of interaction satisfaction and interaction immersion. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 36, 121–133. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intmar.2016.07.001

Hanna, R., Rohm, A., & Crittenden, V. L. (2011). We’re all connected: The power of the social media ecosystem. Business Horizons, 54(3), 265–273. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2011.01.007

Hasan, S., & Koning, R. (2019). Prior ties and the limits of peer effects on startup team performance. Strategic Management Journal, 40(9), 1394–1416. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.3032

Henseler, J., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2015). A new criterion for assessing discriminant validity in variance-based structural equation modeling. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 43(1), 115–135. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-014-0403-8

Hu, L.-t., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 6(1), 1–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705519909540118

Huang, J., Newell, S., Huang, J., & Pan, S.-L. (2014). Site-shifting as the source of ambidexterity: Empirical insights from the field of ticketing. The Journal of Strategic Information Systems, 23(1), 29–44. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsis.2014.01.001

Jin, F., Wu, A., & Hitt, L. (2017). Social is the new financial: How startup social media activity influences funding outcomes. Academy of Management Annual Proceedings, 2017(1), 13329. https://doi.org/10.5465/AMBPP.2017.13329abstract

Kaplan, A. M., & Haenlein, M. (2010). Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of social media. Business Horizons, 53(1), 59–68. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2009.09.003

Kemp, S. (2020). Digital 2020: Thailand. https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2020-thailand

Kenny, B., & Fahy, J. (2011). Network resources and international performance of High Tech SMEs. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 18(3). https://doi.org/10.1108/14626001111155691

Kumar, V., & Mirchandani, R. (2012). Increasing the ROI of social media marketing. MIT Sloan Management Review, 54(1), 55.

Lamberton, C., & Stephen, A. T. (2016). A thematic exploration of digital, social media, and mobile marketing: Research evolution from 2000 to 2015 and an agenda for future inquiry. Journal of Marketing, 80(6), 146–172. https://doi.org/10.1509/jm.15.0415

Li, F., Larimo, J., & Leonidou, L. C. (2021). Social media marketing strategy: Definition, conceptualization, taxonomy, validation, and future agenda. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 49(1), 51–70. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-020-00733-3

Lindner, J. R., Murphy, T. H., & Briers, G. E. (2001). Handling nonresponse in social science research. Journal of Agricultural Education, 42(4), 43–53. https://doi.org/10.5032/jae.2001.04043

Liu, C.-H. S. (2018). Examining social capital, organizational learning and knowledge transfer in cultural and creative industries of practice. Tourism Management, 64, 258–270. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2017.09.001

Madsen, V. T., & Johansen, W. (2019). A spiral of voice? When employees speak up on internal social media. Journal of Communication Management, 23(4), 331–347. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCOM-03-2019-0050

Manley, S. C., Hair, J. F., Williams, R. I., & McDowell, W. C. (2021). Essential new PLS-SEM analysis methods for your entrepreneurship analytical toolbox. International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, 17(4), 1805–1825. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11365-020-00687-6

Masters, B., & Thiel, P. (2014). Zero to One: Notes on startups, or how to build the future. Random House.

Maurer, I., & Ebers, M. (2006). Dynamics of social capital and their performance implications: Lessons from biotechnology start-ups. Administrative Science Quarterly, 51(2), 262–292. https://doi.org/10.2189/asqu.51.2.262

Mei, M. Q., & Genet, C. (2022). Social media entrepreneurship: A study on follower response to social media monetization. European Management Journal. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emj.2022.04.006

Michaelidou, N., Siamagka, N. T., & Christodoulides, G. (2011). Usage, barriers and measurement of social media marketing: An exploratory investigation of small and medium B2B brands. Industrial Marketing Management, 40(7), 1153–1159. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indmarman.2011.09.009

Mumi, A., Ciuchta, M. P., & Yang, Y. (2018). Social media for entrepreneurial opportunity and process: An effectuation perspective. Academy of Management Annual Proceedings, 2018(1), 15826. https://doi.org/10.5465/AMBPP.2018.27

Mumi, A., Obal, M., & Yang, Y. (2019). Investigating social media as a firm’s signaling strategy through an IPO. Small Business Economics, 53(3), 631–645. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-018-0066-9

Mumi, A. (2020). Effectual entrepreneur and the use of social media for opportunity recognition. In L. Schjodt, M. Brannback, & A. Casrud (Eds), Understanding social media and entrepreneurship (pp. 49–67). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-43453-3_4

Nahapiet, J., & Ghoshal, S. (1998). Social capital, intellectual capital, and the organizational advantage. Academy of Management Review, 23(2), 242–266. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1998.533225

Naylor, R. W., Lamberton, C. P., & West, P. M. (2012). Beyond the “Like” button: The impact of mere virtual presence on brand evaluations and purchase intentions in social media settings. Journal of Marketing, 76(6), 105–120. https://doi.org/10.1509/jm.11.0105

Netemeyer, R. G., Bearden, W. O., & Sharma, S. (2003). Scaling procedures: Issues and applications. Sage Publications. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781412985772

Ngammoh, N., Mumi, A., Popaitoon, S., & Issarapaibool, A. (2021a). Enabling social media as a strategic capability for SMEs through organizational ambidexterity. Journal of Small Business & Entrepreneurship, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/08276331.2021.1980682

Ngammoh, N., Mumi, A., Popaitoon, S., & Issarapaibool, A. (2021b). Social media strategic capability and the distribution on innovation performance for High-Tech SMEs. Journal of Distribution Science, 19(8), 37–46.

Nguyen, B., Yu, X., Melewar, T., & Chen, J. (2015). Brand innovation and social media: Knowledge acquisition from social media, market orientation, and the moderating role of social media strategic capability. Industrial Marketing Management, 51, 11–25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indmarman.2015.04.017

Olanrewaju, A.-S. T., Hossain, M. A., Whiteside, N., & Mercieca, P. (2020). Social media and entrepreneurship research: A literature review. International Journal of Information Management: The Journal for Information Professionals, 50(C), 90–110. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2019.05.011

Parida, D. K., & Prasanna, D. (2021). An empirical study on social media conversation to increase brand awareness: Startup organization context. Academy of Marketing Studies Journal, 25(4), 1–8.

Payne, G. T., Moore, C. B., Griffis, S. E., & Autry, C. W. (2011). Multilevel challenges and opportunities in social capital research. Journal of Management, 37(2), 491–520. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206310372413

Podsakoff, P. M., MacKenzie, S. B., Lee, J.-Y., & Podsakoff, N. P. (2003). Common method biases in behavioral research: A critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(5), 879–903. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.88.5.879

Rheingold, H. (2000). The virtual community, revised edition: Homesteading on the electronic frontier. MIT Press. https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/7105.001.0001

Ringle, C. M., Sarstedt, M., & Straub, D. W. (2012). Editor’s comments: A critical look at the use of PLS-SEM in “Mis Quarterly”. MIS Quarterly, 36(1), iii-xiv. https://doi.org/10.2307/41410402

Rogelberg, S. G., & Stanton, J. M. (2007). Introduction: Understanding and dealing with organizational survey nonresponse. Organizational Research Methods, 10(2), 195–209. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094428106294693

Salamzadeh, A., & Tajpour, M. (2021). Identification of the challenges of media startup creation in Iran. Journal of Entrepreneurship Development, 13(4), 561–580.

Schjoedt, L., Brännback, M. E., & Carsrud, A. L. (2020). Understanding social media and entrepreneurship: The business of hashtags, likes, tweets and stories. Springer Nature. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-43453-3

Skala, A. (2019). The startup as a result of innovative entrepreneurship. In Digital startups in transition economies. Palgrave Pivot. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01500-8_1

Slávik, Š., Hudáková, I. M., Procházková, K., & Zagoršek, B. (2022). Strategic background of the start-up – qualitative analysis. Administrative Sciences, 12(1), 17. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci12010017

Sosik, J. J., Kahai, S. S., & Piovoso, M. J. (2009). Silver bullet or voodoo statistics? A primer for using the partial least squares data analytic technique in group and organization research. Group & Organization Management, 34(1), 5–36. https://doi.org/10.1177/1059601108329198

Streukens, S., & Leroi-Werelds, S. (2016). Bootstrapping and PLS-SEM: A step-by-step guide to get more out of your bootstrap results. European Management Journal, 34(6), 618–632. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emj.2016.06.003

Szarek, J., & Piecuch, J. (2018). The Importance of startups for construction of innovative economies. International Entrepreneurship Review, 4(2), 69–78. https://doi.org/10.15678/PM.2018.0402.05

Teece, D., & Pisano, G. (2003). The dynamic capabilities of firms. In Handbook on knowledge management (pp. 195–213). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-24748-7_10

Teece, D. J., Pisano, G., & Shuen, A. (1997). Dynamic capabilities and strategic management. Strategic Management Journal, 18(7), 509–533. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199708)18:7<509::AID-SMJ882>3.0.CO;2-Z

Teece, D. J. (2007). Explicating dynamic capabilities: The nature and microfoundations of (sustainable) enterprise performance. Strategic Management Journal, 28(13), 1319–1350. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.640

Theodoraki, C., Messeghem, K., & Rice, M. P. (2018). A social capital approach to the development of sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems: An explorative study. Small Business Economics, 51(1), 153–170. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-017-9924-0

Wang, D., Tsui, S., Zhang, Y., & Ma, L. (2003). Employment relationships and firm performance: Evidence from an emerging economy. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 24(5), 511–535. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.213

Watts, S. A., & Zhang, W. (2008). Capitalizing on content: Information adoption in two online communities. Journal of the Association for Information Systems, 9(2), 3. https://doi.org/10.17705/1jais.00149

Wenger, E. (1999). Communities of practice: Learning, meaning, and identity. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511803932

Willaby, H. W., Costa, D. S., Burns, B. D., MacCann, C., & Roberts, R. D. (2015). Testing complex models with small sample sizes: A historical overview and empirical demonstration of what Partial Least Squares (PLS) can offer differential psychology. Personality and Individual Differences, 84, 73–78. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2014.09.008

Zahra, S. A. (2021). The resource-based view, resourcefulness, and resource management in startup firms: A proposed research agenda. Journal of Management, 47(7). https://doi.org/10.1177/01492063211018505

Zhang, F., & Zhu, L. (2021). Social media strategic capability, organizational unlearning, and disruptive innovation of SMEs: The moderating roles of tmt heterogeneity and environmental dynamism. Journal of Business Research, 133(C), 183–193. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.04.071

Zwass, V. (2010). Co-creation: Toward a taxonomy and an integrated research perspective. International Journal of Electronic Commerce, 15(1), 11–48. https://doi.org/10.2753/JEC1086-4415150101