The 16th edition of Marketing Management builds on the classic examples, core concepts, and logical structure that made the first edition a landmark text. Much has changed since the 15th edition was published. Ongoing globalization; the increasing role of corporate social responsibility; advances in technology, e-commerce, and digital communication; the growing impact of social media, and the widespread use of data analytics, marketing automation, and artificial intelligence have disrupted many industries and have opened doors to new business models. Responding to these changes, the 16th edition was redesigned from the ground up to provide managers with the tools necessary to succeed in the new market environment.

Marketing Management owes its success to its maximization of three dimensions of marketing coverage: depth, breadth, and relevance. The depth includes its solid academic grounding; its examination of important theoretical concepts, models, and frameworks; and its ability to provide conceptual guidance to solve practical problems. The breadth reflects the wide range of topics addressed in the book and its emphasis on those topics that are most crucial to marketing management. The relevance is embodied by the ability of this book to identify the issues commonly faced by managers and present the material in a way that enables them to develop successful strategies to address these issues.

The 16th edition builds on the fundamental strengths of past editions that distinguish Marketing Management from all other marketing management texts:

• Managerial orientation. The book focuses on the major decisions that marketing managers and top management face in their efforts to harmonize the organization’s objectives, capabilities, and resources with marketplace needs and opportunities.

• Analytical approach. The text presents conceptual tools and frameworks for analyzing recurring problems in marketing management. Cases and examples illustrate effective marketing principles, strategies, and practices.

• Multidisciplinary perspective. Marketing Management draws on the rich findings of various scientific disciplines—such as economics, behavioral science, and management theory—for fundamental concepts and tools that are directly applicable to marketing challenges.

• Universal applications. The book applies strategic thinking to the complete spectrum of marketing: products, services, persons, places, information, ideas, and causes; consumer and business markets; profit and nonprofit organizations; domestic and foreign companies; small and large firms; manufacturing and intermediary businesses; and low- and high-tech industries.

• Comprehensive and balanced coverage. Marketing Management covers the topics a manager must understand in order to design and execute a successful marketing campaign.

What’s New in the 16th Edition

The overriding goal of the revision for the 16th edition of Marketing Management was to create a comprehensive, current, and engaging marketing text. We streamlined the organization of the content, added new material, cut or updated older material, and deleted material that was no longer relevant or necessary. The 16th edition allows those instructors who have used previous editions to build on past experience, while at the same time offering a text that is unsurpassed in breadth, depth, and relevance for students experiencing Marketing Management for the first time.

To improve the presentation of the material, individual chapters are organized into seven rather than eight major parts, as described next. We retained many of the favorably received within-chapter features that have been introduced through the years, such as topical chapter openers, examples highlighting noteworthy companies or issues, and the Marketing Insight and Marketing Spotlight features that provide in-depth conceptual and company-specific information. Most of the chapter-opening vignettes, in-text examples, and end-of-chapter features are new, reflecting current market developments.

This book is dedicated to my wife and best friend, Nancy, with love.

—PK

This book is dedicated to my wife, Punam, and my two daughters, Carolyn and Allison, with much love and thanks.

—KLK

This book is dedicated to my parents, Irina and Christo, with love and gratitude.

—AC

About the Authors

Philip Kotler is one of the world’s leading authorities on marketing. He is the S. C. Johnson & Son Distinguished Professor of International Marketing at the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University (emeritus). He received his master’s degree at the University of Chicago and his PhD at MIT, both in economics. He did postdoctoral work in mathematics at Harvard University and in behavioral science at the University of Chicago.

Kevin Lane Keller is the E. B. Osborn Professor of Marketing and Senior Associate Dean for Marketing and Communications at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. Professor Keller has an AB degree in math and economics from Cornell University, an MBA from Carnegie-Mellon, and a PhD in marketing from Duke University. At Dartmouth, he teaches MBA courses on strategic brand management and lectures in executive programs on those topics.

Alexander Chernev is a professor of marketing at the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University. He holds an MA and a PhD in psychology from Sofia University and a PhD in business administration from Duke University. He is an academic thought leader, speaker, and advisor in the area of marketing strategy, brand management, consumer decision making, and behavioral economics.