Marketing: A Sociological Approach

Marketing involves a wide range of professions, activities and tools and it plays an increasingly important role in our lives. But what exactly is marketing and how did it come to assume such importance? Who are the marketing professionals, what exactly do they do and what influence do they have in our economy and society?

Over the last forty years, sociologists have studied marketing and analysed its practices, techniques and consequences, producing a formidable body of knowledge about the nature of marketing and its impact. This book provides a concise account of these contributions and an introduction to the most important sociological concepts for understanding marketing such as consumption, the market, the organization and culture. Mellet presents marketing not just as a set of techniques but as a pervasive social activity performed by different actors in specific contexts according to particular rules and views. He unpacks the activity of marketing, showing who marketers are, how they think, what they do and how they shape and construct not only markets but also the world we live in.

Written in a clear and accessible style, this book is the perfect introduction to marketing from a sociological perspective and it will be used on courses on marketing and the sociology of culture.

Kevin Mellet is Assistant Professor of Sociology at Sciences Po, Paris.