The New American Marketing Association Definition of Marketing: An Alternative Assessment

Abstract

In this essay, the authors provide a commentary on the American Marketing Association's current definition of marketing. After briefly outlining the evolution of marketing definitions, they challenge several aspects of the most recent definition. In particular, they stress that the new definition may not reflect the expanse of current marketing thought and practice, and they suggest that the limitations in scope and other shortcomings of the definition may have consequences on marketing scholarship, practice, and policy making. Building on these observations, the authors offer several criteria for creating a formal definition of marketing.