In the face of growing customer choice and market transparency, the shift in marketing in
recent years has been profound. Firstly in the era of mass marketing, the primary source of value
for most companies was their products or brands; today, value is moving to the customer interface. Secondly, marketing’s focus, formerly on advertising-based brand development, has
shifted to “below the line” operations capable of driving short-term, measurable financial returns.
Third, companies’ sales efforts, once characterized as “one size fits all,” are transforming to meet customer demands for unique solutions and value-added services.