As a sales tech company that serves more than 800 thousand B2B representatives, recruitment managers and marketers, Lusha makes it their business to know what drives sales success. Their own customers depend on it, after all.
One of their most critical strategies? Make sure there’s alignment between sales and marketing — a task that’s harder than one might think.
“Just having a shared goal will not reduce friction without understanding that the approach to achieving this goal will be unique for each department.” said Angela Kean, their director of U.S. sales.
While salespeople have a direct line to driving revenue — turn leads into customers — marketers have a more rounded approach as they tackle multiple avenues of lead generation. If the teams don’t understand each other’s methods and perspectives, it will create friction; however, if they do, they will be able to empathize with and support each other, leading to increased success for both.
Like all relationships, building that understanding and communication between sales and marketing takes active, consistent work, led by the leadership of both teams. For Kean, this means cultivating a climate of trust and openness.
“It should be no different than how you would work toward building any other constructive relationship in the workplace,” said Kean. “However, having sales and marketing departments in particular that work well together is especially impactful on increasing revenue for the business.”
This attitude has led to massive success for Lusha, who reached unicorn status in 2021. In her conversation with Built In Boston, Angela Kean spoke further on the subject of fostering teamwork, communication and understanding between her sales team and their marketing partners.
What are some common points of friction you’ve encountered between marketing and sales teams?
A common point of friction between marketing and sales often comes from not having a shared goal. The sales and marketing departments at Lusha have a shared goal: Drive revenue for the business. However, just having a shared goal will not reduce friction without understanding that the approach to achieving this goal will be unique for each department. Sales leaders should understand that their process of achieving this goal is a more direct one, while marketing’s process is more holistic.
Another common point of friction is not having realistic expectations of one another. It’s key for each department to communicate how they will work toward these goals and set clear performance indicators.
What should sales leaders understand about marketing teams to help build a collaborative relationship?
Salespeople should understand that marketing teams are constantly working to drive revenue and leads for the company. They have a holistic approach to doing so that includes but is not limited to market analysis, brand positioning, competitive research, digital advertisement, and web design and content. Behind the scenes, each approach takes careful thought and methodical analysis. In order to build a collaborative relationship with your marketing counterparts, it’s important to understand their different roles and responsibilities.
The sales and marketing departments at Lusha have a shared goal: Drive revenue for the business.”
Share some practical advice for sales leaders on how to build a constructive relationship with marketing.
Sales leaders who want to build constructive relationships with their marketing counterparts should communicate often, develop trust, appreciate each other’s work and be open minded.
