Here’s some good news in this perilous economic climate: The need to do more with less -- and faster -- is bringing sales and marketing teams together. More than a half of B2B companies are talking about aligning the two teams.
What does alignment mean in the real world? Sales and marketing teams working toward the same goal with shared resources and metrics -- that’s the heart of alignment. Easier said than done; the two groups operate on different time horizons. Sales cares about the next two quarters while marketing is focused on the next six to eight quarters.
Aligning sales and marketing requires a mindset change from scarcity of resources to be fought over to one of abundance achieved through partnership. Companies that take steps to integrate the activities, processes and structures of the two teams are seeing top-line results. Reinforcing the teamwork with a culture that values shared accountability and supporting the alignment with common technology platforms improves the bottom-line.
If you’re in marketing, and want to achieve alignment with sales, sparking that initial conversation can be daunting. The key to success is choosing who to talk to, and when.
Where’s the pain?
The right person needs to see that alignment is critical to grow in a tight economy. When sales and marketing have separate agendas, the CFO, the CEO, COO or the head of Sales might have the most to lose. Your best strategy for initiating that crucial initial conversation depends a lot on a leader’s style.
CFO (Chief Financial Officer)
noun
1. The direct impact of misalignment shows on the top- and bottom-lines. CFOs are loath to explain why Sales missed a quarter or why cost of sales is out of line.
2. If the CFO is sales- and marketing-savvy, he’ll be receptive to new ways to grow revenue by aligning the two teams.
CEO/COO (Chief Executive Officer/Chief Operating officer)
noun
1. The CEO always wants to increase revenue and understands how discord between sales and marketing negatively impacts the company’s culture and performance.
2. A CEO or COO can be a visible champion for change or a behind-the-scenes coach to help sales and marketing work together.
The key to getting the CEO’s or COO’s support is having a rock-solid business case.
Head of Sales (hêd)
noun
1. Accountable for generating revenue, the head of Sales is the most negatively impacted by misalignment. But to get on board, they have to see that Marketing adds value.
2. Marketers need to go into the conversation having done their homework and understand what a ‘day in the life’ of a sales person is like.
A strong business case that shows short-term pipeline benefits with minimal disruption to their organization is instrument in winning Sales’ support.
Engaging the head of sales in the alignment conversation requires a strategy that is tailored to their style and beliefs about Marketing’s value add. In general, sales’ style typically falls into one of three categories.
Thinker, Blamer or Junkie
Any pitch to align marketing and sales should focus on how it will produce more revenue and help both teams be more effective. Some sales leaders are thinkers, some are blamers and some are what we might call junkies.
The Thinker is a reflective leader, focused as much on the how and why as on the results. The business case for aligning sales and marketing will make sense to them and they are usually a receptive and collaborative partner. Thinkers want to understand the process, how it impacts their team, and when they can expect initial results.
- Start the conversation over lunch, during a social event or after a quarterly operational review meeting. Thinkers are open to new ideas, and can be appreciative and enthusiastic partners.
Case: The head of global sales for a multimillion-dollar private software vendor looked at root causes of pipeline behavior and wondered how to get more leads to convert into forecastable sales opportunities. The alignment discussion began as a casual conversation after routine pipeline meeting and centered on how to improve lead management, pipeline conversion and predictability. Brainstorming sessions followed between the head of sales and marketing to determine how they could align the teams, what the impact would be and what metrics would measure success. Specific tasks were assigned to field marketing, demand-generation and sales operations and changes were implemented in sales training, CRM system, campaign-reporting and lead-management.
Result: The Company decided to have the results of alignment speak for themselves instead of doing a big internal splash. Over the following 12 months the pipeline improved across all channels by 100 percent which was the result of tighter lead management process to reduce leakage, and better qualifying by business development and sales.
Blamers believe their teams are doing the best they can with their resources. When Sales miss revenue objectives, they think other parts of the organization didn’t do their part with marketing often to blame. To get on board, the Blamer needs transparent reporting on lead generation, handoff to sales and field sales programs. Transparent, consistent quality lead flow ultimately forces a blamer to adopt a new leadership style or move on.
- A formal initial conversation that includes other peers can be more effective than casually broaching the subject. A sound business case and visible support from the CFO and CEO encourage a Blamer to cooperate.
Case: A venture-funded software startup had a Blamer as sales leader. A competent leader dedicated to growing the company; they cared about their team and performance. But protectiveness bordered on paranoia, and no department escaped blame when revenue goals were missed. The initial conversation was broached by Marketing at lunch with the vice presidents of product management and customer service. Positioning alignment as something Marketing couldn’t accomplish without Sales, and sharing how the company benchmarked to industry comparatives was key to getting the conversation started. The Sales leader was interested but felt it was Marketing’s problem to solve. More formal meetings followed with the entire management team. Meanwhile, Marketing changed its internal processes, implemented formal lead-scoring and invited Field sales to participate in working sessions to define hand-off points and campaign plans.
Result: By collectively reviewing quarterly metrics on what worked and didn’t, management pressure tempered the Blamer’s style. Alignment progressed slowly because the sales leader wasn’t committed to alignment even though the Pipeline improved by 50%. The sales leader, unable to change their style and get onboard, ultimately left the company.
The Junkie is the consummate sales person. It’s all about the thrill of the deal, from the hunt to the close. A Junkie’s frustration with Marketing is often a belief that Marketing doesn’t understand how unproductive it is for sales teams to focus on anything but truly qualified leads.
Most Junkie sales leaders are not process-oriented, but are receptive alignment partners if they see the advantages. Their interest is in improving the pipeline and customer loyalty. Like the Thinker, the Junkie wants to understand the business case for alignment and how it impacts the teams.
- A casual conversation can effectively introduce the idea, but Marketing should expect to lead the effort and do most of the alignment work. The Junkie needs to be routinely briefed on what’s happening and next steps. If they see progress in the size of the pipeline and close rate, you could not ask for a more enthusiastic partner.
Case: A large privately held B2B professional services company had a Junkie in the sales leadership role. The conversation about alignment was initiated by Marketing after Sales had become unresponsive to Marketing’s requests and “shadow” marketing organizations had sprung up. New marketing leadership quickly realized they were going to fail if they could not re-engage Sales. One conversation happened at Sales Kick off and another after a pipeline meeting. The Junkie was receptive to the discussion when Marketing admitted that their current practices weren’t working and they were looking for Sales’ help to improve results.
Result: By laying out the business case along with target milestones for marketing generated pipeline, Marketing appealed directly to the Junkie’s need for more deals to close, faster through better quality leads.
And the winner is ...
The initial conversation opens the door for collaboration by touting the merits of alignment. But it takes preparation, regardless of the conversation style. Create a relevant context for sales, have the conversation and then define next steps to keep moving toward alignment.
Setting the right context is critical to success. Often Sales and Marketing are tunneled into their own agendas, not aware that they’re not working effectively together.
- Identify what Sales cares about most. Understand their compensation plan, objectives, metrics, strengths and weaknesses.
- Keep the conversation positive and forward looking, especially with a Blamer or a Junkie, and demonstrate sensitivity to sales’ hot points. Leave your ego at the door.
- Honestly benchmark Marketing’s performance on revenue-generating activities and commit to improvement. Showcase the changes Marketing has made to improve results, but leave the PowerPoint in your briefcase.
- Position your ideas on how sales and marketing can work better together in the context of achieving company goals. Talk through examples of how other companies achieved alignment and their results. Develop a business case for working together more effectively.
- Outline the major steps in the process and who should own them, but be conservative in your plans and expectations.
Timing is key. When Sales would be most receptive to discussing change is unique to the company’s situation and the style of sales leadership.
- Before engaging Sales, recruit your internal supporters and test-drive the conversation and business case with them. Keep the conversation simple.
- Roll-play the conversation with mentors to surface objections and develop effective responses.
- If there is currently mistrust between Sales and Marketing, begin to repair that by admitting Marketing and the relationships’ weaknesses.
- Then, pick the time and a neutral place.
Conclusion
The tension between Sales and Marketing comes from misunderstandings. The roles are different and each job is hard. Marketing can strengthen the company’s success through alignment by looking for ways to say ‘yes’ to sales’ needs. It’s Sales’ nature to need to see some results before endorsing changes. Being prepared, sensitivity to the Thinker, Junkie or Blamer‘s style will pay off. Alignment makes the best use of resources, bolsters the company’s bottom line and can create a new culture of cooperation that refreshes everyone who is working hard to succeed in difficult and frightening times.
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