Skip to content
Staff profile image

Bilal Akbar

Senior Lecturer

Nottingham Business School

Role

Bilal is a senior lecturer in marketing and teaches a wider range of modules at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Bilal is an active researcher and publishes in social marketing, behaviour change, marketing for the greater good, the role of SDGs in marketing curriculum, etc. Bilal is an expert in the Delphi method as a qualitative research method.

Bilal's research has been published in the Journal of Social Marketing, Social Marketing Quarterly, Health Marketing Quarterly, RAUSP Management Journal, International Review on Public and Non-profit Marketing, Social Business, etc. His most recent work is featured in the European Journal of Marketing and the Journal of Marketing Education.

External activity

Bilal regularly contributes to the following committees:

  • Ethics Committee of International Social Marketing Association
  • Social Marketing Standards of the International Social Marketing Association
  • Increase the Academic Offerings Committee of the International Social Marketing Association
  • Increase social media & Internet Presence committee of the International Social Marketing Association

Bilal is part of The Magic Dentist’s team, supporting the charity in planning and evaluating its activities to achieve its aim, i.e., “to support teachers to deliver oral health education as part of the national curriculum and to help alleviate the increasingly high number of missed school days due to toothache and other associated oral health problems.”

Publications

Journal Articles

  1. Tomasela, B., Akbar, M. B., Lawson, A., Howarth, R. (2024). Embedding the Sustainable Development Goals into Higher Education Institutions' Marketing Curriculum, Journal of Marketing Education.
  2. Allison, S., Akbar, M. B., Allison, C., Padley, K. and Wormall, S. (2024). Evaluating the impact of an incentive scheme to encourage pregnant people to set a quit-smoking date, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/EJM-06-2023-0467​
  3. Millard, R., Akbar, M. B. (2023). ­Conceptualising Reflexivity within Critical Discourse of Social Marketing, Journal of Social Marketing.
  4. Akbar, M. B., Amoncar, N., Cateriano-Arevalo, E., Lawson, A. (2023). Two-Stage Taxonomy for Measuring Success in Social Marketing Practice, Journal of Social Marketing. https://doi.org/10.1108/JSOCM-11-2022-0226
  5. Akbar, M. B., Barnes, L. (2023). Verification of GPDS planning framework for social marketing: a Delphi method. International Review on Public and Non-profit Marketing. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12208-022-00362-2
  6. Akbar, M. B., Foote, L., Lawson, A. (2023). Conceptualizing, Embracing, and Measuring Failure in Social Marketing Practice. Social Marketing Quarterly. https://doi.org/10.1177/15245004231187134
  7. Akbar, M. B., Singh, L., Deshpande, S., Amoncar, N., (2022), COVID-19 Vaccine Perceptions Among South Asian Communities in the UK: An Application of the Theory of Planned Behavior, Health Marketing Quarterly. 40(3), 271-288. https://doi.org/10.1080/07359683.2022.2092325
  8. Akbar, M. B., French, J. (2022). A Reflection on the 7th World Social Marketing Conference (2022). Social Marketing Quarterly, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/15245004221136337
  9. Akbar, M. B., Foote, L., Lawson, A., French, J., Deshpande, S., & Lee, N. (2022). The social marketing paradox: Challenges and opportunities for the discipline. International Review on Public and Non-profit Marketing, 19, 367–389. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12208-021-00308-0
  10. Akbar, M. B., Garnelo-Gomez, I., Ndupu, L., Barnes, E., Foster, C. (2022). An analysis of social marketing practice: Factors associated with success. Health Marketing Quarterly. https://doi.org/10.1080/07359683.2021.1997525
  11. Akbar, M. B., Foote, L., Soraghan, C., Millard, R., Spotswood, F. (2021). What Causes Social Marketing Programmes to Fail? A Qualitative Study. Social Marketing Quarterly, Vol. 1, No. 18. https://doi.org/10.1177/15245004211010202
  12. Akbar, M. B., Ndupu, L., French, J., Lawson, L. (2021). Social Marketing: Advancing New Framework to Guide Programmes. RAUSP Management Journal, Vol. 56, No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/RAUSP-08-2020-0186
  13. Akbar, M. B., French, J., & Lawson, A. (2020). Use of social marketing in sexual health: An exploratory review. Social Business, 10(4), 365–381. https://doi.org/10.1362/204440820X15929907056698
  14. Akbar, M. B., French, J., & Lawson, A. (2019). Critical review on social marketing planning approaches. Social Business, 9(4), 361–393. https://doi.org/10.1362/204440819X15633617555894

Book Chapters

  1. Akbar, M. B., Lawson, A., Tomasella, B. (forthcoming). What a Waste! How Charities Can Help Use Food Wisely, In The Future of Charity Marketing, London: Routledge Studies in Marketing.
  2. Akbar, M. B., Nadeen, S. P. (forthcoming). How the Delphi method can help validate conceptual frameworks, In Alternative Market Research Methods: market sensing.
  3. Akbar, M. B., Shaikh-Kamal, M., Akbar, A., Lawson, Al. (2023). UOKM8? Mental Health Campaign to Break Social Stigma. In: The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Social Marketing. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.
  4. Akbar, M. B., Azara, I., Lawson, A., Tomasella, B.  (In Press). Achieving sustainable tourism: social marketing as a strategy to increase tourists’ pro-environmental behaviour, In: Ramkissoon, H. (ed.) Handbook on Tourism and Behaviour Change. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing.
  5. Akbar, M. B., Nadeem, S. P. (In press). Delphi method - a practical guide for verifying and validating novel developments, In Foroudi. P., Dennis, C.. Research Methods in Business and Management, Routledge.
  6. Akbar, M. B., Lawson, A., Turner, N. (2023). Extending Lauterborn’s 4Cs for Social Marketing. In: Fourali C., French J. (eds) The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Social Marketing. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-14449-4_12-3
  7. Shaikh-Kamal, M., Akbar, M.B. (2022). Improving Maternal Outcomes for Women in Rural Nepal Through Songs. In: The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Social Marketing. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-14449-4_166-1
  8. Lawson, A., Akbar, M. B. (2022). Improving mental health (case study no 26). In Lee, N., Kotler, P. Success in Social Marketing100 Case Studies From Around the Globe. Routledge.

Reports for External Bodies

  1. Allison, S., Akbar, M. B., & Padley, K. (2023). Evaluating the pilot maternity tobacco treatment service incentive scheme at Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Trust
  2. Kubacki, K., Akbar, M. B., Chamorro, J. B., French, J., Lee, D., Ong, D., …Ward, D. (2022). ISMA Ethics Principles. International Social Marketing Association

Conference Contribution

  1. Akbar, M. B., Tomasella, B., Lawson, A., Howarth, R. (2024). Embedding SDGs in Marketing Curriculum: Examples from the Current Practice. The Academy of Marketing, University of Cardiff.
  2. A webinar on Marketing and SDGs Framework, On behalf of the Academy of Marketing, Marketing Education SIG. This was facilitated by Dr Barbara Tomasella & Dr Alison Lawson (University of Derby), Dr Bilal Akbar & Dr Richard Howarth (Nottingham Trent University), Time: Thursday, 7 December, 12 - 1pm 2023.
  3. Delbuono, N., Akbar, M. B. (2022). Why do Younger People in the UK Have no Intention to Take the COVID-19 Vaccine?
  4. Allison, C., Padley, K., Allison, S., & Akbar, M. B. (2023, September). Evaluating the pilot maternity Tobacco Dependence Treatment Service (TDTS) incentive scheme at Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (July 2023). Poster presented at Smoking Cessation and Health  (SCaH 2023), Manchester
  5. Padley, K., Allison, S., Allison, C., & Akbar, M. B. (2023, September). Consideration of the individual impact on participants of a financial incentive scheme designed to eliminate tobacco dependency during pregnancy at Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Poster presented at Smoking Cessation and Health (SCaH 2023), Manchester
  6. Tomasessl, B., Akbar, B., Lawson, A., & Howarth, R. (2023, July). Embedding sustainability in UK HEIs' marketing curriculum. Poster presented at Learning and Teaching Conference, University of Derby
  7. Thomasella, B., Lawson, A., & Akbar, M. B. (2023, July). Social marketing for social enterprises: a case study of reducing food waste. Paper presented at Academy of Marketing
  8. Thomasella, B., Akbar, B., Lawson, A., & Howarth, R. (2023, July). Integrating the sustainable development goals (SDGs) in the Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) marketing curriculum. Paper presented at Academy of Marketing
  9. Akbar, M. B., & Lawson, A. (2022, September). Conceptualising success: A creative way to capitalise on social marketing. Paper presented at Seeing differently: Exploring how creativity can help find new solutions to societal challenges. Nineteen International Research Colloquium on Arts, Heritage, Nonprofit and Social Marketing, Academy of Marketing, Oxford Brookes Business School, Oxford
  10. Akbar, M. B., Singh, L., Deshpande, S., & Amoncar, N. (2022, September). Factors affecting COVID-19 vaccine uptake among UK based South Asian Communities. Paper presented at World Social Marketing Conference, Brighton
  11. Akbar, M. B., & Lawson, A. (2022, July). Conceptualising Failure in Social Marketing. Paper presented at Academy of Marketing
  12. Akbar, M. B. (2022, July). Perception and Intention of UK based South Asian Communities towards Covid Vaccine. Paper presented at Academy of Marketing
  13. Lawson, A., & Akbar, M. B. (2021, July). Seeing people for who they are: the Alzheimer’s Society. Paper presented at Academy of Marketing
  14. Akbar, M. B., & Lawson, A. (2021, July). UOKM8 social marketing case study: men’s mental health. Paper presented at Academy of Marketing
  15. Akbar, M. B., & Lawson, A. (2021, July). Extending Lauterborn’s 4Cs as a social marketing planning model. Paper presented at Academy of Marketing
  16. Akbar, M. B. (2019, June). Use of Social Marketing Principles in Intervention on Sexual Health. Paper presented at World Social Marketing Conference, Edinburgh, Scotland
  17. Akbar, M. B. (2018, September). Role of social marketing in sexual health. Paper presented at Arts, Heritage, NonProfit and Social Marketing, Academy of Marketing, University of Stirling
  18. Akbar, M. B. (2018, September). An Evaluation of Social Marketing Planning Approaches. Paper presented at World Social Marketing Conference, Antwerp, Belgium
  19. Akbar, M. B. (2018, July). An analysis of sexual health in the UK from social marketing point of view. Paper presented at Academy of Marketing, Stirling, Scotland
  20. Akbar, M. B. (2017, September). An evaluation of existing social marketing techniques for contraceptive products and services and their impact on consumer behaviour. Paper presented at British Academy of Management, University of Warwick
  21. Akbar, M. B. (2016, May). Accessing the impact of contraceptive marketing techniques on consumer behaviours. Paper presented at PGR conference, University of Derby

UN Sustainable Development Goals

3 - Good Health and Well-Being Badge 4 - Quality Education Badge 11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities Badge 12 - Responsible Consumption and Production Badge