Are marketing and sales the same?

There is often confusion about marketing terms. For example advertising is frequently used as a blanket description for all forms of promotion. Sales and marketing are similarly confused as though the terms are interchangeable. Some companies combine sales and marketing into a single job portfolio. But in truth the roles are not only different, but call for different personalities. Selling is very much concerned with the present, with closing sales, meeting sales targets and dealing with current customer demands. Marketing on the other hand is far more to do with planning for the future, with strategy to keep ahead of fast moving trends, the routes to market, and the means of promotion and delivery that provide the essential environment in which selling can be successful. One is short term seeking to close deals, the other longer term, educating and informing prospects.  Marketing is everything that you do to reach and persuade prospects. The sales process is everything that you do to close the sale and get a signed agreement or contract. So in fact it is a continuous process. Marketing uses techniques  to reach and persuade prospects that you are the company for them, with messages that prepare the prospect for the sales  people. Marketing communications includes advertising, public relations, brand marketing, viral marketing, web sites, e-mail and direct mail. The sales process consists of interpersonal interaction often with a one-on-one meeting, cold calls, and networking. The sales person engages with the prospect or customer on a personal level rather than at a distance.  What often happens is that the sales and marketing teams drift apart and this is important to avoid through 'internal marketing' ensuring both teams understand what the other is doing and why to ensure the process is continuous.