What is Marketing?

Marketing includes sales, but encompasses much more. It is fundamental to the successful creation, distribution, promotion, and pricing of goods, services and ideas in all business and non-profit organizations.

As business has evolved, marketing has changed from a selling orientation to a broader customer orientation. Today, marketing is more and more focused on the development and implementation of competitive strategies ("game plans"). It is the marketer's responsibility to understand changes in customer needs and to get the right products to the market at the right time. The survival of companies depends on it.

How Important is Marketing?

Marketing is very important. Almost a third of all Americans work in marketing-related activities. According to the U.S. Government Occupational Outlook Handbook, employment in marketing should increase faster than the average of all occupations through the year 2005. Increasing globalization, technical improvements, and higher living standards bring consumers a growing choice of products and services, each of which has to be marketed.