In many organizations, sales and marketing teams are at odds with each other, each claiming its own little island and not allowing the other in. They don't communicate, they don't support each other - they don't even have the same definitions or goals. However, some corporations are seeing the value in aligning their sales and marketing teams to maximize their revenue potential.

Traditionally, sales and marketing teams have been at odds, like an arranged marriage gone bad. And it usually comes down to inbound lead generation efforts. Marketers say that sales people are lazy while sales people say that marketers claim that marketers are lax in coming up with good leads. It doesn’t have to be that way, though; marketing and sales teams can have a harmonious marriage. It takes some cooperation, communication and shared goals.

In fact, aligning your sales and marketing teams can be one of the smartest things you do for your business. A report by Aberdeen Research released in 2010 showed that companies that aligned their marketing and sales teams experienced an average annual revenue growth of 20 percent. Compare this to the 4 percent drop for companies that did not make this strategic move and you can see how  effective it can be. So before you try to divorce your sales team, give it one more shot – for the sake of the customers! Here’s a little therapy session.

Get on the Same Page

Too often the conflict between sales and marketing arises out of different agendas, perspectives and definitions. When both teams get on the same page in these areas, the waters are much calmer and it is easier to see the symbiotic relationship between the two.

Customer – Both teams need to construct a clear picture of the customer. This single customer view is critical in the success of aligning sales and marketing.

Definitions – Establishing definitions for specific terms improves communication between the two teams. Work together to create a clear vision of what a lead is, when and how a contact is created, what information needs to be contained in an account record and who puts what information into the CRM.

Defining the stages of an opportunity is also key to alignment success. Mutually agree on where the different pieces of information are kept and who inputs the information.

Goals – The sales and marketing teams’ goals must be aligned for optimal success. Most organizations do not have this – and their declining revenue shows it. Using the same metric to measure both teams will give you a clearer picture of what’s working and make it easier to align goals. A good strategy to employ is to measure by the marketing qualified leads (MQL) generated and the number of closed/converted MQLs.

Communicate

Failure to communicate is a primary cause of many relationship breakdowns – and the marriage of sales and marketing is not immune. Communication is vital to the success of the alignment. Marketing can notify sales when assigning new leads. They can create CRM notifications that list the prospects that are the most active. This will help them organize and focus their call list. It can also let them see how important marketing is. The efforts of each team do not need to be held in secrecy. Sharing ideas, inbound lead generation efforts, results and providing support will go a long way in building that bridge that will unite the two.

Support Each Other

Marketing and sales can work together to create campaigns that will optimize the efforts of both teams. By examining the leads that are passed to marketing yet are disqualified in one way or another, teams can create new campaigns that allow sales to revisit those leads and maximize success. Leads that were passed over because they simply were not ready are not bad leads, it just wasn’t their time. Create a process that cause those leads to be revisited. Same goes for leads that were working with a competitor at the time. These leads don’t need to be tossed out; they just need to be approached in different ways. And when marketing and sales work together, supporting each other, it opens up many more opportunities for both sides.

Remember, you’re on the same team!

No matter which side you are on, being at odds hurts you, your team and the overall function of the larger machine. Sales needs marketing and marketing needs sales - that’s all there is to it. Without marketing, sales would have to attract customers, nurture prospects and generate leads. Likewise, without sales, marketing would have to establish that customer relationship, close the sale and nurture customers.

Why do you think that those companies that aligned their sales and marketing teams experienced such impressive growth of their annual revenue? Because sales and marketing recognized that they are on a larger, much more important team – the Revenue Team. So from inbound lead generation to closing the sale, this alignment is a smart strategy. Go Revenue Team!

Sales and marketing alignment is a vital key to optimizing an organization's revenue. How does YOUR organization stack up? What effective strategies have you employed to unite your sales and marketing teams?

The Bottom Line

In order for sales and marketing alignment to be successful, both teams need to work together to:

• Get on the same page regarding:
  • Defining who their customer is
  • Establish definitions for specific terms
  • Determine common goals
• Communicate
• Support each other

Sales and marketing must come to recognize that they are on a larger, much more important team – the Revenue Team