One of the (many) things that I find both amusing and frustrating in the ongoing debate about marketing’s role in the business is that so often people on both sides on the debate (ie, marketing rules versus marketing sucks) forget that marketing isn’t synonymous with marketing communications.
Marketing 101.
Marketing is the four Ps: Product, Price, Place, Promotion.
Marketing Communications is primarily concerned with one P: Promotion. It is part of marketing, it is not ALL of marketing.
Going forward in my writing, I plan to be very clear about which thing I am praising or criticizing: a marketing strategy or a marketing communications plan/tactic that is part of an overall marketing strategy.
It is an important distinction.