Purpose – The purpose of this study is to identify the impacts on transaction costs from marketing management by service design thinking.

Approach –The article is based on the case study of “enkla vardagen”; a project implemented by service design consultants contracted by the Swedish multinational bank SEB. By applying desk research and interviews the study intends to find out whether identified impacts on costs are transaction costs and how other costs were affected by the use of service marketing management by service design thinking (SDT). The hypothesis is that SDT reduces transaction costs.

Findings – The empirical evidence shows that from the perspective of the bank, savings in transaction costs included reductions in uncertainty, which enabled them to reap the long-term savings in transaction costs by conversion of high cost customers to low-cost contracts. However, there were increases in other costs. These were one-time and it is likely they are lower than the savings. In addition, customers saved transaction costs in terms of one-time efforts and lower commission costs. The implication of the case study is thus that SDT saves transaction costs.

Social implications – There is keen competition within the banking sector implying service provides have incentives to satisfy end-users’ needs. The incentives are expected to be different for organisations acting in a non-competitive environment, e.g. public sector organisations. In these environments design thinking may not even be considered. Lacking competitive pressure, public sector organisations in charge of developing e-government services might, therefore, choose solutions that are less able to provide end-user friendly designs and, therefore imply higher transaction costs both within the organisations and for users. As the public sector is financed by tax money, the matter is both of public interest and of citizen-level concern.

Originality – The contribution of this article is about linking service marketing management by design thinking to transaction costs. Earlier studies have analysed the impact from information and communication technology (ICT) on transaction costs, while this study focuses on the service marketing management perspective. To the knowledge of the authors, there are no previous studies that connect service design thinking to potential impacts on transaction costs.

Purpose – This paper aims at a deeper understanding of why a heavily anthropological method as design thinking is being applied by practitioners. 

Approach – The paper is based on a literature study. 

Findings – It takes methods different from the ones applied earlier in service management as to the move from uniformity to diversity. And this is only a natural consequence of Zeitgeist. 

Research limitations/implications – Within the framework of the present document, the research is being limited on marketing as a phenomenon geographically to the Western world and chronologically to the advent of commerce and thereafter. 

Originality – The contribution of this article is about a deeper understanding of how heavily anthropological methods in service marketing emerge as a consequence of Zeitgeist. Service design thinking is a fresh and recent method. To the knowledge of the author, there have been no studies conducted in order to understand why this method has come into existence. 

Practitioners and researchers agree service design matters as a competitive advantage in a virtual global business context (Sparke 2013, Stickdorn Schneider 2011, Sauming 2009). However, how services are to be designed in order to satisfy the end-user has been discussed from various angles. Dominating approaches in business administration is a traditional top-down, inside-out perspective as discussed in Saumung (2009), whilst multidisciplinary course of action advocates rather radical outside-in perspective as proposed by Stickdorn/Schneider (2011). Earlier outside-in perspectives can be traced back to the research community in Service Management with roots back in the 1970ies. Gummesson, Grönroos, Normann, Zeithaml, Parasuraman and Berry are some recognized scholars related to the community. Yet Service Management promotes an active investigation of the end-user in order to know one’s market and design service according to consumer needs, it is being suggested to be performed by traditional qualitative methods in marketing research. Emerging methods similar to Design Thinking as in Brown (2006), Kimbell (2011), Kimbell (2012), Stickdorn/Schneider (2011) are radical in the sense of being heavily anthropological, which is rare in management research. Now, it appears Zeitgeist as described in Sparke (2013) is causing this need for radical methods, as design no longer only is visual but an ensemble perception, which can be experienced in multiple ways: felt, smelled, heard, seen. This is, service design has become a part of experience economy similar as in Pine/Gilmore (2011) and it can be assumed it is only a natural consequence of Zeitgeist, that methods different from the ones applied earlier in management research are needed.

This paper is mainly based on a literature study and aims at a deeper understanding of why a heavily anthropological method as design thinking is being applied by practitioners. In order to clarify the ”desk research” results of the literature study, it is also based on a number of in- depth interviews with design consultants applying design thinking.

Abstract – The present study focuses on Swedish public authorities’ e-governed design of assistance and support preparedness vis-à-vis small and medium sized enterprises (SME) in a service directive context. 

Purpose – The paper aims to examine Swedish agencies’ design of assistance and support preparedness vis-à-vis SMEs in a service directive context. 

Approach – The topic is examined through interviews and investigations. Based on the analysis, it is being concretised from a theoretical angle, to which extent the examined authorities have involved the end-user. 

Findings – This study shows that public authorities use system-oriented approaches in designing e-government services. 

Practical implications – One suggestion is that authorities familiarize themselves with methods such as “design thinking” and apply them in their efforts in order to learn how to overcome every feeling of disembodiment and depersonalization that technology has created between government agency and customers. 

Social implications – The topic examined is a matter of interest for all EU-countries government agencies. The results from this study can be generalized in terms public authorities ”do the right thing in a wrong way”. 

Originality –In order to highlight the topic from a theoretical angle, an outline divided in system-oriented and market-oriented approaches have emerged as an outcome of the theoretical considerations. To the knowledge of the author, there are no previous studies that have identified above-mentioned categories separated by the degree of end-user involvement in designing services. 

The present study focuses on Swedish public authorities’ e-governed design of assistance and support preparedness vis-à-vis small and medium sized enterprises (SME) in a service directive context. This topic is examined through interviews with authority experts on their design process, and investigations on how SMEs perceive authorities’ design of assistance and support preparedness vis-à-vis the end-user in a service directive context. As a minimum directive, i.e. establishing minimum standards in terms of a national e-portal, a so called ”point-of –single-contact” is imperative, customer involvement in designing e-government solutions for support preparedness is optional. This study shows that Swedish agency experts designed appropriate solutions to ease the lives of the self-employed and minimise administrative burdens. Obviously, the authorities involved the end-user at different levels without being able to concretise their methods, as no distinct service design method had been applied save for the end-user’s own experience. The present study also shows that the end-user has a positive view of e-government services, and finds that such services expedite processing times; however, the authorities’ additional services — information and notification —  are deficient. Overall, these deficiencies mean that SMEs’ contact with authorities has been made more difficult rather than simpler. Moreover, a comparative analysis between authority experts on their design process and SMEs’ statements on their perceived experience is implemented in this article. Based on the analysis, it is being concretised from a theoretical angle, to which extent the examined authorities have involved the end-user.

Many garment producers act on a global market, where people from different cultures often move from countries to others, as well as surf in a world-wide virtual space. In this context, garment producers design their marketing communication efforts considering identity and personality related to the target group aimed at. Often they choose models for their ads, which mirror ideals that the generally defined target group is attracted by. Garment producers often succeed in picking models or icons, which fit well into the social class standards, which the target group identifies with. Nevertheless, they often do this without reflecting on the icons’ identity-and personality-value across cultural differences as colour of the skin, gender and sexuality. Consequently, global standardised advertisements contain stereotypes or standardised personalities. It is common these stereotypes are dominated by whiteness. A possible understanding of “whiteness” is as follows: “lifestyles of white human beings, non-coloured persons”. One question is how whiteness is being constructed in the contemporary visual culture of marketing fashion design. By examining four advertisements of brands providing life-style values, this paper aims at better understanding the lifestyle concept of whiteness. This understanding is of actual interest to a garment producer when designing advertisements. A lack of understanding diminishes the producer’s chance of digging all the market-potential. Three brands closely connected to adored white ideal lifestyles are examined. Furthermore, the brands are in a middle-prize segment and act world-wide on a global market. The study shows, whiteness is represented by wealth, financial independence, power, old traditions, cultural interest and education, sport, leisure, power for life and happiness in life. Further, it appears from the study, whiteness is connected to the American dream. In summary, whiteness is plenty of stereotyping. A conclusion is, the concept of whiteness is far to narrow to fit a global garment producer.

Present contribution to 12th Conference “European Culture”, Spain, Barcelona on 24‐26 October 2013 aims to describe how to identify relevant cultural differences and their impact on cross‐border projects. It is a problem that the participants’ different cultural backgrounds in a project often lead to misinterpretations and deadlocks. Therefore, the research question deals with how participants in creative processes can identify relevant cultural differences as well as their impact on cross‐border projects. This appears important in order to prevent the processes of creative, intercultural projects from halting or even a collapse. The description will be based on an analysis of reflections made by participants in an intercultural border‐crossing project, financed by the European Regional Development Fund and European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument.