Strictly Marketing Magazine March/April 2016 3 | Page 19

How to Become a Marketing Superstar: …..Continued Communication Shared Goals In order for marketing to be ready for Revenue Marketing and to engage in a new kind of relationship with sales, an effective vision and a game plan must be established. It’s up to marketing to set the vision, create and communicate the game plan, collaborate on the game plan and get buy-in on this game plan. I can’t emphasize strongly enough the importance of sales and marketing having shared goals, aligned compensation and complimentary organizational structures. In the world of sales, no revenue accountability for marketing means zero respect from sales. When we take a look at the most successful Revenue Marketing machines, we see that marketing has the same kinds of goals as sales. If sales has a number tied to new account acquisition, so does marketing. If sales has a number for enterprise accounts, so does marketing. If sales has a number for a new product, so does marketing. Creating and gaining commitment to a jointly developed game plan takes time and repetition. Marketing can’t just walk into a meeting and expect sales to “get it” in a 30-minute presentation. After all, marketing has probably spent months attending conferences, reading white papers and educating themselves about the benefits of Revenue Marketing. Marketing will need to plan for multiple communication methods, meetings, and events to share the sales vision and craft the ultimate game plan. Synergistic Marketing Behaviors · · · · · Develop a communication plan like a marketing campaign Deploy using your marketing automation platform and track and engage with digital body language Develop personas and messages Work in multiple channels Incorporate the 11 elements of an effective Revenue Marketing Communication Plan: Communication Type (updates, milestones, best practices), Intent of Communication (inform, educate, influence), Cadence (how often), Source (corporate, field, other), Target, Flow (broadcast, bi-directional, networked), Milestone, Channel, Action (call to action), Measurement, Resources (team to drive the communication) The Challenge Marketing and sales alignment, excuse me, synergy, is a key success factor of Revenue Marketing success. Do not assume marketing understands the world of sales. Unless they have a background in sales or have worked in a Revenue Marketing model with sales before, how are they supposed to know all of this? Take the time to assess where marketing is in their understanding of sales and then follow the guidelines in this article to improve that level of understanding and to begin exhibiting fruitful Revenue Marketing behaviors. As Principal Partner & Chief Strategy Officer of The Pedowitz Group, Debbie develops and manages global client relationships and leads the firm’s thought leadership initiatives. She coined the term “Revenue Marketer” in 2011 and she has been helping B2B companies grow revenue by applying strategy, technology and process for over 30 years. www.pedowitzgroup.com Strictly Marketing Magazine March/April 2016 19