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Based on a research project with the purpose of defining the essence and scope of relationship marketing (RM). The marketing mix theory, which constitutes the prevailing approach to marketing, is made operational through the definition of the 4Ps and extensions of these. The core is a presentation of 30 relationships, the 30Rs, as a way of making the RM philosophy more operational and generally applicable. The 30Rs provide a basis for companies to work out their own specific relationship portfolio as part of their marketing planning process.

Most of a company′s marketing is not carried out by the professional full‐time marketer but by the amateur part‐time marketer (PTM), who is omnipotent both inside and outside a company. The PTM influences customer relations and revenue without belonging to the marketing or sales department. Unless the PTM is recognised, marketing can never be efficient. Although this is in essence a matter of marketing‐orientation, which of course is not new, it has been found to be a much more profound and difficult issue to implant in organisations than is suggested by marketing textbooks. The purpose here is to identify current approaches to marketing‐orientation and organise them around one central concept, the PTM. In order to do so theory from three areas will be used: services marketing, the network/interaction theory of industrial marketing, and total quality management.

This article examines the received wisdom of services marketing and challenges the validity and continued usefulness of its core paradigm, namely, the assertion that four specific characteristics—intangibility, heterogeneity, inseparability, and perishability—make services uniquely different from goods. An alternative paradigm is proposed, based on the premise that marketing exchanges that do not result in a transfer of ownership from seller to buyer are fundamentally different from those that do. It posits that services offer benefits through access or temporary possession, instead of ownership, with payments taking the form of rentals or access fees. This rental/access perspective offers a different lens through which to view services. Important implications include opportunities to market goods in a service format; the need for more research into how time is perceived, valued, and consumed; and the notion of services as a means of sharing resources.

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This is a contribution to the reorientation of marketing. It aligns the service-dominant logic with other developments in marketing and management. It claims that the marketing concept and customer-centricity are too limited as a foundation for marketing and have not-and cannot-but partially be implemented in practice. It urges marketing scholars and educators to accept the complexity of marketing and develop and teach a network-based stakeholder approach-balanced centricity-epitomized by the concept of many-to-many marketing.

This article is about ongoing efforts to come to grips with the question: Does relationship marketing pay? The question is discussed under the umbrella concept return on relationships. Much of what is being done in relationship marketing and customer relationship management has a bearing on both business‐to‐business and business‐to‐consumer marketing, and on manufacturing as well as services. Although there is a shortage of empirical research and proven practice, the article aims to show current efforts to generate knowledge of return on relationships, with particular emphasis on business‐to‐business environments. The article ends with action strategies to improve return on relationships, and a summary of conclusions.