Page 134 - MYM 2015

value it pursues is the greater happiness for all of us. Its symbol of wings of happiness represents their spiritual commitment to making the world happier. Sisodia, Wolfe & Sheth (2007) note that rms of endearment seek to maximize their value to society not just to stakeholders. Porter & Kramer (2011) propose the concept of creating shared value (CSV) recognizing
that social needs as well as economic needs de ne the markets. Kotler & his colleagues (Kotler et al. 2010) state that consumers should be treated as whole human beings with mind, heart, and spirit. They also suggest that marketers should have bigger missions
of contributing to making the world a better place. The increased attention toward consumers’ happiness and rms’ social contribution re ects the changes in the marketing environment in the age of Marketing 3.0.
The purpose of this article is to discuss a marketing paradigm that delivers happiness to partnering consumers and make social contributions in the Marketing 3.0 age. Because happiness can be delivered when marketers and consumers become true partners, we call the paradigm True Partnership Marketing (TPM).
TPM still pursues ef ciency in achieving marketing goals. In addition, it aims at getting over the limitations of STPM to meet the expectations of consumers and publics in the Marketing 3.0 era. It aims at (1) earning consumers as partners, (2) reinforcing the partnerships by managing experiences with hearts, and (3) enriching the partnerships by making social contribution together. The premise is that if marketers build and maintain true partnerships with those people, they will ultimately earn pro ts and achieve long-term mission oriented goals. Excellent marketing gives partners happy moments that last for a long time, sometimes for their whole life. If marketers can provide market offerings that generate grati cation or gratitude of their partners, consumers are likely to experience such happy moments. By delivering such happy moments, marketers can earn
consumers as the true partners. Heart becomes a key construct for earning true partners because it is essential in generating grati cation or gratitude.
TPM may be seen as harmonizing the oriental style of pursuing hearts with the western style of management seeking ef ciency. People in the Confucian society pressure marketers to incorporate others-oriented values. Korean rms implement strategies partly consistent with TPM. Social contribution has always been important for personal or organizational activities. Korean marketers are an exemplary of pouring their hearts in marketing. Investigation of strengths and weaknesses of their practices suggest some to-do list for marketers of TPM.
In the following sections, we rst describe today’s marketing environment focused on consumers and publics. We examine the limitations of STPM in the digital era and present the TPM paradigm. Then, we explain the roles of heart in earning and managing true partners. Finally, we discuss lessons from the practices of Korean marketers by investigating their strengths and limitations, and suggest a to-do list of activities for marketers of TPM.
True Partnerships between Consumers and Marketers
Marketing environment changes over time and so does the marketing. There have been changes over time
in marketing from marketing philosophy, partnering with consumers, market offerings, and channeling to transacting. Whereas channeling lls the information and distribution gaps between marketers and partnering consumers, transacting lls gaps remaining between marketers and the consumers who make speci c transactions. (See Table 1)
Kotler & Armstrong (2014) identify ve alternatives of marketing philosophy under which marketing is carried out as production, product, selling, marketing, and
Focus
Description
Changing trends over time
Philosophy
Management orientation
Production concept→Product concept→Selling concept→Marketing concept→Societal marketing concept
Partnering
Partnering principles and size of target consumers
Mass→STP Marketing→Closer to one-to-one marketing→True partnerships with consumers
Offerings
Main sources of values
Commodities→Products→Services→Experiences→Bundles of market offerings
Channeling
Filling gaps of distribution and information
Separate channels for distribution & information→Integrated online and of ine channels
Transacting
Filling remaining gaps for completing speci c transactions
Selling & services→Selling, sales promotion & services→Selling, sales promotion, services and entertainments
Table 1. Trends in marketing characteristics over time
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