Why you don't need a unified revenue team to align marketing and sales...
Most of the time, marketing and sales teams aren't misaligned because they're not part of the same team.
π They're misaligned because they have different goals and incentives.
Marketing is incentivized to generate leads. Sales is incentivized to close deals and these two goals are often at odds with each other.
Marketing bloats the top of the funnel with low cost, low quality leads. Sales canβt sell to these leads so they chase their target through existing customer upsell and renewal.
The solution to this problem is not to merge the two teams into one. Sure, that may help in some instances but that can create chaos as well.
An easier solution is to align the goals and incentives of the two teams.
Here is how I do this:
π° Set shared revenue goals. This will help to ensure that marketing and sales are working towards the same thing.
β What are the company's overall revenue goals?
β Sales needs to have a target and so does marketing.
β Make sure all agree on the goals before any tactical planning begins.
π― Create a shared revenue funnel. This will help to ensure that leads are being qualified and nurtured effectively.
β What is the methodology and criteria for qualifying leads?
β At what point are leads routed to the sales team?
β How will you track lead progression?
Having a shared vision of the funnel that maps to the buyer journey will help to ensure that both marketing and sales are on the same page.
π Measure the teams together based on revenue, not leads or deals independently.
β Look at the same data consistently, communicate insights on a regular basis.
β Set up a weekly βin the weedsβ meeting to review data.
β Create a monthly funnel review with leadership.
β Deliver cross-functional insights quarterly and socialize your progress.
Itβs important you follow these steps in this order:
π° Revenue is the goal and each team carries a target
π― Define and agree on how you will reach that target
π Measure your progress consistently and over communicate
You donβt need a unified team to generate revenue. A highly aligned sales and marketing org that puts alignment as a top priority and philosophy is just as effective.
Most of the time, marketing and sales teams aren't misaligned because they're not part of the same team.
π They're misaligned because they have different goals and incentives.
Marketing is incentivized to generate leads. Sales is incentivized to close deals and these two goals are often at odds with each other.
Marketing bloats the top of the funnel with low cost, low quality leads. Sales canβt sell to these leads so they chase their target through existing customer upsell and renewal.
The solution to this problem is not to merge the two teams into one. Sure, that may help in some instances but that can create chaos as well.
An easier solution is to align the goals and incentives of the two teams.
Here is how I do this:
π° Set shared revenue goals. This will help to ensure that marketing and sales are working towards the same thing.
β What are the company's overall revenue goals?
β Sales needs to have a target and so does marketing.
β Make sure all agree on the goals before any tactical planning begins.
π― Create a shared revenue funnel. This will help to ensure that leads are being qualified and nurtured effectively.
β What is the methodology and criteria for qualifying leads?
β At what point are leads routed to the sales team?
β How will you track lead progression?
Having a shared vision of the funnel that maps to the buyer journey will help to ensure that both marketing and sales are on the same page.
π Measure the teams together based on revenue, not leads or deals independently.
β Look at the same data consistently, communicate insights on a regular basis.
β Set up a weekly βin the weedsβ meeting to review data.
β Create a monthly funnel review with leadership.
β Deliver cross-functional insights quarterly and socialize your progress.
Itβs important you follow these steps in this order:
π° Revenue is the goal and each team carries a target
π― Define and agree on how you will reach that target
π Measure your progress consistently and over communicate
You donβt need a unified team to generate revenue. A highly aligned sales and marketing org that puts alignment as a top priority and philosophy is just as effective.
