New ventures face competing demands for differentiation and conformity， which is particularly the case in the digital economy. On the one hand， the digital revolution requires new ventures to achieve competitive advantage through engaging in digital innovation activities. On the other hand， digital innovation incurs pressures of legitimacy. Drawing on the optimal distinctiveness theory， it examines how digital new ventures manage the tension between differentiation and conformity to achieve better performance. Using a sample of digital new ventures， we find that both explorative and exploitative innovation are positively related to firm performance. Proactive political strategy strengthens the relationship between explorative innovation and firm performance； moreover， reactive political strategy strengthens the link between exploitative innovation and firm performance， but weakens the impact of explorative innovation on firm performance. Positioning in the context of digital entrepreneurship， our findings not only enrich the innovation literature by examining the joint impact of innovation strategy and political strategy on firm performance， but also contribute to the orchestration view of optimal distinctiveness theory.