Marketing as promise management: regaining customer management for marketing
Abstract
Purpose
In today's competitive markets where market offerings are far more complicated and customer interfaces are far broader than conventional marketing models assume, marketing has become increasingly tactical and lost control of the customer management process. The purpose of this paper is to develop a promise management‐based approach to marketing with the goal of regaining customer management for marketing.
Design/methodology/approach
The approach takes the form of a conceptual analysis
Findings
According to the promise management approach marketing is viewed as a process of enabling and making promises as well as keeping promises in order to meet expectations created by promises made. Value creation in customer processes is considered the goal for marketing. It is claimed that by taking this view marketing can once again take full responsibility for customer management.
Research limitations/implications
The paper establishes a foundation for studying marketing as a process in situations where market offerings are multi‐faceted and include inputs from a range of company functions and processes. This is the case in business‐to‐business and service markets.
Practical implications
By adopting a promise management approach to marketing firms can broaden their understanding of marketing and make use of all aspects of customer management as part of an integrated marketing process.
Originality/value
The paper develops previous discussions in relationship marketing and service marketing of the promise concept and its role in marketing research into a comprehensive marketing framework.
Keywords
Citation
Grönroos, C. (2009), "Marketing as promise management: regaining customer management for marketing", Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, Vol. 24 No. 5/6, pp. 351-359. https://doi.org/10.1108/08858620910966237
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2009, Emerald Group Publishing Limited