Don’t sell. Make a connection!

Sales and Marketing are not the same thing.

Seems obvious, doesn’t it? And yet this concept is a massive stumbling block for many businesses.

You see, when businesses are asked to describe the different functions of their sales and marketing teams, they often struggle to define where one ends, and the other begins.

You might hear that the two must work hand in hand for a business to be successful. While others believe that it’s a simple two-step process: Marketing attracts the leads, and Sales closes them.

Today, I want to examine a few of the more common misconceptions, and explain how they could well be costing you money.

There’s no need to distinguish between Marketing and Sales

Yes, your sales and marketing should be working closely with one another. Your message should be consistent, and whatever one promises, the other should be delivering.

BUT they have very different functions. Sales is about convincing prospects to buy into what you are offering. Marketing is about building relationships.

Ever heard of the concept of ‘Know, Like, Trust’? That’s how you convince people to give you their attention, their interest, their money, and ultimately their loyalty. And that is achieved through quality marketing. It’s only when those criteria have been satisfied that you will be able to make a successful sale.

If you don’t have clearly defined boundaries between your marketing and sales activities, the temptation is to skip the relationship building altogether, and go straight for the sale.

It might work sometimes, but more often than not this tactic will fail miserably because you haven’t yet established that meaningful connection.

Marketing introduces and Sales nurtures

Marketing is not just a lead generation tool. As mentioned above, your marketing is all about establishing and building relationships with your target audience. And that includes existing customers.

If you’re doing your marketing right, you’re offering valuable content that builds trust and confidence in your brand. Existing customers will stay loyal to the brands who continue to offer them this type of content, even after they’ve handed over their money.

The lifetime value of a customer rises when you nurture and strengthen relationships, and that is the role of marketing. If you see marketing as something you do exclusively to secure initial interest, you’re only using half of its potential.

Marketing is all about promoting how great you are – it’s basically just a more visible mass sales pitch

This is the most damaging misconception of all, and it’s also the trap that most businesses will fall into at one time or another.

Marketing isn’t selling. Your marketing materials should not be directly focused on selling your products or services. Nor should they loudly declare how wonderful you are.

I told a client this recently and they stared at me and asked, “So, what’s the point of marketing if I’m not supposed to use it to promote my business and increase sales?”

Here’s the thing, that’s precisely what you’re supposed to use it for. You just don’t come out and say that’s what you’re doing!

Don’t tell your audience you’re an expert in your field; show them, by publishing valuable content.

Don’t turn your marketing materials into a direct sales pitch; demonstrate the benefits of what you are offering, and let your audience get excited.

Don’t use your marketing to sell; use it to make a connection with your audience.

If you do your marketing well, your sales team won’t have to work hard to convert leads into sales.