Co-creation of Value in Service Marketing: An Approach Relevant to Managerial Decision Making

In marketing in general, value for customers is a key aspect. In service marketing, because service providers and customers interact in the service production process, value co-creation between firms and customers has been emphasized. In this chapter, models of service marketing are first described. Then the process of creating value for customers and the role of value co-creation in this process are discussed from the point of view of managerial decision making. From this point of view, it is observed that co-creation of value between firms and customers takes place in a joint sphere where interactions between them occur. However, value co-creation may also take place between a customer and his or her peers outside the reach of the service firm. This type of co-creation is termed social value co-creation. The existence of value co-creation has far-reaching implications for service marketing, for example influencing the nature and scope of the offerings and how marketing permeates the whole organization, and emphasizing the need for internal marketing to guarantee the effectiveness of the service firm’s marketing.