Where do digital entrepreneurs thrive? The geography of Douyin vloggers in China

Social entrepreneurship advocates solving social problems through market methods, and emphases the mixed logic drive and dual identity, which has contributed significantly to poverty reduction, environmental protection and sustainable social development. However, there are some problems with social entrepreneurship such as difficulty in transforming social opportunities, high cost of resource acquisition, difficulty in coordinating the interests of partners and difficulty in measuring social value, which need to be solved by innovation in opportunities, resources, governance, and value measurement. Digital technology has shaped the development of emerging industries and changes in social systems, and provided effective solutions for enriching social problem solutions, reducing the threshold for the integration of social resources, building a trust network, and measuring social influence. Digital social entrepreneurship, a new form of entrepreneurship to deal with the several challenges of the digital era, refers to the process oriented by solving social problems and satisfying the social demand that integrates digital technology with social entrepreneurship and promotes the digitization of social entrepreneurship opportunities, resources, governance and value measurement, so as to more effectively realize social entrepreneurship activities with mixed economic and social values. Through the comparative study with social entrepreneurship and digital entrepreneurship, digital social entrepreneurship has differences in opportunities, resources, governance methods and value measurement, which are manifested in the functions of outstanding characteristics of intelligent social problem connection, real-time response to social problems, visualization of social value, and indexation of social entrepreneurship. Hence, this paper preliminarily maps a research framework, which contains the connotation, process elements and operation mechanism of digital social entrepreneurship. The factors interact with each other to form a unique operating mechanism. Based on the case study of the “Xintairuan” which is a Chinese golden social enterprise, we have depicted the digital social entrepreneurship process including four basic elements, such as digital social entrepreneurs, digital social citizens, digital social entrepreneurship platforms and the digital social regulation. It forms the unique operation of mechanism of the artificial integration of opportunities-resources, the twinning of empowerment-regulation, mixed value of creation with joint efforts, and the scale of social influence. This article proposes the concept, elements and operating mechanism of digital social entrepreneurship in a novel way, describes the inherent commonalities between digital technology and social entrepreneurship, reconstructs the basic content of traditional entrepreneurship, and pays more attention to the initiative and dynamics of social entrepreneurial innovation processes under digital technology. It is also of great practical value to fill the gaps in digital social entrepreneurship research and improve efficiency. This paper holds that the nature of the operation process of digital social entrepreneurship is the process of social value creation by social entrepreneurs, participation of citizens in digital society from bottom to top and their active value dissemination, and promotion of value sharing and governance improvement by digital social entrepreneurship platforms. In the future, the research of digital social entrepreneurship urgently needs to construct a new paradigm of integration, contextualization, problematization and humanization under the vision of mixed value logic and digital drive. This study further develops the research’s connotation of digital entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship, which has important practical meaning for promoting the digital application and the improvement of efficiency for social entrepreneurship.

Purpose – The main purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the personality traits of digital entrepreneurs participating in the survey, their level of use of information technologies and their innovation skills. Digital entrepreneurship activities play an important role in bringing new products and services developed by businesses to large audiences. In this context, it is assumed that as the digital entrepreneurship usage levels of the enterprises increase, the profitability rates and innovation levels of the enterprises increase. Design/methodology/approach – The universe of the study is digital entrepreneurs operating in Ankara. The sample of the study is 146 digital entrepreneurs operating in Ankara in different sectors such as construction, real estate, accommodation and food service, culture-art and entertainment, manufacturing, information and communication, finance and insurance. The data of the study were collected by using personality traits and innovation skills scales in entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurs' innovation skills and entrepreneurship perceptions were analyzed with a comparative approach based on demographic variables, digital technologies usage levels, innovation skills. Findings – As a result of the parametric analyzes, the personal characteristics of digital entrepreneurs affect their innovation abilities, there is a relationship between the information technology usage levels of the entrepreneurs and their innovation capabilities, there is a relationship between the personal characteristics of the entrepreneurs and the information technology usage levels, and there is also a relationship between the personal characteristics and innovation capabilities of the entrepreneurs, has been determined. Discussion – Entrepreneurs who can identify digital technologies with their businesses have been thought to be more successful in developing new products and services, reach large audiences, and have higher profitability rates than traditional entrepreneurs, thereby creating more jobs and contributing to the economy.

This paper examined online sentiment, key themes and patterns evident in social media activity about digital entrepreneurship. It provides a snapshot-in-time, visual-first perspective on social media user-generated-content (UGC) to better understand the topic of digital entrepreneurship. Global data consisting of 31,017 publicly available UGC which used the #digitalentrepreneurship (hashtag) and the keywords ‘digital entrepreneurship’ were collected. A computer assisted qualitative data analysis software (CAQDAS), Leximancer, was used for an automated text-mining analysis. There is positive online sentiment surrounding digital entrepreneurship technology, ecosystem and industry, and one which promotes women transformation of digital entrepreneurship globally. Negative sentiment pointed out that future development and support of youth in digital entrepreneurship is needed. Digital entrepreneurs were identified as needing to focus on strategy, leadership, management, and social media platforms. A comprehensive perspective on the state of digital entrepreneurship in online UGC is provided. Insights into the challenges, issues, changes, success stories and key topics in digital entrepreneurship are highlighted. Future research is encouraged to adopt longitudinal and quantitative approaches, to provide further insights into the evolution of digital entrepreneurship. The paper contributes to the entrepreneurship literature by applying the Social Exchange Theory and the Social Media User Engagement Framework to better understand social media activity around digital entrepreneurship. The findings show that there are real challenges and issues to overcome but there are also changes occurring in digital entrepreneurship and social media users are keen to share and learn from digital entrepreneurship success stories.

Digital technologies are key resources for entrepreneurial activities and there is great interest in digital entrepreneurship. While much research has focused on the role of digital technologies in entrepreneurship and how they are shaping the field, there has been relatively little research on those key players of digital entrepreneurship. Using data from Crunchbase and Twitter API and a learning machine, this study attempts to answer the question of “who are digital entrepreneurs?” This study reports that digital entrepreneurs in the artificial intelligence and data analytics (AIDA) industry are more likely to be male and to be active and connected online than non-digital entrepreneurs. In addition, they tend to be more extroverted and less conscientious and agreeable than other, non-digital, entrepreneurs. Our findings help to develop a clearer picture of digital entrepreneurs, which would be of great interest to investors, policy makers, current and future digital entrepreneurs and educators.

Risk disclosure and entrepreneurial resource acquisition in crowdfunding digital platforms: Evidence from digital technology ventures

Digital entrepreneurship platforms have created opportunities to marketers and manufacturers to achieve their marketing objectives with digital technologies through various digital platforms. Implementation of digital platforms have changed the traditional ways of doing business in bricks and mortar to digital channels such as online marketing, App store, purchase via internet or smartphone, e-transaction and e-commerce. There is a general belief that by moving firms towards digitalization world and selling products or services through digital platforms will increase firms’ capabilities and directly increase sales finally lead to better firms’ performance. In fact, this is not applied to all the firms involving selling and buying in digital platforms. The main advantages of doing digital platforms business are do not need much capital in starting up the business and this business model allows digital entrepreneurs to work from anywhere and anytime without the restriction of locations and time constraints. There are many factors in influencing the success or failure of digital entrepreneurship of an individual, team or firm. First and foremost is the innovation factor which determines the successful path to the ultimate goal of the business. This paper discusses the digital entrepreneurship opportunities, digital platforms practices, challenges, risks and constraints faced in promoting and expanding digital platforms from a Malaysian perspective, such as firms’ organizational structure and human resource in digital expertise, digital technologies readiness, financial supports, market changes and unprecedented risks. This paper argues the importance and development of digital entrepreneurship that incorporates strategic innovation to enhance firms’ capabilities. The findings of the paper highlighted the potential of digital entrepreneur platforms in increasing new career for individual, enhancing economy growth and welfare for consumers. Hopefully the discussion outcomes will raise further awareness and attention of individual, team and firms to integrate digital entrepreneurship into their businesses.

Traditional entrepreneurship is regarded as the process of classifying and expending the prospects that are in the market, transforming the concepts into achievement, performing marketing undertakings to promote an innovativeness, harmonizing ideas and bearing risk and uncertainties that are involved in the business in order to strive for excellence. But, with advent and development of information and communication technology (ICT), the processes and functions performed gradually changed to what we now have as digital entrepreneurship that entrepreneurs use and are getting momentum with the use of social media. Digital entrepreneur is considered independent by accumulating of functionality through digital means, relying on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) as well as digital media facilities to discover prospective clients. These facilities accord digital entrepreneur the chance to support their professional ethics outside the confined community using different social media platforms. Digital entrepreneurship encompasses online businesses that individuals create and run which combines business, market knowledge and network technology to reinvent traditional business practices through digitization, creation of a new venture, Transformation of Existing Business, Creating and use of Novel Digital Technologies. This is qualitative research which aims to examine the influence of social media in digital entrepreneurship. It was established in the research that most entrepreneurship fails due to lack of implementing innovative and novel technologies like the social media. The paper found out that those entrepreneurships that embrace the digital technologies succeeds and recommended the usage of social media for the development as well as growth of digital entrepreneurship in Nigeria.

PurposeDrawing on social network and social capital literature, this study aims to explore how digital entrepreneurs utilize social networks to build their entrepreneurial capability, creating and developing business ventures in a digitally networked society.Design/methodology/approachThe study takes a qualitative approach, interviewing 35 digital entrepreneurs with businesses operating across multiple industry sectors in Western Australia.FindingsThe findings suggest that structural social capital provides a key resource with groups of relational contacts who facilitate in building entrepreneur capability, the venture and customer markets. Relational social capital provides a foundation of trust between entrepreneurs and social network members that is strategically important for digital entrepreneurship (DE). Cognitive social capital provides mechanisms to form relationships based on shared values across social networks.Research limitations/implicationsThe study produces early evidence that in a multiplexed networking world, social capital accrual and use online is different from that of off-line. More empirical studies are needed to understand the complexity of the changing nature of online and off-line social networks, the consequential social capital and their interdependence in DE.Practical implicationsThis is an exploratory qualitative study using a limited sample of 35 Australian digital entrepreneurs to explore the impact of social network interaction on digital entrepreneurs and their ventures, with the purpose of stimulating a social network approach when studying DE. This study confirms the critical importance of entrepreneurial social networks in the digital age and provides empirical evidence that online networks foster business development, while off-line networks feed self-development.Originality/valueThe study contributes to current research on DE as a dedicated new research stream of entrepreneurship. Specifically, the study contributes to a greater understanding of how digital entrepreneurs leverage social networks in today's digitally connected society.

With the outbreak of new technologies such as big data, cloud computing and artificial intelligence, the field of digital entrepreneurship, characterized by the intersection and integration of digital technology and entrepreneurship, is profoundly changing the model of economic growth, the shape of the real economy and the industrial layout. In recent years, the research on digital entrepreneurship has become increasingly attractive. Scholars from different fields such as information system, entrepreneurship and innovation, and strategic management have joined this emerging field, and its interdisciplinary nature has become increasingly prominent. However, the current research is still in the initial stage. The understanding of the two basic concepts of digital technology and digital entrepreneurship is not thorough enough, and the relevant research is fragmented. In addition, the lack of deep understanding of the underlying logic of how digital technologies impact entrepreneurial activities has limited the development of the field.Based on an interdisciplinary perspective, this study reviews research on digital technology as well as digital entrepreneurship by selecting literatures published in the fields of information systems and entrepreneurship management in the past 20 years. Based on this, the concept connotation and characteristics of digital technology and digital entrepreneurship are defined. Digital technology is defined as the latest development of ICT technology, including the physical part, the logical part, and the result part. The characteristic of digital technology is classified into four categories and ten specific types. Digital entrepreneurship refers to the process of identifying, evaluating and exploiting opportunities through the creation or use of digital technologies, and ultimately creating, distributing and acquiring value. It is characterized in five dimensions, namely as digitalization, innovation, openness, flexibility and value.Then, a BREAK theoretical framework is built to explain the mechanism of how digital technologies shape the characteristics of digital entrepreneurship. This study holds that the “break” of digital technology to the process of digital entrepreneurship is realized through five mechanisms, namely Build, Reconfigure, Enhance, Amplify and Keep. At present, the shaping of digital technology to digital entrepreneurship’s characteristics of digitalization and openness is inclined to “disruptive breaking”, the shaping of innovation and flexibility is similar to “improved breaking”, and the shaping of value is both. Considering that digital technology has a strong potential for action, its “breaking effect” on digital entrepreneurial activities is not static, but gradually evolves from incremental improvement to qualitative disruption with the deepening of technology application.Finally, we propose several directions for future research. Based on the BREAK framework, we argue that there are great theoretical value and research potential in the identification and development of data resource value, the strategic balance between the open and control of digital firms, the transformation of the firm’s business logic in the digital era, the multidimensional influences of digital innovation. This study deepens our understanding of digital entrepreneurship through promoting the research question from “what is the digital entrepreneurship” to “why digital entrepreneurship happens”. Further, this study promotes the transformation of digital entrepreneurship research from the explicit description of practical phenomena to in-depth analysis of the internal theoretical logic, thus contributes to the development of digital entrepreneurship field.

In the digital era, entrepreneurs have begun to leverage ICT and its social capital to overcome obstacles and grow their firms. The idea that digital technology can help address the issues faced by sustainable businesses has gained traction in recent studies. To develop research related to entrepreneurship in the digital era and the potential for new research on this topic. This research used descriptive analysis methods for journal articles indexed in Scopus and Google Scholar. This study investigates the literature using bibliometric analysis methods in five stages: data collection, keyword selection, matrix calculation, result visualization, and data interpretation and visualization results. According to the bibliometric analysis, there were 11 clusters, 161 items, and 447 links with a link strength of 500. Furthermore, according to Scopus and Google Scholar data, most studies on entrepreneurship in the digital era are related to the business environment, pandemics, digital entrepreneurs, digital entrepreneurship ecosystems, digital media, existence, financial literacy, and financial technology. In conclusion, during 2018-2023, there is an increasing trend in digital-era research subjects. Bibliometric analysis, though comprehensive in identifying clusters and connections, may not capture the qualitative nuances and deeper insights within individual studies. This study contributes significantly by mapping the evolving digital entrepreneurship research from to 2018-2023. Through a comprehensive bibliometric analysis, it identifies key research clusters and trends, providing valuable insights for academics, policymakers, and practitioners. The findings illuminate the interconnections between the business environment, pandemic impacts, and technological advancements in digital entrepreneurship.

Financial Inclusion Through Digital Entrepreneurship in Developing Nations

The young generation has a very important role as the nation's next generation, so it needs special attention to make them strong and independent figures. The young age phase is also a determining gate for the future after completing education (United Nation, 2013). Unfortunately, in Indonesia the number of young unemployed reaches 22.48% (Central Bureau of Statistics, 2018). Under these conditions, one of the efforts that can be done to reduce the unemployment rate is through an entrepreneurial program (Fatoki, 2014). This is a challenge for all parties because Rahmatiah et al (2019) states that currently the young generation of Indonesia is still difficult to become entrepreneurs. Moreover, competition in the 4.0 industrial revolution era is getting tougher. For entrepreneurs in rural areas, the challenges faced are greater than those who live in urban areas (Azzahra & Dhewanto, 2017), however by utilizing digital technology and becoming digital entrepreneurs, rural residents are able to compete, minimize social inequalities and accelerate economic growth (Ratten, 2018 ). Only a few young people have the talent and interest to run a business (Ceptureanu & Ceptueanu, 2015). Therefore an in-depth study of the interests and entrepreneurial processes for rural youth to become a digital entrepreneur is needed. This research was conducted in order to have young digital entrepreneurs who came from rural areas to be able to compete in this 4.0 industry era. Thus, the research questions in this study are: (1). Why does rural youth want to be a digital entrepreneur? How is the entrepreneurial process of rural youth to become digital entrepreneurs? Keywords: Digital Entrepreneurship, Entrepreneurial Process, Rural Youth

Purpose About 50% of innovations achieve commercial success in advanced countries. The number is much lower in emerging markets. Examining the impact of the digital environment on product success is crucial. The purpose of the study is to investigate the direct effects of disruptive technology (quality, efficiency and congruity) on digital entrepreneurship (new product development, cost-effectiveness and internationalization) and indirect moderating effects of the digital environment (data security, customer privacy and search engine optimization [SEO] algorithm) between disruptive technology and digital entrepreneurship. Design/methodology/approach This is a qualitative study by design. It uses the literature review method and the theory of disruption and competitive advantage to construct the six hypotheses linking the variables – disruptive technology, digital environment and digital entrepreneurship. Findings The study’s conceptual model proposes that disruptive technology leads to digital entrepreneurship; however, the digital environment moderates the relationship between disruptive technology and digital entrepreneurship in emerging markets. Research limitations/implications The conceptual study has research implications for scholars. It constructs a conceptual framework and develops six hypotheses contextualized in emerging markets. The framework can be empirically tested across countries to validate the hypotheses and develop a competing model to explain more variance in digital entrepreneurship. This study also presents the possibility of analytical generalization. Practical implications This study has practical implications for digital entrepreneurs in emerging markets or those wishing to enter emerging markets. The main implication is that disruptive technology leads to digital entrepreneurship; however, the digital environment moderates it. Thus, digital entrepreneurs need to consider digital environmental effects such as data security, customer privacy and SEO. Given that two-thirds of the world is classified as an emerging market, the impact of the study is noticeable for practitioners as well. Social implications Disruptive technology fosters digital entrepreneurship, which creates opportunities for innovative solutions for society worldwide. It breaks down the barriers to entry and promotes inclusivity by providing products and services that were unavailable before. Digital products are also economical and environmentally friendly, making them more suitable for people in emerging markets. Originality/value This study makes three new contributions. First, it proposes that disruptive technology leads to digital entrepreneurship and that the digital environment moderates the relationship between disruptive technology and digital entrepreneurship. Second, from a theoretical viewpoint, it develops a theoretical testable framework, links the variables and proposes the six hypotheses. Finally, the most significant contribution of the study is the identification of the digital environment variable and its dimensions – security, privacy and SEO algorithm – and its comparison between advanced countries and emerging markets.

This study aims to analyze the influence of Innovativeness, Digital Entrepreneurial Education, and Propensity to Act on the intention to become a digital entrepreneur among students of the Indonesian Institute of Business and Technology (INSTIKI). The problem faced is the low intention to become a digital entrepreneur among students even though business opportunities in the digital world are increasingly large. The proposed solution is to analyze factors that can increase the intention to become a digital entrepreneur, such as innovative attitudes, digital entrepreneurship education, and the tendency to act. The method used is a quantitative approach with a survey, where data is collected through questionnaires distributed to 124 INSTIKI students. The data were analyzed using multiple linear regression with the help of SPSS to test the influence of each variable on the intention to become a digital entrepreneur. The results of the study show that the three variables—Innovativeness, Digital Entrepreneurial Education, and Propensity to Act—have a positive and significant effect on the intention to become a digital entrepreneur. Specifically, digital entrepreneurship education has the greatest influence, followed by innovativeness and propensity to act. These findings provide important insights for the development of digital entrepreneurship programs in universities and can be used as a basis for increasing student interest in starting a digital business.

Digital entrepreneurship