What is More Important in Marketing? Sales Volume or After Sales Service?

No Sales versus Customer Service
Praveen Kumar, Business Consultant, India, Member
In my view both are equally important. We can't afford to ignore either of the two. In fact we should strive towards extending good customer service and make it into a USP of a company.
Taking this forward, we should focus on the selling cycle and ensure consistent target achievement.

Sales Volume versus After Sales
C Mbirimi, Entrepreneur, Zimbabwe, Member
I agree both elements are of great importance in any organisation. After sales service triggers more sales, on the other hand, sales volumes need to be pushed from all angles to ensure sales targets are exceeded and this is the basis for business sustainability and profitability.

Initial Sales versus After Sales
Murer
There is no after-sales business without initial/replacement sales. Therefore you cannot prioritize one volume over the other.
Yet, I definitely think that after-sales service is really what drives re-purchase. Therefore the key focus should probably be on excelling in after-sales service to help maintain or develop sales, especially as in our supply chain (trucks), most retail does not earn money on new sales….

Sales Volume versus After Sales Service
celestine chukwuka, Entrepreneur, Nigeria, Member
@Praveen Kumar: you are right, but on a more precise note AFTER SALES SERVICE is more important than sales volume because it (after sales service) gives room for the satisfied clients to do marketing on behalf of the organisation, thereby expanding sales indirectly.
But if we focus on sales volume to meet target, dissatisfied clients’ complaints could be a hitch to marketers’ efforts.

Target Sales VS After Sales
Ibrahim Rasheed, Director, Maldives, Member
It is very true that sales and marketing go together. But can't we leave the job of target sales to the sales manager instead of the marketing manager?
To increase sales and to reach the targets that have been set, there are several components to play with like promotional offers, etc… In contrast, the marketing team creates an environment in general.
After sales service is not less important if a company wants a long term business. So all in all I would say to run a company after sales service is more important.

Sales Volume versus After Sales Service
Shobana Sharma (Shobana Maran), Student (MBA), United Arab Emirates, Member
According to me, both 2 elements should have equal importance. We should meet the sales target to run the company profitably. And we should satisfy our customers by providing proper service after the initial sales order to make them sustain with our business and for future sales opportunities.

New Sales versus After Sales
krishnamohan, Teacher, India, Member
After sales service and new sales volume are inter-related concepts. There is no sales service without initial sales. Each initial sale is an opportunity to establish contact with the customer and take his satisfaction to the level of delight, if the service is good. After sales service is important to maintain a good customer relationship and also to benefit from referral sales that reduce selling transaction cost and increase the profitability of the firm.
The sales volume is the firm's objective, whereas after sales service is the expectation of the customer after his purchase. Both are important from their own perspective. There should be a perfect twine to sustain the customer in the long-run.

Sustainable Sales & Sustainable Marketing
Kulkarni Mohan, Manager, India, Member
In my view both (sales and marketing) are each other's complements in sustainable marketing. The initial sales with awareness of product utility and its benefits transform into customer delightedness. Then we must try to retaining him besides adding new customers. Thus, after sales service & follow up will make a sustainable ROI and pave the way for other product promotion/s and customer satisfaction which will be surfaced at each event to add value to the brand.

After-sales Boosts Sales Performance
Noel B. Buenconsejo, Manager, Philippines, Member
@Celestine chukwuka: Very true. In my experience, the customers' feedback matters most.
In a realistic and applied sales funnel setting,
- 1 out of 5 closeable leads buys.
- These 5 result from 25 hot leads.
- These 25 come from 125 initial targeted leads.
This is, basically, a Pareto principle.
Each month, new leads must beef up the target clients. But, these new leads, who are knowledgeable prospects, gather information on the product, on its price, and on its supplier's credibility.
A negative after-sales feedback will diminish the sales performance of any organization and shall tarnish whatever marketing and sales efforts are put in. This can be noticed within 1-2 years of bad customer feedbacks.

Sales and After Sales Service
Helen Strong, Business Consultant, South Africa, Member
Marketing's role in sales and after-sales service is to define the strategies that will deliver against business and marketing objectives.
For sales it consists of having the right marketing mix elements aligned to the selected or served markets' needs.
After sales service is part of the product offering. It needs to provide the support and back-up which is required by the main product or service and the way in which the customers use them.
So to answer the question: both are important, BUT getting the sales is the province of the sales manager; setting the strategies is the responsibility of the marketing manager and his team.