What the study found
The commentary argues that marketing should be understood as an integrated being-doing phenomenon constituted through social practices, rather than as an abstract essence separated from action. The authors propose that marketing emerges through recurrent processes of value formation, resource integration, and promise orchestration in institutional contexts.
Why the authors say this matters
The authors say this matters because grounding marketing in social and practice-based realities offers a more robust, institutionally informed ontology for research and practice. They also conclude that restoring focus on demand fulfilment requires deeper attention to the institutional and sociocultural forces that shape demand.
What the researchers tested
This is an invited commentary on Christian Grönroos’s article, and it develops a conceptual argument rather than reporting an empirical test. The authors draw on philosophical debates about essence and action, and on practice-theoretical perspectives, to reframe marketing.
What worked and what didn't
The commentary extends Grönroos’s provocation by proposing three interlocking domains: relational value creation in use, integrated promise orchestration, and institutional governance of market practices. It argues that these domains are foundational lenses for conceptualizing the marketing phenomenon.
What to keep in mind
The abstract does not describe empirical data, a sample, or a specific method beyond conceptual and philosophical argumentation. It also does not report limitations in detail, so the scope is limited to the claims stated in the commentary.
Key points
- Marketing is framed as an integrated being-doing phenomenon grounded in social practices.
- The authors say marketing emerges through value formation, resource integration, and promise orchestration.
- They argue that demand fulfilment must be understood in relation to institutional and sociocultural forces.
- The commentary proposes three lenses: relational value creation in use, integrated promise orchestration, and institutional governance of market practices.
- No empirical study, sample, or data analysis is described in the abstract.
Disclosure
- Research title:
- Marketing is framed as a being-doing phenomenon in social practice
- Authors:
- Anu Helkkula, Eric Arnould
- Institutions:
- Hanken School of Economics, Aalto University
- Publication date:
- 2026-04-21
- OpenAlex record:
- View
- Image credit:
- Photo by Leeloo The First on Pexels · Pexels License
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