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What is the Societal Marketing Concept?
The societal marketing concept is based on the notion that for any business to be successful it must satisfy the customer’s wants and at the same time also improve social (human) welfare.
The societal marketing concept also known as the simply social concept of marketing assumes organizations adopting this concept should generate profits through customers and social well-being. Any organization, in the course of making any marketing decision first consider the benefits of society in the long run.
Most of the marketing concepts in the way of fulfilling customers’ short-run wants, neglected the log-run welfare of society. This neglect gave rise to a question that revolved around the possible conflict between long-run welfare and short-run want of customers. Are the organizations satisfying short-term customers want also doing their best for customers’ long-run welfare?
Similarly, the movement of consumerism and environmentalism gave birth to a new marketing concept known as the societal marketing concept. The societal marketing concept assumes that the organization should develop a marketing strategy in such a way that it satisfies customers’ want to take care of society’s well-being too.
Characteristics of Social Concept of Marketing:
- Evolved out of external forces to focus on long-term social welfare.
- Seeks to balance interests between the profit, consumers, and society.
- Consumers’ satisfaction is more effective than competitors’.
- Consumers and social well-being.
- Social (demography) and ethical consideration.
- Long-run consideration of business activities.
- Profit through want satisfaction.
- Individuals welfare through social welfare.
Along with the development of modern marketing concepts, several problems have occurred in the world which have influenced the long-run social welfare. These problems include environmental deterioration, resource shortage, population exploitation, worldwide inflation, neglected social service, etc. Therefore, the societal marketing concept assumes that the consumer’s wants and social interests too should be fulfilled (or considered) so in the long run, social welfare could be maintained.
The pressure groups, particularly environmentalists, consumerists, and feminists have forced many companies to adopt the societal marketing concept. The major concern of this concept is a balance between an organization’s profit, the customer’s wants, and society’s interests. To achieve this balance the organization should produce and deliver products so that customers get satisfied, the organization gets adequate profit, and the human society is not harmed.
The premise of this concept is that people’s wants do not always coincide with their long-run interests or society’s long-run interests, people will increasingly favor the organization–which shows a concern with meeting their wants, long-run interests, and society’s long-run interests.
Maybe now a question is, the firm adopting societal marketing concept how to implement this concept? The firm adopts social concepts first to target the social group, second to focus on the target social group’s basic needs, wants, and problems, third-use integrate and coordinate socially acceptable tools, and at the end make a profit through customer, social well-being, and admitting social responsibility.