AMA（American Marketing Association）历史上提供的四个标准定义：

AMA (1935):marketing is the performance of business activities that direct the flow ofgoods and services from producer to consumers.

AMA (1985):marketing is the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing,promotion, and distribution of ideas, goods, and services to create exchangesthat satisfy individual and organizational objectives.

AMA (2004):marketing is an organizational function and a set of processes for creating,communicating and delivering value to customers and for managing customerrelationships in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders.

AMA (2007):marketing is the activity, set of institutions and processes for creating,communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value forcustomers, clients, partners, and society at large.

对应的中文定义：

1935年定义：市场营销是一种将产品与服务传递到消费者手中的商业活动。

1985年对市场营销是这样定义的：市场营销是（个人和组织）对思想、产品和服务的构思、定价、促销和分销的计划和执行过程，以创造达到个人和组织目标的交换。本次定义明显对“4p组合”和“交换”目标的强调。

2004年定义：市场营销既是一种组织职能，也是为了组织自身及利益相关者的利益而创造、传播、传递客户价值，管理客户关系的一系列过程。本次定义用“价值”代替了以前的“产品、服务”等说法，而且强调了和利益相关者关系的维护。

2007年定义：市场营销既是一种行为、一套制度，也是创造、传播、传递和交换对消费者、代理商、合作伙伴和全社会有价值的物品的过程。本次概念进一步明确了“利益相关者”的内容，最大的变化是强调了对“全社会”的价值