From Selling to Marketing

Consumer protection is the disgrace of marketing. Despite all the talk about the marketing approach, marketing in many areas of business remains more rhetoric than reality. Consumer protection (consumerism) confirms this because the demands consumerism places on business are merely market demands. Consumer advocates argue that businesses should be based on the needs, realities, and values of the consumer. They demand that the goal of business be to satisfy customer needs. They want business revenues to depend on how well they meet customer needs. After many years of marketing policy, consumerism can become a powerful movement, indicating that marketing is not developing very successfully. Consumerism is the disgrace of marketing. In fact, sales and marketing are more antonyms than synonyms or even complementary concepts. One might assume that the need to sell products will always exist. However, the goal of marketing is to make sales unnecessary. The goal of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well that the product or service fits them perfectly and sells itself. Ideally, marketing should create a consumer who is ready to buy. We may be far from this ideal. But consumerism clearly shows that the correct slogan for business should be: "From Selling to Marketing." TIP OF THE DAY Do your company's products and services meet the real needs of buyers? If not, it's time to consider that you have marketing problems.