The article by Meler and Magaš (2014) explores the links between sustainable marketing and sustainable development. The authors focus on how the concept of sustainable development evolved and how sustainable marketing is necessary to fulfill its promise. First of all, Meler and Magaš (2014) explain that the term ‘sustainability’ evolved due to the environmental crisis caused by pollution, gas emissions, and other marks of human activity.
Because the environmental problems were primarily triggered by businesses and manufacturing companies, the concept of sustainability was introduced to define the future focus and behaviors that were expected from companies and governments (Meler & Magaš, 2014). Sustainability soon evolved to include social and economic aspects in addition to the environmental one.
Similarly, sustainable development today means the system’s capacity to develop without causing harm to its physical, social, and economic environment and contributing to them instead (Meler & Magaš, 2014). This shift in the business environment prompted the evolution of traditional marketing into sustainable marketing, which focused on ecological and social goals instead of organizational goals (Meler & Magaš, 2014).
Sustainable marketing contributes to sustainable development by striving to balance the costs of production and consumption through spreading ideas (Meler & Magaš, 2014). Hence, while this approach to marketing can help businesses to earn higher profits, it fulfills the purpose of marketing in a more responsible way. For instance, companies may use narratives of a crucial social issue in their advertisements, thus drawing the public’s attention while promoting their products or services.
All in all, this article offers an in-depth review of sustainable marketing, its history, and its application. The information from it can help readers understand the subject better and learn how it can help their business. One limitation of the article is that it does not provide many strategies for sustainable marketing application, and thus, it has to be supplemented by practical materials.
References
Meler, M., & Magaš, D. (2014). Sustainable marketing for sustainable development. In Reykjavik 11th International Academic Conference (pp. 230-248). Reykjavik, Iceland: International Institute of Social and Economic Sciences.