It seems like an easy question on the surface, but if you ask ten of your fellow marketers, you’ll likely get ten different responses. How can you be good at something, anything for that matter, if you don’t even know what it is? I’ve done my best to define marketing, but first lets start with a little research…

According to my overpriced college marketing textbook, marketing is the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion, and distribution of ideas, goods, and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational objectives. While this is a decent definition, I think it’s a little wordy and don’t really like describing marketing as a process (though it is in fact a process). I love how they throw in the four p’s of marketing (product, price, promotion, and placement), but to simply describe marketing as a process leaves me with the thought that something is missing.

Let’s take the American Marketing Association’s definition… Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large. Ooookay. So how is this different from business in general? Again, the four p’s are represented, again marketing is described as a process, and again the definition is seriously wordy.

One more, from the heavyweight marketing champ of the world, Seth Godin. What!? You don’t know who Seth Godin is? Click on his name to check out his blog and bookmark it… now (as a matter of fact, bookmark my site now… if you’re marketer enough). According to this interview, Seth defines marketing as the art of telling a story… blah blah blah… Wait, marketing is the art of storytelling? That’s interesting!

You could say that a good storyteller tells a story that his/her audience wants or needs to hear (product), (s)he moves the audience to invest themselves, to be included (price), (s)he communicates in a way that moves the audience (promotion), and does so in the right place, at the right time (placement). You could say that… or not. In the end it’s up to you, but once you define marketing for yourself and your business, it will in turn define your organization and your culture. So definitely put some thought into it.

So what do I think? Personally I think that marketing is the relationship between a business, it’s customers, and it’s products. That’s right, I define it as a relationship. Something that evolves and changes with time. Something you really need to invest in. Sure, you’re telling a story. But don’t forget that you’re also creating that story, finding the audience, asking them to invest themselves, and doing so in a visible way.

Think I’m full of it? Completely agree? Use that comments button below or discuss with me in private at EdwardViator@evil-marketer.com