S Marketing: when Sales and Marketing meet

For some time now, the term S Marketing has often been mentioned . identifies the alignment of the Sales and Marketing teams around a common goal in order to improve the efficiency of processes and, consequently, increase the earnings of the company of which they are an integral part. Marketing and sales have always been two sides of the same coin, that of profit, however in everyday life they often diverge. The first focuses its work around the creation of strategies aimed, for example, at defining the reference target or creating dedicated promotions; the second, on the other hand, typically deals with the management of the customer portfolio and the relationship with the latter (CRM). So how to establish effective communication between the two teams? leads S Marketing and Inbound Marketing S Marketing is a fundamental component for the success of an Inbound strategy since it plays a central role in what we call the Close phase , i.e. the phase in which a lead becomes an actual customer. After transforming users into leads, through the sharing of relevant content that has aroused their interest, the Marketing team is able to pass only quality leads to the Sales team, i.e. those who have left their data to be contacted and who they are more likely to become customers of your company. Without constant synergy and selection, the Sales team would risk focusing only on all contacts, rather than on leads that will be easier to convert. leads S Marketing: 4 best practices 1 . Common goals Aligning the two teams around the same goal is crucial. For example, the goal shared by the Marketing and Sales of a consulting firm could be the acquisition of new clients . 2 . Marketing Pipeline = Sales Quota The collaboration between the two teams must be complementary: if the Sales team cannot count on the Marketing team to obtain quality leads, then the two departments are not working together effectively and productively for the company. 3 . Constant communication Marketing and Sales must be able to update and align themselves on the results obtained . That’s why organizing weekly joint meetings can be a great idea! In this way, each team will be kept up to date on the status of the work not only of its own members, but also of those of the other team, making changes of course with respect to the decisions taken at the start if necessary. 4 . Update of buyer personas The moment a strategy changes, your target also changes: the buyer personas . In fact, it is important to always keep everyone updated on new developments and any changes to be made. In particular, the contribution of salespeople, who are in daily contact with customers or prospects, can provide confirmations or new information to integrate the buyer personas, and on the other hand, the marketing team will be able to provide a guideline thanks to reflections on the target to better select interactions with new prospects. “Companies with strong Sales and Marketing alignment get 20% annual revenue growth.” – 2010 study by Aberdeen Group Whether you are a large company or an SME, the S Marketing concept can be applied to any type of organization . In a medium-small company it is possible to refer to the Marketing and Sales managers, in a medium-large one instead it is possible to choose managers within the individual teams to scale processes and improve alignment.