ABSTRACT

The difference between marketing and sales is that marketing goals are long-range and strategic, while sales goals are short-range and tactical. That is a huge difference. It obviously requires different personalities and skill sets. Yet, very often people migrate from one to the other or are promoted from sales into marketing or the other way around. These can work only if the salesperson is capable of long-range planning, or the marketing person is capable of selling. Marketing people are the planners; salespeople are the implementers. Marketing is a staff function while sales is a line function. Some staff people are capable of assuming line responsibilities and some line people are good at staff functions, but in the selection process, the personalities and skills required should be kept in mind before making them move into unfamiliar roles.