Marketing Is About Communication, Not Self-Promotion

[Brian Turner]

It's not really an outstanding webpost, but the title says it all: [url=http://www.hybrid6.com/webgeek/2008/05/marketing-is-about-communication-not-self-promotion.php]Marketing Is About Communication, Not Self-Promotion[/url]

[quote]
Marketing is about communicating with your target audience — it’s not about trying to push your products/services on consumers until they give in and make a purchase.
[/quote]

I couldn't agree more, which is where Seth Godin's Permission Marketing premise really takes off, and why companies of all sizes need to embrace the Social Web.

2c. :)

[lin robinson]

This echos a powerful concept in sales that's been around for years, SPIN selling.

Simply, the idea is, you aren't in an adversary relationship with a buyer (which so many salespeople do see themselves). The salesperson is essentially an unpaid consultant enabling his client to better his service, product, or life.

My analogy is that, instead of two people standing eye to eye, you have two people side by side, examining the situation.

The salesperson is there to understand the client's situation and problems and offer solutions that work.

The need to examine and understand the client's situation is the basis of communication, really.

There are books and seminars and stuff on SPIN (developed by a guy who made a name for himself with another book that pretty much proved "teams" don't really work for business) and it's an important thing to expose one's self to.

[Brian Turner]

That's a good pointer - I like that - "unpaid consultant". :)

[bumfluff]

[QUOTE=lin robinson;114352]This echos a powerful concept in sales that's been around for years, SPIN selling.

Simply, the idea is, you aren't in an adversary relationship with a buyer (which so many salespeople do see themselves). The salesperson is essentially an unpaid consultant enabling his client to better his service, product, or life.

My analogy is that, instead of two people standing eye to eye, you have two people side by side, examining the situation.

The salesperson is there to understand the client's situation and problems and offer solutions that work.

The need to examine and understand the client's situation is the basis of communication, really.

There are books and seminars and stuff on SPIN (developed by a guy who made a name for himself with another book that pretty much proved "teams" don't really work for business) and it's an important thing to expose one's self to.[/QUOTE]

Totally agree with that. I absolutely hate hard selling and wouldn't do it myself. I don't want to make people think they want my services - I want people to want my services. If people buy a product or service from you because you've helped them make an informed decision, it's more likely to be a lasting business relationship.

The last episode of The Apprentice (the wedding sales one) was a pretty good example of the differences between the two approaches.