Good Things Happen When Sales and Marketing Are Integrated

In an ideal world, sales and marketing would be integrated and work together to drive revenue.

In the real world, sales and marketing are like cats and dogs – sometimes they get along and sometimes they don’t. Rather than work together, they operate in silos with little communication or cooperation. Teams may feel frustrated and even criticize each other.

Marketing is convinced that the sales team lacks follow-through and does not capitalize on the leads they are given. The sales team feels that marketing generates low-quality leads that are off-target and nearly impossible to convert.

Like the distrust between cats and dogs, the disconnect between sales and marketing is nothing new. Fortunately, many companies have realized that this disconnect hurts performance and are working on ways to improve communication and cooperation between the two functions.

Even more significant are the companies working to fully integrate their sales and marketing functions in order to improve efficiency and propel growth.

Good Things

The integration of sales and marketing occurs when marketing and sales teams work together to identify and attract a target audience and convert those people into paying customers.

When teams are fully integrated, good things happen:

• The exchange of useful customer insight and data is enhanced. This exchange empowers both teams to make informed decisions, refine strategies, and develop targeted campaigns that resonate with the intended audience.
• Customers have a cohesive experience during each stage of the buying journey. As leads are passed on to sales the transition appears seamless to customers.
• Efficiency improves when sales and marketing are integrated. In addition to facilitating communication, sharing resources such as a CRM, analytics tools, and data saves both time and money.

None of these “good things” should be thought of as ends in themselves. Rather, they are the means to end – sales and revenue growth. Integrated sales and marketing functions create the conditions that propel businesses toward sustainable success.

To learn more about integrated sales and marketing click here . When you’re ready to implement your own integration plan the team at NWI Business Solutions is here to help.