Social marketing: An evolving definition

Objective: To review the essential elements of a social marketing approach. Methods: It places emphasis on 4 fundamentals-the marketing mix, segmentation, positioning, and continual marketing. It contrasts commercial and social marketing by focusing on their different objectives-profit versus subsidized social good, Results: Marketing is determined to be a voluntary means to influence human behavior based on a concept of exchange. Conclusion: Social marketing can be distinguished from education approaches that emphasize knowledge as the primary determinant of human behavior and regulatory approaches that use law, sanction, and force to influence behavior.