Systems Thinking and Group Concept Mapping for Classification of Marketing Techniques in Mobility Plans

Abstract

Due to the increasing urbanization of the global population, policymakers and academia have shifted their attention toward mobility plans and inquiries on how to best design and implement them. Hence, in order to introduce meaningful and lasting mobility plans, coordination and addressing the needs of a wide number of stakeholders are required. Reaching such a broad target audience may appear challenging for policymakers; nonetheless, the employment of appropriate marketing techniques can make the different stakeholders aware of the problems at stake and inform them about the available solutions. However, the question of which marketing technique to use in order to increase the probability of success for the mobility plan still remains. The purpose of the current paper is to propose a hybrid method that can assist policymakers in categorizing the marketing techniques towards the sustainable urban mobility plan’s steps, with the combination of Systems Thinking and modified Group Concept Mapping. The paper concludes with a series of recommendations to policymakers on which marketing technique appears to be the most appropriate under different conditions. The novelties of the paper are the combination of the two methodologies and the practical recommendations that could be useful by policymakers. Moreover, the paper illustrates an example of how to structure and more efficiently use evidence-based policies.