The collegial partnership structure doesn't cut it anymore. That, plus such external factors as personal liability and the need for capital for growth, are rapidly destroying the validity of the old partnership structure. Only reality matters. Image may be the original marketing myth. Image implies that if you manipulate the symbols, then the perception of the firm will improve.
Marketing is a science.
Marketing is an art. The art is to take the basic tools and techniques, and to use them artfully, imaginatively, innovatingly, to serve marketing objectives. Look at any successful ad, and see how they violate the rules of copywriting. The rules of marketing are predicated on a large body of experience. But that same experience tells us that, because marketing is ultimately an art form, rules can be thoughtfully and intelligently broken.