Many a times, people confuse marketing and sales. When we talk about marketing, it is all about getting noticed while sales is about closing the deal.
The sales process starts with a prospect and ends with a customer who is ready to pay. When there is no sale, there is no business. The best business earns the trust of their prospects and help them understand why the offer is worth paying for. The end of a sales process is an excited new customer and cash in the bank.
We have several ways of selling. First we have Value based selling whereby the seller helps the customer understand the reasons why his offer is valuable to him. By reinforcing the reason why a transaction will be valuable to the customer, the seller increases the likelihood of a transaction as well as the price the buyer will be willing to pay. Value base selling is more about listening and not too much talking. This enables the seller to understand more what the customer wants. When the seller asks good questions, this helps him identify what his offer is worth to the customer. This increases the prospects confidence in the seller understanding of the situation hence delivery of his promise.
Second we have education based selling. This is making your prospects more informed. This is like an upfront investment in your customers. This helps the customer build trust in the seller hence making easier to buy from them.