It’s a perennial challenge, isn’t it?

Everyone else in an organisation knows they need marketing, but they don’t know what it is (really) or why they need it.

In fact, I’m going to rephrase that and say, the ORGANISATION has designated a number of marketing jobs, and the other employees (& leaders) don’t really know what they do or the value they deliver.

If you’re in sales, results are clear… deals.

Right?

Not necessarily.

In reality, someone can bring in lots of deals that don’t make the organisation any margin – and it take a while to figure that out.

So that’s one function of strategic marketing – to work out where sales should be directing its efforts to produce not just revenue, but margin targets.

And sales could also be bringing in lots of deals, yet market saturation will be reached in a year or two.

So strategic marketing can also work out market capacity and potential so that sales doesn’t come to a shuddering halt as saturation is reached.

And sales could also be bringing in deals that are easy to close, but depart from the company’s strategic direction, and disappoint the expectations of the stock markets, and damage the company’s share price.

So marketing can help, either by increasing awareness of the company in its desired target markets to help sales development, or by focusing publicity on the ‘right’ sales successes to give the impression of ‘correct’ strategic direction even though those non-strategic sales are still helping boost revenues.

You get my drift.

It’s a symbiosis.

And it’s not hard to understand the value.

So is ‘awareness’ useful to sales and commercial development?

Well… think about when you are considering buying something on a personal level. Don’t you find yourself reluctant to buy if you not aware of a brand or a company? Don’t we all hesitate as the thought of ‘Who are they… I haven’t heard of them’ goes through our heads?

So, yes… awareness is key.

And that’s what marketing does. Sales certainly doesn’t do it.

Alright – so how many of us in marketing are connecting successfully (not subserviently, but as equals) with our sales and commercial colleagues and making sure we all understand how the two disciplines work together… how they are interdependent?

How many of us in sales (yep – that’s me too!) say to ourselves, ‘I know what I need from marketing’. For me, I can answer that because I have a foot in both camps – expertise and experience in both.

If you’re in sales, you don’t know how to do marketing. If you’re in marketing, you’re not a sales expert.

Get used to it. Your limitations of experience.

Cut the arrogant dismissiveness – both ways round!

The answer is respectful co-operation.

Sounds easy, but it’s hard in practice.

And the responsibility for marketing is to get out their with sales (& commercial, & operations) to communicate better, be clearer, make the time to get the message across.

Again, sounds easy, harder in practice.

But the dividends if you get it right are enormous.

I hope you find these bulletins entertaining. I’m happy to discuss all relevant engagements – from customer community creation, to directorial mentoring, to strategy development, to thought-leadership content development, to full campaign structuring and management, and more.

Do get in touch!