IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jbrese/v125y2021icp483-494.html

Crowdfunding success through social media: Going beyond entrepreneurial orientation in the context of small and medium-sized enterprises

Author

Listed:
  • Sahaym, Arvin
  • (Avi) Datta, Avimanyu
  • Brooks, Stoney

Abstract

This study examines how entrepreneurial orientation (EO) works through firm managers’ perceived contribution of social media (CSM) and influences crowdfunding success in the context of pre-existing Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs). As a construct, EO has evolved over the last three decades. We build on recent conceptualizations where it is posited as a behavioral construct that motivates directed actions. We propose that EO fosters actions and routines that predict crowdfunding campaign success, and that this relationship is mediated by the perceived contribution of social media to a firm's campaign success. To test these assertions, we surveyed professionals from 322 firms who had conducted crowdfunding campaigns. We created and validated our own 7-item scale for crowdfunding success where we used pre-existing scales for EO and CSM to test our assertions. We found that the CSM mediates the relationship between EO and crowdfunding success (CFS). These findings contribute to the literature on strategic entrepreneurship, innovation, and media strategy.

Suggested Citation

  • Sahaym, Arvin & (Avi) Datta, Avimanyu & Brooks, Stoney, 2021. "Crowdfunding success through social media: Going beyond entrepreneurial orientation in the context of small and medium-sized enterprises," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 125(C), pages 483-494.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jbrese:v:125:y:2021:i:c:p:483-494
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.09.026
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014829631930551X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.09.026?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Keith D. Brouthers & George Nakos & Pavlos Dimitratos, 2015. "SME Entrepreneurial Orientation, International Performance, and the Moderating Role of Strategic Alliances," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 39(5), pages 1161-1187, September.
    2. Mayer-Haug, Katrin & Read, Stuart & Brinckmann, Jan & Dew, Nicholas & Grichnik, Dietmar, 2013. "Entrepreneurial talent and venture performance: A meta-analytic investigation of SMEs," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 42(6), pages 1251-1273.
    3. Yogesh K. Dwivedi & Gerald Kelly & Marijn Janssen & Nripendra P. Rana & Emma L. Slade & Marc Clement, 2018. "Social Media: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 20(3), pages 419-423, June.
    4. Viotto da Cruz, Jordana, 2018. "Beyond financing: crowdfunding as an informational mechanism," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 33(3), pages 371-393.
    5. Mollick, Ethan, 2014. "The dynamics of crowdfunding: An exploratory study," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 1-16.
    6. Anglin, Aaron H. & Wolfe, Marcus T. & Short, Jeremy C. & McKenny, Aaron F. & Pidduck, Robert J., 2018. "Narcissistic rhetoric and crowdfunding performance: A social role theory perspective," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 33(6), pages 780-812.
    7. Brown, Terrence E. & Boon, Edward & Pitt, Leyland F., 2017. "Seeking funding in order to sell: Crowdfunding as a marketing tool," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 60(2), pages 189-195.
    8. Ajay Agrawal & Christian Catalini & Avi Goldfarb, 2014. "Some Simple Economics of Crowdfunding," Innovation Policy and the Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 14(1), pages 63-97.
    9. Jeffrey G. Covin & Dennis P. Slevin, 1989. "Strategic management of small firms in hostile and benign environments," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 10(1), pages 75-87, January.
    10. Azzurra Meoli & Federico Munari & James Bort, 2019. "The patent paradox in crowdfunding: an empirical analysis of Kickstarter data," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 28(5), pages 1321-1341.
    11. Jeffrey G. Covin & Danny Miller, 2014. "International Entrepreneurial Orientation: Conceptual Considerations, Research Themes, Measurement Issues, and Future Research Directions," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 38(1), pages 11-44, January.
    12. Kohli, Chiranjeev & Suri, Rajneesh & Kapoor, Anuj, 2015. "Will social media kill branding?," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 58(1), pages 35-44.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Peter Konhäusner & Robert Seidentopf, 2021. "Digital Marketing Effects of Clubhouse on Crowdfunding in the Context of COVID-19," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 14(8), pages 1-19, July.
    2. Cervantes-Zacarés, Desamparados & Martí-Sánchez, Myriam & Pascual-Soler, Marcos & Berné-Martínez, José-Miguel, 2023. "The relevance of crowdfunding in the entrepreneurial framework from a specialized media perspective," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    3. Feng Chen & Jian Ding & Mochou Li & Bingqing Wang, 2021. "From self‐entertainment to being appreciated: how does social media transfer talent to business?," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 61(5), pages 6113-6146, December.
    4. Hendrik Wilhelm & Norbert Steigenberger & Clarissa E. Weber & Jouni K. Juntunen & Mark Ebers, 2024. "(No) Time for Change: When and Why Entrepreneurs Act During Underperforming Fundraising Attempts," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 35(4), pages 1299-1321, July.
    5. Troise, Ciro & Tani, Mario & Dinsmore, John & Schiuma, Giovanni, 2021. "Understanding the implications of equity crowdfunding on sustainability-oriented innovation and changes in agri-food systems: Insights into an open innovation approach," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 171(C).
    6. Tang, Hongqin & Zhao, Yongyong & Li, Nan & Zhu, Jianping, 2026. "Enhancing crowdfunding financing speed through image-text integration strategies: Insights from Information Processing Theory and explainable machine learning methodology," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    7. Alex Murray & Greg Fisher, 2023. "When More Is Less: Explaining the Curse of Too Much Capital for Early-Stage Ventures," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 34(1), pages 246-282, January.
    8. Sikandar Ali Qalati & Dragana Ostic & Gu Shuibin & Fan Mingyue, 2022. "A mediated–moderated model for social media adoption and small and medium‐sized enterprise performance in emerging countries," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 43(3), pages 846-861, April.
    9. Fiza Amjad & Yulei Rao & Amin Ur Rahman & Sajjad Ahmad Baig & Muhammad Usman & Muhammad Waleed Younas, 2026. "Innovative Strategies for SMEs’ Sustainability: Crowdfunding, Industry 4.0, and Sustainable Business Models Using SEM-ANN Approach," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 17(2), pages 3490-3521, April.
    10. Xiao, Shufeng & AL-Tabbaa, Omar & Park, Byung Il, 2025. "Crowdfunding for entrepreneurial orientation in emerging markets: The moderating role of digital transformation," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    11. Sachin Kumar Sharma & P. Vigneswara Ilavarasan & Stan Karanasios, 2024. "Small businesses and FinTech: a systematic review and future directions," Electronic Commerce Research, Springer, vol. 24(1), pages 535-575, March.
    12. Maria Elisavet Balta & Thanos Papadopoulos & Konstantina Spanaki, 2024. "Business model pivoting and digital technologies in turbulent environments," Post-Print hal-04513406, HAL.
    13. Peter Konhäusner & Marius Thielmann & Veronica Câmpian & Dan-Cristian Dabija, 2021. "Crowdfunding for Independent Print Media: E-Commerce, Marketing, and Business Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-17, October.
    14. Sun Hee Lee & Sang‐Youn Lee, 2024. "The effect of signaling on crowdfunding performance on social economy organizations in South Korea," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 95(3), pages 783-813, September.
    15. Sunity Halder & Huam Hon Tat & Abu Bakar Abdul Hamid, 2025. "Examining The Impact Of Social Media Perception And Engagement On The Entrepreneurial Performance Of Women In A Developing Economy," Malaysian E Commerce Journal (MECJ), Zibeline International Publishing, vol. 9(1), pages 16-25, June.
    16. Emmanuel Bruce & Zhao Shurong & Sulemana Bankuoru Egala & John Amoah & Du Ying & Huang Rui & Tai Lyu, 2022. "Social Media Usage and SME Firms’ Sustainability: An Introspective Analysis from Ghana," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-17, August.
    17. Ruofan Zhao & Zhengai Dong & Hongping Wu & Stavros Sindakis & Saloome Showkat & Xinglong Yang, 2025. "Harnessing Big Data for Strategic Innovation: Insights into Corporate Entrepreneurship and Technological Advancements," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 16(1), pages 5238-5270, March.
    18. Chandna, Vallari & Axelton, Zhuoli, 2025. "Tackling gender disparity and achieving optimal distinctiveness in crowdfunding platforms," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 68(3), pages 351-360.
    19. Sikandar Ali Qalati & Dragana Ostic & Mohammad Ali Bait Ali Sulaiman & Aamir Ali Gopang & Asadullah Khan, 2022. "Social Media and SMEs’ Performance in Developing Countries: Effects of Technological-Organizational-Environmental Factors on the Adoption of Social Media," SAGE Open, , vol. 12(2), pages 21582440221, May.
    20. Yunhwan Kim, 2023. "Exploring Organizational Self-(re)presentations on Visual Social Media: Computational Analysis of Startups’ Instagram Photos Based on Unsupervised Learning," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(4), pages 21582440231, December.
    21. Chen, Han & Wu, Linsheng, 2024. "Manager's entrepreneurial experience and firm innovation," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Lukas Maier & Christian V. Baccarella & Jörn H. Block & Timm F. Wagner & Kai-Ingo Voigt, 2023. "The Legitimization Effect of Crowdfunding Success: A Consumer Perspective," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 47(4), pages 1389-1420, July.
    2. Alsagr, Naif & Cumming, Douglas J. & Davis, Justin G. & Sewaid, Ahmed, 2023. "Geopolitical risk and crowdfunding performance," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 85(C).
    3. Sewaid, Ahmed & Garcia-Cestona, Miguel & Silaghi, Florina, 2021. "Resolving information asymmetries in financing new product development: The case of reward-based crowdfunding," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(10).
    4. Leone, Daniele & Cristina Pietronudo, Maria & Gabteni, Heger & Rosaria Carli, Maria, 2023. "Reward-based crowdfunding for building a valuable circular business model," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    5. Sitruk, Jonathan & Grodal, Stine & Suarez, Fernando & Dibiaggio, Ludovic, 2025. "Emotional brightness and crowdfunding performance," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 54(1).
    6. Yang Zhao & Xuemei Xie & Liuyong Yang, 0. "Female entrepreneurs and equity crowdfunding: the consequential roles of lead investors and venture stages," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 0, pages 1-29.
    7. Yang Zhao & Xuemei Xie & Liuyong Yang, 2021. "Female entrepreneurs and equity crowdfunding: the consequential roles of lead investors and venture stages," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 17(3), pages 1183-1211, September.
    8. Sylvain Dejean, 2020. "The role of distance and social networks in the geography of crowdfunding: evidence from France," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 54(3), pages 329-339, March.
    9. Chul Kim & P. K. Kannan & Michael Trusov & Andrea Ordanini, 2020. "Modeling Dynamics in Crowdfunding," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 39(2), pages 339-365, March.
    10. Kalinic, Igor & Brouthers, Keith D., 2022. "Entrepreneurial orientation, export channel selection, and export performance of SMEs," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 31(1).
    11. Riviere, Monica & Romero-Martínez, Ana M., 2021. "Network embeddedness, headquarters entrepreneurial orientation, and MNE international performance," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 30(3).
    12. Tuo Gladys & Yi Feng & Sarpong Solomon & Wang Wenxin, 2020. "The Second Round Resource Acquisition of Entrepreneurial Crowdfunded Ventures: The Relevance of Campaign and Project Implementation Performance Outcomes," Entrepreneurship Research Journal, De Gruyter, vol. 10(3), pages 1-21, July.
    13. Nadia Zahoor & Yong Kyu Lew, 2022. "Sustaining superior international performance: Strategic orientations and dynamic capability of environmentally concerned small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(3), pages 1002-1017, March.
    14. Xu, Yang & Zhang, Yu & Lyu, Jiancheng, 2026. "Reveal the new function of crowdfunding: Production risk transfer mechanism," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    15. Quignon, Aurelien, 2023. "Crowd-based feedback and early-stage entrepreneurial performance: Evidence from a digital platform," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(7).
    16. Yang Lu & Peixin Zuo & José C. Alves & Jinliang Wang, 2023. "Unlocking the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and international performance: A systematic review," Journal of International Entrepreneurship, Springer, vol. 21(4), pages 464-504, December.
    17. Li Chen & Shaoming Zou & Hui Xu & Yiwen Chen, 2020. "Entrepreneurial Orientation in Multinational Corporations: Antecedents and Effects," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 60(1), pages 123-148, February.
    18. Maksimov, Vladislav & Luo, Yadong, 2021. "International springboard as an entrepreneurial act," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 56(3).
    19. Moy, Naomi & Chan, Ho Fai & Septianto, Felix & Mathmann, Frank & Torgler, Benno, 2024. "Confidence is Good? too Much, not so Much: Exploring the effects on crowdfunding success," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 182(C).
    20. Gupta, Rakesh & Pandey, Ritesh & Sebastian, V.J., 2021. "International Entrepreneurial Orientation (IEO): A bibliometric overview of scholarly research," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 125(C), pages 74-88.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jbrese:v:125:y:2021:i:c:p:483-494. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/jbusres .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.