Prospects and Constraints of Sustainable Marketing Mix Development for Poland’s High-Energy Consumer Goods

Abstract

The research examined awareness, prospects and constraints of sustainable marketing mix development (SMD) from the perspective of Poland’s high-energy consumer goods (HECG), i.e., confectionery products, as an example of the Polish food industry. A questionnaire survey was designed for this purpose. The purpose of the survey questions was to evaluate selected areas of SMD; thus, a reference value ratio was proposed. An original approach to pairwise comparisons technique was applied to rank the value of each survey to provide an intensity measure for each examined area, i.e., a non-heuristic approach with verifiable accuracy and reliability. It was found that a high level of awareness among respondents exists in relation to SMD. Considering all aspects of constraints intensity for SMD, it could be concluded that SMD for Poland’s HECG is at a quite high level. However, considering all aspects of prospects intensity for SMD, this evaluation supported the conclusion that its level for Poland’s HECG is moderate only. It was also found that prices of sustainable products constitute the highest ranked determinant of SMD. Considering these research findings regarding awareness, limitations and perspectives for the development of a sustainable marketing mix in the enterprises operating in Poland’s HECG sector, it can be concluded that there are many more problems and difficulties in implementing sustainable marketing mix programs than there are prospects for the development of this concept.