William Cordell McDowell

As political polarization becomes ever more pronounced, brands have been utilizing corporate political advocacy to capture target markets and enhance customer loyalty. Yet studies on how corporate political advocacy affects consumer responses have been limited. Our research focuses on how corporate political advocacy influences positive and negative word of mouth through the lens of social identification theory. Using a multi‐study design, we find that while political word of mouth is driven based on the alignment of political identities between consumers and brands, consumers' intentions to deliver word of mouth differ based on their tie strength with the intended target audience (i.e., strong, weak, or absent social ties), their own political identities, and their perceptions of a company's stance on issues. Our results provide both theoretical and practical contributions by improving our understanding of corporate political advocacy's effects on both consumers' positive and negative word of mouth intentions and how marketers can improve the effects of corporate political advocacy.

Purpose: This paper explores the often overlooked and novel academic concept of honest incompetence as a potential “dark” side of social entrepreneurship, where well-intentioned but inadequately skilled agents hinder the effectiveness and sustainability of positive social change initiatives.Design/methodology/approach: We have adopted a multiparadigm approach to theory building, known as metatriangulation. We draw upon agency theory and behavioral decision theory to undergird a framework consisting of antecedents, processes, outcomes and moderators of honest incompetence in social entrepreneurship.Findings: We introduce a detailed framework for understanding honest incompetence in social entrepreneurship. This framework identifies antecedents such as knowledge gaps, examines mechanisms like misguided interventions and explores consequences, including group vilification. Additionally, it investigates moderating factors, emphasizing the disadvantages of outcome-based compensation and the difficulties in evaluating outcomes.Originality/value: This article investigates factors that engender honest incompetence in social entrepreneurship, revealing how even well-intentioned efforts can inadvertently hinder goals. Despite their sincere motives, social entrepreneurs might make choices that conflict with their objectives. Addressing this issue necessitates a customized approach, which includes engaging actively with the community and fostering robust social connections.

Purpose: This study examines the impact of digital corporate social responsibility (CSR) on social entrepreneurship, organizational resilience and competitive intelligence during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) crisis. It also examines the impact of competitive intelligence on social entrepreneurship and organizational resilience.Design/methodology/approach: Data were collected from telecommunication companies in Jordan with a sample of 223 managers, using Smart-PLS for analysis and testing the research model and hypotheses.Findings: The results reveal a significant impact of digital CSR on social entrepreneurship. They show that digital CSR significantly impacts organizational resilience. The findings also indicate a significant role of digital CSR in competitive intelligence. This study shows that social entrepreneurship significantly impacts organizational resilience. The results also confirm the impact of competitive intelligence on social entrepreneurship. Finally, the results confirm that competitive intelligence significantly impacts organizational resilience.Originality/value: This study provides valuable academic and practical insights into digital CSR practices, social entrepreneurship and how to support organizational resilience during crises.

Due to the rise of online retailing, traditional brick-and-mortar retailers need to understand what customers find convenient when shopping at physical locations and focus their efforts on those convenience dimensions to remain competitive. We test a service convenience model in the auto-parts retailing industry and examine how various dimensions of service convenience affect customers’ perceptions of the retailer (i.e., service quality, product quality, and perceived value), and subsequently their behavior (i.e., customer loyalty and share of wallet). The results suggest that in traditional retailing, the most important convenience dimensions are decision convenience and benefit convenience. We find that service convenience exerts its effect on customer loyalty and share of wallet through perceived service quality and perceived value, and product quality has an indirect effect through perceived value. Service convenience is an important driver of customer loyalty and share of wallet, and this study demonstrates the mechanism through which it happens.