B2B Monday Myth: Sales and Marketing Teams Are Born Adversaries
by MGB2B
The Myth: Sales and Marketing Are Born Adversaries
The Truth: Sales and Marketing Collaboration Leads to Higher Revenue
The Problem
Within many B2B companies there is a both sales team and a marketing team. But what you will rarely find is sales and marketing in a healthy relationship that ensures mutual success.
Why is this?
From the marketer’s perspective, their number one priority is to generate leads. They are the professionals when it comes to creating a campaign. Leads only get handed over to sales once they enter the buying process.
On the other hand, salespeople sometimes think that marketers are too far removed from customers and the business. How could they understand what’s involved in closing a deal?
Assumptions and doubt from both teams don’t help anyone. Often, one group thinks they could do a better job than the other. Add in different tactics, different mindsets, and varying timeframes, and you’re in trouble. What results is a relationship characterized by tolerance at best, and sales and marketing collaboration is not a priority.
What should happen instead?
The responsibilities within the buying process are often presented as a “funnel.” The very top and widest part of the funnel is buyer awareness, and the narrowest part at the bottom is the actual purchase. A marketing team focuses on top half of the funnel, identifying customer segments. They develop the branding and outreach that will resonate with these customers. Then, they circulate materials across relevant channels to get this message across. Responsibility stays with marketing through the “interest” phase of a customer’s process. Once a customer moves into “consideration” or “intent,” they get handed off to sales. At this point, the salespeople are entirely in charge of making a transaction happen.
The line where marketing efforts end and sales begin varies from company to company and is sometimes a little blurry. It’s clear that both teams integrate simply by the nature of their work. They both work to convert a lead into a sale, and some level of collaboration is necessary to make this handoff seamless.
But the key is that not only does the integration of sales and marketing need to be acknowledged. It needs to be capitalized on. If sales and marketing efforts are completely aligned, your company can improve sales substantially. In fact, the Digital Marketing Institute reported that sales and marketing collaboration potentially generate 208% more marketing revenue for a company and 36% higher customer retention.
So how can this be accomplished?
There are several steps you can take to ensure your marketing and sales efforts are aligned.
- Bridge the communication gap: It sounds cliche, but in this case, communication really is key. If sales and marketing aren’t communicating frequently and efficiently, valuable leads can get lost in translation. On the other hand, constant contact will ensure that both teams are up-to-date on what the other is doing. No one is left in the dark. It can also help each side to hold the other accountable for producing and accomplishing what they should, and making sure they report it correctly.
- Collaborate and socialize: In order to eliminate some of the negative assumptions sales has about marketing, or vice versa, it helps if both teams get to know each other. This doesn’t mean everyone has to become good friends, but genuine face-to-face conversations can create more authentic relationships and a better understanding of what everyone’s role is.
- Create uniformity: There are few things more effective than a consistent message. If sales and marketing are able to synchronize, their combined efforts will be much more powerful than either would be on its own. This may actually mean that some things cross over between the two groups. For example, marketing can adopt some of the quantitative metrics used by sales, and sales in return can use some of the more qualitative marketing techniques when it comes to retaining customers.
Sales and Marketing Collaboration – Mutual Success is Possible
You ultimately may not be able to eliminate all of the tension between your sales and marketing teams. Any two groups within an organization who operate under different strategies and perspectives are naturally going to butt heads every once in a while. But following these tips can help you begin to bridge the gap between two teams who are executing very important work for your company’s main goal.
Continue ReadingPutting Your Message in the Hands of Your Audience: A Case for Direct Mail
by Ben Quinn
The goal of a marketing campaign is to sell your products or services. But is also should convey that your company shares the same core values as your customer. The most impactful companies gain customer trust by providing real value to a persons life. So when considering your communication tools, don’t forget he benefits that traditional mail brings to the table.
Nearly two-thirds of consumers told the United States Postal Service they “value the mail” they receive in their mailbox.* Even millennials site paper as more trustworthy than digital documents.** There are real benefits to the tried and true vehicle of a well-executed direct mail campaign, even in this digital age. When a consumer gets something tangible in the mail, you send a message that transcends an email viewed via smartphone or desktop.
First, before the the piece is even opened, the consumer assumes they likely agreed to receive it. Second, using direct mail also reflects the company has gone the extra mile to print, package, and send the message through the employees of the mail service, as opposed to hitting “send.” And last, the consumer can’t simply hit delete. They need physically dispose of the piece themselves. And oftentimes the piece lingers on the kitchen counter – allowing more time for consideration.
The 40/40/20 Rule.
The benefits of using direct mail are all real advantages. The execution, however, is what makes or breaks how effective your direct mail piece is at affecting your bottom line. There are many components to a good direct mail campaign. Ed Mayer, a marketing expert from the sixties, developed a rule called the “40/40/20 rule.” It states that the first forty percent of your efforts should determine your audience. The next forty percent should focus on your offer that incentivizes a consumer to action. The last twenty percent should focus on the creative details of your piece, such as format, design, copy and structural delivery.
This tried and true formula for using direct mail worked in the sixties. Like a good pair of blue jeans, it still injects value and style to your overall brand even today. In an era where mail is declining, there is real opportunity to tell your audience that you want their business enough to make the effort that a direct mail piece represents. Using direct mail goes beyond “hitting send.” It conveys that what you have to say is important enough to put it in ink and paper. So when considering your overall marketing campaign, consider using direct mail and show your audience that you value their business to send them something tangible.
*Carrier, Joyce. The Power of Direct Mail. USPS Deliver Magazine, vol. 7 issue 6. Dec. 2011
**Millennial Paper Usage and Attitudes, TRU presented at Paper2011 sponsored by the American Forest & Paper Assn. and the National Paper Trade Alliance, March 2011
Other credits to Sappi Fine Paper North America’s “Act Now” 2013
Continue ReadingA Rose by Any Other Name? 4 Signs It’s Time To Rename Your Manufacturing Company
by Emily Swet
Is your B2B company suffering a failure to thrive? Don’t underestimate the power of your name. And when it comes to rebranding, don’t underestimate how detrimental a bad name can be, either. B2B companies are quick to list reasons why their businesses are stalling – limited marketing budgets, saturated markets, changing demands – but rarely do they associate a bad name with a stalled out company. It’s just a name, right? The thing is, even though you are selling to another business, you’re still marketing to another human being. And words have meaning. (You know, the whole pen mightier than the sword thing? Yeah, that.) So how do you know if it’s time to rename your manufacturing company? Here’s a cheat sheet.
4 Signs That It’s Time to Rename Your Manufacturing Company
- Your name is too plain. Basic names only work when you 1) are the first company in the field, and 2) have years to establish yourself, like General Electric. But imagine if a company like Amazon had been named GeneralOnlineRetailer.com. They would have been hard-pressed to stand out in the online boom of the 1990’s. (Amazon has an interesting naming story, by the by.) Take note of your competition and your standing before you choose a name like “Universal Plumbing Standards Corp.”
- Your name is meaningless to anyone but you. Initech, anyone? We understand that there are some names that have inside meaning or a rich personal history for your B2B company. But what does that mean to an outsider? It’s this logic that lead Quantum Computer Services to change their name to America Online, which directly translates their product and elicits an emotional response. Unless your name resonates your brand positively on an emotional or literal level, it’s just white noise.
- Your name is hilarious… and not in a good way. We’ll just glance at Analtech, who despite a near 50 year legacy, is rebranding to iChromatography – which not only explains what they do, but keeps those pesky web filters from blocking them in search.
- Your name is scandalous. It’s no surprise when a company like ValuJet has to rename and rebrand to AirTran after their crash in 1996. But if your business, innocently (and coincidentally) enough, happens to be called Lewinsky Auto Supply, it might suffer simply from association.
The right name for your brand will both value your heritage and leverage your position. Think it might be time for you to rename your manufacturing company? Drop us a line.
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