Below is an edited transcript of a conversation we had about the importance of marketing for a business .
The five pillars of a business
Ravi: I heard you say that marketing is the heart of an organization. Could you elaborate and give us your perspective on the topic and how marketing should influence demand?
Rony: I firmly believe that marketing is the heart of any business. Even if you have the best products or services and a great sales team, you will fail if you don’t have a marketing function to guide your efforts and attract customers.
A company is made up of the following five pillars:
human resources
production and R&D.
finance
sales
marketing
To ensure your success, each pillar must play its role effectively. Without a marketing function, you will not be able to find new and interesting opportunities that will allow your representatives to close sales.
Marketing is the heart of a business
Ravi: Explain to us why.
Rony: Let's start by clarifying the role of marketing within the company. It helps gather essential business information such as:
market size
the company's target customers
a competitive pricing strategy
how to position products and services to attract customers
Essentially, marketing supports sales, whether it’s transactional sales or, more importantly, consultative sales. It does this by asking important questions.
Do we know the needs and wants of our customers?
Do we know how to get their attention?
Can we use marketing to make them more aware of our products and services or to encourage them to buy them?
Think about how much money some companies spend to promote their products on platforms that their core customers don't even use! This shows a lack of understanding of the role of marketing!
Marketing is about gathering information about the target market, positioning products and services, generating sales opportunities and cultivating customer relationships. That, in a nutshell, is my definition of marketing and why I believe it is the heart of an organization!
Your marketing is effective when your products or services come to mind spontaneously. If they think of you first, they will turn to you to satisfy their needs.
I once worked at a large IT company that didn’t have the mint database best products on the market, but they did have the best marketing team. Our brand was always the first and most visible brand. The marketing team focused on the best outcomes our customers could get from our projects and the tools they could use to succeed. Back then, the saying went, “You’ll never get fired for using this IT company.”
Our products may not have been the best, but our brand was the strongest. That's why we remained very competitive in the market.
The difference between marketing and sales
Ravi: Can you explain the difference between marketing and sales?
Rony: It is often believed that marketing and sales are one and the same thing. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Marketing skills don’t make you a salesperson. Similarly, sales reps don’t always know how to position or price products effectively. The two roles are completely different: one is creative while the other is analytical. That’s why I’m always amused when a business owner tells me that the same person is responsible for sales and marketing.
Also, many business owners downplay the importance of marketing and think they can do without it. But that’s really not the case.
Marketing can be the difference maker for a business
Ravi: Can you give me an example of how important marketing is for a business?
Rony: Let's take the restaurant industry. Restaurants have a very short expected lifespan. Many of them open and close within a year. Even a chef with a great reputation, who uses the best ingredients and offers the best recipes, will not necessarily be able to attract customers.
On the other hand, restaurateurs who never sit in the kitchen are very successful. Instead, they attend conferences and learn how to market their product, improve their website and make an impact on social media. This is what helps them target and attract customers.
The bottom line is that no matter how good your products are, marketing is often what determines the success or failure of your business.
The link between marketing and production
Ravi: Is it important to link marketing to production?
Rony: The two should work hand in hand at all times.
The production department must inform marketing of everything that is produced and explain why. This allows marketing to validate assumptions about customer needs. Is there a real market demand for the product or is it a one-off need?
Collaboration with the R&D department is crucial. Sales representatives who are having difficulty in the market may argue that the products are outdated and the market needs something different.
It is up to the marketing team to verify whether they are telling the truth and then work with the sales team to improve results or with the R&D department to determine what new products and services are needed.
The place of marketing in a company
Ravi: You told us about your experience in a large IT company. What was the marketing structure like within that company and the management team?
Rony: Before a product launch, the marketing team was called upon as the main actor to establish the pricing and positioning strategy, and then to train the sales team to market the product.
No product from this company was marketed without the input of the marketing team.
How can and should business owners achieve marketing success?
Ravi: In your 13-year career at BDC, you’ve worked with over 1,300 clients. How do you think Canadian business owners are doing when it comes to marketing?
Rony: Most business owners in Canada go about it the wrong way. They don't focus on marketing early enough and only bring in the marketing team when their business has a growth problem.
Many companies create a solid product or solution in response to a problem, but then they face the reality of the marketplace. If you leave a large organization to become self-employed or start a business, you will quickly discover that you do not have the skills or infrastructure to manage finances, make accurate forecasts, or develop a marketing plan . To overcome these obstacles, you need the right people with the right skills.
Most businesses are started by entrepreneurs or visionary technicians. As business owners, you need to hire people with skills that complement and enrich your own.
Successful business owners are those who know their weaknesses. They understand the key role of marketing and hire a specialist. Whether they hire a permanent person or a part-time consultant, they get the help they need.
The first steps of a marketing strategy
Ravi: When hiring a marketing specialist, what should that person do in the first 100 days?
Rony: Validate the target market selection. Confirm that the price is right (to avoid leaving money on the table). Ensure that the company is known in the market. Check whether the marketing team can create sales opportunities for the representatives. Check whether the team knows how to use social media and online advertising to identify potential customers and to monitor and measure the success rate.
Experiment! These first 100 days should be used to determine what works and what doesn't.
Ravi: Thank you very much for your advice as a successful entrepreneur and seasoned BDC advisor.
Rony: The pleasure is all mine. But these recommendations are nothing exceptional. During my career, I have simply observed that successful companies focus on marketing from the start.
