DEFINITION
A. Digital entrepreneurship is a phenomenon that emerged with
technological advances that began in the late 1990s and early 2000s. It can be
understood as something complex and comprehensive, as it goes beyond the
creation of products and services. Digital entrepreneurship has been changing
social habits and behaviors. Creating possibilities so that people can
increasingly individualize their choices to meet tastes and desires in a
customized way.
B. Digital entrepreneurship is a term that describes how entrepreneurship
will change, as business and society continue to be transformed by digital
technology. Digital entrepreneurship highlights changes in entrepreneurial
practice, theory, and education. It affects virtually all the activities
needed to launch, grow, and manage new ventures, providing entrepreneurs with
new ways of finding customers, designing and offering products, and services,
generating revenue, and reducing costs, as well as with new opportunities to
collaborate with partners and new sources of opportunity, risk, and competitive
advantage.
C. digital
entrepreneurship refers to establishing a new company with an innovative
business idea within the digital economy, which, using a digital platform in
data networks, offers its products and/or services based upon a purely digital
creation of value.
D. digital entrepreneurship is a phenomenon which arose through
technological assets like internet and information and communications
technology. In general, any entrepreneurial activity that transfers an asset,
service or major part of the business into digital can be characterised as
digital entrepreneurship.
E. Digital
entrepreneurship broadly
refers to the use of digital technology as the essential basis for launching,
managing, and expanding new businesses. It specifically involves employing
digital technologies and online platforms to identify, enhance, and cultivate
business opportunities. This field encompasses a wide range of digital tools
and strategies, such as but not restricted to:
E-commerce: Building an online store, e-commerce
platform, or e-marketplace to sell products or services online to customers.
Social media and digital marketing: Utilise social media platforms and
digital marketing strategies to build an online presence, promote the brand,
interact with customers, and increase sales.
Mobile applications: Building mobile applications that add
value to users, connect with customers, and facilitate business transactions.
Data analytics: Collecting and analysing user data,
consumer behaviour and market trends to identify opportunities, optimise
business strategies and improve decision-making.
Cloud computing: Using cloud infrastructure to store
business data, run applications, and access flexible and scalable computing
resources.
Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine
learning: Utilising
AI and machine learning algorithms to improve operational efficiency,
personalise customer experience, and optimise business processes.
Blockchain: Using blockchain technology to secure
transactions, verify authenticity, build trust systems, and manage supply
chains.
ENTREPRENEURSHIP Vs DIGITAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Digital entrepreneurs face a lot of
differences compared to traditional entrepreneurs. Products, marketing
activities and workplace are major differentiation criteria between digital and
non-digital entrepreneurs.
Entrepreneurship is the process of
identifying and utilizing opportunities to convert ideas into valuable goods
and services, taking risks for rewards. It can occur in various settings,
including new and existing ventures, non-profits, and the public sector, with a
key feature being value creation through innovation.
Digital entrepreneurship is presented as a
subset of entrepreneurship that integrates digitalization into its activities,
encompassing digital business, goods, and services. Traditional businesses can
also adopt digital methods to enhance their operations. Advantages of digital
business include expanded activities, new ventures, improved business
intelligence, and efficient customer communication, potentially leading to new
technologies.
The major differences between digital and
traditional entrepreneurship are the following:
Ease of Entry
Establishing a digital business venture is
easy when compared to a traditional entrepreneurial business. For example, the
time taken to build a website which sells the existing goods and services is
less. Existing huge companies like eBay, amazon enables individuals to utilize
the opportunities to form small business ventures in a short time. This is
because many suppliers fail in offering quality products and services which
makes digital entrepreneurship to succeed. The partial digital ventures are the
one which face troubles due to this process as some of the activities require
more effort. When high effort is required, the companies which have less
capability of entry may fail. Apart from this, it also can be a motivation for
entrepreneurs whose business is related with digital economy.
Ease of Manufacturing and storing
A business venture that deals with digital
products have tow benefits i.e. low manufacturing costs and less storing place
whereas they are high in traditional entrepreneurship. In the process of
producing or manufacturing digital products, no any physical equipment is
necessary to produce them or no space is required to store it. This is a “just
in time” production which saves many types of costs which are related to
traditional entrepreneurship. There are more benefits for moderate and extreme
digital entrepreneurship when compared to traditional and partial digital
entrepreneurship.
Ease of Distribution in digital market place
A primary advantage of digital business is
its ability to deliver goods and services globally, quickly, and affordably,
largely thanks to the internet. While consumers once preferred local markets,
today's widespread internet use means people increasingly choose digital
businesses for their purchases. This global reach presents a significant
benefit for both moderate and highly digital entrepreneurs, allowing them to
expand internationally with ease, something traditional entrepreneurs couldn't
achieve. However, this global presence also introduces intense worldwide
competition, compelling digital entrepreneurs to develop highly effective
strategies. A key benefit of the digital market is its capacity to handle high
customer demand 24/7.
Digital workplace
With today's global internet connectivity,
entrepreneurs can seize the opportunity to source capable employees and
business partners from anywhere in the world. Forming global virtual teams
allows entrepreneurs to hire talented individuals, optimizing resource
utilization and fostering cultural understanding. However, managers leading
these virtual teams often face significant challenges due to a lack of experience
with this unique setup. Therefore, digital entrepreneurs must thoroughly
understand these challenges before venturing into business.
Digital product
Digital products offer
significant advantages to entrepreneurs, particularly in manufacturing,
storage, and shipping. Unlike physical goods, digital products can be easily modified and
innovated upon without disrupting existing production or marketing. However,
before launching new digital creations, it's crucial to gather thorough
feedback. This aligns with the Abernathy model, which suggests that product
quality can decline without thoughtful, innovative design. The model emphasizes
that product
innovation should be closely followed by process innovation to maintain this
crucial relationship. These benefits of digital products are
exclusive to moderate and extreme digital entrepreneurs; traditional
entrepreneurs don't have access to them.
Digital service
In the
digital world, the significance of services is steadily
increasing. For customers, the value proposition is crucial: they prioritize
services that are not only affordable but also align with the price charged.
Entrepreneurs must always remember this fundamental principle. By offering
effective digital services, entrepreneurs can attract more customers and gain
valuable insights into global demand. The
success in digital entrepreneurship hinges
on a keen focus on identifying customer needs and closely observing competitor
behavior. A common pitfall for digital entrepreneurs is to assume that simply
incorporating technology into their business activities will guarantee success;
this can, in fact, lead to failure.
Digital Commitment
DIGITAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP IMPORTANCE
Entrepreneurship, especially in its digital form, is a powerful driver
of economic growth and improved living standards within communities.
Entrepreneurs bolster local, regional, and national economies by creating jobs,
boosting local spending power, and increasing overall living standards. They
stimulate local economies by integrating local resources and businesses into
their supply chains, funneling money and investment back into the community.
Increased entrepreneurial activity, particularly in less developed areas, can
even lead to essential infrastructure improvements like better roads, water,
and electricity.
Emphasizing on the importance of strategies that leverage new
technologies, knowledge, and investments for sustained competitive advantage,
alongside providing legal and administrative support to small entrepreneurs.
Notably, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) that effectively adopt advanced
digital technology often experience enhanced growth and employment.
Digital entrepreneurship offers unique advantages such as creating equal
opportunities, enabling remote work, and fostering gender equality and
socio-economic inclusion. When integrated with open and public data, it
significantly contributes to local and long-term development. Emerging
technological trends, including mobile solutions, cloud computing, data
analytics, and digital manufacturing, further expand business opportunities
within the knowledge economy.
A key distinction is that digital firms operate on different business
models and fully leverage digital technology for product/service development,
marketing, and distribution, unlike traditional enterprises. This digital
transformation, driven by advancements in Information and Communication
Technology (ICT), is reshaping the corporate landscape and fostering new
entrepreneurial avenues. While launching a digital business, such as an
e-commerce website, can be remarkably fast, this ease of entry can also lead to
a saturation of low-quality ventures, making it challenging for quality digital
entrepreneurs to stand out. Therefore, understanding the unique advantages and
disadvantages of digital entrepreneurship compared to traditional models is
crucial for success.
The strategic deployment of digital technologies offers immense growth
potential, requiring entrepreneurs to fully exploit their economic value to
establish new ventures or transform existing ones. Many local digital
entrepreneurs possess the capacity for rapid cross-border expansion. Crucially,
success in digital entrepreneurship hinges on the ability to identify new
business opportunities enabled by technology.
Ultimately, digital entrepreneurship has become a powerful force for
change in modern business, disrupting traditional models and driving
innovation. Understanding the diverse forms and impacts of digital
entrepreneurship is vital for businesses seeking to thrive amidst the ongoing
digital transformation.
DIGITAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP’S PILLARS
The European Commission recognized five elements as pillars of digital
entrepreneurship in which each element is related to analyze the concept of
entrepreneurship.
Digital Knowledge Base & ICT Market: digital knowledge base is a type of
technology which is used to store complex unstructured and structured data or
information which is used by computer systems. A digital knowledge-based system
comprises of knowledge – base that characterize the facts and an interface
engine that justify these facts and also use many rules and logical forms in
order to produce other facts from existing information. Information and
communication technology is also one of the technologies that are responsible
for transmitting all kinds of information of industries or companies
electronically. ICT is the major tool or technology that is used for process of
digital entrepreneurship.
Digital Business Environment: digital business environment can be
explained as a virtual place in which one or more computer systems are used to
record or save business information and details of individuals’ interaction.
This can be done through digital social environments, also called as social
networking sites which consist of single central server to share information or
data to each and every client.
Access to Finance: finance is the primary concept and
requirement for every business to carry on both short term and long-term
activities effectively. Access to finance is defined as the capability of an
individual or an enterprise to attain financial services along with credit,
deposit, payment, insurance and other risk managing services. The extent of
finance depends on the type of business, its products and services. The
management of available finance is very important for every entrepreneur for
reducing financial risks. There are many formal and informal financial services
which provide financial support.
Digital Skills & E – Leadership: there are many kinds of skills which are
essential for every individual who wants to become an entrepreneur. Among them,
the digital skills are related to digital entrepreneurship. Digital skills can
be defined as the skills of an individual which are associated with the usage
of digital technologies. Attention on the process of using digital technologies
should be more to eliminate the disturbances in digital business environment. E
– Leadership, in other words, electronic leadership, is a process to influence
the people in order to change their attitudes, intentions, behavior and also
performance in the way they can achieve their goals perfectly. E – Learning can
be used not only for digital entrepreneurship, but also for other aspects in
order to attract people towards the specific fields.
Entrepreneurial Culture: an entrepreneurial culture is defined as
an environment where people are influenced and motivated to obtain innovative
thinking power to bear risks. In the case of business, an entrepreneurial
culture is a program or a place where employees are encouraged to express their
innovative thoughts or products. Whenever the time during work is involved in
this, it is called as intrapreneurship. E – Leadership can be said as a part of
entrepreneurial culture as e -leadership can be used to create an effective
entrepreneurial culture.
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