If you are a marketing manager at a company that uses direct sales representatives, these people can be either your best friends or worst nightmare. Chances are they are somewhere in between, but the point is they can make your life easier, or they can be a constant source of irritation. In fact, careers can be shortened when marketing and sales don’t work together in a productive manner.   

The fact is, marketing and sales have always had an interdependent relationship. Each department depends on the other for its success, yet they are each quick to point fingers at the other when things aren’t going well. So how do we fix this situation and create an enjoyable and productive working environment between the two groups?  The following steps are essential in establishing a productive working relationship between marketing and sales departments:

 1.    As a marketing manager, you must take full responsibility for the success of your part of the end-to-end process.

2.    Sales managers, and also sales reps, should be brought into the design phase of the program. They must feel that their input receives full consideration and they must buy into any changes before they are implemented.

3.    Salespeople should feel that the system rewards them for cooperation. The best reward is for them to be able to make more sales with no extra effort. Show them how the system rewards them for working smarter, not harder. Never institute a new system at the same time you take any negative action (such as cutting sales territories), or you will permanently link the two events in the minds of the sales department. You must keep everything positive.

4.    Feedback loops should be put in place. Sales reps must always be kept abreast of changes and upgrades in the end-to-end process. Likewise, you should regularly solicit their input on how the process is working.

5.    You must get agreement on the technical aspects of the lead-to-sales system. The ideal structure will combine a great deal of flexibility for field sales reps with maximum control by the marketing department (not the other way around), and ensure that relevant information about all prospects will be captured. You must always remember that all prospect and customer data belongs to the company, and not to the individual sales rep. 

6.    Sales and marketing must agree on what constitutes a good lead, because this definition will drive much of the marketing department’s efforts. The criteria for what constitutes a hot lead or qualified lead forms part of the basis for a service level agreement (SLA) between the marketing and sales departments.

By the way, I am speaking on this subject Feb 4th, at a complimentary Webcast sponsored by ArcherPoint (www.archerpoint.com). Here is a link to the event: http://bit.ly/8nXMcd.  You can also find more information about B2B marketing at www.fusionmarketingpartners.com.