The social marketing theory-based (SMT) approach for designing interventions
Abstract
Purpose
Despite the importance of theory as a driving framework, many social marketers either fail to explicitly use theory as the basis of designing social marketing interventions or default to familiar theories which may not accurately reflect the nature of the behavioural issue. The purpose of this paper is therefore to propose and demonstrate the social marketing theory (SMT)-based approach for designing social marketing interventions, campaigns or tools.
Design/methodology/approach
This conceptual paper proposes a four-step process and illustrates this process by applying the SMT-based approach to the digital component of a social marketing intervention for preventing domestic violence.
Findings
For effective social marketing interventions, the underpinning theory must reflect consumer insights and key behavioural drivers and be used explicitly in the design process.
Practical implications
Social marketing practitioners do not always understand how to use theory in the design of interventions, campaigns or tools, and scholars do not always understand how to translate theories into practice. This paper outlines a process and illustrates how theory can be selected and applied.
Originality/value
This paper proposes a process for theory selection and use in a social marketing context.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This paper was prepared with the assistance of the Services Innovation Research Programme, QUT Business School, Queensland University of Technology.
Citation
Manikam, S. and Russell-Bennett, R. (2016), "The social marketing theory-based (SMT) approach for designing interventions", Journal of Social Marketing, Vol. 6 No. 1, pp. 18-40. https://doi.org/10.1108/JSOCM-10-2014-0078
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2016, Emerald Group Publishing Limited