Why Marketing Shouldn't Lead Sales and Vice Versa

In the business world, customers are key to a successful business. The broader focus of customer recruitment and retention comes from two major departments: sales and marketing. In many companies, however, the sales and marketing departments do not meet or plan strategies together. The combination of sales with marketing creates a cohesive strategy with neither department leading the other.

Sales and marketing concentrate on separate aspects of the business that affect one another. The sales department cultivates individual relationships to create packages that fit client needs. The techniques that salespeople use tie the brand of a company with finding a personal way to connect services to clients. The marketing department develops a plan to attract a larger audience. The generality of the marketing plan pulls customers into the sales department. Salespeople capitalize on the new interest that marketing creates, and a cohesive strategy even brings teetering clients back to a company. When sales and marketing work in tandem, the sales department has a better chance of turning prospective clients into long-term customers.

A positive work environment between sales and marketing is a product of neither taking the lead. This relationship results in a better work environment, explains Forbes. Mutual respect between the departments without the frustrations of working against one another leads to better attitudes among staff members. Industry experts recommend more interaction between the two departments to foster this environment, including joint planning sessions. Further advice includes setting ground rules to ensure that neither department offends the other or reduces productivity. A convivial environment without antagonism between departments has the potential to increase profits through productivity.

When the work of sales and marketing collide, the company’s departments are on the same page. The long-term goals of a company require that multiple departments work in tandem. If the two largest profit-producing departments in the company do not work together, there is not much hope in producing a cohesive business plan. Some companies see that the best way to fix the problem is to create a single strategy plan for marketing and sales instead of developing two separate plans. This also helps the marketing strategy target the right audience, including current customers. Open dialogue and data sharing provide better and more reliable resources to craft marketing strategy and keep salespeople up-to-date.

More companies realize the benefits of sales and marketing departments working together. The two departments share similarities, but focus on different aspects of customer relations and inclusion. While the sales department creates initiatives to develop deeper relations and promote services, the marketing department targets a broader audience for new customers. Sales and marketing departments often depend on results from one another. Internal planning cultivates an environment that serves the interests of both departments.

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