A resource-based view of stakeholder marketing

Despite the stakeholder view's growing popularity among marketing academics and managers, stakeholder marketing is still in its infancy. This research invigorates stakeholder marketing by integrating stakeholder theory and the resource-based view (RBV) of the firm to propose that the network of stakeholder relationships (i.e., a key component of stakeholder marketing) is, in essence, a strategic resource with the inherent potential to contribute substantively to a firm's competitive advantage and superior performance. Based on this fundamental premise, the article explores the causal chain by which the firm's network of stakeholder relationships converts into superior performance, while paying particular attention to the role of competitive advantage in this linkage. The aim of the proposed RBV of stakeholder marketing is to provide a theoretical basis to stimulate further research and, in turn, direct marketers to actions that can benefit their exchange relationships with the stakeholder network.