Mechanisms and Boundary Conditions of Digital Marketing in Driving Green Innovation: A Moderated Mediation Model for Absorptive Capacity, Performance Pressure, and Environmental Uncertainty

It remains unclear whether and how digital marketing affects corporate green innovation. Focusing on Chinese listed companies, this study investigates the relationships between digital marketing, absorptive capacity, and green innovation. Using panel data from 2012 to 2023 and a fixed-effects model, we found that digital marketing significantly boosts green innovation and that absorptive capacity mediates this relationship. Moreover, managerial performance pressure strengthens the positive effect of digital marketing on absorptive capacity, whereas environmental uncertainty weakens it. A heterogeneity analysis reveals that this positive effect is more pronounced in large enterprises, non-heavily polluting industries, and regions with a higher level of digital economic development. This study fills a gap in the literature regarding how digital marketing drives green innovation, extends the Knowledge-Based View, and provides empirical evidence and practical guidance for corporate green transformation and policy-making.