Exploring the relations in relational engagement: Addressing barriers to transformative consumer research

Marketing academics are increasingly seeking societal impact from their work, yet still encounter problems in creating and sustaining meaningful relationships with those whom their work seeks to help. We use an empirical investigation to identify and propose solutions to the key barriers that impede the initiation and development of impactful relationships between marketing academics and Social Impact Organizations (SIOs). The investigation entailed 20 interviews with SIOs and Knowledge Exchange (KE) professionals in the US, UK and France. The main barriers hindering relationships are differing perspectives on resources, goal misalignment and misconceptions about the other party. Potential solutions include: involving both parties in structured activities for initializing collaboration; planning resource investment in research; engaging with KE professionals to facilitate goal alignment and to broker communications; increasing academic visibility in SIO communities; using teaching as a springboard to develop collaborations; supporting SIO-led initiatives and finding creative ways to overcome time incongruity.

Keywords:

consumer research  france  great britain  help-seeking behavior  marketing representations  relational engagement  relationship marketing  social impact  social structure  societal impact  transformative research 

Citation:

Maria G. Piacentini, Susan Dunnett, Kathy Hamilton, Emma Banister, Hélène Gorge, Carol Kaufman-Scarborough, and Agnes Nairn (2019). Exploring the relations in relational engagement: Addressing barriers to transformative consumer research. Journal of Business Research, 100, Pages 327-338. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.12.032