Journal of Business Logistics
While social media has become an integral part of modern-day life, it is a largely overlooked topic in the supply chain business-to-business setting. This study utilizes dyadic survey data from supplier account managers and their customers to explore social media’s impacts in the digitalized supply chain context. Drawing upon the knowledge-based view of the firm, the study proposes and tests a conceptual model. Results indicate that supplier account managers’ social media use can increase their product and competitor knowledge, which can positively influence customer outcomes. Further, this study found that when perceived customer demandingness is high, the relationship between social media use and knowledge is stronger. The research draws much-needed attention to social media as an emerging digital supply chain management tool.
Raj Agnihotri is the Mary Warner Fellow, director of Ivy Sales Forum, and professor of marketing; Haozhe Chen is a professor of supply chain management; and Patricia J. Daugherty is an emeritus professor of supply chain management at the Ivy College of Business. Their paper is published in the Journal of Business Logistics.