In its glossary, the manual defines intermediate consumption as including “the value of goods and services consumed as inputs by a process of production, excluding fixed assets whose consumption is recorded as consumption of fixed capital.” It clarifies that these are goods and services “used up in the process of production,” distinguishing them from final uses and from capital formation.

The SNA-based IMF text explains that “intermediate consumption consists of the value of the goods and services consumed as inputs by a process of production.” It notes that these inputs “are used up within the accounting period” and are distinct from “fixed assets, which are used repeatedly or continuously in production for more than one year.” It provides examples such as “raw materials, components, and services purchased to carry out production.”

In discussing production, the article notes that economists distinguish between **consumer goods**, which directly enter into utility, and **producer goods** or capital goods, which are used to produce other goods and services. The conceptual distinction is based on the *role in the production process*: an item counts as a producer good if it is an input into production, regardless of whether it is tangible or intangible. This framework allows for discussion of intangible capital (such as knowledge or organizational capital), but marketing outcomes like a firm’s improved image are usually considered as manifestations of demand-side factors (preferences, perceived quality) rather than as separate producer goods.

The 2008 SNA defines **fixed assets** as produced assets that are used repeatedly in production over more than one year, and lists both tangible and intangible fixed assets, including **entertainment, literary or artistic originals, mineral exploration and evaluation, computer software and databases, and research and development** (para. 10.98–10.113). The treatment of **marketing assets** is more limited: while expenditure on advertising, market research and similar activities is recorded as intermediate consumption or, in some cases, as contributing to intangible assets, the resulting **goodwill or brand recognition** is not generally recognized as a separately produced asset unless acquired in a market transaction. The SNA thus treats improved brand image mainly as a component of **goodwill** and not as a separately identified producer good.

BPM6 defines **intellectual property products** as a category of produced assets that are the result of research, development, investigation, or innovation, including items such as R&D, mineral exploration, and computer software (para. 6.215–6.219). It notes that **goodwill and marketing assets**, including brand names, mastheads, and customer lists, are recognized as assets only when they are acquired in transactions, for example as part of the purchase of an enterprise, and that internally generated goodwill is not separately recorded. Thus, expenditures that improve a firm’s image may affect the valuation of goodwill, but the resulting image or reputation is not treated as a distinct **produced asset** in the accounts unless it is part of an acquired marketing asset.

Corrado, Hulten and Sichel’s influential work defines **intangible capital** to include three broad types: computerised information, innovative property, and **economic competencies** such as brand equity, firm-specific human capital and organizational structure. They argue that expenditures on **advertising and marketing** create brand equity that functions as a capital input, contributing to future revenue and competitiveness. However, they distinguish these intangibles from traditional **physical capital goods**, emphasising that in standard production theory textbooks, producer goods are typically illustrated with tangible items like machinery, buildings, and inventories, while brand equity is a broader category of intangible capital whose measurement and classification are treated separately.

Merriam-Webster defines “producer goods” as “goods (such as tools and raw materials) used to produce other goods and satisfy human wants only indirectly.” The definition stresses that producer goods are not aimed at direct satisfaction of wants but are used as inputs in the production of other goods.

“Intermediate goods, also known as producer goods or semi-finished products, are usually traded between companies, such as when a producer sells to a manufacturer.” It explains that these goods “are materials and components that are used as inputs in the production of other goods or services, rather than being sold directly to consumers as final products.”

The article defines: “Intermediate goods are things that become part of final goods, including raw materials.” It notes they are “often traded between industries as a part of the final product, giving them the alternate names 'producer goods' and 'semi-finished products.'” It contrasts: “Final goods… are items that we buy to use or consume directly. Capital goods are fixed inputs that contribute to the production of other goods.”

Economics Online explains that capital as a factor of production consists of “manufactured resources such as machines and tools which are used in the production of other goods and services.” It clarifies that these capital items “do not directly satisfy consumer wants” but “enable further production.” This treatment reflects the standard view that what makes something a producer or capital good is its use as an input into further production, rather than its role in affecting consumer perception or image.

Tutor2u notes that capital is "**stock of man‑made resources used in the production of other goods and services**" and gives examples like machinery, computers, and factories. It emphasises that these capital goods are inputs into the production process, differentiating them from expenditures on advertising or image which are discussed instead under business objectives and marketing.

The notes state: “Intermediate goods are those goods (i) which have yet not crossed the boundary line of production, (ii) value is still to be added to these goods, and (iii) which are yet not ready for use by their final users.” It adds that intermediate goods “are those goods which are purchased by one firm from the other firm: (i) as raw material, or (ii) as goods for resale.” Final producer goods, by contrast, are “generally used as fixed assets in the process of production.”

Standard introductory economics textbooks define producer or capital goods strictly in terms of their use as inputs into the production of other goods and services, distinguishing them from consumer goods by whether they directly satisfy final demand. Improving a firm’s image is usually treated under marketing, advertising, or goodwill in accounting and is not described as “further production” of a good; while advertising may raise demand or perceived value, it does not convert a non‑input item into a producer good in these definitions.