Search Results (2,145)

Digital food-ordering apps make it simple to buy indulgent drinks yet hard to judge their health risks. We conducted five online experiments (N = 1048) to compare two messages for sugary beverages: self-promotion that stresses taste and self-disclosure that plainly warns “high sugar/high calories”. Brands that chose self-disclosure were seen as more socially responsible and transparent, which in turn raised trust and lifted purchase intent. These gains were strongest for users who care deeply about the category or the brand and remained robust even among highly health-conscious shoppers. The results show that, for “vice” foods, honest warnings can outperform glossy claims. Our study extends signaling and attribution theories to digital food markets and offers managers a straightforward playbook for complying with new labeling rules while still driving sales. Full article

As globalization deepens, concerns over global fragmentation have intensified, accompanied by rising expectations that the Global South will emerge as a key driver of innovation, competitiveness, advanced markets, and high-quality employment. The widespread diffusion of the Internet and smartphones across developing countries suggests the possibility of leapfrog growth, highlighting the informal economy as a potential source of innovation. Recent developments in generative artificial intelligence (GAI) have further underscored the opportunity for collaborative engagement between developed and developing countries to awaken and harness sleeping innovation resources. This study investigates the dynamism of such international collaboration, focusing on digitalization-related challenges and its contributions to leapfrog growth. The interconnections among Internet usage, smartphone penetration, and economic development are examined, revealing the formation of a self-propagating cycle facilitated by GAI. A mathematical model is constructed to demonstrate the dependency of growth on sleeping resources inherent in the informal economy, which is empirically validated through data from nine African countries. Using the coevolutionary dynamics of Amazon and AWS as a conceptual reference, a novel framework is proposed for international collaborative utilization of sleeping innovation resources, offering new insights into GAI-driven innovation rooted in the informal economy. Full article

Although impulsive and hedonic purchasing behaviors may seem to contradict sustainability principles, there are unexplored opportunities through which social media platforms and influencers can redirect these impulses toward sustainable actions. Young consumers, increasingly concerned about the ecological impact of their choices, can be encouraged to adopt responsible and sustainable buying behaviors when these are promoted attractively, enjoyably, and emotionally satisfyingly through social media. This research investigates how social media communication influences hedonic and impulsive purchasing behavior in the Romanian clothing market. In the context where social media is one of the main sources of information and influence for consumers, the research analyzes several determining factors of the purchase decision. Price reductions and the use of credit cards are highlighted as elements that facilitate spontaneous and hedonic targeted purchases, while the attractiveness of clothing items and the need felt play an important role in terms of the desire to buy. In addition, sources of information (such as reviews) have a major impact on consumers’ perceptions and their purchase intentions. Additionally, the study investigates factors such as overall shopping experience and its influence on consumer loyalty. It is approached from two perspectives: attitudinal loyalty, reflected in the preference for brands promoted on social media, and behavioral loyalty, expressed through repeat purchases. The results show that social media acts as an accelerator for hedonic and impulsive buying behaviors, prompting consumers to react quickly to stimuli such as discount campaigns or personalized recommendations. The conclusions highlight the importance of adopting digital marketing strategies that capitalize on the consumers emotional need while also strengthening brand loyalty. These perspectives can guide companies in the clothing industry to adapt their promotion methods to the specifics of the Romanian market and the consumer behavior. Full article

Ancient paintings are an intangible window to the economy, politics, and customs of the past. Their characteristics have evolved or were made obsolete, with only limited contemporary connections remaining. This research aims to preserve and to interact with characters in 2D paintings to evolve their cultural identity through combining AI and AR. The scope of this research covers traditional Chinese paintings archived by the National Palace Museum in digital collections, mainly “New Year’s Market in a Time of Peace”. About 25 characters were used for training and 3D reconstruction in RODIN^®. The models were converted into Augment^® and Sketchfab^® platforms as reactivated AR characters to interact with new urban fabrics and landscapes. Stable Diffusion^® and RODIN^® were successfully integrated to perform image training and reconstruct 3D AR models of various styles. As a result, interactions were conducted in two ways: in a mixed context with mixed characters in a painting and in a familiar context in the real world with mixed characters. It was found that AR facilitated the interpretation of how the old urban fabric was arranged. Using AI and AR is a current issue. Combining AI and AR can activate ubiquitous preservation to perform recursive processing from diffused images in order to reconstruct 3D models. This activated heritage preservation method is a reasonable alternative to redefining intangible subjects with a new and evolved contemporary cultural identity. Full article

This study examines the impact of corporate venture capital (CVC) on the labor income share of science and innovation enterprises, focusing on data from China’s Science and Technology Innovation Board (STIB) and Growth Enterprise Market (GEM) between 2010 and 2022. Empirical results reveal a significant inverted U-shaped relationship between CVC shareholding and the labor income share of invested firms. CVC increases the labor income share by enhancing corporate governance, encouraging digital transformation, and improving human capital quality, but this effect diminishes when CVC shareholding exceeds a certain threshold. The moderating role of media attention and the heterogeneity of this relationship across regions and financial conditions are further explored. Additionally, the study identifies a positive U-shaped connection between CVC shareholding and the corporate pay gap, highlighting CVC’s complex role in influencing income inequality within firms. This research contributes to the literature by unveiling the nonlinear effects of CVC on income distribution, offering new insights into its dual role in promoting innovation and equity. Practically, it provides actionable recommendations for firms to optimize CVC ownership and for policymakers to design targeted interventions that address regional and financial disparities. By bridging the gap between CVC investment strategies and labor income fairness, this study lays the foundation for a balanced approach to sustainable economic development. Full article

Political communication has been extensively studied through both the broader context of societal and political systems, as well as through the lens of mediatization, which emphasizes the intersection of political and media logics. Within this framework, scholars originally identified three distinct stages or eras of political communication. However, recent scholarship has increasingly focused on the transition to a “fourth” era, characterized by the growing impact of digital and social media. This shift, from the “television age” to the “social media age”, has not only introduced new media channels for conveying political messages but has also fundamentally transformed the nature of political communication itself—shifting from top-down, centralized models to more horizontal, decentralized forms of interaction. Current research on the role of social media in political communication reveals a complex landscape. These platforms appear to both enhance and undermine established processes of political deliberation. On the one hand, they provide new avenues for civic engagement and political discourse, while on the other, they contribute to issues such as disinformation, polarization, and the erosion of privacy. This entry aims to offer a comprehensive review of how social media platforms have reshaped the dynamics of political communication and civic participation. It further explores the challenges that accompany these transformations, such as the spread of disinformation, rising political polarization, increasing incivility, and privacy concerns stemming from advanced digital marketing techniques in political contexts. Full article

The relative dominance of government and market forces in enterprise digital transformation remains underexplored. This paper aims to provide new insights into this topic. Using data from China’s A-share-listed companies (2007–2023), we test the short- and long-term impacts of government subsidies and market strength on enterprise digital transformation, quantify their relative contributions, explore substitution effects, investigate synergistic interactions, and examine heterogeneous impacts across different enterprise ownership types and life cycle stages, using the fixed effects regression model, exponential smoothing, interaction term, coupling coordination model, and group regression. The results indicate that both government subsidies and market forces drive digital transformation in enterprises, with government subsidies having a slightly stronger effect. There is a substitutive relationship between the two, and their synergy significantly promotes digital transformation. However, their impact varies across different types of enterprises. Stronger market forces do not always lead to greater transformation; in fact, for non-state-owned enterprises, market strength can hinder digital transformation. Similarly, government subsidies do not consistently promote digital transformation. Their effect is less pronounced for growth and maturity-stage enterprises, while declining enterprises are more motivated to pursue digital transformation to benefit from subsidies. Full article

Digital platform ecosystems confront critical management challenges as they overcome path dependence amid rapid technological change. This study explores cross-category innovation as a key strategic action, using a longitudinal case study of ByteDance to analyze how digital technology drives ecosystem evolution, and constructs a “technology-driven–strategic action–ecosystem evolution” framework to examine the interplay between technological capabilities and strategic actions. Findings identify two stages: in the category emergence stage, platforms establish a core business ecosystem via identity, legitimacy, and differentiation strategies, leveraging technologies like algorithmic recommendation to shape user cognition and market legitimacy. In the category spanning stage, platforms leverage platform envelopment, open innovation, and status strategies to expand cross-category ecosystems, enabling technological spillover and integrated innovation across new domains. The findings reveal a co-evolution mechanism of cross-category innovation strategy and ecosystems, where the cross-category innovation strategy serves as both a driving force for ecosystem evolution and acquires new strategic opportunities. This study offers insights for building sustainable ecosystems that transcend industry boundaries and enhance resilience. Full article

This study explores the emerging link between digital marketing and the circular economy, situated within the broader context of sustainability and digital transformation. Through a scientometric analysis of 276 documents indexed in Scopus, the research maps the conceptual, intellectual, and collaborative landscape of this intersection. The dataset was refined using the PRISMA standards, and the analysis was carried out with the R package bibliometrix. The findings reveal a highly fragmented body of literature, with a few prolific authors and limited international cooperation. Most of the influential publications are concentrated in a small number of sources, particularly the journal Sustainability. Thematic mapping identifies growing interest in areas such as consumer perception, sustainable development, and the adoption of digital tools by micro-enterprises, while other topics like recycling or public health remain peripheral. Although the scholarly output has surged in recent years (especially during 2023 and 2024), the field still lacks coherent theoretical frameworks or dominant research schools. Overall, digital marketing appears to be a promising driver for promoting circular practices, but further applied studies and enhanced international collaboration are essential to consolidate this line of inquiry. Full article

With the rapid advancement of information technology and the increasing maturity of online shopping platforms, cross-border shopping has experienced rapid growth. Online consumer reviews, as an essential part of the online shopping process, have become a vital way for merchants to obtain user feedback and gain insights into market demands. The research employs Python tools (Jupyter Notebook 7.0.8) to analyze the 14,078 pieces of review text data from the top four best-selling products in a certain product category on a certain cross-border e-commerce platform. By applying social network analysis, constructing LDA (Latent Dirichlet Allocation) topic models, and establishing LSTM (Long Short-Term Memory) sentiment classification models, the topics and sentiment distribution of the review set are obtained, and the evolution trends of topics and sentiments are analyzed according to different periods. The research finds that in the overall review set, consumers’ focus is concentrated on five aspects: functional features, quality and cost-effectiveness, usage effectiveness, post-purchase support, and design and assembly. In terms of changes in review sentiments, the negative proportion of the topics of functional features and usage effects is still relatively high. Given the above, this study integrates the 4P and 4C theories to propose strategies for enhancing the marketing capabilities of cross-border e-commerce in the context of digital cross-border operations, providing theoretical and practical marketing insights for cross-border e-commerce enterprises. Full article

The digital creative industry (DCI) has become an integral part of China’s strategic emerging industries. This paper, utilizing county-level data from Chinese digital creative enterprises in 2022, examines the locational factors influencing the spatial distribution of China’s DCI through Principal Component Analysis and Multiple Linear Regression Analysis. The findings indicate that technological innovation and the level of economic development universally and dominantly influence the agglomeration of all DCI sub-sectors. Service-oriented digital creative enterprises are more likely to cluster in areas with abundant cultural resources and public facilities, with government policies and financial subsidies playing a significant role. In contrast, digital creative equipment manufacturing companies are more likely to locate in proximity to market demand and related industries. Full article

(1) Background: With the deep integration of e-commerce and video technology, live-streaming marketing has emerged globally and maintained rapid growth. However, most of the current research on live-streaming e-commerce marketing focuses on merchants’ sales strategies and consumers’ purchase intentions, and there is relatively little research related to the risks of live-streaming e-commerce marketing. Nevertheless, with the development of live-streaming e-commerce marketing and its integration with technologies such as artificial intelligence and virtual reality (VR), live-streaming e-commerce marketing still faces challenges such as unclear subject responsibility, difficulty in verifying the authenticity of marketing information, and uneven product quality. It also harbors problems such as the ethical misbehavior of AI anchors and the excessive beautification of products by VR technology. (2) Methods: This study systematically analyzes the scenarios of live-streaming marketing to elucidate the mechanisms of risk formation. Utilizing fault tree analysis (FTA) and risk checklist methods, risks are identified based on the three core elements of live-streaming marketing: “people–products–scenes”. Subsequently, the Delphi method is employed to refine the initial risk indicator system, resulting in the construction of a comprehensive risk indicator system comprising three first-level indicators, six second-level indicators, and 16 third-level indicators. A hesitant fuzzy multi-attribute group decision-making method (HFMGDM) is then applied to calculate the weights of the risk indicators and comprehensively assess the live-streaming marketing risks in live broadcast rooms of three prominent celebrity anchors in China. Furthermore, a detailed analysis is conducted on the risks associated with the six secondary indicators. Based on the risk evaluation results, targeted recommendations are proposed. This study aims to enhance consumers’ awareness of risk prevention when conducting live-streaming transactions and pay attention to related risks, thereby safeguarding consumer rights and fostering the healthy and sustainable development of the live-streaming marketing industry. (3) Conclusions: The results show that the top five risk indicators in terms of weight ranking are: Ethical Risk of the AI Anchor (A4), VR Technology Promotion Risk (F3), Anchor Reputation (A1), Product Quality (D1), and Logistics Distribution Service Quality (D2). The comprehensive live-streaming marketing risk of each live broadcast room is Y > L > D. Based on the analysis results, targeted recommendations are provided for anchors, MCN institutions, merchants, supply chains, and live-streaming platforms to improve consumer satisfaction and promote sustainable development of the live-streaming marketing industry. Full article

This research study deals with the analysis of climate catastrophes that have occurred worldwide and in what measure they have affected communities, in an economic and social point of view, and energy markets in general over time. A chronological sweep across Europe has been carried out in order to evaluate the different consequences that phenomena such as hurricanes, winter storms, and floods have had, especially on the energy prices. Moreover, the effects of the variability of renewable generation during climate disasters not only in Europe but also in North America, Australia, and Latin America have been discussed. Furthermore, best practices and novel strategies for climate adaptations have been identified in different countries, and the results show how energy planning integrated within a systematic diversification of energy sources and investment in infrastructure and advanced technologies such as distributed generation and digital twins can be crucial to enhance the reliability of energy systems. Full article

The synergistic development of new quality productive forces (NQPFs) and forestry economic resilience is vital for sustainable growth in China’s forestry sector, positioning the country as a global leader. This study develops a theoretical framework and employs spatial Kernel density, the Gini coefficient, spatial Markov chains, and geographical detectors to analyze coordination levels, regional disparities, evolutionary trends, and influencing factors. The results reveal that national coordination has progressed from imbalance to high-quality synergy, though regional disparities remain. Development trajectories show stability, with strong path dependence, a Matthew effect, and high transition probabilities between adjacent levels, accompanied by significant spatial spillovers. Factors such as economic development, openness, marketization, social security, the digital economy, and infrastructure play a major role in enhancing coupling coordination, while policy intervention and human capital show limited standalone effects, although their interactions are important. Based on these findings, policy recommendations are provided to guide China’s forestry economy in the new era. Full article

This research investigates the application of search engine optimization (SEO) in developing the digital image of rural tourism businesses in the Terras de Trás-os-Montes region of Portugal. With digital marketing becoming increasingly important for businesses to stay competitive, SEO has become a vital tool for developing online recognition, qualified traffic acquisition, and enhancement of conversion rates. The research performs an SEO analysis of 21 rural tourism websites by applying the Ubersuggest tool, analyzing such key indicators as on-page SEO scores, organic traffic, keyword ranking, backlinks, and technical performance. The results identify wide SEO performance discrepancies, with some sites registering excellent practices and others with critical errors that impair the sites’ online recognizability. In particular, low word count, absent meta description, and loading speed issues are very much present. The research emphasizes the need for effective SEO methods, such as on-page maintenance, content creation, and link building, to advance search engine ranking and end-user experience. Moreover, the study emphasizes the necessity for rural tourism businesses to evolve and adapt to current SEO trends, i.e., voice search optimization and local SEO, in the changing digital business environment. The results provide recommendations for rural tourism businesses to develop their digital marketing activities and make progress online. Full article