Marketing is Not Selling

Being a great marketer does not ascertain that you will be a great salesperson and vice versa, for example. Let us squash the confusion and myths regarding the two for better understanding. “The job of marketing is to make selling superfluous. It’s to make selling unnecessary.”- Peter Drucker. As an agency (I am part of the FCB Wired team), we have found ourselves having to explain this concept to our partners and clients’ numerous times. The expectation is that Marketing = Increased sales..In simple terms, marketing is the process that starts the selling process, while sales convert the end products into buying customers and cash for the business. Marketing is creating a brand relevant to a specific target group of customers. Selling is interacting and proactively asking an individual customer to consider the product or service meant for them. Marketing is more about “serving” the customers than mere selling products. The father of marketing, Philip Kotler, summates this, saying: Marketing starts much more before and even continues after the product has been sold. However, one might ask, is selling always necessary when marketing is done well? The answer is yes..Selling is necessary because it is about instilling confidence at the point of purchase, the moment of truth, as the learned call it. It is at that point when the product or service, the features, advantages, or benefits guarantee the price paid and terms stipulated. As marketers, our job is to make the sales stage easier, confirming the brand promise to enable the sales force repeat purchases. We emphasise value and educate the customer to open their perspective in a way that increases desire for the products and services. The two can easily be confused but the moment brands start knowing the distinction, the easier it becomes to dealing with the two teams differently..The key is differentiating that one is an investment and the other, an expense.Want to know how to distinguish between the two better? I suppose one can argue that this article has done its job...

Marketing is Not Selling

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