Analyzing the Problematic Marketing Situation in Iranian Stock Brokerage Firms Using Soft Systems Methodology

Kobra Bakhshizadeh Borj; Zohreh Dehdashti Shahrokh; Vahid Nasehifar; Saeed Saeedi

Authors

Kobra Bakhshizadeh Borj Associate Professor, Department of Business Management, Faculty of Management and Accounting, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7294-1964
Zohreh Dehdashti Shahrokh Professor, Department of Business Management, Faculty of Management and Accounting, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran Author https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4736-224X
Vahid Nasehifar Professor, Department of Business Management, Faculty of Management and Accounting, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran Author https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7117-1152
Saeed Saeedi PhD student, Department of Business Management, Faculty of Management and Accounting, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran Author https://orcid.org/0009-0009-7372-3334

Keywords:

brokerage marketing, Iranian capital market, Soft Systems Methodology, problematic situation, financial services marketing

Abstract

The present study aimed to analyze the problematic marketing situation in Iranian stock brokerage firms using Soft Systems Methodology (SSM). In terms of research approach, the study was qualitative and exploratory. Data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews with 16 experts from the brokerage industry and capital market between December 2025 and May 2026. The data were analyzed according to the logic of Soft Systems Methodology. The findings indicated that, in many Iranian stock brokerage firms, marketing operates less as a strategic capability for building trust, managing customer experience, and developing sustainable relationships and more as a reactive, short-term, and environmentally driven function. The principal dimensions of the problematic situation included the gap between the responsibility and authority of the marketing unit, the emergence of a negative veto structure, the dominance of a control-oriented logic over a development-oriented logic, conflicts among stakeholder logics, environmental pressures, and disruptions in the critical flows of trust, information, and budget. The findings demonstrated that the core problem is not the absence of marketing activities, but rather the lack of systemic integration among marketing, information technology, legal affairs, risk management, operations, senior management, the regulatory authority, and the actual customer experience. The primary contribution of the study is to provide a systemic, field-based, and stakeholder-oriented understanding of the problematic marketing situation in Iranian stock brokerage firms. The study demonstrates that brokerage marketing should be understood as extending beyond advertising, sales, digital marketing, or short-term customer acquisition and should instead be regarded as a system for transforming market ambiguity into understanding, trust, informed action, continuous engagement, and loyalty. Such an understanding can provide a foundation for managerial decision-making, the improvement of internal processes, and the development of future research in financial services marketing and capital markets.

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