Digital Marketing, E-Commerce and Economic Performance of Retail Firms

随着信息技术和数字经济的不断发展，现代消费者了解和购买商品和服务的渠道更为丰富，为应对多样且多变的消费需求，零售企业亟需发展数字营销为自身经济绩效提升注入活力。本研究基于2014~2023年中国A股零售业上市公司数据，通过固定效应模型实证检验数字营销对零售企业经济绩效的影响及其作用机制。研究发现：第一，数字营销显著促进零售企业经济绩效提升，该结论在稳健性检验中依然成立；第二，电子商务具有显著正向调节效应，通过发展电子商务，数字营销对零售企业经济绩效的促进作用进一步增强；第三，异质性分析表明，数字营销对国有企业、多员工企业及东中部地区企业的经济绩效提升效果更为显著，而对非国有企业、少员工企业及西部地区企业的影响不显著。本研究为零售企业发展数字营销提供了理论依据，建议零售企业结合自身特征及性质条件积极采取并优化数字营销战略，强化电子商务资源配置，以提升企业经济绩效，同时政策制定者应关注区域差异，支持数字基础薄弱地区建设，实现协调发展。With the continuous development of information technology and digital economy, modern consumers have more abundant channels to understand and buy goods and services. In order to cope with diverse and changeable consumer demands, retail enterprises need to develop digital marketing to inject vitality into their own economic performance. Based on the data of China’s A-share retail listed companies from 2014 to 2023, this study empirically examines the impact of digital marketing on the economic performance of retail enterprises and its mechanism through A fixed-effect model. The findings are as follows: First, digital marketing can significantly improve the economic performance of retail enterprises, and this conclusion is still valid in the robustness test; Second, e-commerce has a significant positive moderating effect. Through the development of e-commerce, digital marketing has further enhanced its role in promoting the economic performance of retail enterprises. Third, heterogeneity analysis shows that digital marketing has a more significant effect on improving economic performance of state-owned enterprises, multi-employee enterprises and enterprises in the eastern and central regions, while it has no significant impact on non-state-owned enterprises, enterprises with few employees and enterprises in the western region. This study provides a theoretical basis for retail enterprises to develop digital marketing. It is suggested that retail enterprises should actively adopt and optimize digital marketing strategies and strengthen the allocation of e-commerce resources according to their own characteristics and nature conditions, so as to improve their economic performance. Meanwhile, policy makers should pay attention to regional differences and support the construction of areas with weak digital foundation to achieve coordinated development.