 |
 |
 |
 |
||
 |
||
 |
||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
||
 |
||
 |
||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
||
 |
||
 |
||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
||
 |
||
 |
||
 |
       |
 |
Knowbits Try not to confuse marketing and sales – they are two related, but different, beasts. Sort of like a horse and a mule. And I'll stick my neck out here by using this analogy, because I’ll hear from everyone who doesn’t want to be a mule. Personally, I’m fine with that label and feel it applies more to marketers. According to the American Donkey and Mule Society “The mule has greater endurance and is stronger and less excitable than a horse.” Their words, not mine. I would put it a little differently: Mules are strong and persistent, bred for carrying heavy loads long distances and combining the strengths of two other animals. Perhaps the braying is a tad annoying. I really don’t know enough about animal husbandry to draw any more parallels, though it does seem I’ve heard that Thoroughbred racehorses are high strung and high maintenance (see #4). Not that I know any SALESPEOPLE like that… And while some companies tend to blend them together in one unit, there is nearly always a “sales strategy” and a “marketing strategy”. Two distinct plans. Should they build on one another and be interconnected? Absolutely! And at that point you really need the whole team of mules and horses to pull the business forward. HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW YOUR STABLEMATE?
The answer (in my experience, this is not a scientifically measured response) is C - LEADS. Yes, they will ask for more money, but I’ve known top sales people who make plenty and are happy. And yes, many sales folks often seem to feel that a beautiful, full-color GLOSSY brochure will cure whatever ails them – and close business. If only! Sales people also want more customers. But once someone becomes a customer, it usually becomes the job of an account manager, or customer service rep, or MARKETING department to keep an ongoing dialogue going to retain that customer. What sales people really want – all the time – are FRESH, HOT LEADS – that have high probability of turning into a sale! Who can blame them? I want that too. So the sales department will be happy. As will senior management. And everyone else too, because the object of being in business is (I pause to clear my throat) SALES. Of some product or service. I’m pretty sure that’s accurate, even though I’ve read about a few outliers in recent years whose objective did not seem to be sales of any kind, but discussion of creating the next big thing. For historical background on the Dot.com bubble, in case you could have possibly forgotten: check Investopedia. Question for the salespeople:
The answer is E – All of the above. Seriously. There’s never enough money, always too many things to produce with more added daily in reaction to slower than expected sales or something along those lines (I call that ‘reactionary marketing), marketing often feels that sales does not DO anything with the leads they bring in (and sales never thinks they are viable leads), and it would be a dream to acquire new customers all the time while keeping the ones you have! We can’t do it alone. Marketing in and of itself is a lost cause. If all you do is “market” and you never “sell” anything, you will quickly go out of business. And you become (Ack!) a Ghost Site like hundreds of others. (Reference that Investopedia again.) KEEP THE WAGON TRAIN MOVING Things Marketers Do
Things Salespeople Do
LESSON LEARNED Other opinions on this topic (sales and marketing, not mules): If you have a question or topic you would like to see in Knowbits, write to Donna Lehman.
|
|
Knowbits Archive |
|
|
|||||
June 2004