Chapter 1. The Social Organisation of Marketing: An Introduction; John Connolly and Paddy Dolan.- Chapter 2. Wine and China: Making Sense of an Emerging Market with Figurational Sociology; Jennifer Smith Maguire.- Chapter 3. Figurational Dynamics and the Function of Advertising at Arthur Guiness & Sons Ltd: 1876-1960; John Connolly.- Chapter 4. Unintentional social consequences of disorganised marketing of Corporate Social Responsibility: Figurational insights from the oil and gas sector in Africa; Stephen Vertigans.- Chapter 5. Organisational Dynamics and the Role of the Child in Markets ; Paddy Dolan.- Chapter 6. Ballet for the Sun King: Power, Talent and Organisation; John Lever and Stephen Swailes.- Chapter 7. "Friends and Followers": The Social Organisation of Firms' Online Communities; Ad van Iterson and Johanna Richter.- Chapter 8. Organisations and American Collective Self-Understanding; Stephen Mennell.- Chapter 9. Figurational theory: Moving from description andtechnological empiricism to empirical- theoretical explanations; John Connolly and Paddy Dolan.

The book examines the social processes which have shaped the development and organisation of various marketing practices and activities, and the markets associated with them. Drawing on the figurational-sociological approach associated with Norbert Elias the contributors explain how various markets and related marketing practices and activities are organised, enabled and constrained by the actions of people at different levels of social integration. Collectively, The Social Organisation of Marketing provides insights into topics such as the consumption and of wine in China, the advertising of Guinness, the management of on-line communities in Germany, the corporate social responsibility strategies of multinational energy corporations in Africa, the concept of talent management in contemporary organisations, the child consumer in Ireland, and the constraining and enabling influences of the American corporate organisational structure. 

“In this ground-breaking text, Connolly and Dolan challenge conventional approaches to marketing, drawing on the work of Norbert Elias. In so doing, this multifaceted book entirely reframes our understanding, drawing on a diverse range of perspectives. As such, it constitutes essential reading not just in marketing, but in related subjects in the social sciences.” (Tim Newton, Former Professor (Edinburgh/London/Exeter) and Independent Scholar)

Examines both commercial and non-commercial settings as well as several interconnected functions and domains such as the wine, brewing, and oil industries, marketing, management, and human resource practices Responds to a fast emerging trend to use a sociological lens in the study of marketing, not limited to specialisms such as consumer behaviour or advertising Brings an innovative lens to understanding how marketing and promotional activities are organized, and the people and processes involved