TEC DE MONTERREY
Did you know that only 21% of sales and marketing teams work in alignment? And for those who do, their sales strategy is 3 times more effective, since they use an inbound methodology, according to the State of Inbound 2017 report in Latin America made by Hubspot.
Regardless of the size of the company, there is a great discussion between the sales and marketing departments, since when the results of an organization are not as expected, there is a debate between the quality of the leads generated and their follow-up. For this, it is important to ensure that the teams in these areas work as a team and below we will tell you how.
To start, you need to know the differences between a lead qualified by marketing (MQL) and a lead qualified by sales (SQL):
The marketing prospect is a potential client who meets the sociodemographic characteristics of the target to whom the advertising strategy is directed and has carried out some action of value within your media, for example, sent a form through the website, left your contact or asked for reports.
A lead for the sales area meets more specific characteristics of your ideal buyer, who must have the means to acquire your product or service, and be an authorized person to make purchasing decisions.
Sales and marketing team setting goals
Why is it difficult for companies for marketing and sales departments to work as a team?
One of the main reasons is because both teams have different priorities. On the one hand, the Marketing team is concerned about converting contacts into sales opportunities, and the Sales area about closing deals; however the objective is the same: to seek the growth of the company.
To achieve a true integration of both departments, here are the following tips:
Although the concerns of the marketing and sales teams are different, it sets the business objectives of the company together to avoid disputes between departments and to create a culture of cooperation.
Once the shared goals are defined, establish Service Level Agreements (SLAs). This is an agreement that defines the responsibilities and expectations of each team, so that they become visible and measurable, for example, you can define the specifications of the leads that will go from marketing to sales and the follow-up process that will be given to them. close a business or a sale.
Constantly update your buyer persona as a team, since consumer trends constantly change, therefore, your customers do too. Although it seems like a specific job in the marketing area, it will be quite enriching to take into account the contributions of the commercial area. The most advisable thing is to review and adjust the characteristics of your target every six months. If you have not yet defined your buyer persona, it is important to start there, prepare a document in which you can land the specific behaviors and characteristics of your ideal client to be clearer when it is a good lead or sales opportunity.
Finally, using technological tools could be a good ally that allows you to automate the follow-up processes for potential clients in each area, in this case, it is advisable to hire or create a CRM that meets your needs.
As you already realized, the most important point is to work together on the commercial objectives and define the follow-up processes to reach an agreement on the qualification of leads between the marketing and sales departments. Most companies work separately with these two departments, it is worth making an effort to align them.
* With information from Hubspot, NEO Magazine and Semrush.
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