Are You a Salesman or a Marketer?

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by Dave Kelly

Do you realize that there is a big difference in being a salesman and being a marketer?

Virtually everyone selling something online calls themselves a marketer. Most are in reality salesman. What's the difference?

A salesman tries his best to get people to want something he is selling and then purchase it.

A marketer is someone who determines what the people want, then finds or develops an appropriate product or service to sell to them.

Do you see the difference? I'm willing to bet that a lot of you are salesman and didn't even know it. There's nothing wrong with being a salesman but it is a lot more difficult to sell something that you want people to buy than it is to sell something to people that they actually want.

The salesman finds his product, and tries to sell it. He rarely tests his product or takes any time to find out if the people are actually interested. The salesman usually starts selling his product with great expectations, but often the salesman's fate is already determined as there may not be much of a demand for what he or she is selling.

The marketer tests his product first, he asks his customers what they want, then gives it to them. It is very easy to do. How? One of the easiest ways is to simply ask your customers. Put a form on one of your web sites and ask the visitors what new products or services they are looking for. What products would they buy. What products they need. You'd be surprised how easy it is to fill a void in the marketplace. Use a survey, a poll, there are countless different methods to find out what the people want and need.

So it comes down to a simple question. Do you want to be a salesman or a marketer. Understanding the difference is the first step in making that decision. The answer seems pretty obvious doesn't it?