How to Become Irrelevant
The American Marketing Association has somehow managed to obfuscate the clear. With all the substantial pedigree they wield, this is the best definition (recently revised!) of marketing they could devise:
“Marketing is the activity, conducted by organizations and individuals, that operates through a set of institutions and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging market offerings that have value for customers, clients, marketers, and society at large.”
What's with the love affair with institutions and processes? Are we really so conceited that we believe only institutions and organizational processes are capable of producing the net result of what marketing is supposed to do?
Oh. But we're the professionals. And we're insecure. Thus, we need a definition that excludes the chaotic nature of consumer marketing that is pervasive in this age of YouTube, MySpace, Flickr, and blogs.
Hogwash.
Chaos is here, folks. We might not like it. We might be afraid of it. But we'd better learn to embrace it, or else the marketplace won't even bother to wave as it passes us by.
Hat tip to Diva Marketing Blog for publicizing this change. - Cam Beck
I lost interest after "...organizations and individuals, that operates through a set of institutions and processes ...". It sounds like something a bunch of MBAs spent a lot of time on, charged a lot of money for and then celebrated. It's about as useful as a straightened paper clip.
Posted by: Paul Herring | May 17, 2007 at 09:00 AM
I for one embrace the chaos ... it makes me feel like marketing is something that CAN have a real impact on the way that people live their lives. Less numbers, more people; less demographics, more connections and less process, more feeling. Bring it on!
Posted by: Gavin Heaton | May 17, 2007 at 09:16 AM
Well... The folks with blogs that have "Chaos" in their names are accounted for. Anybody else? :)
Posted by: Cam Beck | May 17, 2007 at 03:13 PM
Well Cam .. the oxymoron is when an organization tries take into account the diverse contingencies (a la AMA and this definition rewrite) the process must have had 'chaos.' But when you add the element of being "politically correct" that 'chaos' takes a dive out the door. Too bad, eh?
Thanks for the shout out.
Posted by: Toby | May 18, 2007 at 01:15 AM
I don’t want to wait till the end of Summer :( , I want it now. Who with me?
save your time http://BustyBoots.info/?p=24> and join me. ;)
Posted by: BustyBoots | May 31, 2007 at 08:05 PM