RETHINKING SALES AND MARKETING ALIGNMENTHOW MARKETING WILL HELP CLOSE DEALS

Most organisations have already realised that traditional business unit divisions hinder more than they help and are now seeking to improve internal relationships between departments. For successful

alignment between Marketing and Sales, employees need to be empowered by technology. By using systems and technology that make data available across the organisation, businesses can:

Improve strategic decision-making,

leading to increased efficiency and effectiveness

Apply automation to improve

audience targeting, engagement and

conversion

Boost ROI and close more deals

Technology will improve the communication and collaboration between Marketing and Sales, but it can only act as a facilitator once employees in both departments have aligned their goals.

Highly aligned organisations achieved an average of

annual revenue growth, according to Aberdeen Group.

32%

Marketing and Sales departments should put in place shared processes to align on common revenue generation objectives:

Using the same buyer profiles

Developing an integrated messaging strategy, so content

and communication is consistent

Marketing and Sales departments should put in place shared processes to align on common revenue generation objectives:

Agree on common metrics and definitions, ensuring teams are

working towards the same goals

Marketing and Sales departments should put in place shared processes to align on common revenue generation objectives:

Marketing and Sales departments should put in place shared processes to align on common revenue generation objectives:

Define and agree the criteria for each stage of the sales funnel

and in particular, formally define a Sales-Ready Lead

Marketing and Sales departments should put in place shared processes to align on common revenue generation objectives:

Establishing SLAs, with shared commitments agreed upon for

monthly and quarterly goals

Marketing and Sales departments should put in place shared processes to align on common revenue generation objectives:

Create a process for handing-off leads - define the point at which the handover

happens and how much information each department needs

Marketing and Sales departments should put in place shared processes to align on common revenue generation objectives:

Share a pipeline so both departments have the same knowledge and understand

each other’s responsibilities

MARKETING AND SALES ALIGNMENT DELIVERING WHAT THE CUSTOMER WANTS

CRM systems are instrumental in helping to support the self-service, pre-sales activities of the modern customer.

Marketing is most likely to be the customer’s first point of contact making it crucial to furthering the sales process. Marketing will need to align with Sales by passing over the relevant customer

information and data, enabling Sales to have full visibility of the process and close the deal.

“Buyers agree that they navigate at least the top third and, at most, the first two-thirds of the sales cycle without sales.”– John Neeson, Managing Director, SiriusDecisions.

“Companies with “dynamic, adaptable sales and marketing processes” reported an average of 10% more sales people on-quota compared

to other companies.”

MARKETING AND SALES ALIGNMENT IMPROVED LEAD QUALIFICATION

Sales Directors often complain they get poor leads from marketing.

Marketing Directors complain Sales waste the leads they do get.

CRM can help reduce squabbles by:

Track MQL & SQL conversion throughout the sales cycle. Measure Marketing’s contribution to Sales and Sales effectiveness.

Sales-Qualified Lead (SQL): Define and agree what qualifies as an SQL, the lead management & ownership process thereafter.

Marketing-Qualified Lead (MQL): Define and agree the MQL qualification criteria and define the timeline to pass to Sales.

MARKETING AND SALES ALIGNMENT INCREASED AUTOMATION

The smoother the hand-off of leads from marketing to sales and the more efficient and defined the sales process is, the more effective lead conversion and deal management becomes. Research shows

that closer alignment between the two departments can lead to:

Sales becoming

better at closing deals

67%and generate

more revenue from Marketing.

209%

Using CRM, the Marketing department can:

Auto-score leads and use marketing automation to nurture prospects automatically.

Push the “hottest” leads to sales automatically.

Provide valuable insight on each prospects marketing response and activity prior to sales engagement.

MARKETING AND SALES ALIGNMENT NOT EVIL, BUT NECESSARY

Without closer alignment, lead conversion rates will never be fully maximised. Using technology to work more closely together will:

Boost Marketing’s contribution to Sales.

Marketing delivers measurable value.Enabling Sales to

focus on better quality leads.

Help your business enrich customer

experience.

TAKEAWAYS• Closer marketing and sales alignment has a

positive impact on revenue.

• Automation helps improve marketing operational efficiency and improves sales effectiveness.

• Leave no lead behind with automated nurturing. Improve lead quality with scoring.

• Marketing plays a critical part in delivering an exceptional customer experience through the sales cycle.

Discover how to boost your own lead conversion rates by downloading your free copy of

SALES, MARKETING AND IT: YOUR CROSS DEPARTMENTAL GUIDE TO DESIGNING A MARKETING OPERATIONS STRATEGY

DOWNLOAD NOW

SALES, MARKETING & IT:YOUR CROSS DEPARTMENTAL GUIDE TO DESIGNING A MARKETING OPERATIONS STRATEGY

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