The Dimensions and Roles of Online Content in Social Commerce: A Systematic Literature Review and Future Research Agenda

Abstract

Due to the increasing ubiquity and acceptance of online shopping, social commerceresearch has attracted the attention of many scholars, leading to an exponentialgrowth of the literature within a short span of a few years. Among the numerousinvestigations in the field, research relating to online content is warranted owing tothe rapid evolution of content and its importance in the shopping arena. This studysystematically reviews the literature on various dimensions of content and how thesedimensions influence customer-level outcomes in social commerce. The study adoptsa framework-based approach and organizes 169 content-focused research articles.The framework proposes three content dimensions—format, source, and platform,and four outcome categories based on transactionality and favorability of outcomes.The findings reveal an evolution of content dimensions and consumer behavior out-comes. Additionally, identified gaps and future research directions have beendiscussed.