Read on ................................... %MBArk& hat’s the power of marketing and sales for you, the marketing team grabs your attention with new, beautifully packaged, compelling advertising, and attractive displays. After they have piqued your interest levels, the sales team moves in to seal the deal. SO WHATS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MARKETING AND SALES? Very often the terms “marketing” and “sales” are used interchangeably. One must remember though that they are not synonyms for each other. To understand the difference between the two, one needs to understand how they are defined. Marketing is defined as “The systematic planning, implementation and control of a mix of business activities intended to bring together buyers and sellers for the mutually advantageous Marketing v/s Sales -Shivani Chander exchange or transfer of products.” In popular usage, the term “marketing” refers to the promotion of products and services predominantly through advertising and branding. However in professional usage, the term has a broader meaning and encompasses a wider gamut of activities, of which sales is a subset. These can be divided in four sections, popularly known as the four P’s: PRODUCT: The product management aspect of marketing deals with the specifications of the goods and services and how the appropriate features and quality relate to the customer. It also deals with a wide range of activities including what products to produce and sell, what new products to introduce in the market, identifying whether any existing products need to be discontinued, if any, deciding the brand name logo etc. It was Sony, who recognised the need for entertainment whether traveling or working and the resultant product was a Walkman, which one can use to listen to music while on the move. PRICE: Under this function, the marketing team needs to finalise the price of the product. PROMOTION: This includes a wide range of activities such as advertising, sales promotions, publicity and personal selling. It also refers to the various methods used to promote the product. Advertising includes billboards, flyers, radio and television ads, magazine and newspaper ads etc. Television commercials are generally considered to be the most popular media of advertising, reflected through the high rates charged by TV networks for commercial airtime during popular TV events or programmes such as “Kaun Banega Crorepati”. A recent phenomenon, which is gaining huge popularity, is advertising through the World Wide Web. Sales promotions activities include coupons, purchase points, contests, discounts and sales and rebates. These activities are undertaken for a pre-determined period of time in order to stimulate market demand and to have an immediate impact on sales. Many restaurants have “happy hour” prices, which are significantly lower than their regular rates. Publicity and public relations are the different faces of the same coin. On the one hand, public relations are about handling all communication between the company and the general public, whereas the publicity team How many times have you walked into a supermarket and been dazzled by the attractive banners and flyers, which scream for your attention. Its tough to ignore the blitzkrieg on your senses, and you end up stuffing your trolley with products which attracted you with the one-on-one free offer, discounted value, beautiful packaging, or simply because the sales personnel would not let you go without a free sample! 6
Transcript
Read on ...................................
��������
hat’s the power ofmarketing and sales foryou, the marketingteam grabs yourattention with new,
beautifully packaged, compellingadvertising, and attractivedisplays. After they have piquedyour interest levels, the sales teammoves in to seal the deal.
���������������� ��
������� ��������������
Very often the terms“marketing” and “sales” are usedinterchangeably. One mustremember though that they are notsynonyms for each other. Tounderstand the difference betweenthe two, one needs to understandhow they are defined.
Marketing is defined as “Thesystematic planning,implementation and control of amix of business activities intendedto bring together buyers and sellersfor the mutually advantageous
���������� ���� ��������������
exchange or transfer of products.”In popular usage, the term
“marketing” refers to thepromotion of products andservices predominantly throughadvertising and branding.However in professional usage, theterm has a broader meaning andencompasses a wider gamut ofactivities, of which sales is a subset.These can be divided in foursections, popularly known as thefour P’s:PRODUCT: The productmanagement aspect of marketingdeals with the specifications of thegoods and services and how theappropriate features and qualityrelate to the customer. It also dealswith a wide range of activitiesincluding what products toproduce and sell, what newproducts to introduce in themarket, identifying whether anyexisting products need to bediscontinued, if any, deciding thebrand name logo etc. It was Sony,
who recognised the need forentertainment whether travelingor working and the resultantproduct was a Walkman, whichone can use to listen to music whileon the move.PRICE: Under this function, themarketing team needs to finalisethe price of the product.PROMOTION: This includes awide range of activities such asadvertising, sales promotions,publicity and personal selling. Italso refers to the various methodsused to promote the product.Advertising includes billboards,flyers, radio and television ads,magazine and newspaper ads etc.Television commercials aregenerally considered to be the mostpopular media of advertising,reflected through the high ratescharged by TV networks forcommercial airtime duringpopular TV events or programmessuch as “Kaun Banega Crorepati”.A recent phenomenon, which isgaining huge popularity, isadvertising through the WorldWide Web.
Sales promotions activitiesinclude coupons, purchase points,contests, discounts and sales andrebates. These activities areundertaken for a pre-determinedperiod of time in order to stimulatemarket demand and to have animmediate impact on sales. Manyrestaurants have “happy hour”prices, which are significantlylower than their regular rates.
Publicity and public relationsare the different faces of the samecoin. On the one hand, publicrelations are about handling allcommunication between thecompany and the general public,whereas the publicity team
How many times have you walked into a supermarket and been dazzled by theattractive banners and flyers, which scream for your attention. Its tough toignore the blitzkrieg on your senses, and you end up stuffing your trolley withproducts which attracted you with the one-on-one free offer, discounted value,beautiful packaging, or simply because the sales personnel would not let yougo without a free sample!
�
Read on ...................................
���������
manages the product or brandcommunication between thecompany and the general public.Both are informative activitieswhose primary objective ispromotion of the company’sproducts. A publicity plan aims atgetting favorable press coveragefor the company’s products.PLACE: Also referred to asdistribution, this addresses howthe product would reach thecustomer and where it would beavailable. Distribution ensures thatthe company’s product is readilyavailable to the consumer, at astore near him. One rarely sees anadvertisement for a matchstick, yetit is freely available in every cornerof the country: that’s the power ofdistribution.
��������������������
����� ������
For the success of the company,
both the sales and marketingdepartments need to work intandem with each other. Knowinghow to build and nurture inter-departmental relationshipsbetween sales and marketing iscritical for the over all success ofthe organisation.
Successful companies clearlydefine their target markets orcustomers and have the dedicatedjoint efforts of the marketing andsales teams to satisfy the needs ofthe market. When bothdepartments work jointly theyrealise the importance of the other.The Sales team would realise thatit is much easier to clinch the dealwith the support of the marketingteam. Similarly the marketing teamdiscovers the strength of the salesteam as they set about realisingtheir targets.
It is not always easy for the twoteams to work together and
understand each other. Theundisputed fact is that sales andmarketing are different. At its core,the sales team thinks of customersas individuals. They win accountsone at a time, by serving each oftheir customer’s specific needs. Thesales department’s concerns arecentered on how it can close morebusiness deals within the limits ofits territory. They focus on meetingtheir sales targets within thespecified time, instead of focusingon the long-term objective.
Marketing, on the other hand,thinks about customer segmentsand the best methods to capturesuch segments. When the prioritiesof an individual clash with thepriorities of the segment, the wholeequation can change. If sales andmarketing have a strongrelationship, they can overcomesuch hurdles. If they don’t, thesedifferences could create a riftbetween the two departments,adversely affecting the company’sperformance.
It’s not surprising that some ofthe best marketing people havespent time in sales and vice versa.It is necessary that bothdepartments know how the otherfunctions. Thoroughunderstanding of what drives theother makes it easier to for thenecessary compromises requiredto build a successful relationship.
Successful companies start byclearly defining their targetcustomers first and thendeveloping an integrated sales,product, and communications planto attack and win the customers. Ifsales and marketing are notfocused on the same target, or ifthey have different views of whatis required to win deals, there willinevitably be friction. Thismanifests itself in commonlyvoiced criticisms: “Marketing isn’t
giving us what we need,” or “Salesis going after the wrongcustomers.”
Examples of difference inmarketing v/s sales in varioussectors
����
Marketing – A marketingperson (across levels) in a FMCGcompany such as HLL or Colgate/ Cadbury’s is responsible formaking his brand and productvisible to the customers throughvarious forms of communicationlike advertising, posters,hoardings, packaging etc. He isalso responsible for monitoringusage trends among consumers ina particular category, saychocolates. Marketing people alsohelp sales efforts bycommunicating sales promotionschemes such as “buy one, get onefree”. A marketing person is alsoone of the main sources ofinformation for the entire productcategory across a wider market, forthe entire national market.
E.g. A marketing person inCadbury’s would:
Have information on thepotential amount of chocolate thatcan be sold in India
Be aware of constraints toachieving that potential figure
Know the duties, tax structures,packaging guidelines pertaining to
the industry.U n d e r s t a n d
consumer behavior,consumption patternand percentage ofproduct in thec o n s u m e r ’ sconsumption basketfor the region.
Know about thesocio – economic
factors, customs & tradition of theregion.
Understand macro leveleconomics and the individualincome level of potentialcustomers.
Explore opportunity for newproducts /variants – E.g.Temptations
Explore other avenues forrevenue – new customers – newlocations.
Analyse prices, including thoseof competitive brands
Analyse the reach of the currentproduct range and explore ways toincrease reach through moreoutlets
Undertake advertisingcampaigns for own brands andanalyse own communication withrespect to competition
In comparison, a sales personwould
Collect orders from distributorsin his region
Tour his areas, right down tothe small shops to check on thedisplays and sales of his products
Provide feedback on dealermargins, customer responses to anew product/variant, display atshops, and competitive activities inhis area to the marketingdepartment.
Report sales dataRecommend festive sales
promotion schemes to marketingExplore opportunities for sales
growth within his region throughadditional reach outlets, newcustomers, new variantsdepending on the demand in hisregion
Marketing and sales functions invarious industries and sectorscoincide, the primary objectivebeing identification of targetcustomers, understanding theirneeds and wants and how to bestserve them. Having said that, thefocus and approach change witheach sector, as customers and theirneeds change. Earlier we saw howmarketing and sales teams wouldfunction in an FMCG, whereaswhen we look at thepharmaceutical sector, the endresult is the same but the approachchanges; here the marketing teamwould be targeting a well-definedsegment of doctors where bothmarketing and sales efforts wouldbe directed towards them.
If a new drug is to be introducedin the market, the company wouldfirst and foremost introduce it tothe doctors by way of seminars andconferences, one would not seethese drugs being advertised onTV, hoardings or newspaper andmagazines. Such drugs arefeatured in advertisementsappearing in magazines specific tothe pharmaceutical sector.
Sales professionals targeting thepharmaceutical sector, betterknown as medical representatives,approach doctors personally,informing them about the drugs,providing them with samples etc.
While marketing and sales areinherently different, it is possibleto make this relationship work. Itis not easy, but the benefits aresomething that both sides willreadily agree on—faster growthand higher profits.
