Who says sales and marketing can’t work together?
Marketers have long been charged with the goal of getting the attention of potential buyers so sales teams can generate revenue. Since many people they target have often had little or no previous interaction with a brand, the volume/humor/content/sex appeal/celebrity status has to be ultimately memorable. When it’s not, it’s game over. You lose. The sales rep never gets a shot.
What if marketers took ACTUAL insights about CURRENT customers from the sales reps who work with them? In other words, marketing specialists create content to help deepen front-line relationships between representatives and existing customers in a way that stimulates INTRODUCTIONS rather than just attention.
“This all sounds great, but how do we get there?” “How do we hire and assign marketers to brands, reps and customers based on worldview compatibility?”
It’s not as hard as you may think. For example, Flipboard sends articles from selected categories sent to the user’s news feed. Flipboard represents worldview in a nutshell. Apply this insight to your marketing strategy, and the “chasm” magically disappears. Here’s how: Let’s say a rep has honed their client base to the point of optimal compatibility. Marketing representatives of complementary profiles would then be matched to serve that particular niche or community, regardless of geographic region…No office physical office necessary. It’s also a role today’s workforce would thrive in.
Marketing representatives’ impact would be most significant when combining their content marketing expertise with the personal relationship skills of the brand representative. When woven together, they add value to the lives of all customers in that niche through informing and educating in ways conducive to that particular set of criteria. Customers then tune in to their messages and tune out those of competitors…unless they are given a reason to stop offering their trust and attention.
If marketing and sales effectively close this chasm, a strong bond should be formed between all parties involved, as well as within and across microcommunities in both branded(company) and sub-branded(representative) networks.
What do you think? Feasible or pie-in-the-sky?
