Journal of Marketiiif; Aianofrmi-nr, 1993. 9, 355-372 Pierre M£Donagh, David W. Marshall* and Andrea Prothero Cardijf Business School, University of Wales, College of Cardijf, and *Unii'ersity of Edinburgh Does the Marketing Education Group Conference Amplify the Voice of Marketing- Beyond its Small World? This paper considers the role of the annual conference of the Marketing Education Group (MEG). Armli/sis of a number of key areas from conferences over the years are examined and their impli- cations discussed. The role of tlie conference is explored within the context of the communication process and the aims and objectives of MEG. Does the MEG conference achieve its aims and amplify the voice of marketing: indeed do the annual conferences reach their main audiences; namely, academics, industry, students and society? Finally do the messages communicated by authors at the annual conference produce responses within the main stakeholder groups? Introduction "The modem conference . . . allows participants to indulge themselves in all the pleasures and diversions of travel while appearing to be austerely bent on self improvement. To be sure, there are certain penitential exercises to be performed, the presentation of a paper, perhaps, and certainly listening to the papers of others. But with this excuse you journey to new and interesting places, meet new and interesting people, and form new and interesting relationships with them; exchange gossip and confidences; . . . eat, drink and make merry in their company every evening; and yet, at the end of it all, return home with an enhanced reputation for ser- iousness of mind" David Lodge (1984). The Marketing Education Group (MEG) may be viewed as part of a process of sharing knowledge in a complex academic environment. MEG helps academicians discuss what has been noted as the continual widening definition of what market- ing's scope is as a science (Baker 1983). The Marketing Science Institute's placing of the improvement of the use of market infonnation as a top priority (Marketing Science Institute 1990) acknowledges the concern over the sophistication of the study of the knowledge use process in marketing (Menon and Varadarajan 1992). Recent works have tried to answer fundamental questions such as who are marketing academics and what do they do? (Diamantopoulos et al. 1992), what demographics, job satisfaction and personality dimensions do marketing prac- titioners possess? (M£Donagh et al. 1992) and, others have asked what are the 0267-257X/93/040355+18 $08.00ffl © 1993 Academic Press Limited