Building VS. Selling

Sales is one person persuading one person.

Marketing is one person persuading many people.

A great product makes many people persuade many people, as it naturally gets shared due to its exceptional quality.

Obviously, you can see which effectively scales.

If you can be great and exceptional at product development, marketing and sales will be much easier.

The Role of Sales and Marketing

Sales and marketing are crucial, but once the product is good enough, they don't need to be over-optimized with details like scheduling emails at the perfect time or choosing the most appealing color scheme.

Those nuances do help, but a truly exceptional product speaks for itself. You can easily pitch it with a straightforward message, and that incredible feature will sell itself. Optimization can come later for scaling.

The Power of a Great Product

The quality of a great product can make up for any insufficiency in sales and marketing.

But sales and marketing cannot make up for the insufficiency of a product.

They can help temporarily, but eventually, they can't sustain a product that doesn't meet customer expectations.

This is because you’re not just marketing a good product, but one that is not-so-good, and the product’s negative feedback can spread more rapidly than your positive marketing.

Marketing and Sales: Complementing a Great Product

Great marketing can only temporarily compensate for a not-so-great product. The "perfect" marketing eventually stops working for a bad product because negative feedback will eventually outweigh positive efforts.

However, a great product can leverage good marketing to amplify its reach and success. The key is balance—marketing and product development should work closely together from the inception of a project.

The Real Purpose of Marketing and Sales

The real purpose of marketing and sales is to optimize the reach of your product, capturing more opportunities.

Continuous sales and marketing help maintain the original message of your product, which is incredibly important for sustaining its success.

Should You Learn Building or Selling?

Both building and selling are crucial for success, but their importance can vary depending on the stage of your career and the nature of your product.

Initially, focusing on building a robust product helps establish a strong foundation. As the product matures, investing in sales skills becomes more valuable for scaling and sustaining growth.

In small niche markets, while products may not spread as rapidly as those with broad appeal, the principle remains the same: a great product, endorsed by industry experts and supported by targeted marketing, can achieve significant success.

Balancing both building and selling, whether through individual mastery or effective team collaboration, is essential for long-term success.

To achieve long-term success, start by developing strong building skills to create a product that stands out. As you progress, cultivate sales and marketing skills to scale your product and reach a broader audience. In niche markets, focus on targeted outreach and leveraging industry endorsements. Ultimately, a balance of both skills—building and selling—ensures a robust and sustainable growth trajectory.

Conclusion

Yes, a product doesn't matter if nobody knows about it, but a great product can make up for not-so-great marketing. Even if you're an introvert, you only need to tell a few people about your exceptional product, and it can spread like wildfire.

The success of a business is a balance of great marketing and a great product. Competitors with almost equal products can outperform with better marketing, and equal marketing can be outperformed with a better product. It's not a strict 50-50 split; product quality slightly outweighs marketing efforts.

Marketers and product developers need to work together closely from the start of a project. "Build in public" is a great way to market while you build, keeping potential customers engaged and informed, while optimizing the product with their feedback.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on what this means for marketing and product development.