I’ll make a broad generalization. There are two types of academics: Paradigm Shifters and Eternal Seekers.
The Paradigm Shifters are people who create a ground breaking theory and then spend the rest of their career teaching and promoting that theory — regardless of how the world changes around them. Think of Braque, one of the originators of cubism in painting.
Eternal Seekers are the people who create a ground breaking theory and then develop an even stronger ground breaking theory. They remain open, curious and continuously looking for a better theory as they get new data and see weaknesses in their original theory. Think of Picasso, who worked side by side with Braque and then moved into different “periods” and continued to reinvent his vision of art.
I’d put Philip Kotler into that second category, Eternal Seeker. His is not satisfied to rest with his original models of marketing. He has continued to innovate, rethink and evolve his theories and our understanding of how marketing actually works.
The role of Corporate Social Responsibility has been very much on Phil’s mind for several years. (Full disclosure — I had the good fortune to work with him on a client project about the rise of socially-engaged consumers.) It has very much influenced his thinking and rethinking of marketing.
His newest reinvention of marketing is “Marketing 3.0”, co-developed with Hermawan Kartajaya. In the fall of 2009 Phil presented the model of Marketing 3.0 at a Kellogg school conference. Below is the key slide summarizing Marketing 3.0 from that conference. I’ve lifted a this from the blog of Guy Kawasaki http://holykaw.alltop.com/phil-kotler-explains-marketing-30-in-one-slid So full credit for this photo goes to Guy Kawasaki.
Slide on Marketing 3.0 photo by G Kawasaki
The new book Marketing 3.0 is being published in the US this spring. But you don’t have to wait that long to better understand the fundamental principles of Marketing 3.0. Kotler and Kartajaya. They’ve recently published a whitepaper on the topic which you can download here: marketing_3.0 Values-Driven Marketing
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What would be Marketing 4.0 ???
– Connecting consumer in better way or another way.
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The book introduction is timely one and is highly useful for MARKETING students.