In the September 28 issue of Business Week, the annual "100 Best Global Brands" are revealed.  When I was CMO of Gap, we were ranked in the high 20's...22 I believe.  Now they are 78...sad.

http://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/09/0917_global_brands/index.htm

But what caught my attention most was the article by Spencer E. Ante titled, "At Amazon, Marketing is for Dummies."  I was not surprised at all to read more about Amazon's anti-advertising stand.  Bezos is famously quoted for saying, "advertising is the price you pay for an inferior product."  But I was SHOCKED to see this headline followed by the sub-head, "Instead of lavish ads, it invests in technology and distribution - and the results are startling effective."

Best I can tell, Amazon.com is an online business, so its website IS its product and its warehouse system and infrastructure is how it distributes the goods it sells.  Also, last time I checked, product and distribution are two of the essential pillars of marketing.  But this article said, "at Amazon, marketing is for dummies."  So what gives?

This is a classic example of what's happened to what I call "Big-M Marketing."  Let's face it, Marketing as a function has lost credibility in America.  Many things can and must be done to fix this, beginning with clearly understanding what marketing is and isn't.  While I believe to my core that marketing communications is an essential element to building and growing many brands (not true for every business), we simply must stop confusing the role of Marketing with the discrete and unique role of each of its elements.

Oh, and PS...Amazon did go looking for a "hotshot ad agency" -- I was there and with my creative partner, presented them a number of different ideas! 

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/09_39/b4148053513145.htm