Module 3 Notes: Value Creation – Society, Businesses, and Consumers

Module objectives

  • After completing this module, you should be able to:
    • Discuss the meaning of value
    • Describe the types of value
    • Explain what value means to customers

Marketing and Society: Overview

  • Marketing plays a significant economic role in society; interests are complex and multifaceted.
  • Competitive marketplaces and creative marketing can improve customer satisfaction.
  • Governments and institutions monitor consumer safety, public safety, and anticompetitive or unethical business practices.
  • Modern societies are bound together through interrelated activities:
    • Consumers derive benefits from a variety of product choices.
    • Businesses market products and services for consumption by consumers and other businesses.
    • Government collects taxes from consumers and businesses and tries to promote welfare of the economic system.
    • NGOs (e.g., PETA – People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) monitor the behavior of marketers or governments.
  • Local food value chain collaboration (illustrative diagram) includes: producers, distributors, processors, packers, primary food hubs, operators, and various distribution/retail formats (independent corporate, franchise, self-operated, contract caterers). It also maps to institutions such as green belts, schools, universities, long-term care facilities, and hospitals. Source: https://www.greenbeltfund.ca/localfoodvaluechaincollaboration

The three societal aspects impacted by marketing

  • Culture
  • Consumerism
  • Environmentalism

Culture and marketing

  • Social conformity: individual views/behaviour can be shaped by others.
  • Culture can be seen at national, regional, local levels, and within subcultures.
  • Marketing is a reflection of culture and a powerful influence upon it; advertising is a powerful tool of communication.
  • Marketing taps into shared feelings among members of a society; catchphrases can be repeated in daily life.

Subcultures (illustrative references)

  • Subcultures exist and are discussed in related sources (examples linked in the slides).
  • The slide references influential online sources on subcultures (e.g., Highsnobiety, Rebels Market) to illustrate how subcultures shape and are shaped by marketing.

Color and branding cues in marketing (illustrative)

  • Trends and branding elements (e.g., Pantone color Greenery 15-0343) show how color signaling can contribute to branding and consumer perception.
  • The slides include various branding cues and media references to illustrate influences on consumer perception.

Dark side of marketing and conscious consumption

  • Dark side: marketing can encourage consumption that becomes excessive or addictive.
  • Packaging can be wasteful and harmful to the environment.
  • Advertising to children can be exploitative.
  • This has contributed to the rise of conscious consumption, where consumers, businesses, and society start to care about impact.

Digital sharing, presence, and social risks (online environment)

  • Inappropriate distribution and content
  • Presence and location tracking/monitoring
  • Misinformation, disinformation, and aggressive engagement
  • Identity exploitation and online manipulation
  • Relationship risks (coercion, abuse, intimidation)
  • In-group/out-group bias and reputational shaming
  • Source: ScienceDirect article on online behavior and marketing environments

Consumerism: rights, power, and activism

  • Consumerism describes organized efforts by citizens, businesses, and governments to protect and improve living conditions.
  • It focuses on empowering buyers relative to sellers; includes actions like boycotts.
  • Boycotts can influence sales and profitability, generate negative publicity, and cause long-term damage to brand image.
  • Rising consumer concerns include:
    • Product safety and quality assurance
    • Environmental safety and climate change
    • Genetically modified foods, organic products, pesticides, and sustainability
    • Consumer wellbeing
    • Data privacy and protection

Environmentalism and green marketing

  • Environmentalism is an organized movement to protect and improve the living environment.
  • It considers the cost of meeting consumer requirements and advocates care for the environment.
  • Green marketing describes how marketing responds to environmental concerns by offering more ecologically responsible products/services.
  • What it means to be “Green”: products are free of harmful chemicals; end-of-life recycling/reclaiming ingredients.
  • Strategies to “green” include:
    • Value-added processes (e.g., new technology in manufacturing tools)
    • Management systems (environmental, health, and safety objectives)
    • Product or service redesigns (e.g., using recyclable materials)
  • End-of-life considerations and recycling are emphasized in green initiatives.
  • Key source reference: Almquist, E., Senior, J., and Bloch, N. (2016). The Elements of Value; Harvard Business Review.

Innovations and real-world sustainability examples (illustrative)

  • KFC edible wrappers in Hong Kong (rice paper) illustrate edible packaging concepts and branding with sustainability messaging.
  • Mylo: a vegan fashion/leather alternative made from fungi; examples include a woven yoga mat inspired by 3D-textured mat designs for pose alignment.
  • Patagonia’s Worn Wear program demonstrates a circular approach: worn-out products are repaired, reused, and recycled; emphasis on environmental CSR.

Knowledge power and information dissemination

  • In the modern landscape, knowledge and information dissemination affect:
    • Consumer mindset and responses
    • Business activities
    • Financial investment
    • Government policies and actions

Evolution of value in marketing

  • Value evolves as a concept in marketing; sources trace its history and the practice of value creation.
  • Source: http://fundersandfounders.com/the-history-of-creating-value/

The meaning of value (definition and questions)

  • Value questions addressed in the material:
    • What makes something valuable?
    • Where does value come from?
    • What is the premise of innovation?
  • Value is defined as the realization of benefits that are at parity with or exceed the cost of products, services, or other items.
  • Definition (quoted): Value means: “the realization of benefits that are at parity or that exceed the cost of products, services, or other items.”\text{Value means: } \text{“the realization of benefits that are at parity or that exceed the cost of products, services, or other items.”}

The elements of value (Maslow-inspired framework)

  • The elements of value extend from Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and fall into four categories:
    • Functional
    • Emotional
    • Life changing
    • Social impact
  • Some elements are more inwardly focused, addressing consumers’ personal needs.
  • Source: Almquist, E., Senior, J., and Bloch, N. (2016). The Elements of Value, Harvard Business Review; and Almquist, E., Cleghorn, J., and Sherer, L. (2018). The B2B Elements of Value, Harvard Business Review.

Functional elements of value

  • Organizes
  • Integrates
  • Connects
  • Saves time
  • Simplifies
  • Makes money
  • Reduces risk
  • Reduces effort
  • Avoids hassles
  • Reduces cost
  • Quality
  • Variety

Emotional elements of value

  • Reduces anxiety / cost
  • Nostalgia
  • Design / aesthetics
  • Badge value
  • Wellness
  • Therapeutic value
  • Fun / entertainment
  • Attractiveness
  • Provides access

Life-changing elements of value

  • Provides self-actualization / self-actualization (often phrased as self-hope or motivation)
  • Self-actualization / motivation
  • Heirloom (long-lasting value)
  • Affiliation / belonging

Social impact elements of value

  • Self-transcendence
  • (Other social impact elements are framed under the broader category of social impact and may include community, environmental, or societal benefits depending on context.)

Practical example: SuperCook (functional and emotional value in a real app)

  • Functional value realized by SuperCook:
    • Organizes: builds recipes by selecting a group of ingredients
    • Variety: allows selection from multiple categories (meat, seasoning, dairy) and adds more ingredients
    • Simplifies: narrows results by meal type, cuisine, star ingredient
    • Saves time: enables repeating the same recipes
    • Reduces risk: saves ingredients and favorites for quick reuse
  • Emotional value:
    • Reduces anxiety / cost by helping minimize wasted food and by providing quick, tasty options
    • Provides access: search function updates recipe suggestions as you type

Additional notes on value and consumer behavior

  • The four value categories provide a framework for understanding why customers choose products/services beyond price alone.
  • Green marketing and sustainability initiatives can influence perceived value by enhancing functional and emotional or even social value (e.g., brand alignment with environmental values).
  • CSR initiatives (e.g., Patagonia) illustrate how social impact and life-changing value can be embedded in a brand's identity and customer experience.

Connections to broader topics

  • Links to prior lectures on consumer behavior, ethics in marketing, and sustainability.
  • Real-world relevance: how value creation drives product design, packaging choices, marketing communications, and corporate strategy.

References mentioned in the slides

  • Lamb, C.W., Hair, J.F., and McDaniel, C. (2019). MKTG12e. CENGAGE.
  • Levens, M. (2014). Marketing: Defined, Explained, Applied (2nd ed.). Pearson.
  • Almquist, E., Senior, J., and Bloch, N. (2016). The Elements of Value, Harvard Business Review.
  • Almquist, E., Cleghorn, J., and Sherer, L. (2018). The B2B Elements of Value, Harvard Business Review.
  • Local food value chain collaboration: https://www.greenbeltfund.ca/localfoodvaluechaincollaboration
  • Additional sources cited in slides (examples referenced for subcultures, branding, packaging, and sustainability): Highsnobiety, Rebels Market, Vox, Wired, The Brag, etc.
  • Notable examples: edible wrappers (KFC Hong Kong), Mylo (fungal leather), Patagonia Worn Wear, SuperCook app.

Conclusion

  • Value creation in marketing is multi-dimensional, spanning functional, emotional, life-changing, and social impact aspects.
  • Understanding these four categories helps explain customer decisions, brand strategy, and the ethical/societal implications of marketing.
  • The sustainability and information dynamics highlighted in the slides emphasize the broader context in which modern marketing operates, including environmental concerns, consumer rights, and the power of knowledge.