Paper Number
ECIS2026-2869
Paper Type
SP
Abstract
Social commerce platforms like Instagram have transformed how entrepreneurs discover opportunities, build visibility, and create value. Yet little is known about how women entrepreneurs make sense of unexpected algorithmic moments and convert them into business opportunities. This study examines how serendipity unfolds on Instagram by drawing on semi-structured interviews with 14 women entrepreneurs in India. The findings reveal an iterative cognitive process in which an attentive mindset, digital triggers, and recognition work together to shape entrepreneurial action. Participants interpret sudden spikes in reach, customer tags, or influencer mentions as meaningful openings and act quickly to amplify them, generating both tangible outcomes (sales, followers, engagement) and intangible outcomes (confidence, validation, emotional support). By extending serendipity theory into an algorithmically mediated context, this work offers new insights into how unplanned digital moments fuel value creation in social commerce. As a work-in-progress study, the next steps and future research directions are outlined.
Recommended Citation
Hoor, Munsifa and Ilavarasan, P. Vigneswara, "Turning Chance Into Value: Women Entrepreneurs In Social Commerce" (2026). ECIS 2026 Proceedings. 24.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/ecis2026/gen_track/gen_track/24
Turning Chance Into Value: Women Entrepreneurs In Social Commerce
Social commerce platforms like Instagram have transformed how entrepreneurs discover opportunities, build visibility, and create value. Yet little is known about how women entrepreneurs make sense of unexpected algorithmic moments and convert them into business opportunities. This study examines how serendipity unfolds on Instagram by drawing on semi-structured interviews with 14 women entrepreneurs in India. The findings reveal an iterative cognitive process in which an attentive mindset, digital triggers, and recognition work together to shape entrepreneurial action. Participants interpret sudden spikes in reach, customer tags, or influencer mentions as meaningful openings and act quickly to amplify them, generating both tangible outcomes (sales, followers, engagement) and intangible outcomes (confidence, validation, emotional support). By extending serendipity theory into an algorithmically mediated context, this work offers new insights into how unplanned digital moments fuel value creation in social commerce. As a work-in-progress study, the next steps and future research directions are outlined.
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