中文摘要
我们评估了小型企业维持线上存在的程度,并估计数字化呈现对企业业绩的影响。基于一个点评平台,我们发现截至2017年底,样本中约有18%的酒吧和餐厅没有商家信息,尽管创建此类信息是免费的。随后,我们结合商家信息创建活动随时间的变化,利用税务记录中的收入数据,并借助一项通过数据收购将一千多家企业添加到该平台的自然实验,估计了新增商家信息的效应。结果表明,新增商家信息可使收入提高5%–10%;但该效应在不同企业之间差异很大。难以建立声誉的企业(如非连锁企业或位于旅游区的企业),以及产品质量较高的企业(如规模较大的餐厅或评论较好的餐厅),在被上架后收入增幅更大。本文由Duncan Simester(营销领域)接收录用。补充材料:在线附录和数据文件可从 https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2024.04716 获取。
Abstract
We evaluate the extent to which small businesses maintain an online presence and estimate the impact of digital representation on business performance. Looking at a review platform, we find that roughly 18% of bars and restaurants in our sample do not have a listing as of the end of 2017, even though creating one is free. We then estimate the effect of adding a new listing using tax records on revenues combined with temporal variation in listing activity as well as a natural experiment that added over a thousand businesses to the platform via a data acquisition. The results suggest that new listings increase revenues in the range of 5%–10%; however, these effects vary substantially across establishments. Establishments that struggle to develop a reputation (e.g., nonchains or those in tourist areas) and those with a higher quality of product (e.g., larger restaurants or those with good reviews) experience larger increases after being listed. This paper was accepted by Duncan Simester, marketing. Supplemental Material: The online appendix and data files are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2024.04716 .