A long overdue re-definition of marketing

How did it come that AMA forgot to mention branding in their 2007 definition of marketing? A re-edited version of my article with the headline "On the definition of marketing" is now published on our site. Just print out and read. And don't forget to send me your comments, please.


The value of price – a social phenomenon

People build their identity by what they buy and what they expose themselves with. More or less. It is true that some just don’t bother about a certain kind of product or use. But most people want to demonstrate their wealth by spending some extra money on a premium product and those who are keen on it spend a lot on luxury. This was revealed in Thorstein Veblen’s ”The Theory of the Lei-sure Class” as early as 1899. But the full picture is more recent. In established, wealthier countries, astuteness is highly regarded. Thus, the sensible action in itself of buying something less expensive than average but with good enough quality and design will earn respect. As opposed to buying just cheap. This di-agram, the Camel Hypothesis, displays the more or less conscious brand position-ing strategies proved successful in practice. Note the low level of social identity earned by mainstream goods and services, mainly represented by the biggest, most well-distributed brands.


Think Product Value Management

Customer perceived value is what decides demand. Every company engaged in development, production, marketing, and selling branded products (goods and/or services) is subconsciously aware of it. But do their organisations reflect it? The common denominator of these activities is, of course, value development. Doesn’t this imply an organizational function like Product Value Management? Mega successful companies have utilized this in practice, even if not in theory. Think Henry Ford, Steven Jobs…