This post continues on our blog theme of helping sales and marketing work better together….

In many organizations marketing and sales are disconnected. And in many organizations, these two teams are not just disconnected, they are often working at odds or in misalignment, to the detriment of both. Sales often expresses disappointment at the volume or quality of leads delivered by the marketing team, while the marketing team is frequently frustrated by what they see as a lack of sales initiative.  Neither situation is ideal for the organization, but luckily it seems that the landscape is improving.

A recent Telverde survey of sales executives  found that the gap separating sales from marketing is narrowing (62% of respondents state the two are aligned at their companies, with 18% going so far as to say they are very much aligned).  The survey further found that  75% + of respondents said the marketing leads they receive are “good” or “excellent”, and more than 90% of respondents feel that marketing understands the products or services they are selling.

What is the biggest area of improvement? Communication!  In organizations in which marketing teams are aligned with sales – or are part of the same organization – it’s much easier to open up channels of communication to ensure that key information is disseminated, and that the right colleagues are looped into critical conversations at the right time.  So it’s critical in other organizations where marketing and sales are more silo’d to hold regular meetings and conversations, as well as include members of both constituency in project planning.

When each group understands the needs, goals and challenges of the other, it’s much easier to move forward in reaching the sales and marketing goals that are shared by both.

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