“H2H Marketing Model” was formerly called “Bangalore Model,” as it has been developed by one of the co-authors Prof. Dr. Uwe Sponholz on the campus of Christ University in Bangalore, India. He is a visiting professor at Christ. The model integrates current concepts in the form of a new human-oriented mindset, improved marketing process, and advanced management approaches and provides a paradigm shift for all marketing thoughts.

The H2H Marketing Model is a theoretical framework, which integrates the influencing factors of Design Thinking (DT), Service-Dominant Logic (S-DL), and Digitalization (D) into a new marketing thinking approach. Design Thinking has essentially led to understanding human centricity and thinking based on deep customer insights as a mindset and marketing as an iterative innovation process. The Service-Dominant Logic provides the theoretical foundation for human marketing by integrating many fragments and emphasizes the importance of co-creation of value in collaborative ecosystems. Digitalization has given the customer and the marketer new options and gives all participants of the marketing interaction and transaction new possibilities. Insofar digitalization serves within the H2H Marketing Model as enabler, not only as trend. The H2H Marketing Model integrates all three elements into presenting an option for a new mindset and marketing action. The three authors are Philip Kotler, Waldemar Pfoertsch and Uwe Sponholz.

First, this story starts with a “Call for Adventure”. The authors introduce the current state of marketing and ask a question to the readers: “Marketing-Quo Vadis?” “Marketing, where are you heading?” When applied to the pharmaceutical industry, it leads to the fundamental understanding that a radical change is required in the marketing model of pharma firms. And who doesn’t know what’s happening in the pharmaceutical industry today. The layman knows. The patients know. The HCPs know.

In recent years, newer concepts and ideas have emerged in marketing, which the pharma industry should consider. One of them is building Firms of Endearment. This inspiration comes from the book of the same name by Raj Sisodia, Jagdish Sheth and David Wolfe.

What pharma needs now is a sustainable model to replace the hackneyed transactional marketing model which resulted in gains either for the pharma company or the HCPs but not for whom the medicines are made – the patients.