The path of support-to-sales: mediating role of seller collaborative information exchange in social commerce

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to systematically investigate the direct and indirect effects of four types of support – peer instrumental support, peer emotional support, platform business support and platform communication support – on seller trade volume in social commerce. It also aims to uncover the path of support-to-sales of the seller from a platform perspective and provides a more complete picture of the social commerce phenomenon.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses multi-source data including primary survey data and secondary data on trade volume to test the hypotheses. PROCESS mediation model is used to analyze the multi-source data set.

Findings

This study finds that the positive effects of peer instrumental support, platform business support and platform communication support on seller trade volume are fully mediated by seller collaborative information exchange. Also, peer emotional support has a significant negative effect on seller trade volume and collaborative information exchange can serve as a buffer to mitigate the negative effect.

Research limitations/implications

The authors provide new insights into what types of support are or are not conducive to improving transaction volume of individual sellers and highlight the mediating role of seller information exchange in this value generation process in social commerce. These findings advance current knowledge of how seller interactions increase value in social commerce. The chosen research setting may limit the generalizability of the findings of this study.

Practical implications

This paper offers valuable implications for social commerce platforms on how to better serve their sellers to achieve high growth. Specifically, the findings suggest that platforms should encourage instrumental support and information exchange among peer sellers. In addition, platforms should expand seller support from a single-focus on sellers’ business to a dual-focus on both sellers’ business and socialization in social commerce.

Originality/value

This paper fulfills an identified need to study how sellers can better derive value from the social interactions and how social commerce platforms can effectively influence transactions, support sales and serve as a selling platform.

Citation

Chen, L., Zhu, F. and Mantrala, M. (2021), "The path of support-to-sales: mediating role of seller collaborative information exchange in social commerce", European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 55 No. 2, pp. 363-384. https://doi.org/10.1108/EJM-11-2019-0823