Emerald Management Review:
(Mis)trust in marketing: a reflection on consumers' attitudes and perceptions

Abstract:

Purpose - Investigates the attitudes of consumers towards marketing and consumption.

Design/methodology/approach - Explores consumers' perceptions of, and attitudes towards, marketing and to look at how consumers feel about marketing's role in stimulating excessive consumption. Presents a relevant literature review; describes the in-depth interviews with 17 women and 12 men in Portugal in order to provide a description of their 'lived world'.

Findings - Highlights how all but one of the participants believed that there was an excess of consumption in contemporary society; reveals how marketing appeals were by far the most frequently stated reason for high levels of consumption. Reports how participants associated the word 'marketing' with a 'science' that was designed to help companies sell; records how all participants expressed negative views towards marketing and regarding marketing as being mainly about representing the company to the customer.

Research limitations/implications - Larger sample needed; provide qualitative and quantitative studies.

Originality/value - Discovers a large gap between the marketing concept and consumers' perceptions of the discipline.

Keywords:

Article Type:

Research paper

Reference:

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