Column 5 · Learning and Knowledge · Era 6, Engagement and Networks (2010s)
Marketing Doctrine
Formulation, process · Emerging or specialized · Cluster II, Resources and Orientation
Description
They introduced marketing doctrine, a firm's unique principles that guide marketing decision making across contexts, as a construct that sits between strategy and tactics.
Managerial Implications
A marketing doctrine is a set of shared principles that guide marketing decisions across the firm, filling the gap between broad strategy and local tactics. It reduces inconsistency across units and speeds decisions. Managers should articulate the firm's principles, such as how to price, when to discount, and what the brand will not do, and communicate them so that decentralized teams make consistent choices without central approval.