The conduct of marketing audits: A critical review and commentary

The technique of marketing auditing has a long and distinguished heritage as a diagnostic device in marketing management and planning. Indeed, the marketing audit should, in theory, be the starting-point for most considered courses of managerial action in marketing. Yet, in practice there is often confusion about how to conduct a marketing audit and on what issues it should focus. There is also confusion about the thinking processes that underpin the audit methodology. In this study, the author sets out an approach to the process of marketing auditing that places benchmarks and benchmarking at its center. In doing so, the author attempts to shed light on various points of confusion that in his experience impede the conduct of marketing audits. A set of considered guidelines is provided, which will help make the audit process more effective.