According to the American Marketing Association (AMA), marketing activities are meant to benefit customers , clients , partners , and society at large.

Direct answer

In other words, marketing is not just for the company doing the marketing. It is designed to create, communicate, deliver, and exchange offerings that have value for:

  • Customers and clients (the people or organizations who buy or use the offerings)
  • Partners (such as distributors, retailers, agencies, and other organizations in the value chain)
  • Society at large (the broader community and environment impacted by marketing activity)

So, all these groups benefit from marketing activities in the AMA’s definition, not just the seller or the firm.