Tying Marketing Science with Marketing Practice

Abstract

The problems of achieving a successful interface between marketing science and marketing practice are numerous. Furthermore, they vary from subject to subject and from environment to environment. To avoid getting lost in this hall of mirrors, attention has been paid in this piece of research to four important subjects. First, a philosophical and organisational point of view is proposed about the proper role and funding structure for marketing research and marketing science activities. Next, some marketing science contributions to design issues are examined. In marketing, these are the ‘what kind’ questions about products, product lines, and associated market communications. Third, the ‘how much’ issue is discussed as it relates to total marketing expenditures and their allocations across the marketing mix. Having discussed some approaches to these ‘gut’ issues, the last section reviews in general terms the current state‐of‐the‐art in marketing science and some factors which may shape future developments. This synopsis deals mainly with the organisational problems of using marketing science.