Marketing Defined by the American Marketing Association

By: Valerie Weber Hamann

Have you ever tried to define the term marketing, or explain its meaning by using a set of descriptive words? Business professionals have used the term marketing many times, and market professionals use it to describe a service offered to their clients. But what is the true meaning of marketing?

As a marketing professional I would like to bring to the forefront the origins of the definition as created by the National Association of Marketing - and today's meaning of marketing as defined by the American Marketing Association.

In 1935, The National Association of Marketing created the first official definition of marketing. After adopting and maintaining the original definition of marketing for over 50 years, The American Marketing Association, a predecessor of The National Association of Marketing gave the term new meaning as defined by today's business environment.

Understanding that the evolution of business has significantly changed, the American Marketing Association officially adopted a new definition of marketing to communicate its meaning to marketing professionals and educators. By defining what marketing means, I believe it allows us to clearly communicate the meaning of marketing to our customers ... thereby facilitating a better understanding of what it is we, as marketers, are trying to accomplish.

The new definition of marketing as released by the American Marketing Association in September 2004 reads as follows: Marketing is an organizational function and a set of processes for creating, communicating and delivering value to customers and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders.

About the Author:

Valerie Weber Hamann is the Founder and President of Evergreen Writing Services, LLC. Valerie has accrued over 10 years of sales and marketing experience, and is a member of the American Marketing Association. Read more insightful articles regarding sales, marketing, and marketing communications at http://www.evergreenwritingservices.com/marketing.html.