When we talk about marketing or selling in the first place, we remember people forcing their products on the clients or whoever they are passing by.

For several years, this trend of marketing products and services was flourishing, until people started becoming aware that the way they were marketing their products and services was the wrong way altogether.

What do you understand by Marketing?
Many people say, "Marketing is a way to sell your products and services to people".

This is wrong.

Marketing is not a way to sell something, but it is much more than that.

• Marketing is about building relationships and trust with people you interact with.
• It is about understanding the issue and providing innovative solutions.
• It is also about helping people.
• Last but not the least, marketing is about informing people about your product and services.

Several people who undergo normal Sales and Marketing courses or even MBAs, don't understand this concept and use the same in their organizations.

These organizations are also run by people who have experienced similar things and hence they also select students, who they think can talk more and have a charming personality, or at least someone who can do anything for money.

What is wrong with this?
The only thing wrong with this technique is that you are doing nothing at all. You are just wasting the money of organizations, that have trusted you as per your abilities.

I have seen big hospitality groups selling their Time-Share apartments or resorts or even holiday plans through people who just try to play with the ego of the customer or client.

They will call you via phone, and say that "Sir, you have been invited to our event, and this is not to purchase anything, but we want to promote our hotel or brand", and then when you go there with your friends or wife, they will directly start selling their holiday plans with you, not even asking water.

Now, I am not here talking about not explaining your product and services to people that you have managed to gather, but it is more about the way you approach them.

There are untrained salesmen, who shout at customers and try to speak loudly so that your attention is towards them, and then they will ask you to trust them.

Bro, we have met only 15 mins before, and that too your customer service person requested me to attend your seminar, and when I attend, you without explaining anything straight away ask to trust.

Again, when someone is talking, why are you watching other people, is the person who is going to pay for your product or service not important for your sales?

Why do people still use this technique of selling?
The main issue is that people don't understand the meaning of marketing. They think they must sell their product to everyone they meet to complete their targets.

This is the reason why people in marketing start behaving like some cheap person who just wants money out of your pocket and inside the company's pocket.

Having said that, people that work in the sales and marketing teams should understand that marketing is not only about selling products or services, but it is also about creating a relationship with the person who has met you.

Not everyone is your client
This is important to understand.

In past, people used to sell their rice in exchange for clothes, and this was termed the barter system, where people used goods in exchange for goods, as there was no currency.

Therefore, if you had rice and I wanted Goat, then there would not be a sale, as I don't want rice, I wanted a goat, and hence I will not give you the thing that you want from me.

Although the system has changed over time, it still works in one way or another.

For example, if a person has recently bought a fridge, and he just checks out a showroom, it doesn't mean that he or wants to buy a new fridge if he or she is asking for information.

Here is what happens, most of the people in the sales and marketing team will try to ask that customer to buy their product. They will not explain to him or her the benefits of the fridge, or why their product is better than others, but they will first enquire about his or her interest in taking the product.

This is what is called Self Rejection.

When you self-reject a customer, you will not have the interest to explain the product to him or her, therefore, you have lost at least 6 other customers.

This is because, if a person likes something, he or she tells about the thing to at least 5 to 6 people in his or her circle over some time.

Now because you have already offended that customer, you have already lost 6 customers.

Therefore, one should understand that as a marketing or sales team, we are not there to only complete our targets, but we are also there to build a relationship with our customers.

 I have seen customers that leave an organization's products and services because their favorite salesman has moved to some other company.

This is the kind of relationship one should have with their customers or clients, and not the superficial one, where people just come and go without talking or providing information about the products and services.

What should be the natural and proper way of marketing our products and services?
I usually say that the only way to market your product or service should be through the means of information spreading.

The more you teach people about something, there are more chances that they will use your product and stick with it for a longer duration of time. This is again important because for teaching your clients about your products and services, you are going to research your level.

And research is the backbone of marketing.

The reason is that there should be a problem that you are solving in someone's life. Then only someone will buy a product or service from you and then stick with it for a longer duration of time.

If someone doesn't require something, then even if you request the client to please take or buy your product or service, he or she will not do it, and if they did it for one time, then they will not continue with it for sure.

Similarly, I have seen insurance companies asking student interns to sell insurance to their friends and families, or else their insurance certificate will not be given to them. This demotivates those interns because this has now become an issue worldwide.

If a student has come as an intern, he is not there to sell the product or service of the company to every person that he or she sees every day. He or she is there to learn the skill of marketing, and not selling to everyone, because of which they also have to encounter several embarrassing moments.

We should teach them that not everyone is your customer or client, but everyone is a medium by which you will surely get your clients and sales if marketing is done correctly.

Also, one should always approach customers and clients with a soft and polite voice. Although you should be assertive, you should be ready and willing to respect the customer's perceptions.

Conclusion;
Marketing has changed the way it used to be. There is more storytelling rather than selling to complete your targets.

You have to create a relationship with your customers and the ones who have just come there to talk and know about your business.

You cannot just shut someone, because he or she is not capable of purchasing your product or service, or if he or she is not willing to do so in near future. This is because marketing is about building relationships and fulfilling the needs of your customers, when and where they arise.