What is marketing? Almost every marketing textbook has a different definition of the term "marketing." The American Marketing Association (AMA) uses the following: "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." From this definition, we see that: Marketing involves an ongoing process. The environment is "dynamic." This means that the market tends to change--what customers want today …showed first 75 words of 8297 total…

…showed last 75 words of 8297 total…needs. Often, such long purchase processes can cause long delays. In the government, rules are often especially stringent--e.g., vendors of fruit cake have to meet fourteen pages of specifications put out by the General Services Administration. In many cases, government buyers are also heavily bound to go with the lowest price. Even if it is obvious that a higher priced vendor will offer a superior product, it may be difficult to accept that bid.