Journal Pone 0247320

PLOS ONE
RESEARCH ARTICLE
Effects of entrepreneurial orientation on

social media adoption and SME performance:
The moderating role of innovation capabilities
Mingyue Fan1, Sikandar Ali Qalati1*, Muhammad Aamir Shafique Khan ID1*, Syed Mir
Muhammad Shah2, Muhammad Ramzan2, Raza Saleem Khan1
1 School of Management, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, P.R. China, 2 Department of Business
Administration, Sukkur IBA University, Sukkur, Pakistan
a1111111111 * [email protected] (MASK); [email protected] (SAQ)

a1111111111
a1111111111
a1111111111
a1111111111 Abstract
The increase of social media (SM) has led to continuous deviations in how day-to-day
entrepreneurial activities can be carried out. Additionally, studies devoted to SM entre-
preneurship and SM are relatively limited and fragmented in their focus. However there is
OPEN ACCESS growing interest from scholars, practitioners and academia for upcoming studies and explo-
Citation: Fan M, Qalati SA, Khan MAS, Shah SMM, ration within small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) context. This research explores
Ramzan M, Khan RS (2021) Effects of
the impact of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) on SM adoption and SME performance in
entrepreneurial orientation on social media
adoption and SME performance: The moderating developing countries. We employed the resource-based view (RBV) as the foundation for
role of innovation capabilities. PLoS ONE 16(4): developing the conceptual framework The present study employed a closed-ended ques-
e0247320. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal. tionnaire to collect data from SMEs located in Pakistan. Partial-least-squares-structural
pone.0247320
equation-modeling (PLS-SEM) was utilized for the analysis of 423 responses. The results
Editor: Wonjoon Kim, KAIST, REPUBLIC OF proved a direct positive link between EO–SMEs performance, EO–SM adoption, SM adop-
KOREA
tion–SMEs performance, innovation capabilities (IC), and SME performance. Partial media-
Received: July 25, 2020 tion was found between EO and SME performance, and the significant moderation effect of
Accepted: February 4, 2021 IC was found between SM adoption and SME performance. This paper has implications for
Published: April 28, 2021 practitioners and researchers regarding SM adoption in the SMEs. It builds an empirical,
multi-dimensional hypothesized model, including mediating and moderating roles affecting
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https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0247320
Copyright: © 2021 Fan et al. This is an open access 1. Introduction

article distributed under the terms of the Creative
Gradually in today’s dynamic and turbulent business environment in which organizations are
Commons Attribution License, which permits
unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in
challenged to face the increasing pace of innovation to improve firm performance, SM palys a
any medium, provided the original author and fundamental role as a key stimulant to facilitate the development of entrepreneurial activities,
source are credited. particularly of SMEs which simultaneously contribute to economic development of the coun-
Data Availability Statement: All relevant data are
try. Since the 2008 economic crisis, the government has been given a significant importance to
within the manuscript and its Supporting SMEs, as they contribute over 40% to GDP and generated over 70% of jobs. However, increas-
information files. ing globalization and trade liberalization have negatively affected SME performance [1].
PLOS ONE | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0247320 April 28, 2021 1 / 24

PLOS ONE Entrepreneurial orientation and social media
Funding: “This study was supported by the Prior research suggests that, under globalization and increasing competition, SMEs having
National Statistical Research Project of China higher level of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) are likely to perform better [2]. [3] suggested
(2016LY96 to MF).”
that, due to limited resources and inadequate capabilities, SMEs must seek new opportunities,
Competing interests: The authors have declared constantly focusing on EO. [4] posited that EO is central to strategy-making and organiza-
that no competing interests exist. tional-level phenomena; therefore, to gain competitive advantage, decision-makers need to
increase EO ([5]. Previous scholarships have confirmed the positive impact of EO on firm per-
formance [6,7], but there is little understanding of this effect in emerging countries [8]. It has
also been suggested that the EO–firm-performance relationship is mediated and moderated by
diverse constructs [9,10], although research is limited on the causal mechanism of how and
why EO impacts other constructs [11]. We aim to address this gap in an emerging country
(Pakistan).
[12] proposed that to be competitive and satisfy potential customers’ needs, SMEs must
adopt new technologies such as social media (SM). Grounded on the RBV theory, EO is con-
sidered a key element for organizations competing in a digital environment [13]. Because
entrepreneurial orientation is more supportive of adopting the new technologies and proac-
tively responding to the changing trends, the more firm is entrepreneurial oriented, the more
they will be able to compete in the industry. From an innovativeness perspective, organizations
with a great extent of EO more “likely” to favor new ideas, technology adoption, and experi-
mentation [14,15]. Also, the factor of risk-taking is involved in firms’ propensity to participate
in innovative projects that have indeterminate consequences [16,17]. SM, as a new interactive
technology, requires managers and employees to act entrepreneurially and accept uncertain
outcomes [13,18].
Continuous internet advancement has played a key role in business performance [19], and
SM is particularly significant in this context in emerging countries [20]. [21] proposed that SM
use in industrial markets is growing in the hope that it may foster relationships and network
development, which support both profits- and innovation-related. [22] proved that SM use
enables supply-chain members to improve new product development. SM-generated informa-
tion also benefits industry and government business-performance policies in developing coun-
tries [23]. SM adoption has become common in business entities in developed countries and is
continuing to grow in emerging countries [24,25]. SM’s popularity and emerging trends facili-
tate firms’ online learning and information-sharing processes [26], considered effective in
achieving goals and improving business performance [27].
SM adoption and its effects on firm performance remain unexplored in SMEs located in
Pakistan. First, empirical studies devoted to the adoption and use of SM between the firms col-
laborating for innovation purposes is limited [28]. Second, while few researchers proclaim that
SM adoption and usage expedites innovation and entrepreneurial activities [29], others claim
that empirical research on SM’s benefits is insufficient [30,31]. Finally, industrial-marketing
and SMEs researchers are gradually concentrating on the conditions and context under which
SM affects SME performance [32,33].
According to RBV, firms’ capabilities are key elements in achieving firm performance and
competitive advantage [34]. [35] concluded that innovation and branding capabilities are
important in this respect. This is relevant in the SM context as it is a new technology that may
impact firms’ innovation capabilities (IC) required to react to competitive challenges and
increase firm performance. IC is considered integral to firms’ strategies and a significant
resource that may lead to superior performance [36]. The absence of IC negatively affects orga-
nizational knowledge acquisition and learning processes [37]. Thus, organizations’ ability to
innovate is vital for competitive advantage in dynamic market conditions such as SM.
Although prior work has proved significant impact of EO on firm performance, it has also
been proposed that the EO–firm-performance relationship is mediated and moderated by

diverse constructs [9,10]. However, there is no consensus on the mediation effects of EO on

firm performance, with limited research on the causal mechanism of how/why EO impacts
other constructs such as learning, innovation, and change [11]. Recently, [38] found the posi-
tive mediation of experiential learning and networking capability between EO and business
performance.
We aim to investigate the effects of EO and SM adoption on SME performance, including
examining the mediation effect of SM between EO and SME performance and the moderation
effect of IC. Because SMEs are a vital part of the country and their growth contributes to the
overall economy and government is initiating funding programs for SMEs. This study will
help SMEs to explore how to increase firm performance. In developed countries, it is already
explored and studied, but there are less evidences in the context of SMEs operating in develop-
ing countries that’s why this study will focus on the developing country because in Pakistan
SMEs are growing, and also they are in the initial stages where they need a more clear view to
proceed further as this study will help managers to make future strategies in the SMEs. This
direct relationship is almost explored by researchers, but this study will explore the moderating
effect of innovation capacity on SM adoption and SMEs performance. This means that this
study will explore how the innovation-friendly environment in the firm makes it easy for
SMEs to adopt SM quickly.
Section 2 provides a literature review covering EO–firm-performance and EO–SM-adop-
tion relationships, the impacts of SM adoption and IC on firm performance, SM adoption’s
mediating role, and IC’s moderating role. Section 3 details the study’s methodology. The
results are provided in section 4 and discussed in section 5. Theoretical and practical contribu-
tions are discussed in section 6, while section 7 examines the research limitations and future
research avenues.
2. Literature review
2.1 EO and firm performance
From the RBV perspective, EO is a distinct organizational capability or intangible resource
valuable in identifying, analyzing, and executing new opportunities in a way that cannot be
easily substituted or imitated [39]. [40] stated that EO might serve as a source of sustainable
competitive advantage and contribute to enhancing firm performance. Dynamic capability
(DC) theory explains that EO can be line up with embedded higher-ordered DC, enabling
firms to recognize the market opportunities, act in response to them, and reconfigure tangible
capabilities to maintain competitiveness and improve firm performance [41].
EO is a strategy-making-process that escorts organizations to construct constant innova-
tions, “adopt a proactive posture” in the industry, and commence risky-investments [41]. It
attracts several activities, practices, and processes that enable organizations to act entrepre-
neurially. However, EO has been measured differently, e.g., using various multifaceted mea-
sures such as risk-taking, proactiveness, innovativeness, competitive aggressiveness, and
autonomy [42]. Among these, proactiveness, innovativeness, and risk-taking have been widely
used [5], for example, used unidimensional measures of EO based on these three dimensions.
Innovativeness relates to firms’ ability to encourage and sustenance innovative ideas, exper-
imentation, and due processes and practices that lead to new products, services, or technology
[43]. Innovativeness, however, requires firms to increase investment to adopt new technology
to improve IC and performance. Proactiveness reflects a firm’s opportunity-seeking, forward-
looking behavior, or capability to take positive measures [44]. Proactive actions lead firms to
gain a competitive advantage through introducing/embracing new products or services and
new technology and processes to gain a competitive advantage. At the same time, risk-taking

relates to firms’ tendency to take risks for better gains [44]. Risk-taking can be viewed from
various perspectives because firms engage in several types of risk-taking behaviors. From the
technological ‘, it reveals firms’ willingness to invest in technological innovations or projects
with a high risk of uncertainty [45]. From a market perspective, it involves the risk of entering
uncertain new markets [46]. These behavioral tendencies are commonly called EO.
EO plays a significant role in enabling organizations to achieve effectiveness; for example,
EO enhances firm performance [47]. These studies indicate the considerable part of EO and
that EO should be determined contextually since cultures vary across countries and within
organizations. Hence, it is essential to examine the link between EO and SME performance
[6,48].
Despite several studies on the EO–firm-performance link, questions remain. For example,
these studies have measured EO differently based on differing EO operationalization and
multi-dimensional measures: [6] measured EO by combining the work of [49] and [50]; and
others have employed different EO dimension-based measures [44,51,52]. It remains still
unclear which EO measures produce reliable results. The current study provides empirical evi-
dence on EO using a more recent measure [44].
Notably, scholars have defined and measured performance differently when examining the
EO–firm-performance direct link. Some have measured financial performance, while others
have used subjective measures [44,51,52]. Scholars measuring SME performance have faced a
similar problem [6,48]. [51] suggested that subjective performance measures will better enable
decision-makers to predict the future. Therefore, we propose that the present study will pro-
vide insight to scholars and practitioners regarding the EO–SME-performance relationship by
using subjective SME-performance measures. Finally, by using the time-lag approach for data
collection, we answer the call for a more comprehensive method of data collection to mitigate
response bias in studying the EO–SME-performance relationship. Thus, we hypothesize:
• H1: There is a positive relationship between EO and SME performance.
2.2 EO and SM adoption

Based on the RBV theory, we assume that EO is a significant factor for enterprises competing
in the e-commerce business environment [53]. [18] referred to EO as “practices, methods, and
decision-making styles that executives employ to act entrepreneurially.” Considering the inno-
vativeness characteristics, enterprises with higher EO are expected to be more likely to adopt
new technology such as SM [44]. Particularly, EO elements such as proactivity, risk-taking,
and innovativeness enable firms to adopt new or innovative technology. However, adopting
innovative technologies is not risk-free; hence, it enhances uncertainty [54]. SM is a two-way
communication technology, which requires managers and employees to act entrepreneurially
[55] while being ready for uncertain outcomes.
However, the literature on the EO–SM-adoption link is limited. [13] stated a positive effect
of SM adoption on EO in exporting firms; however, we proclaimed that an organization with
great extent of EO will engage in initiatives that could bring growth, renewal, and profitability.
Thus, we argue that SMEs with higher EO will adopt SM, in line with [56], who demonstrated
EO’s relationship with SM’s perceived contribution in SMEs. However, we argue that EO’s
positive effects on SM adoption encompass more than specific events such as crowdfunding.
Similarly, [44] examined the indirect link between EO and SM performance through small-
business development and visibility; however, they did not explore any direct EO–SM-perfor-
mance link. In response to the call by [20] to investigate factors that drive SM adoption in the
SMEs, we hypothesize as:

• H2: There is a positive relationship between EO and SM adoption.
2.3 SM adoption and SME performance

SM is defined as internet based resource capability, a powerful enabling technology that pro-
vides synergies a complementarity with other organizations’ resources [57]. [58] stated SM’s
importance in areas such as research and development, sales, customer support, operations,
and marketing. The SM (Facebook) use by the organization has influence information accessi-
bility, marketing information, and customer relationships [59]. SM has intense impacts on the
digital world’s organizations concerning handling customer interrogations, building and
strengthening customer relationships, and innovative mining ideas [60]. [18] developed three
sub-dimensions of SM usage (information search, marketing and branding, and building cus-
tomer relationships) and found a positive relationship between them and the central construct,
using reflective-formative constructs to study the different association between SM and other
latent variables.
SM adoption has become common in almost every type and size of businesses [61]. Elabo-
rating on [57] work, we use the work of [62], who stated that SM is a “group of web 2.0 based
internet applications that includes blogs, forums, photo and video sharing, social networking
sites, product or services reviews, online communities, etc.” [63]. They enable firms to create
and disseminate user-generated content. Henceforward, subsequent [64], we claim that SMEs
can adopt SM to improve firm performance.
Regarding the hypothetical SM adoption–SMEs performance relationship, which is based
on RBV [65], we reflect adoption of SM as a mean that assists SMEs to gain a competitive
advantage [66]. This is social media platforms (i.e., Facebook) plays a critical role in easing
knowledge and information sharing among external as well as internal stakeholders [67].
Third, several studies have outlined the significance of SM adoption and its usage in SMEs
context [68,69]. However, the operationalization of firm performance has differed among
many of these studies. Additionally, these scholarships also suggested the further examination
of SM adoption and SMEs’ performance. Moreover, [20] recommended that the SM adop-
tion–SME performance should be explored in a more holistic manner employing a longitudi-
nal approach. Therefore, we propose as following:
• H3: There is a positive relationship between SM adoption and SME performance.
2.4 IC and firm performance

IC is defined as a "firm’s critical organizational capability to deploy resources in new ways to
create value" [70]. This value creation helps organizations to improve their performance [71].
According to [72], IC is a means to meet the ends (enhanced SME performance); it is usually
crucial for SMEs to focus on innovation as it facilitates the firms’ capabilities required to
respond competitively to achieve sustainable competitive advantage. According to [73], IC
should be an integral part of a firm’s strategy because higher innovativeness levels lead to
improved cooperation and coordination within firms.
Several studies have examined the direct link between IC and firm performance [74,75].
However, these studies differed in several ways; for example, they used different conceptualiza-
tions and measurements of IC. Furthermore, [75] suggested continuous and explicit IC devel-
opment at the individual and collective levels. They also recommended further investigation of
this relationship in the form of surveys to improve generalizability. Following [74], who

encouraged more empirical research on IC and firm performance in other cultures, the cur-
rent study investigates whether SMEs, focusing on developing countries, can cultivate IC.
Much other research [76,77]. has examined this relationship; however, the conceptualiza-
tion of IC and firm performance, measurements of these constructs, the context of research,
industrial sectors, study design, and respondents, have differed. They also suggest a further
examination of this relationship with a longitudinal approach. Thus, the present paper aims to
bring in empirical evidence employing a time lag approach to validate these empirical claims:
• H4: There is a positive relationship between IC and SME performance.
2.5 Mediating role of SM adoption

Prior research has proved the direct EO–SM relationship [20,44,56] and EO and SME perfor-
mance [6,48], but very few studies have used SM as a mediator [78,79]. Prior studies suggest
investigating the mechanisms that affect the direct EO–SME-performance link. For example,
[38] examined the indirect effect of experiential learning on EO and SMEs’ international per-
formance. Similarly, [42] used marketing capability as a mediator to establish this link. Hence,
one can infer that EO enhances SME performance based on its support from the indirect
effects of other constructs.
Past studies have explained EO as a resource [38,48] that can produce valuable results (e.g.,
improved SME performance) only when appropriate capabilities are deployed [80,81]. RBV
theory supports this, suggesting that resources should be aligned with organizational capabili-
ties to achieve desired results. This assertion is particularly relevant to SMEs [82]. Therefore,
following [17] and [45], the current study proposes SM adoption as a capability that would
enable SMEs to achieve more incredible performance by capitalizing on their resources (EO in
this case). We, therefore, introduce SM adoption as a mediating variable for two reasons. First,
EO alone is insufficient to help SMEs improve their performance [42,83]. Thus, SMEs should
borrow extra support from capabilities such as SM adoption. Second, SMEs require mecha-
nisms to achieve what they wish to achieve [84].
We believe that SM adoption is a critical factor and it can mediate the EO–SME-perfor-
mance relationship; our rationale is based on [56], who proposed that managers’ perception of
SM mediates the EO–crowdfunding-campaign-success link. Similarly, [20] proposed SM as a
potential mechanism that indirectly affects resources and performance, while [10] suggested
that the direct EO–firm-performance link is be mediated and moderated by different con-
structs. Recently, [69,79,85] evidenced the mediating role of SM adoption in SMEs’ context in
developing countries. Thus, we argue that EO enhances SME performance indirectly by affect-
ing SM adoption:
• H5: SM adoption mediates the positive EO–SME performance relationship.
2.6 Moderating role of IC

DC theory holds that organizations produce several capabilities that enable them to structure
their processes and resources to meet the organizational goals [86], allowing them to remain
competitive during turbulent market conditions [87]. Nowadays, SM and innovation, though
exclusively modeled, have been argued as complimentary organizational capabilities that
improve firm performance. However, their complementary impact on organizational perfor-
mance, is not universally linear and context-specific [88] and may have unexpected deviations
from the same point, as is complexity theory’s conventional argument [89]. Accordingly,

empirical investigation is required of IC’s moderating conditions based on the level of EO and
firm size.
Innovation has been recognized a critical factor in organizational performance as it moder-
ates the effect of various performance antecedents [90]. However, studies have rarely used IC
as a potential moderator. One rare example is [91], who incorporated IC as a potential moder-
ator in their study on customers in a developed country.
Drawing upon RBV, we recognize SM adoption as a resource [66] that facilitates SME per-
formance. However, to capitalize on the resource–performance link, SMEs must utilize their
abilities (such as IC) to improve performance [80,91]. Our next rationale for using IC as a
moderating variable is based on [20], who recommended that SM adoption–SME performance
should be examined holistically. We believe that incorporating IC as an intervening variable
will enable scholars and practitioners to determine whether SM adoption enhances SME per-
formance more when ICs are effectively utilized.
Finally, IC is an SME ability that helps improve work processes and outcomes [75], hence
its recognition as a potential moderator [90]. Several studies have examined the direct IC–
firm-performance link [76,77]. Thus, we believe that IC strengthens the SM-adoption–SME-
performance relationship:
• H6: IC moderates the SM-adoption–SME-performance relationship such that IC strengthens
the positive SM-adoption–SME-performance relationship.
The conceptual framework is depicted in Fig 1.
3. Methodology
3.1 Ethical Statement
This study was carried out in accordance with the recommendations of the Ethical Principles
of Psychologists and Code of Conduct by the American Psychological Association’s (APA). All
participants gave written informed consent in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki.
The protocol was approved by the employee’s council of the participating organizations as well
as the ethics committee of Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, China.
Fig 1. Conceptual framework.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0247320.g001

3.2 Sampling and data collection

The study’s targeted populations were owners and managers of the SMEs listed by small-and-
medium-enterprises-development-authority (SMEDA); their online existence was confirmed
using the well-known websites (i.e., businesslist.pk and mustakbil.com). We have targeted
SMEs owners and managers because they are well informed about firms’ performance and
internal as well as external environment [92]. Besides, they make a decision regarding the
adoption and implementation of technology.
In this study, a closed-ended questionnaire was administered using an online survey, which
was created and designed using both survey monkey and Google Forms. Both are flexible and
powerful online survey websites; they have a professional and simple layout that offers partici-
pants many functions and simple navigation of the created survey. Several other notable bene-
fits made an online survey a more viable and appropriate source to collect data. For instance, it
is an efficient way to reach many participants. It has low administration and returning costs
and offers a wide range of visual elements and interactive features to attract respondents [79].
The present study’s data collection process was completed in 6-month lag time as it was con-
sidered one of the ways to mitigate common method bias (CMB) [93,94]. This study distrib-
uted 650 questionnaires, resulting in 423 valid responses, representing a 65% response rate.
3.3 Measures
The study used five-point Likert scales (1 = "strongly disagree"; 5 = "strongly agree"). EO was
assessed using eight items from [44]. SM was assessed using 13 items [SM for marketing (four
items), customer relations and services (six items), and information accessibility (three items)]
adapted from [18]. IC was assessed using five items from [87]. SME performance was assessed
using seven items from [13,95].
4. Results
This study used PLS-SEM to conduct analysis [96]; as it is widely used in business manage-
ment and related disciplines and is considered the most comprehensive and fully developed
system of variance [97]. We also used mediation and moderation analysis [98]. In addition, the
present scholarship employed two-step approach (an evaluation of measurements and struc-
tural model) as suggested by [99].
4.1 Descriptive information

Out of 423 respondents, 328 were male, and the remaining 22.4% were female. Nearly 38%
were aged between 26 and 35 years, and almost one-fourth of them were between 36 and 45
years. Regarding education, approximately 44% had a master’s degree, followed by undergrad-
uates with nearly 30%. The most of participants were managers 40.4%, followed by executives
one-third and owners one-quarter. Regarding company size, 231 had 11 to 50 employees
(Table 1).
4.2 Model analysis

Following [99] proposition, this study used a two-step approach for PLS-SEM, namely assess-
ment of the measurement model and the structural model. An evaluation of the measurement
model includes reliability, validity, and CMB test, while the structural model comprises path
coefficients, hypotheses testing, coefficient of determination, cross-validated redundancy etc.
4.2.1 CMB test. To ensure data free from CMB, the present study deployed Harman’s sin-
gly factor test, which showed that a single factor explained only 36.44% of the total variance

Table 1. Demographic information.

Respondents Frequency Percentage
Gender Male 328 77.5
Female 95 22.5
Age (years) <26 52 12.3
26–35 161 38.1
36–45 95 22.5
Over 50 115 27.2
Education Basic/secondary 19 4.5
Undergraduate 126 29.8
Master’s 184 43.5
Other 94 22.2
Position Owner 107 25.3
Executive 145 34.3
Manager 171 40.4
No. of employees <10 84 19.9
11–50 231 54.6
51–250 108 25.5
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0247320.t001
below the 50.0% acceptable threshold [100]. Aside from Harman’s single factor test, the pres-
ent study also used a full collinearity approach called the variance inflation factor (VIF) to
detect CMB evidence [101]. The findings regarding CMB with this approach also ensured that
data is free from CMB since the VIFs were less than 3 acceptable thresholds [102] (Table 2).
[103] suggested the correlation-matrix procedure to detect CMB; whereby CMB is evident if
correlation among the principle constructs is greater than 0.9 [104]; however, none of the con-
structs was greater than 0.9 (Table 3). Finally, following [105], in studies examining mediation
effects, it is extremely difficult for respondents to manipulate mentally. Therefore, the potential
for CMB is low.
4.2.2 Assessment of the measurement model. This research used reflective-formative
approach for SM adoption construct. Therefore, we have assessed the proposed model using
the first-order and second-order. [106], suggested assessing the measurement model using
individual item reliability (factor loadings), internal consistency, and validity (i.e., content,
convergent, and discriminant). Table 4 shows the constructs, item code, and descriptive
statistics.
Individual item reliability was measured by factor loading associated with a particular
dimension [107]. [108] suggested that factor loading value should be between retained 0.40
and 0.70, whereas [109] proposed a value should be �0.7; therefore, CR2 (0.695) was removed,
while all other values were retained (Table 2). According to [110], proposition Cronbach’s
alpha values should be greater 0.7 (Table 2). Regarding the internal consistency [111] stated
that the requires composite reliability (CR) value should be �0.7; all the values were retained
(Table 2). Releated to convergent validity, [112] proposed that the average variance extracted
(AVE) requires to be �0.5 (Table 2). Releated to discriminant validity, [112], stated that the
AVE’s square root for each variable needs to be greater than the inter-correlations of the vari-
ables with other model variables (Table 3).
4.2.3 Assessment of the structural model. This study employed bootstrapping technique
with 5,000 bootstraps [109] and 423 cases to generate path values and their significance level as
proposed by [113]. Figs 2 and 3 present the assessment of the structural model. [114], proposed
that the structural model must evaluate the linear regression effects of used constructs. An

Table 2. Measurement model.

Construct Item code Loading CA CR AVE Inner VIF
Entrepreneurial orientation (EO) EO1 0.796 0.923 0.937 0.649 1.611
EO2 0.821
EO3 0.836
EO4 0.793
EO5 0.787
EO6 0.772
EO7 0.847
EO8 0.79
SM adoption (SM) 0.937 0.946 0.593 1.644
SM for marketing SMM1 0.783 0.914 0.94 0.796 2.234
SMM2 0.778
SMM3 0.794
SMM4 0.76
Customer relationship CR1 0.722 0.864 0.902 0.649 2.983
CR3 0.773
CR4 0.798
CR5 0.732
CR6 0.722
Information IA1 0.785 0.934 0.958 0.883 2.320
Accessibility IA2 0.795
IA3 0.792
Innovation capabilities (IC) IC1 0.787 0.865 0.902 0.648 1.058
IC2 0.778
IC3 0.82
IC4 0.808
IC4 0.831
Firm performance (FP) FP1 0.803 0.923 0.938 0.684
FP2 0.862
FP3 0.839
FP4 0.825
FP5 0.852
FP6 0.816
FP7 0.791
Table 3. Latent variable correlation and square root of AVE.

Construct 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Customer relationship (CR) 0.806
Entrepreneurial orientation (EO) 0.528 0.806
Firm performance (FP) 0.507 0.438 0.827
Information accessibility (IA) 0.714 0.583 0.457 0.94
Innovation capabilities (IC) 0.17 0.021 0.183 0.196 0.805
Social media (SM) 0.631 0.609 0.525 0.841 0.18 0.77
Social media for marketing (SMM) 0.727 0.515 0.425 0.564 0.117 0.873 0.892
Notes: Values on the diagonal (bold) are square root of the AVE while the off-diagonals are correlations.

Table 4. Constructs item and descriptive statistics.

Construct Item Items Mean S.D Skewness
code
Entrepreneurial EO1 “Innovations are appreciated above everything else” 4.035 0.941 –0.823
orientation
EO2 “We emphasize R&D, technological leadership and innovativeness instead of trusting only those 4.09 0.926 –1.04
products and services, which we have traditionally found to be good”
EO3 “We emphasize risk taking” 3.986 0.945 –0.899
EO4 “In our company, many people want to take risk” 3.934 0.94 –0.877
EO5 “Within the last five years, we have brought several new products or services to the market” 3.917 0.894 –0.713
EO6 “We intend to get into markets before our competition” 3.986 0.92 –0.923
EO7 “We are typically ahead of competitors in presenting new products or procedure” 3.976 0.901 –0.828
EO8 “In our company people want to be first in the markets” 3.995 0.867 –0.733
SM adoption
SM for marketing SMM1 “It helps to conduct marketing research” 4.014 0.778 –1.023
SMM2 “It helps to get referrals (word of mouth via likes, shares and followers in Facebook)” 4 0.819 –0.802
SMM3 “It helps to advertise and promote product/services” 4.064 0.786 –0.788
SMM4 “It provides aids to deliver customer services” 3.988 0.821 –0.776
Customer relationship CR1 “It helps to develop customer relations” 4.163 0.853 –1.099
CR2 “Communicate with customers” 3.87 0.822 –0.78
CR3 Conduct customer service activities” 3.976 0.864 –0.837
CR4 “Receive customer feedback on existing product/services 3.979 0.865 –0.969
CR5 “Receive customer feedback on new/future product/services” 3.986 0.864 –0.767
CR6 “Reach new customers” 4.061 0.868 –1.035
Information IA1 “It helps to search for general information” 4.277 0.84 –1.015
accessibility
IA2 “Search for competitor information” 4.236 0.892 –1.045
IA3 “Search for customer information” 4.121 0.863 –1.033
Innovation capabilities IC1 “There is constant generation of new product or service ideas in this firm” 4.035 0.9 –1.025
IC2 “We are constantly having R&D funds in order to search for new ways of doing things” 3.943 0.992 –0.832
IC3 “There is creativity in our methods of operation” 4.071 0.886 –0.651
IC4 “This firm is usually a pioneer in the market” 4.083 0.953 –0.972
IC5 “This firm is able to introduce new product or services every five years due to continuous support 3.863 0.817 –0.422
provided to R&D”
SME performance FP1 “Improved customer relationship” 3.943 0.767 –0.977
FP2 “Service quality” 4.007 0.939 –0.925
FP3 “Customer engagement” 3.896 0.85 –0.913
FP4 “Increase in company/brand visibility and reputation” 3.927 0.879 –0.779
FP5 “Increased customer loyalty and retention” 3.993 0.838 –0.834
FP6 “Enhance the customer service” 3.995 0.837 –0.891
FP7 “Increase product/service awareness among customers and increase market share” 4.028 0.847 –0.943
evaluation of structural model assessed using path-co-efficient, t-value, p-value, and coeffi-
cients of determination (R2) [102]. According to [115], recommended that R2 values of 0.19,
0.33, and 0.60 are considered weak, moderate, and substantial. The R2 value of 0.371 indicates
that 37.1% of SM adoption changes occurred due to EO, while 32.4% of firm performance
occurred due to EO, SM adoption, and IC (Table 5). All hypotheses of the proposed model
were supported (Table 6).
Aside from the above, this study also used cross-validated-redundancy-measure or effect
sizes (f2) and (q2) to assess the proposed model and validate results [116]. [115] also suggested

Fig 2. Structural equation modeling.

that 0.35, 0.15, and 0.02 values reveal that an exogenous variable has a large, medium, and
small predictive relevance for a particular endogenous variable. Predictive relevance is consid-
ered a supplementary evaluation due to the goodness of fit index not being appropriate for
model authentication as it cannot differentiate between invalid and valid models [117,118].
However, [113] recommended that q2>0 demonstrate that the proposed framework has pre-
dictive relevance. This study evidenced that the proposed model has medium and considerable
predictive relevance (Table 5). Regarding the moderation results, the constructs had small
effects, on an individual basis, and the moderation effect was small (with 0.022 effect size
value) (Table 5). In addition, SRMR is widely used as an absolute measure of fit: a value of zero

Fig 3. Structural equation modeling and path coefficients.

indicates perfect fit and a value less than 0.08 is considered a good fit [119]. Table 5 illustrates
that the present research has adequate goodness of fit [120].
4.2.4 Mediation analysis. To assess the mediating role of SM adoption,’ this study
employed [108] method. Following [121], rule Z mediates the link between X and Y if the
direct path between X to Z and Z to Y is significant. The results reveal that the direct path from
the EO to SM adoption (β = 0.609, p = 0.001) and from SM adoption to firm performance (β =
0.382, p = 0.001) were positive and statistically significant. Accordingly [98], proposed that if
Table 5. Model strength.

Effect size Coefficient of determination
Construct SSO SSE Q2 (= 1–SSE/SSO) R2 Adj. R2
SM adoption 423.00 270.663 0.360 0.371 0.369
Firm performance 423.00 295.102 0.302 0.324 0.318
2 2
f Q
Firm performance (FP) Social media (SM) Firm performance (FP) Social media (SM)
Entrepreneurial orientation (EO) 0.037 0.590 0.03438 (small)
Social media (SM) 0.130 0.1361 (small)
SM� IC 0.022
Innovation capabilities (IC) 0.021 0.02579 (small)
Information accessibility (IA) 0.021 (small)
Social media for marketing (SMM) 0.035 (small)
Customer relationship (CR) 0.032 (small)
Notes: Goodness of fit!SRMR = 0.077; SM� IC!moderation effect size is small.

Table 6. Path coefficient and hypotheses testing.

Hypothesis Relationship Path coefficient Mean SD t-value Decision
Direct effect
H1 EO!SME performance 0.199 0.197 0.053 3.729 Supported
H2 EO!SM adoption 0.609 0.609 0.043 14.274 Supported
H3 SM adoption!SME performance 0.382 0.382 0.058 6.542 Supported
H4 IC!SME performance 0.122 0.121 0.049 2.496 Supported
Indirect effect
H5 EO!SM adoption!SME performance 0.233 0.233 0.04 5.751 Supported
Moderation effect
H6 SM� IC!SME performance 0.103 0.102 0.042 2.415 Supported
Notes: Critical values.

�
t-value>1.96 (p<0.05).
the indirect impact is significant while the direct impact is not significant, full mediation has
occurred; if both direct and indirect effects are substantial, partial mediation has occurred. SM
adoption partially mediated the EO–firm-performance relationship (Table 6).
4.2.5 Testing the moderation effect. To assess the moderating role of IC, this study used
a product-indicator-method (PIM) using PLS-SEM [122]. We used PIM because the suggested
moderating construct was continuous [123]. [115] rules were used to assess the moderating
effects. Regarding H6 (IC moderates the SM-adoption–firm-performance relationship), the
interaction terms (β = 0.103, p = 0.016) were significant (Table 6, Fig 4). Hence, H6 was sup-
ported. The slope for the link between SM adoption and firm performance moderated by IC
Fig 4. Moderation effect.


showed that the relationship became stronger when there was high IC (Fig 4). More specifi-
cally, as illustrated in Fig 4, when IC is high, the impact of SM adoption on SMEs performance
tends to be stronger.
5. Discussion
This study used a quantitative approach to test the EO-SM adoption and SM adoption-SMEs
performance relationship. Besides, the mediating role of SM adoption and the moderating role
of IC in SMEs context. The study outcomes were found interesting, given that higher EO leads
to greater SM adoption; RBV theory supports the assumption that gaining competitive advan-
tage is based on the application of organizations’ bundles of productive resources [66].
The EO–SME-performance relationship was positive (p = 0.001), supporting H1. Results
showed that two concepts are relevant, supporting that EO is crucial in enhancing SME perfor-
mance. To support SME’s performance, EO is the essential element that accelerates the organi-
zation’s SM adoption process. According to RBV, EO is an intangible resource considered the
main source of competitive advantage to improve firm performance [40]. Our findings are
consistent with [124], who studied SMEs in developing countries, arguing that EO is a signifi-
cant factor for firm performance.
Regarding the EO–SM-adoption relationship, EO had a significant association with SM
adoption (p = 0.007), supporting H2. These findings are possible due to fear of losing ground
to competitors, SMEs in emerging countries like Pakistan are acting entrepreneurially regard-
ing SM adoption. Given increasing SM usage (paradigm and customer shift from offline to
online), firms’ EO plays a critical role in SM adoption. Our results are consistent with [44] but
inconsistent with [18], potentially due to organizations’ characteristics, employees’, managers’,
and owners’ education, and the risk and costs incurred to encourage staff to adopt SM.
Regarding the effects of SM adoption on SME performance (p = 0.001), H3 was supported.
Results showed the robust effect of SM adoption, suggesting that SMEs in emerging countries
benefit from investment in SM. This finding is inconsistent with [68], who noted no significant
SM-adoption–business-performance relationship among UAE SMEs, but consistent with
[13,57], who found the positive effects of SM on firm performance in terms of improved cus-
tomer relations, cost reduction, and improved information accessibility. These study findings
are beneficial for managers, especially in Pakistan, because most of the SMEs do not consider
SM as their strategic partner. Still, this study will help them to involve SM to increase firm per-
formance. In this way, they can achieve a competitive advantage in the market. These findings
are significant because SM usage by Pakistani firms is uncommon. Firms mainly use SM to
market products or services rather than to gain a competitive advantage. SM can enable firms
to reduce marketing costs and improve access to information and customer relationships.
IC positively affected firm performance (p = 0.001), supporting H4. This reflects that IC
produces new ideas related to products/services, processes, and marketing activities that
improve firm performance. This means that firms will be more proactive in changing trends
and will always come up with new and innovative ideas for products and services. The results
support [125,126] who found a positive IC–firm-performance relationship. DC theory pre-
sumes that competitive advantage enables firms to enhance their capacity to keep up with,
respond to, and initiate technological changes. Thus, IC relates not only to firms’ propensity to
adopt ideas but also a willingness to forgo old habits and engage in the experimental execution
of untested ideas. Our findings reveal that Pakistani firms are highly motivated to be innova-
tive and develop IC.
SM adoption partially mediated the EO–SME performance relationship (p = 0.001), sup-
porting H5. This is consistent with [56], who argued that SM could be adopted to generate

innovative ideas, leading to creative performance and greater effectiveness. The result also
found consistent with recent studies of [78,79] who proved the mediating role of SM adoption
in the SMEs in developing countries.
Regarding the moderation effect of IC (p = 0.001); H6 was supported. Our findings suggest
that, if SMEs have low IC, SM will have little influence on performance, and vice versa. To
summarize, the effects of SM adoption on firm performance are greater when SMEs engage in
IC. When a firm is more proactive towards innovation, then they more likely to adopt the SM
quickly and increase the firm performance. Because SM adoption has a positive relationship
with the SME’s performance, and IC plays the role of moderator in their relationship. This is
consistent with [70], who found positive moderating effects of IC. Our findings also reflect
that IC not only directly influences SME performance but also plays a moderator role in the
SM-adoption–SME-performance relationship.
6. Theoretical and practical contributions

6.1 Theoretical contributions
The present study offers several contributions concerning SM adoption and SMEs perfor-
mance in emerging economies (an under-researched area). Because in this technological era,
customers are more involved in the SM. They prefer SM for shopping, which had made it eas-
ier for SMEs to reach potential customers. For SMEs, it is proved as an ample opportunity
because SMEs can reach customers through SM. It depends on the capacity of the SMEs inno-
vation level, how much the organization is innovation-friendly and supports innovation in the
firm.
We followed the RBV theory, which supports using resources to get a competitive advan-
tage in the market. This theory is supporting this study because we are exploring how firms
use their technological resources to get a competitive advantage in the industry. This theory
allows us to determine the effect of SM on SMEs’ performance. Practically this study will help
the manager to explore the relationship between the SM and SMEs performance, and they can
decide which organizations can easily go for SM adoption. Because this study will enable the
manager to evaluate the chances of SM adoption based on how much the firm environment is
innovation-friendly. Because the innovation capability of a firm defines the chances of SM
adoption in SMEs. Further managers will be able to demonstrate and decide what to do to
increase the performance of the firm through SM.
Although the direct EO–SM adoption and firm performance have been examined in prior
studies [38,44], the mediating role of SM adoption [127] and the moderating role of IC has sel-
dom been investigated [128]. This gap is substantial because future innovation adoption may
become gradually parallel, with firms hoping to adopt distinctive SM channels for similar pur-
poses. Furthermore, very limited studies have paid attention to SM adoption in SME’s context
[129,130] and examined hypotheses similar to those in the present study.
This research lengthens the present theory regarding the mediating and moderating role of
SM adoption and IC to RBV, then investigating the growing research problem of SM adoption
and use by SMEs. The present study offers the newest support to the existing literature by pro-
viding empirical aids from an SM viewpoint and its mediating role and moderating role of IC
with good explanatory power.
First, we contribute to the body knowledge by analyzing the mediation effect of SM on the
EO–SME-performance relationship. Second, this preliminary research enriches the manage-
ment literature by investigating SM adoption within the moderating confines of IC in SME set-
tings. Theoretically, we investigate the moderator that influences the effects of SM on SME

performance. IC helps to explain the effects of SM adoption in enhancing SME performance.

The moderating effects of IC strengthen the SM-adoption–SME-performance relationship.
Previous studies have either examined the constructs individually or with different constructs
and dimention of EO [131] or called for further research concerning theory development and
validation of results [11]. The present study, however, delivered a suitable and parsimonious
approach for examining this research phenomenon.
This research guides more in-depth examination and improves research on EO and SM-
adoption perceptions by connecting them to firm performance. Additionally, IC has been con-
ceptualized in an innovative-technology and SME context. We confirm the partially mediating
role of SM adoption and firm performance in SMEs in emerging countries.
6.2 Practical contributions

The present study provides a comprehensive understanding of EO, enabling decision-makers
(owners and managers) to recognize the actual consequence of SM adoption. It also supports
their understanding regarding how effective SM adoption and implementation can lead to
improving SME performance. For instance, SM adoption significantly affects SMEs in terms
of cost reduction, innovativeness, competitive advantage related to marketing activities, pro-
cesses, and work. Actively employing SM also improves firm-customer relationships and cus-
tomer loyalty. Besides, SM adoption improves brand visibility, enables a significant number of
customers to be reached, and enhances customer access to information.
The most widely utilized SM applications were social networking services. Before deciding
which application(s) to adopt, decision-makers must work closely with the most popular SM
tools in their country [132], i.e. Facebook (Pakistan), WhatsApp (India), and WeChat (China).
Firms should encourage employees to use SM for daily work and marketing-related activities
as it is a cheaper and faster way to communicate and share information and to innovate. SMEs
operating in developing countries should adopt SM as it offers several new ways to do business,
thus developing and sustaining IC [125].
We examined EO’s effects on SM adoption in developing countries. Future scholars can
examine the effects of SM adoption grounded on reflective-formative constructs. Given the
debate on the positive (cost-effective, improving customer relationships, brand-building) and
negative (increasing customer power, tracking negative comments, marketing-shift burden)
SM outcomes, most firms are confused regarding SM adoption. This study clarifies the impor-
tance of SM and its outcomes. The findings help firms, especially SMEs, in developing coun-
tries. EO helps managers, executives, and employees in SM adoption.
In developing countries, especially Pakistan, the most widely used SM applications were
Facebook. Before deciding on which application(s) to adopt and employ for marketing and
reaching a large audience, decision-makers must work closely with the most popular SM tools
in their country [132], i.e., Facebook (Pakistan), WhatsApp (India), and WeChat (China).
Firms should encourage employees to use SM for daily work and marketing-related activities
as it is a cheaper and faster way to communicate and share information and to innovate. SMEs
operating in developing countries should adopt SM as it offers several new ways to do business,
thus developing and sustaining IC [125].
Some scholarships dedicated to SMEs have suggested that firms use SM simply because oth-
ers in the industry do, resulting in wasted resources and SM adoption, not generating the
desired outcomes. We propose that SMEs need to understand how and why SM will be utilized
[133]. Ultimately, we highlight why SM should be adopted and how it can be implemented
successfully.

7. Limitation and future research

This paper is not free from limitations. We used a random sampling method due to time con-
straints and limited budget. As we considered Pakistan only, limiting the generalizability of the
findings, future studies should employ a cross-cultural approach to explore the effects of SM
adoption on SME performance and the mediating role of SM adoption between EO and SMEs
performance and moderating role of SM adoption and SMEs performance.
There may also be other antecedents and influencing factors; using a single factor and asso-
ciated elements (e.g., information accessibility, SM for marketing, and customer relationship
in SM adoption) may be considered a limitation. The sample size and reach may also be con-
sidered a limitation, as it can concentrate on only a few SM tools. This study proposed frame-
work was tested in the context of SMEs in a single country via web-based survey. The results
represent a snapshot at a particular time; however the impact of SM is volatile over time.
Hypotheses were developed using SMEs operating in developing countries; therefore, the
results may not be generalizable to developed countries and larger firms. This study did not
examines the effects of the environment (e.g., environmental turbulence, institutional pres-
sure, etc.). Therefore, upcoming studies should examines the effects of environmental turbu-
lence and regulations related to SM marketing content in developing countries.
Future studies could also investigate SMEs in separate sectors, as well as the large organiza-
tion in emerging economies, needs to be tested. They could also study how managers and exec-
utives use SM to manage customers’ knowledge. Comparative studies could validate our
results and investigate the proposed model using large and small firms. The association
between SM adoption and its effects on SMEs’ performance in emerging economies could also
be studied to investigate whether there is any deviation in results between different time-
frames. Finally, the mediating role of SM adoption and the moderating role of IC should be
explored further irrespective of country structure.
Supporting information
S1 File. Questionare.
(DOCX)
S1 Data.
(CSV)
Author Contributions
Conceptualization: Sikandar Ali Qalati, Muhammad Aamir Shafique Khan, Syed Mir
Muhammad Shah, Raza Saleem Khan.
Data curation: Sikandar Ali Qalati, Muhammad Aamir Shafique Khan, Syed Mir Muhammad
Shah, Raza Saleem Khan.
Formal analysis: Mingyue Fan, Sikandar Ali Qalati, Muhammad Aamir Shafique Khan, Syed
Mir Muhammad Shah, Muhammad Ramzan, Raza Saleem Khan.
Investigation: Sikandar Ali Qalati, Muhammad Aamir Shafique Khan.
Methodology: Mingyue Fan, Sikandar Ali Qalati, Muhammad Aamir Shafique Khan, Muham-
mad Ramzan, Raza Saleem Khan.
Project administration: Muhammad Aamir Shafique Khan.
Software: Sikandar Ali Qalati, Muhammad Aamir Shafique Khan, Muhammad Ramzan.

Supervision: Mingyue Fan, Sikandar Ali Qalati, Syed Mir Muhammad Shah.
Validation: Raza Saleem Khan.
Writing – original draft: Sikandar Ali Qalati, Muhammad Aamir Shafique Khan.
Writing – review & editing: Mingyue Fan, Syed Mir Muhammad Shah, Muhammad Ramzan,
Raza Saleem Khan.
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PLOS ONE

Effects of entrepreneurial orientation on

a1111111111 * [email protected] (MASK); [email protected] (SAQ)

Copyright: © 2021 Fan et al. This is an open access 1. Introduction

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diverse constructs [9,10]. However, there is no consensus on the mediation effects of EO on

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2.2 EO and SM adoption

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• H2: There is a positive relationship between EO and SM adoption.

2.3 SM adoption and SME performance

2.4 IC and firm performance

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2.5 Mediating role of SM adoption

2.6 Moderating role of IC

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Fig 1. Conceptual framework.

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3.2 Sampling and data collection

4.1 Descriptive information

4.2 Model analysis

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Table 1. Demographic information.

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Table 2. Measurement model.

Table 3. Latent variable correlation and square root of AVE.

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Table 4. Constructs item and descriptive statistics.

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Fig 2. Structural equation modeling.

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Fig 3. Structural equation modeling and path coefficients.

Table 5. Model strength.

Notes: Goodness of fit!SRMR = 0.077; SM� IC!moderation effect size is small.

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Table 6. Path coefficient and hypotheses testing.

Notes: Critical values.

Fig 4. Moderation effect.

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6. Theoretical and practical contributions

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performance. IC helps to explain the effects of SM adoption in enhancing SME performance.

6.2 Practical contributions

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7. Limitation and future research

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