Aligning Sales and Marketing

Transcription

1 Aligning Sales and Marketing BY STEPHANIE BARTON VP, MARKETING AND STRATEGIC ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT FCC SERVICES Marketing and sales don t always work hand in hand. Sales and marketing have long been siloed. In practice, though, sales and marketing need to work in tandem, aligning their roles and goals to ensure that revenue generation is clearly the responsibility of both teams. Misalignment can significantly impact revenue with lost sales and wasted marketing dollars. However, organizations willing to spend the time to get their sales and marketing teams on the same page show tremendous wins. According to the Digital Marketing Institute, Organizations that successfully align sales and marketing achieve 36% higher customer retention and 38% higher win rates. Today, it is critical to assess whether your connection to the customer is desirable, memorable and shareable (yes, this means around the community literally and digitally). To better align your sales and marketing efforts, we recommend the five Cs of Collaboration: Culture and C-Suite,, Channels and Connections. We can adjust our thinking to learn from the new customer mindset. The questions on the right can help you get started. Culture and C-Suite You always start at the top. The first step in aligning sales and marketing teams takes commitment at the C-level of the company, then an agreement with your marketing and sales leaders. Involve sales in your content development. For sales professionals looking to engage customers and convert sales, relevant and highquality content has proven more effective than promoting products. Channels Capitalize on the customer journey to serve them with the right information, on the right channels, at the right points in the sales process. Start with the target customer when customer goals and challenges are well-understood, you can deploy messaging in an aligned fashion on all your channels, including internal communications. Connections Make meaningful connections from your products and services to the customer. Rethink lead generation and replace it with meaningful conversations and relevant experiences. Mapping your customer journey from prospect to loyal customer creates understanding regarding the connections and experiences you need to develop. Culture and C-Suite Do your senior leaders understand the importance of sales and marketing alignment? Do marketing and sales leaders meet regularly to discuss goals, objectives, and messaging? Are you developing pushy content in coordination with your sales team? that pushes potential customers closer to their buying decision? Do your marketers know from a sales perspective what is working to win and retain customers? Channels Are your sales people taking advantage of your digital media channels? Do your channels and campaigns help answer customers questions and concerns along each step in the customer journey? Are you capitalizing on the content assets you have - sales team industry expertise, customer testimonials and case studies, etc.? Connections What is your process for handling leads? Do your sales leaders agree with this approach? What is the journey with your organization from prospect to loyal customer? How can you encourage and support your loyal customer advocates help connect you to other prospects?

2 Calendars - Internal and External Communications BY KAREN MACDONALD MARKETING CONSULTANT Generation In order to have a content plan or calendar, you first need to know what content you have or can access. can come from a variety of avenues. Company Updates Financial results quarterly and annually Patronage payments Board elections, officer elections New hires/promotions Customer appreciation events Photo and recipe contests Scholarship programs Industry and Community Activities State and County Fairs Industry conferences 4H/FFA participation Volunteer days Job fairs Planting and harvest Thought Leadership and Education Executive/Subject matter expert articles Employee speaking engagements Association programs promote them! Customer stories and testimonials Celebrations and Observances National holidays Relevant recognition days/weeks/months (i.e., today is Hot Fudge Sundae Day) Internal Communications Company announcements tell your employees first Company events Open enrollment New hires/departures Policy changes CEO messages Awards and recognition Committee activity Curation There is a lot of content out there in the world, and if you have the time and inclination to search for it, you can find opportunities to share relevant content. TweetDeck consolidates and organizes your Twitter streams so you can search for retweetables Farm Credit Daily News, industry publications/websites find relevant articles and tweet/link to them Farm Credit Associations follow your colleagues for content and ideas

3 Scheduling Once you have your content, it s time to determine the right format, channel and release dates for each piece of content some may have more than one. Consider whether the content is or can be visual, with photos and/or videos. Then, take the time to plan out your next few weeks, months, or year. Formats News releases Blog articles Research reports Videos Photos Channels Company website/blog Social Media Media outreach Company Intranet and Podcasts Two Calendar Approaches: Month Themes/Topics Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Audience January Financial Wellness Month Financial Recordkeeping 101 (blog/sm) Board officer election results (news release) Understanding Key Ratios (blog/sm) ACA launches Quickbooks for Farmers (news release/blog/sm) curation (SM) External Maximize your 401k ( ) Holiday Party pics (Intranet) Not every piece of content needs to fit the theme Grain Team Part of Major New Customer Transaction (Intranet) Our ACA launches Quickbooks for Farmers ( / Intranet) Our ACA leaders to discuss XX at Farm Credit annual meeting ( ) Internal February Black History Month Some topics are appropriate for both internal and external audiences, with a shift in tone. External Internal Distribution Date Topic / Title Format Channel Audience January 3 Financial Recordkeeping 101 Article Blog/SM External January 5 Maximize your 401k Internal January 9 Board officer election results News release Media outreach External January 13 Holiday party Photos Intranet Internal January 17 Understanding Key Ratios Article Blog/SM External January 20 Grain Team Part of Major News Article Intranet Internal January 24 January 24 January 29 Our ACA Launches Quickbooks for Farmers Our ACA Launches Quickbooks for Farmers Our ACA Leaders to Discuss XX at Farm Credit Annual Meeting News release/ article Media outreach/blog/ SM External Article/ Intranet/ Internal Internal January 29 curation Tweets Twitter External

4 Marketing 87% of Business to Business companies in the U.S. engage in content marketing. Marketing Outcomes Build connections and loyalty among stakeholders Build brand awareness Drive traffic to your website Establish authority Inform and educate Generate leads Marketing Cycle 1 Listen & Develop Audience Personas Measure & Evaluate 5 2 Decide on Themes & Topics Distribute & Promote 4 3 Create

5 Maximizing Your Event Marketing BY HEATHER TSENG AFFINITY PROGRAM SALES & MARKETING MANAGER FCC SERVICES Maximizing Your Event Marketing Event Marketing can be a wonderful way to promote your business. It is also a sizable expense. How can you ensure a return on your investment? This roundtable discussion will explore the best ways you can maximize your marketing impact through events. First impressions count. How do you make a good one? Crowds draw crowds. What are some ideas for establishing crowds at your event? Create buzz. How can you create buzz before and during your event? Think outside the box. What s the most interesting thing you ve ever seen at an event? Preparation is key. What are the best ways to prepare before the event starts? Don t forget to follow up. When and how should you follow up for the best results? Interactivity is king. How can you make your event an interactive experience? Bonus question: Pearls of wisdom.

6 Customer Journey Mapping BY HANNAH LANGSENKAMP, SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT MANAGER CHRIS SMITH, FOUNDER AND PRINCIPAL EMPELLOR CRM Customer Journey Mapping: How to Make it Actionable Mapping Guide Customers value memorable and meaningful experiences that are tailor-made to their needs and concerns. Defining each stage of your customer journey into a map is a powerful exercise that organizes your teams to engage customers. How do you use key touch-points to take action and create value? Stages and Touchpoints Tell a Story Brand Awareness Targeted web ads Strategize SEO/SEM Engage in community sponsorship Sponsor events Master social media Consideration Track website visits Track content consumption Lead scoring Lead conversion from hosted chat Phone conversation or onsite appointments Acquisition Organize application submission Streamline credit approval Confirmation s to customer Service Use surveys to contribute to your customer profile Enable customer support/field service Support customers with chat Implement a yearly follow up Loyalty Send referral offers Create peer forums - customer portals Share customer stories Build customer communities Analyze your customer s journey by asking questions and using feedback to direct your mapping project. Create personas Conduct interviews with customers and employees Observe trends Distribute surveys Do all of your touchpoints function in a positive manner for your customers and your users? Are there phases you notice do not convert prospects to the next stage? As you identify opportunities to address pain points or areas of friction, you can create new comprehensive solutions.

7 Customer Journey Mapping Best Practices Assessment 1. Is your customer journey map a tool used in practice? What tactics are you using to activate key touch-points? 2. Which touch-points are most actionable in your customer journey? Where could you start taking action to drive value in your relationship? Which are the biggest priorities for your organization? 3. How could you change your business practices based on the customer journey map? What interactions could benefit from new process definition? 4. How can your company better use a customer journey map to organize processes and support teams? 5. How does technology factor in to the way that your teams access information about customer engagement during the journey? What metrics do you collect and distribute during the process?