"Leads" the starting point for a universal language between sales and marketing.
"Leads" the starting point for a universal language between sales and marketing.
There is no way sales and marketing work cooperatively if they disagree on basic terms, concepts, and definitions. If you ask a marketer and a salesperson to define a sales-ready lead and get two different answers, then it's time to nail down a company-wide set of definitions, that everyone can use to get on the same page and seal the language gap for good.
The lack of alignment between sales and marketing is an age-old problem that is often lamented, yet rarely solved. Interestingly, both sales and marketing say contention over leads is one of the top contributors to misalignment.
So: What is a lead?
In simple terms, a lead is an individual or organization with interest in what you are selling. The interest is expressed by sharing contact information, like an email ID, a phone number, or even a social media handle.
The definition seems so simple, that "what is a lead" doesn't seem like a question worth answering. Thus what is causing the most significant debate between marketing and sales?
For example, when a prospect expresses interest, fills out a form, downloads a white paper, or reaches out by phone, is he considered a lead? Is this consistent with what the sales team thinks a lead?
Marketers spend countless hours and dollars generating leads, but sales junk most of those leads. This is devastating for the business. No matter how one defines a lead, the business aim is the same – to increase the revenue. Therefore, it is essential to have both your marketing and sales team in sync with each other.
If concepts and terms are not aligned between salespeople and marketers, there will be missed opportunities, inconsistent reports, and overall uncertainty regarding whether everyone is working toward the same goal. So, get together with your teams, and work on clearly defined terms and concepts.
This is the starting point for the alignment process, and it is a critical way of increasing efficiency within your company. In conclusion, your teams need to define an ideal lead and have a proper qualification system. Only after both sides identified the common terms and concepts is it time to set the jobs and tasks between them.
How to do it?
Establishing and answering a robust set of collaboration questions, for example:
How many leads should be given to the sales team to ensure that each rep is efficient at all times?
How many sales qualified leads (SQLs) do every sales rep need to meet his/her target?
What kind of content has the most significant effect on leads?
With reliable answers to such questions, sales and marketing teams are ready to shake hands and pass to the next step:
Define the number of sales-ready leads marketing needs to drive to sales.
Establish the number of contacts the sales team needs to reach each month.
Define a list of information marketing needs to include with sales-ready leads to ensure that salespeople have everything to engage the leads effectively.
Establish what kind of data sales needs to record in the CRM system after engaging with leads to let marketing know what is working and what is not.
Yes, this is only the first step of the ladder to a complete marketing and sales alignment, but it is a starting point for a universal language between sales and marketing.
There are many other steps to avoid any miscommunication, like setting up regular meetings with structured agendas or making materials/data accessible for both teams, etc.
