Sales and Marketing

Many people mistakenly think that selling and marketing are pretty much the same.  Marketing includes all of the following:

• Discovering what product or service customers want or need
• Producing a product or service with the appropriate and desired features and quality
• Pricing the product or service in correct and attractive ways
• Promoting the product or service or spreading the word about why customers should buy it
• Selling and delivering the product or service to the customer or end consumer

The ‘selling’ is just one final activity within the entire marketing process.  The functions of ‘marketing goods and services’ and ‘selling those goods and services’ have different goals.

Marketing has the goal of creating customer demand.  It is everything you say and do to reach and persuade potential purchasers to possibly buy your products or services or to feel ready to buy.

The sales process has the goal of getting the customer to hand over their money for the product or service that you deliver to them.  It is everything you say and do to obtain a purchase order, get a signed agreement/contract or close the deal.

Both functions are performed separately but need to be coordinated in order to be successful.

 

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Sales and Marketing

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April 30, 2012 by Dr. Jon Warner