Marketing and Selling

The popular mistakes of mankind are one of a kind but this one is a repetitive mistake and a misconception on minds of all people. They combine the two ends of the same pole. And call it one. It’s not the fact, it’s the myth. Combining Marketing and Selling is the biggest blunder. Marketing and Selling are two different things of the same stream. One might make a big disgrace of himself by combing the two.

Marketing is in fact the act of “bringing the product to market”. Selling is about “closing a sale and turning a potential buyer into a customer”.

Marketing is a broad area consisting of
· Analyzing customer needs (product, service and idea)
· Producing a product (appropriate features and quality)
· Pricing (affordability)
· Promotion (online and offline advertisements, discounts and loyalty programs)
· Selling (delivery and after sale service)

Where in Selling is just a part of the Marketing process. These are two different things with two different strategies and concepts governing them. Marketing has the Marketing concept and Sales has the Selling concept.

10 things that would differentiate Marketing from Selling –
1. Focus – Marketing focuses on the buyer and designs products and services according to the buyer. Selling focuses on the seller himself and he tries to force the product to the buyer knowingly or unknowingly.
2. Conversion – conversion in Marketing means converting demands or preferences of customers into products and services. It means converting a buyer into a customer in case of Selling.
3. Customer – in Marketing he is the first in the business before the product is designed and the product and service are designed according to the need of the customer. He is the last person in the value chain; the products are sold to the customer in Selling.
4. Satisfaction – customer satisfaction is primary motive in Marketing. Sales enhancement and meeting targets is primary motive in Selling.
5. Strategy – Marketing is a pull strategy. Where in Selling is a push strategy.
6. Awareness – let the seller beware is what a Marketing mind thinks. Let the buyer beware is what the Selling mind thinks.
7. Mindset – do more for the customer and give them the best is what the Marketing person does. Hook the customer by any means is what the Selling person does.
8. Skill sets – Marketing requires conceptualization and analytical skills. Selling requires conversion skills.
9. Concept – Marketing takes the concept outside in. Selling takes the concept inside out.
10. Area coverage – Marketing includes market research, innovation, product development, pricing, promotion, distribution and selling. Selling is just a part of the Marketing process.

Finally to say one thing – To sell something you need a customer first. Selling begins with products and services, whereas Marketing begins with the customer.