Strategy
33 of the Greatest Marketing Quotes to Inspire Your Strategy

33 of the Greatest Marketing Quotes to Inspire Your Strategy

November 28, 2022
3 min read

When I first started in marketing, I used to write down what I thought were the best marketing quotes to inspire me to dream big and to do big things.

A few years ago I gathered all these bits of paper and sticky notes and wrote down on one piece of paper my favorite marketing quotes and words of wisdom and inspiration.

When I speak, I also tried to invent some of my own tweetable quotes. Here are a few that generate a little tweet love:

But I can’t compare with some of these great minds and their amazing quotes.

PS – I put together these 10 tips for optimizing your content marketing. Watch Now!

Here is my collection of the greatest marketing quotes to inspire your strategy:

  1. “Banners have 99 problem and a click ain’t one.”
  2. “Content Marketing is a commitment, not a campaign.” ~ Jon Buscall
  3. “Content marketing is the only marketing left.” ~ Seth Godin
  4. “Stop interrupting what people are interested in and be what people are interested in.” ~ Craig Davis
  5. “Make your customer the hero of your stories.” ~ Ann Handley
  6. “Your brand is so much more than what you sell.” ~ Jon Iwata
  7. “Marketing is too important to be left to the marketing department.”~ David Packard
  8. “The buyer journey is nothing more than a series of questions that must be answered.” ~ IDC
  9. “People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it.” – Simon Sinek
  10. “Market like the year you are in!” ~ Gary Vaynerchuck
  11. “Don’t find customers for your products, find products for your customers.”  ~ Seth Godin
  12. “Content is king, but distribution is queen and she wears the pants.” ~ Jonathan Perelman, Buzzfeed
  13. “Content is the atomic particle of all digital marketing, says @Lieblink”~ Rebecca Lieb
  14. “Make your marketing so useful, people will pay you for it.” ~ Jay Baer
  15. “Content builds relationships. Relationships are built on trust. Trust drives revenue.” Andrew Davis
  16. “Help your customers and you help your business.” ~ Leo Burnett
  17. “Business has only two functions – marketing and innovation.”  ~ Milan Kundera (Knowledge drop: Most people attribute the above quote to Peter Drucker who clearly borrowed from the author of The Unbearable Lightness of Being when he said:  “Because it is its purpose to create a customer, any business enterprise has two – and only these two – basic functions: marketing and innovation.” But Milan said it first. So here’s another good one from Peter…)
  18. “The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well the product or service fits him and sells itself.” ~ Peter F. Drucker
  19. “The sole purpose of marketing is to sell more to more people, more often and at higher prices. There is no other reason to do it.” ~ Sergio Zyman
  20. “What really decides consumers to buy or not to buy is the content of your advertising, not its form.” ~ David Ogilvy
  21. “The consumer is not a moron, she’s your wife.” ~ David Ogilvy (not sure this one stands the test of time. Blame Kessler in the comments. He made me add it!)
  22. “The aim of marketing is to make selling superfluous.” ~ Peter Drucker
  23. “If you have more money than brains you should focus on outbound marketing. If you have more brains than money, you should focus on inbound marketing.” ~ Guy Kawasaki
  24. “Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing about.” ~ Benjamin Franklin
  25. Deadlines are the greatest source of inspiration” ~ Mark Twain
  26. “Markets are conversations.” ~ The Cluetrain Manifesto
  27. “Marketing takes a day to learn and a lifetime to master.” ~ Phil Kolter
  28. “Advertising in the final analysis should be news. If it is not news it is worthless.” ~ Adolph Ochs
  29. “Marketing is no longer about the stuff that you make, but about the stories you tell.” – Seth Godin
  30. “There is nothing more valuable than a spotless reputation.” ~ William Shakespeare
  31. “Companies that speak in the language of the pitch are no longer speaking to anyone.” ~ The Cluetrain Manifesto
  32. “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” – Maya Angelou
  33. “Marketing is not anyone’s job… It’s everyone’s job!” ~ Jack Welch (Thanks to my new twitter friend Leigh Cowan)

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What’s your favorite marketing or business quote? Did I miss any great ones?

Let me help you tell your story! I can help your team create authentic and consistent thought leadership content. I’ve done it for myself. I’ve done it for the companies I’ve worked for. I’ve helped activate hundreds, even thousands of thought leaders. I’ve done it for numerous clients. And I can do it for you. 

30 thoughts on “33 of the Greatest Marketing Quotes to Inspire Your Strategy

  1. Eric Wittlake

    “Marketing is too important to be left to the marketing department.” The funny thing is, when marketing extends beyond the marketing department, the business doesn’t call it marketing anymore.

    Michael, do you think social media finally changing this? It seems there is more recognition of the public and broad influence the entire organization can have now, without clear departmental or functional boundaries around it.

    Interested in hearing your thoughts on this.

    — @wittlake

  2. Michael Brenner

    Hi Eric,

    Yes that quote is one of my favorites. I absolutely believe marketing is the job of everyone in the company. That is why I think social marketers should be encouraging “brand ambassadors” outside of marketing vs. just “enabling” their own marketing departments. And since social media is essentially an opportunity to interact with customers directly, this should force more collaboration between all outward facing or outward “concerned” organizational silos like the obvious ones in sales, customer service, communications along with the less-obvious ones like legal, HR and operations.

    Best, Michael

  3. Lydia

    I love “The urgent can drown out the important”, so true in the multi-tasking world we live in!

  4. Nicholas Kontopoulos

    One of my favorites at the moment is:

    Man’s mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions – Oliver Wendell Holmes

  5. Michael Brenner

    Hi Lydia! That is not a really famous quote but one I think deserves to see more light. Thanks for helping to get the word out.

  6. Michael Brenner

    That is an excellent one! Thanks Nicholas.

  7. Diana

    I like “Even though you are on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there”. Will Rogers

  8. Michael Brenner

    Love that one! Thanks for contributing Diana!

  9. Giles Farrow

    There’s the measurement classic:

    Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don’t know which half.

    John Wanamaker, US department store merchant (1838 – 1922)

  10. Michael Brenner

    Hi Giles, I love that quote too but did not include it because it is often attributed to 3 different people: David Ogilvy, John Wanamaker and Lord Leverhulme the founder of Unilever.

  11. auf

    “The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well the product or service fits him and sells itself.” ~ Peter F. Drucker

    Hi~ Could you please tell me the year of this quote? I would like to include it in my assignment.really need it…

  12. Michael Brenner

    Yes, he wrote that in his 1954 book “The Practice of Management.”

  13. Gerard

    Awesome stuff – don’t fully agree with Sergio Zyman’s statement but love the words of David Packard.

  14. Robert Jordan

    Nice Collection Michael ! I love this post and I great inspired by one beautiful and short quote by Seth Godin that …“Don’t find customers for your products, find products for your customers.” Really Inspired..

  15. kelvin simon

    good thought, can you help me in this why advertising in the final analysis should be news?
    thanx

  16. Michael Brenner

    Thanks Kelvin, how can I help you?

  17. Doug Kessler

    Great list, Michael.

    I love Drucker (he and Theodore Leavitt got me into this game).

    I was raised on David Ogilvy (my first job) and always remember, “The consumer is not a moron, she’s your wife.”

    Easily adapted to B2B. I like the warning against condescension.

  18. John Walsh

    My favorite is from the founder of Geek Squad, “marketing is a tax you pay for being unremarkable”.

  19. Michael Brenner

    Thanks John, that is a great quote! Speaks to the larger business and the need for innovation.

  20. Edger Menezes

    “Marketing is that key with infinite locks for eternity while ensuring it trends with all blends” just thought of sharing this as well to your inspiring list

  21. issa

    dont find customers for your products,find products for your customers, thats mt favourite i love it thanks MICHAEL

  22. Andrea Torti

    I really like Seth Godin’s first quote – and I think he’s right: regardless of our professional field, we get known by what we produce, both on and offline.

  23. James Finnen

    I like “Content builds relationships. Relationships are built on trust. Trust drives revenue.” Andrew Davis,
    Trust is critical for long term success

  24. George Gowen

    Blessed are those who lead the Public from the Sublime to the Rediculous, for they shall be called Advertising People.
    G3

  25. Josh E

    “The best place to hide a dead body is on the 2nd page of Google search results” – I don’t know where I heard that…..

  26. Michael Brenner

    That’s a good one!

  27. Michael Brenner

    That’s my good friend Andrew Davis!

  28. Michael Brenner

    Shots fired!

  29. Tracy Brooks

    So many great quotes, hard to pick one. When did you first publish this list and have you added any since?

  30. Michael Brenner

    Hi Tracy,

    I think I published it first in like 2014, then updated it in 2016 and then again this year because of a few additions. Each one included a few additions.

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Michael Brenner

Michael Brenner is an international keynote speaker, author of "Mean People Suck" and "The Content Formula", and Founder of Marketing Insider Group. Recognized as a Top Content Marketing expert and Digital Marketing Leader, Michael leverages his experience from roles in sales and marketing for global brands like SAP and Nielsen, as well as his leadership in leading teams and driving growth for thriving startups. Today, Michael delivers empowering keynotes on marketing and leadership, and facilitates actionable workshops on content marketing strategy. Connect with Michael today.

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