Sales are basically activities concerned with the number or volume of products sold in a given designated period of time. The sale of a product to someone is considered a sales. For example, if you sell shoes you could be considered a salesman when you have sold shoes to at least one customer. Sales people can be found in different forms – offline and online. In order to understand the role of each type of sales professional, it is necessary to have a complete understanding of the meaning of sales.
Marketing departments are normally categorized under marketing. Marketing deals with the processes used to make and introduce new products into the market. Marketing can also be used to refer to the identification of market needs and making available of products that meet these needs. The major activities associated with marketing include research, development, distribution, pricing, marketing communications, and payment. All these activities form a comprehensive marketing program and are therefore included in the scope of sales.
Sales strategy refers to the overall plan implemented to achieve sales. A well-planned sales strategy should include appropriate marketing plans along with the right selling techniques. This enables the company to reach its sales target and improve profitability. It is however necessary to choose the type of marketing depending on the nature of products sold.
The other two business functions also play a significant role in the success of sales. These two business functions are accounting and finance. Accounting deals with the financial transactions made by the sales department such as receivables, payables, inventory, and expenses. Finance, on the other hand, refers to the financial assets used for the support of sales activities such as capital and working capital.
There are a lot of sales strategies that companies use in order to meet their sales goals. However, not all of these strategies work. Some of these strategies may include personal selling, face-to-face selling, and networking selling. Therefore, in order to determine the difference between marketing and sales, it is important to define clearly both the roles of each business function in order to determine which one is more important. Knowing the difference between marketing and sales enables the companies to effectively handle their sales and marketing functions and achieve the desired sales and profit goals.
In conclusion, it can be said that there is a clear difference between sales and marketing. Marketing encompasses the entire advertising, sales, and financing functions performed by a company. On the other hand, sales is focused only on the actual transaction between buyer and seller. There is no third party involved in marketing. For more information on the definition of marketing and sales, please check our website and browse through the valuable content provided.
