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Zhu, Xia and Rajah, Edwin
(2023).
Abstract
Marketers have highlighted their concerns for social problems and called for more inclusive and sustainable service to reduce sufferings and improve the well-being of humanity. Despite improvements in the recent past, the world is still facing issues of poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, all challenges at the forefront of the Sustainable Development Goals (United Nations, 2019). These pressing issues has led marketers to ponder how marketing can contribute to improvements for vulnerable communities. The authors in this study advocate for applying a broader and nuanced adopting of religiosity and spirituality to support service providers to design and provide inclusive service for customers to support people’s quality of life and enhance people’s wellbeing. Using the hospice service context, the authors opine how the existing consumption value and relational approach can play roles in value creation for a broad range of actors beyond the immediate patient. This study highlights inclusive service provision by hospices with a focus on spirituality (despite people’s religious stance) to reduce suffering (physical or psychological) to give people dignity to better their quality of life. This study advocates how service marketing contributes to value creation by being socially inclusive. Overall, this study shows how service marketing can become more relevant beyond the mainstream focus on customer loyalty and organisation’s financial profitably.