Raise Your Hand If You Have Alignment Issues

Today I was doing some research and stumbled up on the Executive Summary for the Miller Heiman 2008 Best Practices Study Growth Strategies for Sales Leaders in Complex Selling Environments. It’s good reading for anyone in marketing or sales, and I took a particular interest because one of the topics is marketing and sales alignment. The study reports that better quality leads are produced when marketing and sales agree on the target market, customer profile and lead definitions identified for marketing initiatives. I’m pretty sure that won’t be a surprise to any marketer on the planet; however it also says that only 37% of organizations believe that their sales and marketing teams are aligned to what customers need. 

In my business, we talk with clients about the importance of alignment a lot—specifically alignment to the needs of the customers, as well as internal alignment between marketing and sales. How does the sales and marketing relationship work in your organization? Do you believe you are aligned to the needs of your buyers?

Posted By: Renee Yeager