“What is the difference between an evangelist and a salesperson?”

In Guy Kawasaki’s article, “The Art Evangelism“, much light was shed upon my perception and what I understood of successful marketing. It is to no doubt that successful marketing produces successful companies, and in many companies, in the form of salespeople. But what exactly is the difference between evangelists and salespeople? As Kawasaki points out, “A salesperson has his or her own best interests at heart: commission, making quota, closing the deal. An evangelist has the other person’s best interests at heart: “Try this because it will help you.”

A concept like this is too often skipped over by even the top companies in the world, insisting that the sole job of the employees designated to promote marketing is to shut the briefcase, seal the deal, and be rewarded accordingly. From my own  experience, dealing with pushy salespeople in retail stores, car dealers, real estate, and many other departments that revolve around a single transaction, have too often created the opposite effect — a guarantee that I will not buy what you’re selling. A tip to all companies that hope to succeed — in order to reduce the adverse effects of sadly, badly-executed marketing, the root of the problem must be tackled, that is, convert salespeople into evangelists. Hire people who really care about the customer’s pains, and people who can genuinely relate to them. It cannot be emphasized further that these are the people who are key to the direct success of the business. By providing deep insight into the pains of unique and quirky customers, businesses can pinpoint exactly what is needed to be provided. From there on, the next step would be to focus on the companies’ flexibility to accommodate to each individuals’ demands.