One of the major challenges that most B2B organizations face is the disconnect between marketing and sales teams. This issue is especially significant in companies targeting mid-sized to enterprise businesses, where sales cycles tend to be long.
According to a study by Gartner, the most common reason for sales and marketing misalignment is having separate funnels (47%). The second and third most cited reasons are budget disputes (36%) and reporting to different leaders (33%).
These issues are familiar to many B2B professionals, making it essential to dive deeper into identifying the root causes and finding solutions. Here are some of the most common issues and ways to overcome them:
1. Competition Between Marketing and Sales
It is crucial for B2B organizations to foster a collaborative environment where trust and teamwork are prioritized. Leadership must incentivize alignment and ensure both teams understand that their shared goal is revenue generation.
2. Misalignment on Goals and Metrics
Marketing and sales teams must collaborate to support the company’s growth objectives. Jointly developing a forecasting plan (you can use my template) and agreeing on target metrics is essential. Both teams should use the same reports and adopt consistent terminology to maintain alignment.
3. Targeting the Wrong Audiences or ICPs, Leading to Low-Quality Leads
Marketing teams should align with sales on target audiences. Start by collaborating to identify verticals, industries, and ideal customer profiles (ICPs) or personas, including demographic and firmographic details.
4. Misalignment on Lead Maturity
Sales and marketing must understand the user journey and agree on a shared language for lead stages. Common stages include MQL (Marketing-Qualified Lead), SQL (Sales-Qualified Lead), and Opportunity. Both teams should define criteria for when a lead becomes an SQL, refining these criteria over time to ensure relevance based on the segment, business size, or ICP.
5. Blame Culture Over Missed Targets
To avoid finger-pointing, schedule regular meetings to review forecasts and adjust initiatives that aren’t delivering expected results. Both teams should agree to allocate resources where the highest value can be delivered.
Sales teams should implement a methodology to document qualification reasons and outcomes for closed-won or closed-lost deals. Building trust between teams is crucial to honestly evaluating what worked, what didn’t, and what should change.
6. Delayed Follow-Up on Leads
Alignment on Service Level Agreements (SLAs) between sales and marketing is vital. Studies show that response rates drop significantly the longer it takes to follow up on inquiries. Quick responses are essential to capitalizing on lead interest.
7. Unclear Reasons for Lead Disqualification
Sales teams should document conversations with prospects and provide specific reasons for disqualifying leads. Whether it’s a product mismatch or no ICP fit, this feedback should be shared with marketing. Setting up lead sources in the CRM helps attribute campaigns to leads and analyze performance.
If the business targets a niche market, sales should provide prospect lists to improve marketing efforts.
8. Criticism of Marketing Initiatives by Sales
Sales teams may criticize the value of marketing initiatives without understanding their impact. To prevent this, both teams should align on plans and priorities. Workshops can be organized to foster collaboration and identify high-value initiatives (See how you can organise this for your organisation).
Marketing teams should also invest time in educating sales on their approaches and explaining the expected impact on prospects.
9. External Factors Impacting Alignment
Economic cycles, budget constraints, and shifting business priorities can affect sales and marketing alignment. Companies may overestimate their product value or misalign their expectations with customer needs and willingness to pay. Regular cross-team discussions can help address these external influences and uncover areas for improvement.
Final Thoughts
Taking the time to bring sales and marketing teams together to identify areas of improvement is critical. Collaboration and alignment are key to driving business success.
What measures are you implementing to improve alignment between marketing and sales? Share your thoughts in the comments!
Cristian 360 