One of the most challenging aspects of a successful
inbound marketing strategy may be getting your marketing and sales departments aligned so you are working together, rather than against each other. Your sales department may feel they are more critical because they close deals and put money in the bank; where are they getting their leads? The inbound marketing process relies on nurturing potential customers along
the buyer’s journey and continuing to delight them after they have become customers. It would stand to reason then that sales and marketing have to work together. Here are some Inbound marketing tips to help you get your sales and marketing teams aligned.
1. Meet with the sales managers to discuss goals and processes.
It’s hard to align your marketing and sales teams if you don’t know what their goals are, the challenges they face and the processes they use. You may have some of the best ideas ever for a great inbound marketing campaign, but if they don’t meet up with what the sales department has to accomplish, neither of you will reach your goals.
2. Ask for the sales team’s input.
Your sales team most likely spends real time with the people you are most wanting to attract with your inbound marketing strategies. They can be a wealth of knowledge for you if you ask them questions to learn what excites people about your business, what are some of the most common questions they ask and what are their biggest concerns, to name a few. Asking for input from your sales doesn’t only arm you with great information upon which to develop your strategies, it also helps to foster goodwill. If the sales team feels they matter to your marketing department, they are more likely to align with you.
3. Co-ordinate your efforts and ensure sales has access to vital information.
Since your efforts bring leads that sales will be responsible for converting to sales, it is critical that your salespeople know what your current offers are and what content you’re promoting. There is nothing more embarrassing than having a customer say they want the offer they saw and the person in sales has no clue what they are talking about. Not only will this cause a rift between marketing and sales, it will promote a lack of professionalism to your potential customers. Make use of collaboration software so you can keep everyone in the loop.
These are just a few ways to align sales and marketing so you can maximize the overall effect of your inbound marketing efforts. It can be a challenge in the beginning because sales is likely used to operating autonomously but when done successfully, you create a synergy that will produce numbers that make your bosses sit up and take notice.
