Sales or Marketing: Benefit from Knowing the Difference

I've wanted to do this post for some time. From what I'm witnessing as of late I can't put it off any longer. There has to be some clarification on the differences between sales and marketing. Knowing this difference can help companies, as well as existing and prospective employees know what they're getting into.

To keep this post from becoming a novel I might slightly simplify matters a bit. Here is the scenario:

You're the employer and you have just found the best salesperson you've seen in decades. This young lady is closing sales left and right and writing some of the largest book of business the company has ever seen. She's busy, her phone rings off the hook while Bob in the opposite corner can't give away your product. It's time to give Susan a promotion into the marketing department and it's time for Bob to consider a career move.

Several weeks later you notice that Susan is not flourishing as much as you might have thought in the marketing department. She's struggling to get her reports out on time. She is always late for meetings and she has trouble directing her team. There is always conflict between her and her associates. You (the employer) just don't get it. She's the best you've seen in decades right...?

The Definition (Marketing)

Marketing has a complex definition that continues to evolve. Simply put, it involves four primary ingredients: Price, Promotion, Product and Place. Any marketing student from anywhere can cite this off the top of their heads but what does it mean? Marketing is an analytical tool. Price (an important component of marketing) is established by studying production reports, cost of materials analysis, labor expenditures, market demand, supply forms, competitor status, and industry benchmarking among other things. It means that you have to consider market demand to price and promote your product. You must consider consumer psychology, demographics, the socioeconomics of your target, product size, shape, color, availability, video tutorials production and training, packaging, advertising, etc. to create signs, billboards, podcasts, radio ads, websites, commercials, flyers, posters, business cards, signs, etc. to even attract and engage your customer in order to compel them to buy. All of the latter are Promotional tools preceded by Product characteristics. You have to think about package design and even product design to successfully attract buyers. These considerations go into creating your Product. Will you make it in different colors or flavors? Consumer analysis, test studies, statistical data and surveys all coalesce into something manageable that you can use to build and promote the product.

Place is the next major consideration. Where will you sell it? Can you get on the Internet? Should you Promote it on a website where it can be purchased? Is geography an issue, shipping, tariffs, customs, taxes of city, state and local? How will your customers get it? How much will it cost for you to get it to them? Is that cost consistent with industry standards? Etc. etc. Is it special order only or will you stock it in store? Will you be a wholesaler or retailer?

Marketing is complex and dynamic. The goal is not always the same. In most cases the goal of marketing is to compel someone to buy. But this isn't always a clear cut agenda. It depends largely on your customer or your objective. Are they civilian consumers or government? Is it a corporation or an individual? Sometimes marketing is a public relations tool to create awareness, positive relationships or to change organizational or even public perception. It can be a tool of manipulation to throw off your competitor. It may have a non-profit agenda to bring attention to a cause or a donation campaign. But all the aforementioned is the job of the marketing department and its senior managers to figure out.

The Definition (Sales)

Sales are extremely trying and requires individuals with exceptional social skills. Sales exists to drive transactions of commerce. Salespeople are often the most highly learned in their product and service offerings and possess above average charisma to be successful. Salespeople represent the frontline and they are often directed by and governed by the agenda set forth by the marketing department. Sales and marketing work intimately together. Sales reports and figures are often the guide by which the marketing department determines and set strategy for the entire organization in regards to products, price, promotions and placement of products and/or services. In a perfect world salespersons report to marketing via their manager when a promotion or product is or is not working. In the event it is not, marketing abandons and or tweaks the campaign by a product change, a promotional shift or in some cases a complete strategic paradigm shift in order boost productivity thus leading to a set of criteria that can be successfully executed by the sales team.

While the sales team is busy generating and closing sales, the marketing team is busy trying to learn who purchased what? When did they purchase it? Why did they purchase? Is there an opportunity to add new business? Who bought it? What is the age group of the purchaser? What other things would interest this buyer? Where do they live and do they have children? They gather this information and design a complete product, price, promotion and placement campaign capitalizing on this new data. A sales package is given to sales team with pricing, overall objectives and all things being equal a clearly defined and obtainable goal. The cycle begins again as an addendum to an existing campaign or the beginning of a new campaign.

...so why did Susan fail so miserably? Maybe Susan is a person who likes direct interactivity with customers. Maybe her time is best spent being unchained and not pouring over statistics and reports trying to guide product design or determining the best look for the website. Susan thrives on closing deals and being in the field meeting new clients and maintaining relationships with existing ones. She thrives on writing new business and networking thru her sales association meetings. Susan only requires that the television ad (i.e.) put out by the marketing department is consistent with the agenda set forth by her sales manager and her efforts aren't being undermined by the very chain of command that gave her her next task.

Perhaps Bob was simply in the wrong department and may have been the perfect person for marketing. Bob may have been considered a more analytical type interested with strategy development and product design as it relates to sales as opposed to Susan.

So can a person be in Sales and Marketing? Maybe; but in most circumstances each individual will lean toward one side or the other and develop a higher degree of proficiency executing tasks within a specific field. Employers are often baffled when an employee may not perform either task very well when they have both to contend with. Largely it stems from the employee splitting their interests and efforts too finely and neither tasks gets its due attention.

The next time you go to the job interview with a position titled “Marketing” and you learn that it's a sales job now you know why. They either don't get it or they are attempting to join the jobs together (a common occurrence as employers try to eliminate positions). You thought you were applying for the graphic department to help layout ads in the monthly magazine. You later learned that you'll be selling ads door to door and dropping them off to the graphics department. You also see job postings titled “Sales” and learn that you will be speaking at public relations events and working on the website. Again, don't be surprised. This stems from a failure to understand the dynamics that drive each job task or a failure to care. Senior managers are guided by numbers and quotas and this often overshadows their ability to discern and benefit from the strengths each individual employee has.

Put the right person in the right job.

Note to employers: that bad employee you think you have just may have the wrong job assigned to them. It is up to you to decide what task is best suited to a particular person. Work with them and be certain you're capitalizing on their strengths. You hired them so you obviously saw something. Note to employees: understand what job you're getting into and know that you may be required to step outside of what you're comfortable with. These are times where job specialization is nearly a thing of the past due to cutbacks and downsizing. Also make sure that “Sales” is actually sales and “Marketing” is actually marketing if that's what you want. If it's not and you can financially afford to wait for what you want (seldom can), then wait. Taking less than what you want sets you up for failure. Don't expect your employer or prospective employer to see all of your strengths right away. Your supervisor and direct superior is afraid to lose their jobs too. In a perfect world you'll be given an opportunity to show them your worth.