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Home→The Westburn Dictionary of Marketing→N→non-profit organization (NPO)

non-profit organization (NPO)

Definition:
No precise definition exists as the distinction between public and private organizations and/profit/ non-profit are blurred. Michael J. Thomas ('Marketing: Not for Profit', in Michael J. Baker (ed.), Marketing in Adversity, 1976) suggests that '. . . in general parlance, it is a term used to refer to organizations that are not considered business, i.e. organizations that operate in the non-business sector or environment. Their products and services tend to be public goods and services, as opposed to private goods and services, a definition which encompasses cultural activities, public safety, health care services, education and polities'. Interest in NPO's has grown markedly since the late 1960s as an element of the SOCIAL MARKETING concept and the general argument that marketing is a universal activity which is applicable to all kinds of social institutions irrespective of their profit orientation.

Cross-References:
[social marketing]

Links:

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© Westburn Publishers Ltd 2002, The Westburn Dictionary of Marketing edited by Michael J Baker, ISBN 978-0-946433-01-8. www.themarketingdictionary.com. Entry: [Michael J. Baker], [1998].