Midstream value creation in social marketing

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to develop improved understanding of how value is created at the midstream (meso) level in a collaborative smoke-free homes and cars social marketing programme. The study adopts a qualitative approach including interviews and observation. The findings show that the co-creative organisational model adopted for the Smokefree programme affords access to resources and capabilities of midstream actors and provides opportunities for reshaping and mobilising existing value networks. The focal organisation has a key role in coordinating, connecting actors and providing resources to facilitate value co-creation at the network level. The study illustrates that the service interaction allowed for customer-centred cues for action which took into account their context and the existence/lack of resources for value creation. The implications of this study are discussed, in particular, in terms of the role of focal organisations in managing value networks, the social context, configurational fit and resources of actors involved in community-based social marketing and the need for policies and practices to provide health professionals with role support for health promotion.

KEYWORDS:

• Social marketing
• community
• service perspective
• value network
• value creation
• resources
• social context
• midstream
• smoke-free

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

¹ Each Children’s Centre is based in a different area of the City. Each area is given a number (i.e. centre 5 is located in area 5). When the participants are not interviewed/based at the Children’s Centre, their location is associated with the area number (e.g. area 8).

² Sure Start Children’s Centres are a national initiative introduced by the UK Government in 1998 to provide local, integrated and coordinated support services to young children under four and their families (Lloyd & Harrington, 2012).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Nadina R. Luca

Nadina Luca is a lecturer in marketing at the York Management School, UK. Her research is in the field of social marketing, behaviour and social change. Current research interests include service-dominant logic, value co-creation, networks and consumer vulnerability. Her research has been published in a number of academic journals including Marketing Theory, Social Marketing Quarterly and Journal of Health Communication.

Sally Hibbert

Sally Hibbert is an associate professor in marketing at Nottingham University Business School, UK. Her core expertise is in consumer behaviour and she has a long-standing interest in the interface between consumption and society. Her research has appeared in journals such as Journal of Service Research, Journal of Consumer Behaviour, European Journal of Marketing, Journal of Business Ethics, Journal of Marketing Management, amongst others.

Ruth McDonald

Ruth McDonald is a professor of Health Science Research and Policy at Manchester Business School, UK. Ruth’s research concerns organisational change and professional behaviours in health settings. Her research has appeared in books and journals including the Sociology of Health and Illness, Social Science and Medicine, New England Journal of Medicine, Journal of Health Services Research and Policy, amongst others. Ruth is a member of the executive committee of the European Sociological Association.