ABSTRACT: Social commerce has emerged as an important digital business approach that combines social networking, online communication, and commercial transactions. For women entrepreneurs, social commerce platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp Business can provide opportunities to promote products, communicate with customers, and access markets without requiring extensive investment in conventional retail infrastructure. However, adoption may be influenced by digital capabilities, perceived usefulness, customer trust, financial resources, privacy concerns, and socio-cultural constraints. This paper proposes a systematic review of the drivers and barriers influencing social commerce adoption among women entrepreneurs in India. It draws on established literature on social commerce adoption, women’s entrepreneurship, digital entrepreneurship, and small-business digitalisation, alongside official Indian government statistics. The government data indicate the substantial economic presence of women-owned enterprises, while previous reviews reveal continuing gaps in theoretically grounded and context-specific research. It also identifies research priorities concerning platform choice, digital capability, business outcomes, and the sustainability of women-led digital enterprises. The study provides a conceptual basis for future research on social commerce adoption among women entrepreneurs in India.
KEYWORDS:Social commerce, women entrepreneurs, digital entrepreneurship, technology adoption, digital marketing.
A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF THE DRIVERS AND BARRIERS TO SOCIAL COMMERCE ADOPTION AMONG WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS IN INDIA
MS. SAHIDA KHATUN MEHFOOZ ALI KHAN