Breaking Down Sales and Marketing

 Back in October 2015 we shared an article called "5 Ways Marketing Departments Help Salespeople Catch Butterflies." Recently a tenfold article was shared with us, titled "What is the Meaning of Sales & Marketing and Their Advantages?" and, I have to say, it does a pretty awesome job of breaking down the differences, responsibilities, and links between sales and marketing roles https://rainmakrr.com/. Why revisit this now? Because it has never been more apparent that the relationship between sales and marketing is still just as misunderstood as ever, especially with advances in marketing technology.

Setting the Record Straight

Many in the business world, especially those who rely on sales and marketing for success, don't actually have a concrete grasp on exactly what sales and marketing are. Yes, the two are linked, but they are not one and the same. Sales departments rely on marketing; marketing departments and strategies exist to feed sales (notice I didn't say "make" sales). You wouldn't engage in marketing if you had nothing to sell, and your sales strategy would be much less informed and successful if not for your marketing efforts https://autofirestrategy.com/ . Yes, many old-school salespeople (or go-getter small business entrepreneurs) are quite capable of drumming up business on their own, and may even have some tried-and-true marketing tactics up their sleeve - but few have the time, skill, or technological resources to effectively capitalize on the true potential of their market.

A common mistake made by older, more established businesses is to assume that salespeople are skilled at marketing and that marketing people are skilled at making sales. In some cases this may be true, but certainly not across the board. While trying to conserve capital, many of these companies will attempt to combine their sales and marketing departments, essentially tasking their employees with two job descriptions, and that's usually a bad move. It's no accident that more recently established companies, tech giants, and organizations that employ a large number of millennials are killing it with their marketing efforts.