In marketing and sales, we all know that there has historically been a disconnect between the two. For ages, there was not much that could be done about it, at least from a technological standpoint. Furthermore, getting both teams on board with company attempts at being organized often seemed fruitless and this phenomenon scaled with the size of the company. However, current times can be different…if the right elements are in place.
Getting on the Same Page
As we discussed, marketing and sales have an uncanny ability to operate out of step with the other. While this can become the norm, this can have disastrous effects on the success of the company. So, it is necessary for marketing and sales to communicate back and forth. As we all know, this can be much easier said than done, which is why we need two things in place to enhance our probability to succeed. The first element we need is methodology and the second element is technology.
Methodology has two aspects that make it beneficial. The first is that marketing and sales both view the market through the same lens and target the same demographics. Secondly, the methodology element allow marketing to create a process that successfully passes the torch onto the sales team. Having a solid methodology is one of the greatest sales tools that you can offer your sales team.
Buyer Personas
One of the most beneficial aspects of the methodology is the concept of buyer personas. When a company establishes buyer personas, both the marketing team and the sales team can become intensely focused on the outlined nature of the company’s target personas. Without buyer personas, marketing and sales can easily target different demographics. However, if the buyer personas become something that is talked about on a daily basis, then they will become a part of the company culture. Buyer personas becoming a part of the culture is really another way of saying, “our company culture is very focused on our target market.” The two go hand in hand, so if you have the buyer personas ingrained into the minds of your team, then you are focused.
Keeping Marketing and Sales Data Linked
Finally, the technology aspect needs to be in place. While the technology needs to offer marketing tools and sales tools, the important parameter is that they need to be integrated. Remember, we need to have sales and marketing communicating, but not just verbally. The data needs to also be synced to allow for a streamlined and seamless transition of the marketing torch to the salespeople.
There are several tools that do this. However, at Blue Phoenix Creative, we utilize HubSpot and manage this for our clients. We take the marketing aspect and pass seamlessly to our client’s salespeople. However, it is important to make certain that the process is seamless on both ends and for both users, meaning the sales team needs a seamless and timely transition of data and everything needs to feel natural to the customer/prospect.
For many years, sales and marketing have been out of step with each other. Everything from the mentality and methodology to the technological aspects have historically not fostered a spirit of cooperation and cohesiveness. Now, thanks to technology, this has been changing and everything is becoming more streamlined and consistent. So, it is worth the time it takes to setup your marketing and sales tools, as well as teach the correct methodology to your sales and marketing teams.
