The sixth edition of The Marketing Book is a testimony to both the continuing demand for an authorita-tive overview of the marketing discipline and the constantly changing nature of its subject matter. First published in 1987 to coincide with the Michael Baker’s appointment as the first academic National Chairman of the Institute of Marketing, the original concept was: To produce an authoritative handbook setting out the scope and nature of the marketing function, its managerial applications and its contribution to corporate success.
To implement this concept, contributing authors were advised: ‘The Marketing Book should serve as first point of reference for experienced practitioners and managers from other functions, and as an introduction to those embarking on a career in marketing. In short, the kind of book which every member and student of the Chartered Institute of Marketing will find relevant and useful.
The fact that the book has been continuously in print for 20 years and is now in its sixth edition is clear evidence that there is a continuing need for such a publication. However, at least two significant factors have influenced the preparation of this new edition. First, the original editor has retired from full-time involvement in the marketing academy and is now an Emeritus Professor. So, to ensure both continuity and currency, Professor Susan Hart, Professor of Marketing and Vice Dean Research in the Strathclyde Business School, has been invited to act as co-editor. Second, the international success of the book and its translation into other languages, together with the impact of globalization, have resulted in a reconsideration of the original remit which was that the contributors be drawn exclusively from the UK marketing community. For this edition, the publishers have encouraged us to include contributions from leading international experts and this we have done. As the majority of contributors are based in the UK, the current collection reflects a British view of what is important and relevant in the theory and practice of marketing. Obviously, this view recognizes and reflects international perspectives but, in a subject where so much published work is written from a purely American point of view, I consider it important that an alternative, albeit similar, interpretation be available. That said, there can be no doubt that this has been enhanced by the views of our international experts.
While it is unlikely that anyone other than the Editors and Publisher would wish to make an analysis of the content of successive editions, such a review would reveal that while some contributions have changed very little, others have been extensively updated, a few topics have been dropped and a significant number of new ones added. In parallel, the list of contributing authors has also changed markedly over the years. However, the present roll of contributors shares a common feature with all the preceding editions – the authors are all leading experts in their fields. All have published widely on the topics for which they are responsible and many of them have written one or more definitive and widely used textbooks on the subject of their contribution.
