Bridging the Gap 4 Steps to Sales and Marketing Alignment
Lately, who has NOT heard of this topic? That’s the Sales and Marketing Alignment, of course.
In the past year, the theme of building the bridge between Sales and Marketing has never been louder and more in your face at two separate companies polar opposite in scale and priorities.
The question we should be asking ourselves is why? What has driven us here? Or, has it always been like this?
The real answer to the roots of history goes way beyond my years.
What we should do now, though, is fix the present problem that we have in front of us.
How Are We Aligned?
“We are in the age of modern B2B, where marketing and sales need to partner together to serve the customer.”
-Matt Heinz, President at Heinz Marketing
Now, we all know that every plan in every company is going to be different. There are literally hundreds of factors that come into play, as far as we can sit here and assume we are different because of account size, market, target audience, etc. We need to be realistic and really look at what tactics or methods we can streamline that can benefit any organization in fundamental terms.
Let’s get it brought together.
- Work, and Lots of It
About that, there is no doubt. If I told you that it was quick, I would be lying, and if you only tried a little bit, it would all be better. Let’s face the reality, without consistent commitment from all parties involved, it’s difficult to solve any problem.
If we recognize the fact that the effort we put in will help us accomplish what we want as a team, together we are more likely to actually impact the bottom line.
Get together the teams. Bring together all those diverse personalities and interests in a room and let the work begin. The first time, or the second, you can absolutely NOT accomplish your objective. It is going to get better in time, however.
Set aside your distinctions and bring the effort in.
Understand Realities
Does Sales really understand all the numerous organizational frameworks and responsibilities in a Marketing department that exist?
- What does an individual creating demand really do?
- What is a content marketer’s principal priority?
- On what KPIs are they calculated?
The positions and goals are infinite, but do sales realize that?
Does marketing really understand all the sales responsibilities?
- How does a team of Account Executives work?
- What is happening in the SDRs/BDRs world?
- What are the most appropriate KPIs for sales?
We will naturally begin to bridge the gap as we learn and prove to each other that we want to invest.
UNDERSTAND and concentrate in each other on INVESTING and then watch the partnership level increase.
Share Your Targets
Intertwine the goals. Understand that for one team, one KPI is 100% linked to another team. Concentrate on sharing the entire funnel and agree as a group on the most realistic metrics. Make sure to concentrate on the KPI that everyone is tied to… the GROWTH sector. It’s a business target, not just an aim of the department.
Well, in truth, we can’t share our goals, can we?
It’s a lot harder, you’re right, than it seems.
We can begin with accountability, though. Accountability for the fact that we will be liable for our amount being met. Ultimately, when we each reach an amount that matters to both marketing and sales, then everyone profits.
Marketing Qualified Lead → Sales Accepted Leads
Sales Qualified Leads → Sales Qualified Opportunities
Strengthen the Relationship
Marketing also needs to refer to sales, and sales often need to speak to marketing.
But, is that sufficient?
Not anymore anymore.
We need to further break it down. There are so many powerful people in the Sales and Marketing divisions who need to interact better. It’s not just up to the leadership to draw conclusions.
Representatives of Sales Growth and Account Executives have their ears to the ground and they need to share their experience with Marketing so that we can produce content that aligns with what the consumer is looking for and what our clients are asking for.
In order to figure out how to maximize quality based on outreach activities, marketing needs to address leads with the sales team.
To match messages through the entire buyer journey, Customer Satisfaction and Marketing need to speak about what consumers are thinking now.
You need to continue this loop for everyone who is interested in the process. Keep the message internally and externally compatible.
Cater for the sale before and after!
To understand what everybody’s roles and duties are, we need to put in the effort.
Investing in one another.
Speak about obligation. No one team is willing to do it on their own.
Realize that, not just leadership, contact needs to be continuous and consistent at all levels.
If all the time, the market and consumers shift, then we need to change.
