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Stealth marketing as a strategy

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  • Roy, Abhijit
  • Chattopadhyay, Satya P.

Abstract

Stealth marketing has gained increasing attention as a strategy during the past few years. We begin by providing a brief historical review to provide some perspective on how this strategy has been practiced in a myriad of ways in various parts of the world, and how it has consequently evolved in the emerging new marketplace. A more inclusive definition of stealth marketing is then proposed to conceptually understand its use in various contexts. Specifically, we propose a new typology of stealth marketing strategies based on whether businesses or competitors are aware of them, and whether they are visible to the targeted customers. We further provide suggestions of how firms can counter the stealth marketing strategies used by their competitors. Contrary to conventional wisdom, evidence is also provided about how such strategies can be used for "doing good" for society. Finally, the assessment of efficiency and effectiveness of stealth marketing strategies, and their related ethical implications, are discussed.

Suggested Citation

  • Roy, Abhijit & Chattopadhyay, Satya P., 2010. "Stealth marketing as a strategy," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 53(1), pages 69-79, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:bushor:v:53:y:2010:i:1:p:69-79
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    2. Eric von Hippel, 2006. "Democratizing Innovation," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 1, volume 1, number 0262720477, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Mennecke, Brian E. & Peters, Anicia, 2013. "From avatars to mavatars: The role of marketing avatars and embodied representations in consumer profiling," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 56(3), pages 387-397.
    2. Pehlivan, Ekin & Berthon, Pierre & Hughes, Mine Üçok & Berthon, Jean-Paul, 2015. "Keeping up with The Joneses: Stealth, secrets, and duplicity in marketing relationships," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 58(6), pages 591-598.
    3. Anamaria-Cătălina Radu & Ivona Stoica (Răpan) & Aida Catanã & Andra-Victoria Radu & Monica-Lavinia Dan, 2021. "European Funds in Tourism Sustainability—A Case Study of Beneficiaries’ Satisfaction Regarding the Process of Accessing," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-13, August.
    4. Fedorenko, Ivan & Berthon, Pierre & Edelman, Linda, 2023. "Top secret: Integrating 20 years of research on secrecy," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 123(C).
    5. Fournier, Susan & Avery, Jill, 2011. "The uninvited brand," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 54(3), pages 193-207, May.
    6. Stoeckl, Verena E. & Luedicke, Marius K., 2015. "Doing well while doing good? An integrative review of marketing criticism and response," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 68(12), pages 2452-2463.
    7. Hani Fadhil Jumaah Al-Shawi, 2021. "Solving the Problematic Relationship between Irregular Marketing Behaviours and the Principles of Social Responsibility," Business and Management Studies, Redfame publishing, vol. 7(3), pages 34-52, December.
    8. Dongmei Li & Ung T’chiang Chow & Cecilia Yin Mei Cheong, 2022. "A Critical Genre Analysis of Covert Advertising Through Short-Videos in Douyin: The Chinese Version of Tik-Tok," SAGE Open, , vol. 12(4), pages 21582440221, November.
    9. Stoenescu Alexandra-Oana, 2018. "The Impact of Unconventional Marketing Communications," International Conference on Marketing and Business Development Journal, The Bucharest University of Economic Studies, vol. 1(1), pages 85-94, July.

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