Aligning People: Aligning Marketing and Sales
Irina Kronmüller
Architecting resilient teams for the exponential age | Culture, Operating Model, Skills | Future of Work | Marketing & Sales | DE&I | Futurist
Marketing & Sales Are Misaligned
Product and Marketing Are Misaligned ....
Ever since I started in marketing, every role I've taken had this recurring challenge, I had to tackle.
Did I always do it right? No. I had some “interesting” and not-so-fun escalations, which left a bitter taste. The bitterness didn’t come from not agreeing on a way forward but from feeling I could have done better, but I didn’t. The challenge surpassed my ability to respond. I couldn’t respond in a way that was satisfactory to me, my values, my own expectations.
So I looked for a solution and found one, that works ( for me since 2016) and I truly believe in.
Here’s my recommended approach.
1. Let’s agree on 3 core beliefs that apply to everyone:
2. Cut through the generalization. There is no misalignment between sales and marketing but between people. Knowing Ana isn’t aligned with John or Gina makes things clearer and easier.
Online recommendations about how to tackle misalignment often tire me: align the customer journey, goals, funnel, etc. Most are true, but we aren’t there yet. This should be common practice. NEVER plan in isolation, without validating assumptions and getting everyone on board, unless you’re a one-person company.
3. For the solution, build a connection.
Ask yourself: Do you know the other person? Their context? Beliefs? Concerns? Aspirations? Reasons for their decisions?
Start there. Ask questions, inquire, and listen. Get to know them. Build a connection. Have a real talk.
You don’t need to be best buddies. Be real! Show trust, respect, and appreciation, and see them for who they are, not who you think they are.
领英推荐
Once you have a real connection, you can plan on how to use all the frameworks and solve challenges. Once you have a real connection, you will be seen and heard as well. It’s a two-way street.
THE COMMON OBJECTION
I keep hearing: “But I’ve done everything right. I follow the goals, update them, invite them to meetings, ask for feedback. They don’t do anything.”
If you’ve done everything “right” but still got no answer, remember “right” is subjective. You have an unsolved challenge affecting your mood and performance, leading to more complications. “Give up the illusion that other people will take care of your challenge just because you think they caused it.” – Fred Kofman, Conscious Leadership.
WORKING ON THE MINDSET AND SKILLS
Real conversations aren’t common today, especially at work. It’s uncomfortable; sometimes we lack the confidence, self-awareness, and language for it.
Want to start with something useful? “Conscious Business: How to Build Value Through Values” from Fred Kofman is the bible of my work life. This foundational book gives you the tools to start building consciousness in attitudes, behaviors, and responses, allowing you to navigate work and life and achieve satisfaction and fulfilment.
LOOKING FOR A SPARING PARTNER
Need to talk about aligning teams, building teams, and achieving success and satisfaction? I’m here to listen, drop me a message.
#teamperformance #buildingteams #connectingpeople #alignment
??Sales & Revenue Growth Expert | Empowering Businesses to Improve Sales Processes and Maximise Growth | Fractional Consultant
9 个月Great post! To address alignment properly, it needs to be established from the beginning and maintained as an ongoing process, not as an overarching structure that sits unused. It's better to think of alignment on each project or campaign rather than overall sales and marketing alignment. Even companies with generally aligned teams can have campaigns or projects where alignment completely slips. Too many companies operate in silos and then try to align later, which often means undoing previous work. This can make people feel like their efforts are wasted. It's people first, then data and tech after you have alignment. However, if you read everything on LinkedIn, most content suggests it's the tech or data first, simply because that suits their product.
Alignment between sales and marketing is important for success.?
Team Architect & Strategic Clarity Coach | We make life easier for busy leaders by helping them build self-sufficient teams | Aidra.ai Founder and CEO | ex-Deloitte
9 个月Very good point, Irina Kronmüller. It does start with personalities. And it also needs to be addressed on a team level. The questions you shared should be answered by teams as well: Do we know the other team's priorities? How aware are we of their roadblocks? Are we helping them reach our common goal?
Shaping B2B Tech Marketing Teams for Growth | Fractional CMO, Consulting & Interim
9 个月It′s so important to build strong personal relations, and informal networks can be so strong if you know the right people in the organization and how to work with them. This is especially true in larger organizations.