Perspectives

This is set in the United States:

In the 80s, the technology to reach people wasn’t so advanced. But the desire to get people to buy stuff they don’t need wasn’t any less. Someone invented direct mail marketing. Which is, to send posts about stuff on sale to people who never evinced any interest in buying it. Initially, the response was astounding. So, everyone did it until it started piling up. Today, the US direct mail marketing’s ROI is touted to be at 1.9%. But, marketers won’t give up (Actually, they are). They have a budget and it needs to be spent.

Back to India, 2010:

SMS! Never before in the history of this country was it possible to have a two way (remote) conversation with half of it’s citizens. No other medium of technological communication is so Simple & as wide spread. I don’t know what folks waiting for the 3G roll out & for the supposed ubiquity of smart phones think, but to me, this is already magical. Solutions on SMS show up in my mind every time I think about real world(India) problems. The applications are not just myriad but will actually work. SMS is indeed the lowest common technology denominator for India. But Alas, it is being poached just like those Tigers.

You probably already know about Bulk SMS. Forget it for a moment to become the “Average Ajay“. If you were to get an SMS from a number & you tried calling it, wouldn’t you be petrified to know that “This number does not exist”!? Try calling the Google SMS Channel number (+91-9870807070) or say, “TDSnapdeal” (that would be a 5 digit short code. You can never call anyone there). Weird, “Average Ajay” would think. Twice. Thrice. He will not bother. He has learned to ignore.

It seems TRAI was set up to protect consumer’s interest. They must be behind the brilliance of “TDLOR“, A message from “LOR” via Tata Teleservices, Delhi. Excellent & Thank you. Now I don’t want it. What do I do? Can I call someone & Shout?

Even as I write this, I have 22 unread messages & I don’t plan to read them. Bulk SMS marketers…You will have to take the credit. You will continue to look at SMS as a way to broadcast. To you, along with (and cheaper than) Radio, News paper & TV, SMS is a channel to create pain in people without having to shoulder the responsibility, thanks to TDLOR.

Very soon, you will take the ROI of this industry to 1.9% too (If it already isin’t). You are probably paying 2 Paise per SMS now. It will get cheaper, maybe 2 Paise for 100 SMSes. But, You will soon run out of people.

“SMS”, the species, is dying. Thanks to you & All the best.

This entry is a part of  “What is sales? – A blog book“. Read more about it here.

The next functional area of Marketing is to ensure that goods manufactured reach the customers or they are made available to customers at their towns or cities through company’s offices or dealers who stock and sell the products.  This is known as DISTRIBUTION. In cases where goods are sold by the company or its agents directly to the actual user or customer, it is known as DIRECT MARKETING since the company maintains direct contact with its customers for selling and servicing its products.  In other cases of products of mass consumption, it may not be possible for the company to distribute or sell its products directly to the customers and so would choose to make the products available to the customers at their city, town or village through a supply chain of dealers who would stock, distribute or sell the products to the customers.  The chain may consist of wholesale stockists, distributors, redistribution stockists, semi-wholesalers, retailers, etc., who form the organised channel of distribution.

It would not just be sufficient to manufacture goods and make available for the customers to buy.  Customers must be aware of the product, its brand, its attributes, the benefits of the product over competitors, its availability, etc. The medium to create customer awareness is ADVERTISING.  Though goods marketed and sold to the customers through direct marketing can possibly be reached to customers through company’s own team of salesmen or agents, it will be practically impossible to reach all the customers directly to sell the products.  Further, there can be resistance from the customers before they patronise new products.  The awareness created through Advertising will not only generate customer enquiries but also help reduce the resistance level greatly while selling.  Advertising, therefore, induces and motivates a customer to try or purchase a product for the first time and also ensures the customer’s patronage and loyalty to the product for repeat purchase and clientele.

Advertising can be done through several media.  Advertisements made through newspapers, magazines, radio, TV, etc., reach the mass population and are known as Mass Media.  There are other forms of outdoor advertising like hoarding, neon signs, banners, posters, etc.  In the case of consumer products, despite creating the awareness and pushing the customer to the dealer through punchy advertisements and outdoor publicities, a further reminder medium known as Point of Purchase (PoP) is critical.  Posters, pla-cards, hangouts, danglers, banners, etc., exhibited at the counters of the shop induce customer interest & serve as a reminder to purchase the product across the counters and result in a sale.  To further insure a strong patronage, exclusive window displays are organised to attract the attention of the customers at the point of purchase.

This entry is a part of  “What is sales? – A blog book“. Read more about it here.

Marketing & Sales:

In order to clearly understand the role of Sales in Marketing, it is important to know what is Marketing and what is Sales.

Marketing: For many, there is hardly any difference between Marketing & Sales and both are one on the same.  So it is necessary to know the complex and versatile areas of marketing before getting on to sell.

When someone decides to start an industry or business engaged in manufacturing, trading or servicing activity, he would first try to crystallise his ideas through an initial PROJECT PLANNING and perhaps study the pros and cons of the project by preparing the project report and feasibility report to substantiate the project viability.  This is where the marketing function actually begins.

When the basic project plans are ready, in most cases, an entrepreneur may like to convince himself that there would be adequate potential for the goods manufactured or traded before venturing into the project.  He would then conduct  MARKET RESEARCH/MARKET SURVEY in order to find the market potential for the product through DEMAND ANALYSIS and acceptance of the product or services either through OPINION SURVEY or by conducting a SAMPLE SURVEY.   In the process of Market Research, one can collect several data, both published and through data banks, to get detailed information on installed capacity of other existing units manufacturing similar products, utilised capacity or actual production/output by those units, total market demand for the product to be able to exactly analyse the gap between the demand and supply which would clearly enlighten the scope for selling the product after manufacturing. Market Research would also help plan the production level in the initial stages and to prepare relevant budgets.

It would also be possible to get detailed information on competitors and competitors’ products, their prices, strategies in marketing, distribution, etc. during the Market Research programme which will help plan or restructure the company’s own strategies and plans to suit demanding market situations, implied or based on customer needs.  Market Research is a continuous process and can also be performed at various levels and for different reasons.  Market Research may also be conducted prior to launching a new product, to test the impact or customer reaction to changes in product attributes like product appearance, colour of ingredients, taste, smell, fragrance, packing, packaging, etc., to try customer acceptance of a new product or concept, to check brand preferences, to verify and confirm market share of the company’s or competitors’ products, etc.   Market Research plays a key role for establishing customer feedback, which helps in decision making at large.

Though manufacturing is yet another key area like Marketing, Marketing plays important role in the process of manufacturing.  It is Market Research & Demand Forecast that help in production planning to decide on the quantity and specifications of products to be manufactured and made available for sales.  Both manufacturing and Marketing have to work in tandem since the manufacturing outfit should be in a position to meet the demands of the market and the marketing team should be able to sell the manufactured goods for faster liquidity.

This entry is a part of  “What is sales? – A blog book“. Read more about it here.

Introduction

The role of Sales in a marketing organisation is of vital functions determining the key area of profitability.  Though all other functional area like manufacturing, administration, accounts, etc. help reduce input costs or expenses and improve productivity, Sales & Marketing generate the real profit and are responsible for viability of any project or venture.  Hence, Sales & Marketing deserve special focus not only towards understanding the modern and scientific methods of selling techniques but also in training Salesmen through innovative and self-improvement techniques directed towards achieving creativity and professionalism in selling.

Towards the last years of his life, my father spent a lot of time writing a book on Sales. He was a salesman at heart and at life. He is no more and he never finished the book. Foutunately, I found a soft copy of the transcript he was writing from his computer. I feel I am obligated to let the world know about his thoughts and I decided to present it as a “blog book”.

I will try not to make edits to his literature unless I find something glaringly incomplete. I know nothing about Sales anyway. You can find all the chapters of this book in this blog categorized in sales.

I know he will be very happy to know that this blog book helped someone in any small way possible. If it helped you, do let us know.

Presenting to you What is Sales? – A blog book