Rob Learns About Sales: Part 2

So in my last post, I left off by posing a question to the LinkedIn community - "In one sentence, what is the difference between sales and marketing?" In no time at all, the answers came pouring in from all over the Internet. And, though they weren't always one sentence, they were all good. So, without further delay I present to you the difference between marketing and sales.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In my opinion, marketing is generating interest in your product, while sales is converting the interest into purchases.
-Brian L.

Marketing creates awareness, interest, and inspires people to act. Sales continues to increase interest and close the deal.
-Susan P.

Marketing is the prayer; sales is the promise.
-M. Joyce M.

Marketing is everything that you do to reach and persuade prospects and the sales process is everything that you do to close the sale and get a signed agreement or contract. Both are necessities to the success of a business.
-G. Sandhu

In the real world: nothing.
-Jeff R.

Marketing is not an end in itself, it is a means to an end (sales)....
-Ramachandra R.

Sales is one of the 4 strategic efforts that in combination form the activity known as 'Marketing':
1. Product management and/or manufacturing;
2. Pricing;
3. Marketing communications, including public relations and advertising; and
4. Channel management (otherwise known as 'Sales').
-Peter R.

Sales is a function of marketing.
-Bryan E.

Marketing is a coordinated mix of strategies that communicate product information to a prospective customer, on a one-to-one basis, through a variety of media, including a sales force, to facilitate their decision on whether they wish to buy the product and to conclude the transaction.
-Frank F.

Without marketing there is no sales!
-Joe B.

In general, marketing is lead generation and sales is direct customer interaction to close a business deal. The difference between sales and marketing is vague depending on the sales model. This vagueness is especially true in businesses that use the internet as their sales interface and lack a direct sales force.

Several marketing departments fail to understand closed sales is the key measureable for any business. Marketing benchmarks often revolve quantity issues like lead generation, number of campaigns executed, and quantity of deliverable items. Although these benchmarks are important, one must understand these tasks need to lead to closed business. I find many marketing professionals feel their job is complete if they execute a certain number of deliverable items.
-Christopher K. (FYI, Christopher suggests young marketers read The End of Marketing as We Know It)

Marketing is formulating the strategy and overall message while sales is delivering it. Out of college I expressed an interest in marketing jobs and people kept trying to put me in sales, actually saying I expressed an interest. Either me, them, or both of us, or the overall meaning, were confused.
-Kevin H.

Marketing is for lead generation what sales is for closing.
-Patrick H.

It seems common to find definitions of marketing that place it as almost a step or component of the sales process. I don't see it this way at all. There are activities that are "marketing" that are not directly related to sales as the end goal. Marketing is far broader than sales and may pertain to activities other than selling a product and service.
-Matthew W.

The meaning of the word "commission"; either they'll get a commission to do some marketing, or they'll do some sales to get a commission.
-Philip S.

Sales is a part of marketing, the end of the process that starts with research, leads to a product,a name, a way to get the word out, and finally get someone to buy it.
-Tim D.

Marketing sets the direction and provides the resources, while sales communicates to the customer and executes the marketing strategy.
-Josh C.

Marketing is what you do to gain your prospects' attention, and regain your customers' attention. Selling happens when both parties -- prospect and seller -- examine the business fit.
-Shawn G. http://www.savageandgreene.com

For business, marketing is the view from 30,000ft, sales is the handshake.
-Bart C.

In my opinion I feel that marketing is everything you see from a company: the outer layer of the company, the website design, the newsletters, the images. Sales is all about the numbers.
-Casey C.

Marketing is building the relationships and sales is cashing in on that relationship. The difference is that marketing is about caring, communicating, talking, telling a story - then if your client/customer buys into it you can actually make a sale. I believe it really is all about cultivating relationships in a sincere way.
-Jacqueline W. http://www.moxieworks.net

Remember AIDA? Well Marketing is the "AI"; not artificial intelligence but rather Attention and Interest. While sales then would be the DA or Desire and Action.
-James G.

Selling is the management of the present, while marketing is the management of the future. Sales is an important part of marketing. Put another way, sales allows you to eat today and marketing allows you to eat tomorrow.
-Gene R.

Marketing is what creates or brings a prospect to us to sell. If I am marketing, I am looking for prospects, or trying to create interest in a product or service. If I am selling, I am trying to take that prospect and make them a customer. Depending on the industry, marketing and selling can be almost the same thing, or they can be miles apart. Most of the time, however, marketing doesn't require closing or asking for the order. Once you are doing that, you are moving towards sales.
-Jim S.

Marketing is the act of generating interest in your product/service, Sales is the act of delivering product/or service for a fee.
-Chris C.

Marketing is the awareness of the product and sales is the success of that product.
-Scott P.

AND

Marketing is all the strategies and tools used to reach and persuade consumers to buy a product or service, whereas sales is the direct personal interaction between the consumer and the sales person used to close the deal/purchase.
-Jenna L. (as in Jenna Lebel our very own Experience.com Super Blogger)

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Phew, that was a lot of answers. Hopefully it helped clarify things. If it didn't, however, and you find yourself more confused than ever, I'd like to formally pass the blame on to everyone who contributed to this post. What am I supposed to be an expert or something?