Re-imagining marketing as societing

Abstract

Purpose Marketing theory and practice is under severe criticism – socialists and the practitioners criticize marketing in its current form which calls for active efforts by marketers to reposition the discipline – making it beneficial to the masses. The Western world is thoroughly investigated based on the opinions of public regarding marketing as a discipline. However, studies which present a non-Western consumer’s attitudes toward the role of marketing in a society are scant. This purpose of this study is to encapsulate Pakistani consumers’ understandings and attitudes toward marketing with an emphasis on their perceptions of the ethicality and transformative power of the discipline. Design/methodology/approach A purposive convenience sample of 40 professionals with diverse non-marketing backgrounds and of the widest possible demographic profile participated in in-depth, unstructured interviews. The content analysis and grounded theory method were used for the analysis. Findings Marketing is appreciated for creating product awareness and, occasionally, combating social problems, but this positive image is clouded by severely criticizing it for promoting materialism, being irritatingly pervasive and pushy, as well as for using unethical and unfair practices. Practical implications The study offers a valuable insight into the discipline’s performative and social legitimation in a fast-growing Asian economy. The authors recommend paths for a positive repositioning of the discipline that will improve its public image and enhance its potential for being recognized as a force for positive social change. Originality/value Further to enhancing our understanding of consumer attitudes toward marketing, this paper’s value lies in it being the first ever exploration of the developing country perspective. Most importantly, it contributes to a debate that could enlighten the much-needed repositioning of marketing as a discipline to make it useful for masses.

Contemporary challenges of consumption: a Kafkaesque and critical marketing perspective

“…Heath et al (2017) provide an eclectic account of consumers trying to resist but unable to escape from dominant, infringing, and pervasive market forces. Similarly and more importantly, in a third-world context, Kashif et al (2018) highlight that consumers view themselves as pervaded and pushed amid the hegemony of markets and marketing. From a theoretical standpoint, the consumer sovereignty model is seen as the consumer collective's process of counterbalancing firms' power through rational choice (Bachouche & Sabri, 2019).…”

Guest editorial: Socially responsible marketing: a transformative agenda

“…Unfortunately, marketers are criticized upon presenting a myopic view of life, i.e. success via opting for materialistic motives (Kashif et al , 2014, 2018). Furthermore, marketing action is regarded as a trigger to weird social practices such as an individual's pursuit of materialism resulting in aggressive consumption behaviors (Moschis, 2017); frustrated and violent consumers (Heath et al , 2017); targeting to under-age consumer groups (Yu, 2012); marketing manipulation and deception to exploit on consumer decision making (Osborne and Ballantyne, 2012); causing social imbalance, i.e.…”

“…Few efforts are made to stretch the epistemological boundary of marketing as social action. For example, by highlighting its transformative role to contribute to the development of a welfare society (Heath and Chatzidakis, 2012; Kashif et al , 2018; Marino et al , 2020). But these are not enough and there is more to be done.…”