Sales & marketing: succeeding in a changing world

1) To begin with, could you introduce yourself and your background and explain how it has shaped your approach to sales and marketing?

I've had an international career, mainly in sales development for luxury brands, particularly in the watchmaking sector. For several years, my experience was strongly sales-oriented, with a very hands-on, results-driven approach.

At the same time, I gradually developed my marketing skills, in particular by obtaining a federal marketing technician diploma in Switzerland. This dual expertise has enabled me to manage two often compartmentalised functions simultaneously. Sales generally responds to short-term quantitative objectives, whereas marketing is part of a more qualitative, long-term value-building approach. These differences explain why the profiles are most often either sales or marketing, with distinct approaches and mindsets.

My experience, particularly internationally, has enabled me to manage these two dimensions in a complementary way and to integrate them into coherent value propositions for different markets.

Today, I work for BizDev as founder and director of a six-strong team in Geneva, on business development assignments. For our customers, we also activate the leverage of digital marketing to increase their visibility and credibility. This combination facilitates the structuring and deployment of distribution networks tailored to each stage of their business development.

2) In your opinion, what are the pillars of an effective sales strategy in today's increasingly competitive and international markets?

Before developing a sales strategy, To achieve this, it is essential to clarify the objectives to be reached, whether quantitative or qualitative. The same objective can be achieved by several means: the best strategy is the one that achieves the result in the most direct and efficient way, depending on the resources available.

Strategy is not limited to sales: it includes branding, marketing and other cross-functional dimensions. It is based on a detailed understanding of the market: its structure, players, competition and demand, whether B2B or B2C. This analysis enables us to define a clear and differentiating value proposition, whether based on innovation, price positioning or a specific competitive advantage.

An effective strategy answers key questions: who do we sell to? at what price and margin? how do we communicate? where and through what channels do we sell? By its very nature, it is a global strategy, covering sales, marketing, logistics and even tax issues.

Today, having a good product is no longer enough. International markets are evolving rapidly: strategy has to be agile, adjustable and close to tactical logic. In our business development assignments, we always start by challenging and defining the strategy before marketing an offer, so that we know precisely who to target, how and at what price.

3) What major trends are you currently seeing in sales and marketing, particularly in terms of digitalisation and branding?

We work mainly on a B2B basis, often with industrial subcontracting companies, some of which have been in business for over a century. For a long time, these players enjoyed natural credibility and legitimacy: their sales were based on their reputation and the recognition of their products.

But the market has changed a great deal: new players, often based in Asia, are arriving and offering competitive alternatives. To stay present and competitive, even traditional subcontractors now have to invest in marketing and branding, something that was unimaginable a few years ago, even for highly specialised services or technologies. My observation is clear: in B2B, a company that neglects branding runs a real risk.

Digitalisation also plays a key role. With automation and AI, As a result, competitors who optimise their processes will be faster, more efficient and more competitive. Those who do not adopt these tools risk losing market share.

Finally, even in B2B, certain trends borrowed from B2C are important: authenticity, storytelling and the personal branding are becoming essential. Customers want to identify with brands or people in a credible and transparent way. Although certain global claims, such as the environment or local issues, are sometimes more symbolic than actually applied, they nonetheless influence the perception of brands. In short, digital and branding are no longer options: they are key to survival and growth in competitive markets.

4) Given the pressure on results and resources, what levers would you recommend to sales teams to help them remain effective without diluting the brand's DNA?

For me, a sales person has a clear role above all else: to achieve sales targets. The question of the direct link between sales performance and brand DNA is, in my view, a bit misleading. A brand's DNA - its values, its vision, its identity - is not diluted by the way a salesperson sells a product or service, but rather by the strategic decisions taken at management level.

Certain profiles are naturally aligned with the spirit of a brand, particularly in the luxury sector, and their attitude immediately reflects this fit. So it's not the salespeople who risk disrupting the DNA, but panic management choices, such as drastically cutting prices to meet short-term targets, which can affect the image and perception of the brand.

In short, to remain successful while preserving the company's DNA, the sales teams must maintain a mindset that is aligned with the brand, and strategic decisions must remain consistent with the company's values and identity.

5 In an ever-changing sales environment, why has continuous training become essential to maintaining effective sales skills?

Continuing training has become essential today because of the speed and scale of change in the world of business and technology. If we look back over the last twenty years, the evolution has been gradual: digital technology developed slowly, then the internet and e-commerce accelerated the transformations. But since 2022, innovations, particularly those linked to artificial intelligence, These changes are occurring at a speed that is incomparable to that of the great industrial revolutions or the advent of the internet, and as a result leave much less time to adapt.

To remain effective, a salesperson or professional needs to keep up to date: tools are evolving, new practices are emerging, and automation is transforming many jobs. If you don't keep up to date, you risk being left behind. Training is no longer a luxury; it's a prerequisite for staying in the race and continuing to generate value, whether for the company or for yourself.

Even with AI and automated tools, the human being remains at the centre: strategy is built through considered decisions and creativity. Ongoing training is the key to mastering these new tools, remaining relevant and ensuring performance in a constantly changing environment.