It takes two to tango: the interplay between decision logics, communication strategies and social media engagement in start-ups

Christian Rudeloff,Stefanie Pakura,Thomas Niemand,Fabian Eggers

doi:10.1007/s11846-021-00464-x

Abstract

This manuscript analyzes start-ups’ usage of different communication strategies (information, response, involvement), their underlying decision logics (effectuation, causation, strategy absence) and respective social media success. A multitude of studies have been published on the decision logics of entrepreneurs as well as on different communication strategies. Decision logics and according strategies and actions are closely connected. Still, research on the interplay between the two areas is largely missing. This applies in particular to the effect of different decision logics and communication models on social media success. Through a combination of case studies with fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis this exploratory study demonstrates that different combinations of causal and absence of strategy decision logics can be equally successful when it comes to social media engagement, whereas effectuation is detrimental for success. Furthermore, we find that two-way-communication is essential to create engagement, while information strategy alone cannot lead to social media success. This study provides new insights into the role of decision logics and connects effectuation theory with the communication literature, a field that has been dominated by causal approaches.

Highlights

Start-ups and small businesses typically face marketing challenges that can be related to a lack of resources, such as marketing skills, time, and money (Hills 1987)
Regarding RQ1, our results reveal three different scenarios regarding the interplay between decision logics and communication strategies
The effectual logic of this case can be illuminated by its attitude toward competitors, as described by the founder: “So you meet again and again at events and exhibits or have email contact and help each other when it comes to the fact that you need help” (Interview, start-up #5)

Summary

Introduction

Start-ups and small businesses typically face marketing challenges that can be related to a lack of resources, such as marketing skills, time, and money (Hills 1987) This applies to the execution of social media communication strategies that, among other things, require a good understanding of the target customer, content writing and designing skills, a balancing of different social media channels and, in particular, sufficient time to execute (Eggers et al 2017). Social media communication activities run by start-ups and small firms often do not achieve the desired results, either because the firm does not use social media channels enough or tries to overachieve (Whitler 2019; Fischer and Reuber 2011). Research focuses on overlaps and complementarity of effectuation with other concepts such as opportunity creation and bricolage (Fisher 2012; Welter et al 2016)

Methods

Results

Conclusion