Replace sales with marketing

Sales = push; Marketing = pull

Sales is a failure of marketing

This viewpoint on the difference between sales and marketing may not win me friends in certain circles 😊 However, let's think about it for a moment - does Apple simply sell you products, or do you find yourself eagerly lining up outside their stores for the latest iPhone release? Marketing has the power to attract customers to your brand, while sales involves actively pursuing customers. Sales and marketing play integral roles in most organizations, and from my perspective as a consultant, a significant victory lies in transforming a push sales model into a pull system centered around effective marketing strategies.

Cutting sales can save you money

Do you remember reading the Encyclopaedia Britannica? Sort of like Wikipedia – but more accurate – in a book form for the pre-internet world.  A hefty price tag of over $1000 (Rs 45,000 approximately) made it a substantial investment that parents would make for their children.  The rapid proliferation of information on the internet, coupled with the emergence of Wikipedia, posed serious challenges to Britannica's market position. Yet, it was their failure to adapt to the new landscape of sales and marketing that ultimately led to their downfall. While the editorial content of Britannica was important, it was not the primary factor driving its cost structure. Instead, the direct sales force played a central role, receiving a commission of approximately $600 per sale or 60% of the book's price. Britannica's vulnerability stemmed from its reliance on the economics of intensive personal selling, which became increasingly incompatible with the changing dynamics of information dissemination.

Are there other examples of companies winning by rethinking sales?

Here are other examples of the internet disintermediating a trained (and expensive) sales force from my book Marketing Without Money.   

• Amazon replaced the knowledgeable bookseller with a feature that tracked your search history, recommended books based on your interests and even told you what other people who bought that book were interested in. 

• Makemytrip, Booking.com, Expedia suggest where you should stay or fly to based on your criteria and past history

• PolicyBazaar disintermediates the insurance advisor

• MagicBricks eliminates the broker

In each case these companies used tech and AI to help coach the customer into a purchase - a role that was traditional performed by the sales team.

But what about ‘catching the customer”?

You are absolutely right - the sales team is also responsible in many cases for bringing the customer into the purchase ecosystem. So if I dispense with “feet on street” how will I get prospects to visit my site or store? This is possible through advertising. And a bunch of other pull marketing techniques - let’s go through a few of them below.

Pull Marketing Techniques

There are various marketing techniques that can be used to attract customers to your website. Here are some effective strategies:

1. Content Marketing: Create high-quality and valuable content such as blog posts, articles, infographics, videos, and eBooks to engage your audience. Share this content through various channels to drive traffic and establish your brand as an industry authority.  Optimize this for SEO.  Keep an eye out for how you fare on ChatGPT and its ilk too.

2. Community Marketing: If you’re able to organize your entire outreach into building a community or club of users or prospects it could soon become self-generating.  For example SAP has massive self-financing user community ASUG (I managed the Indian counterpart, Indus, for a couple of years). Cred was launched as a club.  Harley Davidson and Enfield have a strong owner’s community.  Apple fosters a sense of community online and has a cult-like following.

4. Social Media Marketing: Leverage popular social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn to promote your website. Create engaging posts, run paid advertising campaigns, and interact with your audience to build brand awareness and drive traffic.

6. Influencer Marketing: Collaborate with influential individuals or industry experts who have a significant following on social media. They can promote your website, products, or services to their audience, increasing your visibility and driving traffic.

7. Referral Programs: Implement referral programs that reward existing customers for referring new customers to your website. Offer incentives such as discounts, exclusive content, or loyalty rewards to encourage word-of-mouth marketing.

8. Affiliate Marketing: Partner with affiliates who promote your products or services on their websites or through other marketing channels. They earn a commission for each sale or lead they generate, providing an incentive for them to drive traffic to your website.

9. Advertising: Catch those eyeballs! Ads can take the form of short videos – like the series we helped Indeed run on Hotstar  They can be feature movies like the Barbie ones.  They can be tutorials or behind the scenes takes like those from Dior’s show in India or a tour of a factory like ID Foods. All content and activations are ads.

Brands that understand the difference between sales and marketing

Here are some that do a good job of pulling in their customers.

1. HubSpot is a leading provider of inbound marketing and sales software. The company built its business by creating valuable content, such as blog posts, eBooks, and webinars, to attract and educate potential customers. Through its pull marketing efforts, HubSpot has grown into a widely recognized brand in the marketing and sales industry.

2. Tesla, the electric vehicle manufacturer, has relied heavily on pull marketing to promote its products. Instead of spending large sums on traditional advertising, Tesla has focused on generating buzz and excitement through its innovative electric cars, customer testimonials, and word-of-mouth marketing. The company's pull marketing strategy has helped it create a loyal customer base and establish itself as a leader in the industry.

3. Airbnb is a peer-to-peer online marketplace that allows people to rent out their properties or spare rooms to travelers. The company relied heavily on pull marketing to establish trust and attract both hosts and guests. Through user-generated content, storytelling, and social media engagement, Airbnb created a community-driven platform that has disrupted the traditional hospitality industry and achieved significant growth.

4. Cred's marketing strategy focuses on building brand loyalty by offering exclusive rewards, personalized experiences, and creating a sense of community for its credit card users.

Understanding the difference between sales and marketing will allow you to save a ton of money. Before investing in a sales expense, see if it can be helped or moderated by a marketing technique.

Interested in creating a “Marketing Without Money” plan for your brand? Buy my book!