Sales and marketing teams in any B2B company are like opposite poles. For a company to grow and to yield positive results these two teams should be well coordinated. They should align their practices, which as per a survey; increases the revenue of the organization by 208 percent.
Sales and marketing also being the backbone of a company need to work on a unified front. Management needs to make sure that the two are well aligned. Here are a few well-versed practices that an organization can follow for aligning the two;
Recognize the buyer: It is of utmost importance for both teams to have an in-depth idea of who their target audiences are. Both the teams need to know their product well to approach their audience. Both should get acquainted with the buyer persona, their demographic, the size of the organization or the role, and more.
One “representative” a meet: Follow this mantra and see the meeting proceed without any hitch. Organize a meet for each team once a week and invite one representative of the other team. This way rather than falling into chaos, the representative at the meet will convey their team’s difficulties to another and a fruitful solution can be achieved. The line of communication will always be open this way.
Empathize: Any team needs to put themselves in the shoes of the other to truly understand the challenges they face. The sales team is the face of the company, while the marketing is the brain. Their hard work in the field reflects in the increased revenue growth. Rather than blaming one another for any shortcomings, train them to pull each other up during a crisis. Empathy towards one another will take you ahead in the game.
Discuss: Marketing teams need to inform and prepare the sales team of any upcoming campaigns. The sales team has direct contact with clients. They can communicate with the clients letting them know of new services or products. The sales team can too coordinate with marketing to give them a heads up as to what a client is expecting. Discussions like what type of customer they are targeting, Are you retaining or attracting new clients, How far the customer is in the sales funnel? This kind of discussion will help create comprehensive data for a campaign.
Share data: Both teams must share a common database. The sales team should be enabled to receive information, content, and resources to help sell easier. When all the relevant data is available in one place, they will be inclined to use it. In return, they too will update on how prospects are responding to the marketing campaigns.
Feedback: This is often overlooked in alignment practices of sales and marketing. Constructive, direct, and specific feedback is important for any good-performing team. Post-event or post-campaign wrap specifically requires feedback to know if they continue to have a touchpoint with their clients.
The sales and marketing team are responsible for maintaining and creating your image and reputation. The alignment of your teams may or may not be easy but is an investment worth making. These alignment practices will raise the bar for both the teams’ strategies and is the prime key to the success of your company.
