Marketing for the project: project marketing by the contractor
- Publisher:
- Emerald
- Publication Type:
- Journal Article
- Citation:
- International Journal of Managing Projects in Business, 2019, 12, (1), pp. 211-227
- Issue Date:
- 2019-03-04
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Purpose
–
The purpose of this paper is to identify the marketing practices adopted by contractors in
project-based industries to win new business and maintain relationships with existing clients.
Design/methodology/approach
–
The authors interviewed eight such contractors, and used activity
theory as a lens to analyze the results. The authors investigated project marketing activities at four stages of
the project contract life cycle, and against four enablers of collaboration.
Findings
–
The authors have identified that the service-dominant logic pervades project marketing.
Through the project contract life cycle the marketing activity starts with a strategic focus, becomes tactical,
then operational and returns to strategic. Project marketing involves executive managers, marketing, client or
account managers and project managers. Project managers have a key responsibility for project marketing.
The four enablers of collaboration, relationships, communication, going-with and trust, support each other
and the entire project marketing activity.
Research limitations/implications
–
As a contribution to theory, the authors have identified the practices
adopted by contractors in project-based industries to market their competencies to clients to win new work
and maintain relationships with existing clients. The authors have identified practices throughout the
contract life cycle, and practices to develop collaboration. The next step will be to explain these practices in
terms of traditional marketing theory.
Practical implications
–
The results provide guidelines to contractors in project-based industries who
wish to improve their marketing activity to achieve sustainable performance. Industry may also find it useful
to train or coach their project managers to be conscious of their marketing role.
Originality/value
–
Previous work has been conceptual in nature and has speculated on the nature of
the project marketing performed by contractors to win new projects, and set it against marketing done by the
project. This research has empirically investigated the actual marketing practices adopted by project
contracting organizations, shown how it varies through the project life cycle and shown how responsibility
passes from senior management to the account team and then to project managers. It has also investigated the
application of the four enablers of collaboration: relationships, communication, going-with and trust.
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