Aligned to Achieve

Chapter 1Why Align?

What are the topics of conversation around your office? That most likely depends on whom you talk to.

From sales reps, you probably hear complaints about low-quality leads or those that take too much nurturing to move through the sales funnel. They likely also complain that the marketing department's content does not work or is not granular enough for the specific targets, situations, or markets the sales team encounters. For example, maybe your sales reps come back from an event griping that a competitor's booth was larger, had more of a crowd, or looked better. Maybe they argue that the organization's marketing message isn't differentiated or compelling enough for them to turn opportunities into action, or that marketing is simply out of touch with the customer's needs. Your sales reps might even wonder out loud why the organization is focused on one market instead of targeting the obvious opportunity in another market.

When you talk with marketers, you probably hear their dismay that the sales department doesn't appreciate the volume of leads marketing generates and that they are too slow to follow up on hot prospects. Your marketers might mention that the content they're creating isn't being used at the right times, or at all. Maybe they express their frustration with sales reps who are too aggressive in meetings or who get preferential treatment for hitting their numbers. Maybe marketers complain there's never enough budgeted for them to keep up with ...