---
title: “I sell products, not advertising.” - What a concept.
description: Help your customers sell more of THEIR products.
---

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###### Posted by [Todd Hockenberry](https://www.toddhockenberry.com/blog/author/todd-hockenberry) ● Dec 27, 2012

# “I sell products, not advertising.” - What a concept.

While relaxing the other night watching some shows on the DVR this line popped out at me because it was so crisp and clear and summarized much of what I believe to be the best part of marketing and sales.

![i sell products not advertising](https://static.hsstatic.net/BlogImporterAssetsUI/ex/missing-image.png)“I sell products, not advertising.” said Don Draper the Creative Director for the fictional advertising agency Sterling-Cooper on the show [Mad Men](http://www.amctv.com/originals/madmen/).

Sounds so simple. Of course that is what he does. He sells the benefit of the benefit. His highly creative ads help to sell his customer’s products, period.

He knows who he is and what he does and can say it with clarity and simplicity.

In the end isn’t that what we all do – though with just about all of the manufacturing and capital equipment companies that I have worked with and for the answer was more like this;

We design great______.

We engineer the best _______.

We make world class _______.

Our feature/model/product is the first/fastest/smallest/biggest----whatever!

If you can clearly and simply say how you help your customers sell more of their products then you are way ahead of most and well on your way to earning their business and loyalty.

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 Topics: [Sales](https://www.toddhockenberry.com/blog/topic/sales)

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