A lot of people say they are "in marketing". Some say they are "in marketing" because they somehow feel inferior than, say, being "in advertising" and want to feel more important. Others are totally clueless. Here's an easy guide to what's what: In general, marketing is the series of disciplines that take a product --you guessed it-- to market. Advertising is the series of disciplines that create selling messages and takes them to customers. When you're hiring a CMO you are hiring someone who understands every one of those buckets and can help your company grow in a strong, measured, way.