Representing the Customer: the role of marketing in design, technology and
manufacturing/engineering
Irene Ng, Susan Wakenshaw
Abstract for AMA SERVSIG, International Service Research Conference, Helsinki, Finland,
June 7-9, 2012
Purpose: We examine the role of marketing in product design, technology and
manufacturing (DTM) under service-dominant logic (S-DLogic), comparing it to its
traditional role.
Design/methodology/approach: We review past literature on marketing’s role in DTM. We
argue that traditionally, value is seen as exchange value, created only when an offering is
exchanged in the market. Our review contrasts that understanding, and marketing’s role in it,
with the understanding under S-DLogic, which focuses on value that is achieved only upon
use
Findings: Under the traditional approach, Marketing often considers a product/offering as a
‘given’, and its role is to represent the firm’s offering to customers, in the way the product
could be introduced and marketed to targeted segments (e.g. 4Ps). This traditional role was
important as it led to greater exchange value. Under S-DLogic, there is now also a need to
represent customers’ needs back into the firm, in the way the firm considers the DTM of
products to achieve greater value-in-use. We propose a trans-disciplinary research agenda for
future research in this space.
Originality/value: Understanding the role of marketing in exchange value and value-in-use
shows its evolution as a domain, as it embraces S-DLogic. Such an evolution, and with it the
need for marketing to focus on DTM, is becoming urgent as value-in-use is increasingly
created within eco-systems of connected objects and people. This requires an understanding
of who the customer is, where demand needs to be met and how markets may form from
hybrid offerings of objects, information and people.