Marketing thought originating from the era of the barter system, gradually evolved into production
and sales orientations, with greater emphasis on the process, quality, and selling of products.
Thereafter, customer satisfaction as an essential component of the strategic decision process
occupies a significant position among various marketing activities. This paper aims to address the
inadequate research inputs on determining the time-specific evolutionary relevance of marketing
thought divulging into the essential components of each marketing concept, especially those with
customer satisfaction as a dimension in the measurement construct. Design/methodology/approach
– A detailed, conceptually integrated analysis of various marketing philosophies is offered to
facilitate business executives in examining the philosophy followed by their companies and how to
move vertically in pursuance of improved business performance. Findings – In comparison to the
Indian market, which is fast becoming an attraction for the developed nations as an investment hub,
it is the observed and experienced that public sector corporations are still at the production
orientation stage, whereas private companies are predominantly using the sales-oriented approach.
The present status of customer orientation, market orientation and relationship marketing culture in
India, is quite distinct from the status in the West as indicated by literature published in the
developed countries. Banking, insurance, tourism, and hospitals still need to ensure minimum
customer-oriented services, which are not performed impressively in India. Research
limitations/implications – Being a conceptual and country specific paper, the paper lacks wider
generalization of its findings. Moreover, at many instances personal judgment of the authors might
have resulted into biased interpretation. Practical implications – Indian companies, with a few
exceptions, lack an adequate orientation to pursue continuous market research in order to sense
new developments, which are taking place due to the implementation of advanced information
technology leading to greater exposure to customers. It can, thus, be synthesized that with respect
to marketing practices in Indian settings, the existing large gap between the theory and
implementation is drawing much attention from those concerned with the socio-economic
consequences associated with future business goals. Originality/value – This paper can help
managers in evaluating their business orientation level, but how to improve it further or update them
as per ongoing changes in marketing thought and practice, has to be investigated and examined on
continuous basis. Hence, empirical testing and validation of the constructs originating from the study
have to be pursued, so as to analyze both the nature and the extent of the business orientation of a
particular firm.