Ilona PENC-PIETRZAK
Lodz University of Technology, Faculty of Management and Production Engineering, Department of Management Systems and Innovation, Lodz, Poland
The purpose of the article is the emphasis on customer meaning in the process of value co-creation and on possibility of using this cooperation in building of company’s competitive advantage. The research design and methods are: literature review and case study – the analysis of the online shop data, which concern the different elements of the value co-creation by the shop and its clients. The case study concluded that the whole selling service of products is influenced not only by the elements of value offered by seller but also by activities of customer himself as well as other customers. Many customers don’t limit themselves to an evaluation of goods and services but also want to influence over creation of their value. It increases attractiveness of the product, which they perceive, and improves the seller’s image. The article can be an inspiration for further research on value co-creation by the customers and the company. It contains the proposition of extension of marketing concept 4C (customer value, cost, convenience, communication) with the fifth element: co-creation experience.