Marketing Definition, Essay Example

The terms sales and marketing are often used interchangeably in colloquial conversation.  They are however quite different.  A lot of research has been done on both topics, and a review of some of this literature can help in synthesizing a working definition of these terms.

According to Davis and Roper (2010), customers enter into the marketplace with predisposed bias toward particular brands.  In essence, a customer’s satisfaction with a given product or service is largely influenced by how satisfied the customer expects to be based on the brand image of the seller.  This article demonstrates the fiscal value of brand equity in driving sales.

In his article, Graham (2010) insists that an effective sales strategy involves creating an environment of trust and comfort between the sales person and the customer.  Many sales people spend too much time focusing on product or service attributes and not enough time on the practical and emotional needs of the customer.  People only talk to sales persons because they want to buy something.  Products do not “sell themselves.”  A good sales person will make a customer want to purchase the product from him or her rather than from someone else.

Flipp and Garfinkel (2010) wrote a brief article about leveraging marketing strategies to maintain sales in the current recession.  The main point of the article is that the integrity of the brand and the people who sell it is more important that any advertising that a company might post.  A lot of sales are generated through word of mouth and the willingness of consumers to become repeat-customers.

After reviewing these and other sources, and based on my own experience, I have concluded that the terms sales and marketing can be defined and differentiated in the following way.  Both terms involve relationships.  Sales involve developing a relationship between the sales person and the customer.  Marketing involves building a relationship between the brand and the customer.

A good example of this is Tom’s shoes.  I have never owned a pair of Tom’s brand shoes, yet I have an emotional relationship with the brand.  This is the company that gives one pair of shoes to a needy child for every pair sold.  The company’s CEO prefers the title “Chief Shoe-Giver.”  Whether this behavior is altruistic or a focused marketing strategy, the fact remains that Tom’s brand is well known even to people who have not purchased their products.  Tom’s has built emotional relationships between consumers and their brand.

References

(Davis G Roper S 2010 Bubiness to business branding: External and internal satisfiers and the role of training quality)Davis, G., & Roper, S. (2010). Bubiness to business branding: External and internal satisfiers and the role of training quality. European Journal of Marketing, 44(5), 567-590. doi:10.1108/03090561011032270

(Flipp P Garfinkel D 2010 How to market yourself out of tough times)Flipp, P., & Garfinkel, D. (2010). How to market yourself out of tough times. American Salesman, 55(6), 22-24. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.apollolibrary.com/ehost/detail?vid=5&hid=12&sid=4c17c8c6-db63-43fd-8ce3-516a8e4706a6%40sessionmgr13&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=bth&AN=50837570

(Graham J 2010 sales strategy that works)Graham, J. (2010). A sales strategy that works. American Salesman, 55(6), 17-21. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.apollolibrary.com/ehost/detail?vid=5&hid=12&sid=4c17c8c6-db63-43fd-8ce3-516a8e4706a6%40sessionmgr13&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=bth&AN=50837569