SALES INSIGHTS
HOW TO BUILD A
SALES PROCESS THAT WORKS
BY : ANDY BUYTING
M
Most companies have a marketing and sales department , and they are often operated as two separate entities . More often than not , these two teams don ’ t work together as effectively as they could . Sales expects marketing to support them with brochures , pamphlets and a functional website . Marketing expects sales to close on the leads they generate . However , if you want to build a sales process that is cost-effectively producing results , you really need to look at marketing and sales as one entity , process , and strategy . Here at Tulip Media , we call it “ SMarketing .” SMarketing is the integration of sales and marketing into a business strategy that works .
Your sales and marketing strategy starts when you spend your first dime to attract a new lead , and it continues all the way until someone signs a contract and starts paying you . The sales and marketing process shouldn ’ t be operated in two separate silos — it ’ s one process , not two . The best way to go deeper into this is to think of your sales and marketing operation as a single business development assembly line . Let me explain .
We are familiar with Henry Ford because of the automobile , but
Henry Ford didn ’ t invent the automobile ; he invented the assembly line that made the automobile cheaper and easier to assemble . By doing this , he made the car accessible to more people because he could reduce the cost of building it . Before Ford , vehicles were crafted by craftsmen . The craftsmen would build the car step by step , which ended up taking a lot of time and being expensive . Ford intervened in the process , and instead of having the same people do every step , he dedicated technical experts to each stage of the build . An engine expert would put the engine in . A steering wheel expert would mount the steering wheel . This stepwise expertise allowed the car to be manufactured faster , better , and cheaper . Later , machines replaced certain aspects of the Ford assembly line , making it even more efficient .
So , the question then becomes , how can we create a sales and marketing business development assembly line that allows us to do everything faster and with better results ? Most sales teams these days are expected to handle every step in the process rather than focusing on the single step they are good at . Often sales and marketing is done much like the craftsmen process
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