Founder Fresh Takes #3 - Marketing + Sales = Success
A collaborative project by David Giltner and Paul West
For a scientist starting a company, learning the distinction between marketing and sales could mean the difference between success and failure.
Many people use the terms marketing and sales interchangeably. But while both are related to selling products and services to customers, they are not the same.
Marketing identifies people who might benefit from the solutions you provide and makes them aware of your company. Sales converts those people into paying customers.
Marketing establishes the company brand and alerts potential customers that your company may have a solution to their problem. Good marketing programs may even alert some potential customers to problems they didn’t know they had.
Sales works closely with potential customers to help them understand exactly what your product can do for them. Since most problems have a range of possible solutions, the job of sales is to help those potential customers decide if your solution is the best for them or not. Sales requires intuitive skills to understand how a customer perceives your products and problem-solving skills to address concerns or barriers a customer may have to buying your products.
Scientists often struggle with the idea of sales because they see it as coercing someone into buying your product. But a good salesperson knows that the best sale is where both parties end up better off as a result of the transaction.
If sales is not able to close deals without coercion, either marketing is cultivating the wrong potential customers, or your product is a poor solution.
Marketing activities include developing advertising campaigns, creating marketing literature, and showcasing the company products on the website.
Sales activities include in-person meetings, product demonstrations, and arranging and executing the sales contract.
Both marketing and sales will attend trade shows, but marketing is there to attract potential customers, sales is there to close deals.
Marketing is a broad outreach activity.
Sales is an interpersonal activity.
Both require creativity and a clear understanding of the customer.
Without good marketing skills, sales has no one to work with. Without good sales skills on your team, people who might benefit from your products will move on to other solutions.
The entrepreneurial scientist needs to understand both marketing and sales well. We recommend you read as much as you can on both, and then make sure you staff each role with the right skill sets.
No marketing, no sales.
No sales, no company.
