1. Map and align funnels
Assess your existing marketing and sales funnels and map out an ideal funnel that would eliminate gaps and enable better lead handoffs. This should be broken into clear phases with universally applicable definitions based on objective facts.
In practice, this means making your funnel as simple mexico reverse phone lookup as possible. Don’t create complicated exemptions for specific clients; don’t use Lifecyle stages and lead statuses: create a single, clear funnel that can be easily used by both teams for every client – and therefore enables individual sellers and marketers to become fluent with the system more quickly.
2. Create shared data sources
Map where each team’s performance is tracked and where customer data is held. Then reconfigure your systems – or, if necessary, migrate your entire CRM - to enable seamless sharing between departments. This is also a perfect opportunity to create a space for “shared insights”, where each team can provide feedback on content or customer insights to help the other refine their tactics.
3. Establish SLAs
Create a contract that codifies the expectations and responsibilities of both departments. This will not only document your shared definitions and goals, but it will also establish official lines of communication and deliverables on a weekly or monthly cadence.
Many organizations struggle to build trust between departments. In fact, 87% of the words sales and marketing teams use to describe each other are negative. However, a service-level agreement (SLA) helps to remove ambiguity from the relationship and ultimately build trust over time.
4. Set up regular lead reviews
Establish a regular cadence for lead reviews where sales and marketing will assess the current lead pipeline and measure them against your shared objectives. This is a vital practical step that makes alignment tangible and clear: is marketing generating and nurturing the right kind and volume of leads? Is sales following up and converting the best leads into deals and revenue?
If not, each department will need to reevaluate its strategy and tactics. But the message should never be “let’s try harder”: you need to put clear expectations in place and set a clear date when you will assess whether the new approach has improved performance.
Note: Lead reviews should be run by someone with authority across both departments. This “referee” will provide objectivity and ensure both parties feel their perspective is being considered.
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