How to stop the drama between sales and marketing so your profits can grow.
Smart entrepreneurs know what other business owners fail to grasp: marketing and sales are not the “dogs and cats” of commerce, natural combatants failing to benefit from working together. Learn to stop the drama between sales and marketing so your profits grow.
What’s the conflict?
Part of the problem goes back to the functions of both teams. Sales
is often the first point of contact with the public. Sales wants to lower prices so there’s more wiggle room for negotiating. Marketing wants to review trends and create programs for understanding which products give the biggest bang for the buck in the long term.
There’s also a perceived cultural conflict. Marketing digs into the numbers and the data while sales keeps in touch with the customer. Sales teams feel they do the heavy lifting of bringing in the money that keeps business going.
Communication is key
Healthy, productive companies know how to get a good flow of communication between marketing and sales teams. They do this in several ways:
- Marketing tempts the customer with a product strategy which helps the sales team convert leads into sales.
- When the sales team understands what drives the customer, that information gets passed on to marketing. Marketing creates campaigns incentivizing customers to buy the product or brand.
- Marketing can develop targeted campaigns for under-performing products that can help sales convert cold leads.
- Both marketing and sales teams feedback with each other on what’s working and what needs improvement.
With better communication, it’s a win-win for everyone.
