GROWTH
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Complex reds. Crisp whites. Even a summertime blush. Wine is
among the finer things in life. But it's also a big business,
requiring great skill in international trade law, marketing, and
sales, not to mention a discerning palate. This ambiguity can set
up a battle between the sales and marketing teams. They have
different ideas about allocation of resources, client interactions,
and company procedures. A business can't function at its peak if
there's internal conflict.
YPO member Kathy Lim Sheehy appreciates life's complexities,
in wine and in business. She runs The Straits Wine Company,
the largest retailer and distributor of wine in Southeast Asia.
Sheehy believes one of the strongest aspects of her company is
the supportive collaboration between her sales and marketing
teams. Instead of treating them as departments with competing
goals, Sheehy created an atmosphere where sales and marketing
understand they can do more together than apart.
Here's what Sheehy has found sales and marketing departments
don't get about each other:
1. THEIR GOALS ARE NOT DIFFERENT
People often refer to their sales and marketing departments as
"teams." But Sheehy believes the only team that matters is the
company as a whole. While sales and marketing play different
roles on the company team, both are integral to victory. She
knows this doesn't come naturally, saying, "If you speak to most
sales and marketing groups, they feel they have different
objectives." She issues a warning: "Sales people think marketers'
only job is to get them leads. Marketers want salespeople to
stick to the script and nothing else. Both are losing ideas."
Sheehy says, "Both groups must pursue the same goal: driving
sustainable, repeatable revenue." The two departments must
understand the finish line is the same. Communicate this early
and often.
2. THEY NEED EACH OTHER
Sheehy understands that each department has unique
specialties and needs. She explains, "Marketing people have
great ideas and develop compelling content to communicate the
branding of the product. What they need is information about
the market and the client." Meanwhile, she says, "Sales teams
are focused on selling and meeting shorter-term sales targets.
They have little time to think of conversation starters and
content to help them connect with clients." Encourage your
departments to focus on how they can meet each other’s
needs. The key is making them understand that neither will
achieve without the other. If sales and marketing don't work
together, everybody loses. The relationship is actually quite
symbiotic!
3. THEY CAN PRODUCE CONTENT TOGETHER
The best content is collaborative. Sheehy says, "Sales people
need to understand the value of content—it creates
conversations and helps them come across well-prepared and
knowledgeable." At the same time, "Marketers need to
understand that sales people need to build their own unique
brand in front of their clients and build a genuine
relationship." Sheehy suggests, "Have them work together on
research and pitching for individual clients. Forming creative
messaging, concepts, and content directed to a specific client
can create a better narrative and open doors to more leads." So
once sales and marketing realize how much they need each
other, constantly build that relationship.
4. CLIENTS CAN TELL WHEN THEY DON'T GET
ALONG
Sheehy believes that the internal relationship between sales
and marketing is critical to the external relationship between
the company and the client. She says, "Clients are changing by
the day, and have lots of content and information thrown at
them. Modern clients are looking for authenticity, purpose,
and trust. They can always sniff out internal discord." A
company can't form trust with a client if their internal groups
don't trust each other.
5. SHARING REALLY IS CARING
Sheehy focuses on what is shared between sales and
marketing. The goal is the same, each department has what
the other needs, and one can't succeed without the other.
Sheehy says this should be reflected in corporate policy,
saying, "Both departments should be measured based around
pipeline and sales." She goes on to explain, "By setting the
precedence for sharing information, responsibility, and
outcomes between departments, alignment and
communication will become ingrained in the culture." So,
share successes and failures, because when one department
fails, the other follows.
Kevin Daum is the bestselling author of Video Marketing for Dummies and ROAR! Get Heard
in the Sales and Marketing Jungle; and columnist for Inc.com and Contributing Editor at
Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO). Mr. Daum is an Inc. 500 CEO, with more than $1
billion in sales record, who grew his online audience from 50,000 followers to more than
800,000 in less than 18 months. For more Kevin, go to KevinDaum.com.
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