Long ago Peter Drucker, the father of business consulting, made a very profound observation that has been lost in the sands of time:
"Because the purpose of business is to create a customer, the business enterprise has two--and only two--basic functions: marketing and innovation. Marketing and innovation produce results; all the rest are costs. Marketing is the distinguishing, unique function of the business."
Today, when top management is surveyed, their priorities in order are: finance, sales, production, management, legal and people. Missing from the list: marketing and innovation. When one considers the trouble that many of our icons have run into in recent years, it is not easy to surmise that Drucker's advice would have perhaps helped management to avoid the problems they face today.
Ironically, David Packard of Hewlett-Packard fame once observed that "marketing is too important to be left to the marketing people."
Gelezen in brandingstrategy insider van Jack Trout.