Comments on: Marketing: Science or Art?

By: pallavi

pallavi — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 13:05:04 +0000

I strongly believe that Marketing is pure art.
Marketing is simply an act of attraction.

In art there is an incessant quest to innovate and captivate your AUDIENCE’s attention. The attention caught can be or can not be utilised for the profit of an artiste depending upon his capabilities to sell his product.

Marketing is not a science because in science, when same sets of procedures are followed, no matter how many times, gives the same desired result.It will not change.

But in Marketing, like art, the possibility of getting the same kind of responses from your audience will vary, every now and then Because what marketing tactics you had used on your audiences to grab their attention ten years back will not capture their attention if you use in say 2020.

An art is an Innovation.It is permanently dynamic.It produces different responses from different set of people at different period of time.And so is Marketing.

By: 5 Low-Cost Marketing Ideas For Your New Business

5 Low-Cost Marketing Ideas For Your New Business — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 15:16:53 +0000

[...] to lose without jeopardizing the entire venture. After all, marketing and advertising is an art rather than a science. Alchemy, really. There are so many variables that go into any marketing message – the [...]

By: Karen

Karen — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 15:16:29 +0000

Here is a quote I love. It illustrates well that Art and Science are inextricably intertwined, and it applies to marketing plans.

“Mission planning can’t be separated from the design of the spacecraft itself,
as the mission design and scenario strongly affect the design of the spacecraft,
and the available technologies strongly affect the design of the mission.”- Walter Fowler, Introduction to Space Mission Planning

By: Karen

Karen — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 14:52:12 +0000

Oh. This is one of those questions that, when posed, always gets a lot of chatter but no one ever resolves anything. ZZZZzzzzzz. Anne, in order to answer “Is marketing art or science?” first you have to answer, “What is marketing?” I really expected Marketing Profs to have definitively answered both of these questions by now. Please figure out both questions once and for all, and get back to us, on it ASAP. : )

By: Timoth P.Mwandwan

Timoth P.Mwandwan — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 12:28:46 +0000

As it is known that in the past ,marketing was considered synonymous with selling,which is purely an art.But its recent developments in theory and practice,however,have resulted in moving it towards the social science,especially psychology,sociology and anthropology

By: Repost: Art or Science? » Strategic Product Manager

Repost: Art or Science? » Strategic Product Manager — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 16:28:17 +0000

[...] post – Ann Handley: Marketing: Science or Art? – reminded me how much this phrase is starting to annoy me. My high-level thought is…. [...]

By: Azad Kaustubh

Azad Kaustubh — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 20:17:19 +0000

Marketing may be applying mind to win the heart.Mind is applied in science as well as art. Similarly,heart is satisfied both in doing science as well as art because both are creative. So, marketing is a business to win the customers applying science and art as tools.

By: james

james — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 15:42:32 +0000

Its definitely both, but more of scientific than otherwise!

By: Peter Lustig

Peter Lustig — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 22:46:03 +0000

I cant answer the question, whether marketing is science or art. But what I can say is, that if science becomes marketing, it is rarely art! http://bit.ly/Y0zbF Peter

By: erotik

erotik — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 13:29:54 +0000

Dies ist ein gro?er Ort. Ich m?chte hier noch einmal.

By: fussball

fussball — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 02:36:29 +0000

Gute Arbeit hier! Gute Inhalte.

By: GANGBO ADEOLA

GANGBO ADEOLA — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 11:51:30 +0000

i agree that marketing involves both art and science to make sense. marketing brings bits of both together to become a whole.

By: GANGBO ADEOLA

GANGBO ADEOLA — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 11:51:18 +0000

i agree that marketing involves both art and science to make sense. marketing brings bits of both together to become a whole.

By: buy valium online

buy valium online — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 18:18:49 +0000

buy valium online

By: WANJIRA

WANJIRA — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 15:27:07 +0000

they both have a contribution in the success of marketing, for example, carrying out market research to find out customer’s expectations[science], this by itself is not success, the success will come if only you use this information creatively to outdo your competitors through artistic design of promotional activities, selection of strategies and their implementation thus the art part

By: Ryan Turner

Ryan Turner — Thu, 03 May 2007 21:39:21 +0000

I think it was Elbert Hubbard who once said that, “Art is the beautiful way of doing things. Science is the effective way of doing things. Business is the economic way of doing things.”
If that’s true, I’d stick with calling marketing a fine craft. Beats mystic art, dark magic, or alchemy as far as labels, no?

By: Ted Green

Ted Green — Thu, 03 May 2007 18:25:08 +0000

We are fortunate that, within the world of marketing, the cosmic balance of the universe exists…every day we bathe in the yin and yang. Both advocates are right…and both are wrong. It is a fun debate!!

By: Ralph Sullivan

Ralph Sullivan — Thu, 03 May 2007 14:33:14 +0000

I liked S.A. Sorensen’s thoughts, “The art of marketing makes the science complete. It takes the necessary components to present your view artistically and the analytical minds to engage the tools necessary for marketing to be successful.” But what I often find is that all of the well-intended ROI steps, focus groups, demographic, psychographic and laddering research, can be wasted by a creative team that doesn’t know how to translate this information into the “art”. You can have great input, but if you have lousy “translators” — good luck!

By: Mandy Vavrinak

Mandy Vavrinak — Thu, 03 May 2007 14:18:50 +0000

I use “the art and technology of communicating” as the tagline for my business…. because marketing does require both art and science. I tend to agree that it is neither, purely, but a craft that relies on both when it is best executed. Yes, I’m a trained graphic artist. Yes, I believe that marketing must be driven by creative and intuitive expressions that are relevant to consumer’s wants and needs. But I also believe that if we can’t measure our impact, if we can’t use information, data and technology to better understand and deliver to our marketplace, we aren’t plying our craft to the best of our ability.

By: Ann Handley

Ann Handley — Wed, 02 May 2007 14:21:43 +0000

Thanks for the comments, all. You actually helped me evolve my thinking — gotta love blogging! — in that I’m thinking that marketing is not so much art and science but actually an artisan craft. Similar to what you said, Matt, but I’d term it “craft” vs. “trade.”
CK — Your movie quote reminds me of my weekly addiction to House!

By: visar

visar — Wed, 02 May 2007 09:02:34 +0000

in marketing strategies art is the best original pieace of it .but to make a god marketing strategies the science will make artistik things come true

By: zafar

zafar — Wed, 02 May 2007 08:51:57 +0000

marketing as a tool to interact with lots of new and old idea to making the thing possible and definening the thing in ur way.well like a window to jump in a diferent world of costum made paths to move with different idea is art’” … the new or inovating ideas thats makes the thing possible in multinationals and international in there way.

By: gianandrea facchini

gianandrea facchini — Wed, 02 May 2007 06:54:45 +0000

i see here a false problem. art is based on a complex process and not only on a sudden intuition. the artist comes from a long way to succeed in his expressive path. the intuition is what stands at the rooth of the art process but, then, there is the personal technique and a lot more. (see an interesting book titled “l’apparent facilite” on matisse creative process, ed. maeght). marketing process is based on intuition and experience, science comes later.

By: CK

CK — Wed, 02 May 2007 04:00:31 +0000

It draws from both. In fact, it’s one of the few crafts/trades/disciplines that taps left and right brain competencies.
For instance, being that many times I’m devising BOTH the strategy and the tactics I need to draw from both sides of the brain. In my strategy I need to do analysis (left) but I also need to look at ways to outsmart–or altogether avoid–the competition so I need to be creative (right). Then, when going into tactics I need to work the creative (right) alongside goal-setting for the program’s ROI (left).
But that’s not why I chimed-in, I chimed in because there’s a line from a movie called “The Core” which is basically a thriller that you get your ten bucks out of, but it’s really good and goes like so:
“What is science after all? Why it’s best guess.”
Being it’s Hollywood-delivered I’ve no idea if it’s true but I like it so I’ll choose to believe it .

By: Craig

Craig — Tue, 01 May 2007 23:45:44 +0000

I think this kind of marketing is in the realm of art. http://www.quixoticals.com/2007/05/now-you-can-buy-piece-of-pi.html

By: Matt Grant

Matt Grant — Tue, 01 May 2007 21:28:50 +0000

Since everyone here is saying that marketing is “both,” I feel compelled to say it’s neither.
I believe that marketing is more of a “trade.” It certainly relies on the arts (literature, theater, painting, etc.) and the sciences (mathematics, physics, etc.) but whereas the arts and the sciences can be ends in themselves, marketing, like carpentry or plumbing, is always applied to specific, practical, ends.

By: Lewis Green

Lewis Green — Tue, 01 May 2007 20:28:32 +0000

Ann,
I just popped in to see what was happening, as I have been locked up with my MS and final edits for more than a week. My blogging has really suffered.
Anyway, marketing is and must be both science and art. We cannot be credible if we don’t rely on research and measure everything we do. And we won’t be relevant at all if we abandon creativity, innovation, and our zest for the written word.
I hope to return to the real world in several days. I miss my blogger friends.

By: S.A. Sorensen

S.A. Sorensen — Tue, 01 May 2007 20:17:38 +0000

The art of marketing makes the science complete. It takes the necessary components to present your view artistically and the analytical minds to engage the tools necessary for marketing to be successful.

By: Elaine Fogel

Elaine Fogel — Tue, 01 May 2007 18:15:52 +0000

As long as money drives our economy, there will always be a bottom line. All art forms today must produce results, from films to books, to theater, etc. The days of creating art for art’s sake are long gone, although I’m sure there are some starving artists left in the world.
I guess the Rembrandts, Monets and Chopins wouldn’t get anywhere today without a commercial element to their work and a good agent.

By: Dan Veasey

Dan Veasey — Tue, 01 May 2007 16:34:48 +0000

In college my major course of study was Air Traffic Control Systems(minors in Music and Computer Science), I run a small computer network consulting business, and my full time employ is in marketing for a small credit union. IMHO everything we do is artistic in some way. But there is a science to everything as well. The two depend on each other and to neglect either one of them is foolish.