My guest today is Elizabeth Vanneste, Chief Marketing Officer, Miller Heiman, a global leader in sales performance solutions with more than 30 years of documented results. Elizabeth has led successful marketing and sales efforts at a number of prestigious companies including MFS International and Level 3 Communications.

Elizabeth, during a recent webcast I attended, you talked about sales and marketing alignment impacting sales results. Please clarify what “sales and marketing alignment” means.

First, sales and marketing need to be focused on the same goals. That sounds obvious but often the new business and base customer growth goals assigned to sales don't translate easily into the lead generation and customer retention and satisfaction goals given to marketing.

Second, sales and marketing need to agree on common language and definitions. Who is our Ideal Customer? What is our target market? What is a "sales-ready lead?" How do you define customer satisfaction and loyalty?

Once you've agreed to common definitions you need to agree on your key messages - What is your value proposition? What is your elevator pitch? Key brand messages?

Finally, there needs to be an agreed business process or meeting rhythm that will keep the two groups in alignment. If sales is finding that the messages are not resonating with clients or the leads deemed "sales ready" are not a good fit, or marketing determines that the customer relationships are not as profitable as they should be, then the two groups need to revisit the definitions and messaging to make sure that they are being effective. At Miller Heiman we have a bi-weekly call with the sales team to review the new leads, understand what resonated with the prospect and gain insight into how well the prospects align with our Ideal Customer profile. Sometimes the action items from these meetings lead to new campaigns or a change to a definition.

The impact is dramatic. In the most recent Miller Heiman Sales Best Practices Study 90 percent of the World-Class Sales Organizations (those are companies that were more likely to report growth in key metrics such as customer retention and sales quota attainment) agreed that sales and marketing are aligned, versus 30 percent for all other organizations.

Please tell me more about this research study.

Miller Heiman's annual research study of sales practices, success metrics, and World Class Organizations – the Miller Heiman Sales Best Practices Study - has become recognized as the largest continuous research project dedicated to sales performance in the world. Since the study was launched in 2003, more than 23,000 sales professionals have participated. The research results support benchmarking exercises that enable companies to understand how they compare to their peers and how they can better identify areas for improvement.

You’re welcome to download the executive summary of this year’s study: Driving Sales Results in Any Economy.

Back to marketing and sales alignment, Elizabeth, what impact does this alignment really have?

In these days of tight budgets and scarce resources, being aligned improves productivity. According to our study, World Class Sales Organizations report better close rates.

In fact, the study found that more than half of those World-Class Sales Organizations reported a close rate of greater than 60 percent, compared to just only 16 percent of others.

What do marketing teams need to do in order to reach this level of alignment?

A regular (weekly/bi-weekly) lead huddle meeting is a great vehicle. Review all the new leads and the initial conversations with sales. What do the leads have in common? Why are they interested in your company? What are they trying to accomplish? Let marketing ask sales questions about the leads to understand quality and understand common challenges.

Elizabeth, what else can the two teams, marketing and sales, do to better collaborate, to get out of their respective silos?

Sales and marketing can also collaborate on proposals and deal support, internal communications to share success stories, and external communications and public relations.

Is there anything else marketing professionals should know about to help drive sales results for their company?

In addition to understanding customers, marketing needs to understand how salespeople think and how they work. A marketing professional who has walked in a salesperson's shoes has a unique respect for the pressure and the challenges faced by salespeople. Marketing professionals who respect the sales role are better able to provide the tools and support needed to ensure that sales is successful. Of course, savvy salespeople know they will be well supported when they respect their marketing colleagues as well.

Elizabeth, thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts and the executive summary of the Miller Heiman Sales Best Practices Study.

Readers, what are your thoughts on the subject?

Please add your comments by clicking on the word “comments” in the line below the Share button.

If you are reading this as an RSS feed, please use this link to add your comments:
www.sales-lead-insights.com/2010/sales-and-marketing-integration
 

If you'd like to learn more, please use my Contact Form, call me directly at 1-800-944-5553 or +1-401-294-7730, or check out the marketing consulting or speaking and training pages on my website.

AcquireB2B - Driving leads & sales with marketing automation™

Three Ways to Learn More

Mac McIntosh Inc has provided consulting and speaking/training related to helping companies like yours generate more qualified leads and drive more sales using the latest B2B marketing strategies, tactics, media and technology since 1990.

However, many of our clients have also been having us help implement their marketing-driven lead generation programs for them. So we decided to create a new division focused on those implementation services and named it AcquireB2B.

Our team of experts at AcquireB2B provide a full menu of services related to either generating more leads and sales with B2B marketing, or powering-up those programs by leveraging B2B marketing automation systems.

These services range from bite-size projects, to being a virtual extension of your marketing team, to running turn-key lead generation programs for you. Or anything in between.

As always, Mac McIntosh Inc can provide the unbiased consulting and training you need to design or improve your marketing driven business development programs.

But now we also have this new division and its expert team to help you with any aspect of implementing your B2B lead generation programs.

How can AcquireB2B assist you and your company in driving more leads and sales with B2B marketing or marketing automation?

Here are three ways to learn more: 

1. Visit AcquireB2B at http://www.acquireb2b.com 
2. Request your complimentary phone consultation with an expert on driving leads and sales with B2B marketing (a $350 value): Call me at (800) 366-1877 Ext 1622 or use this link or visit
   www.pages05.net/acquireb2b/Offers/LearnMore/
3. Sign up to be kept up to date on the latest in B2B marketing, lead generation and marketing technology with a complimentary subscription to B2B Marketing Technology Insights at: Use this link or visit
   http://www.pages05.net/acquireb2b/Preferences/Subscribe_AB2B_Newsletter/ 

Please consider Mac McIntosh Inc or AcquireB2B when you need help designing, implementing or improving your B2B marketing to drive more leads and sales.

Thanks,

If you'd like to learn more, please use my Contact Form, call me directly at 1-800-944-5553 or +1-401-294-7730, or check out the marketing consulting or speaking and training pages on my website.

What: B2B Marketing University

When: June 23, 2010 

Where: Westin Galleria
             13340 Dallas Parkway, Dallas, TX 75240

Register for free here

As one of the presenters, I can promise you that by attending the Dallas session of B2B Marketing University you and your team will get expert insights into the latest strategies and innovation you can deploy today to get better results and a higher ROI from your marketing.

This all-new-for-2010 B2B Marketing University is focused on helping you stay ahead of the curve and excel in the changing B2B marketing environment.

If the Dallas session is even close to being as good as it was in Boston, Palo Alto, or Washington DC, it is sure to be well worth attending.

Why bother attending?

Today is both a challenging time and an exciting time to be a B2B marketer. The impetus for marketers to generate leads, drive sales and support customer lifetime value has never been stronger. Yet change is everywhere. Major forces are provoking evolution in how B2B marketers operate. Meanwhile, significant innovation has brought new tools and capabilities to B2B marketers' arsenals.

Ask yourself:

• Are you on top of the latest strategies and tactics for B2B lead management, marketing automation and inbound marketing?
• Are you leveraging dynamic campaigns, lead scoring and social media to improve engagement with buyers?
• Do you have what it takes to excel in the new B2B marketing environment?

If you are not sure—or you are looking for additional ideas you can put to work driving more leads and sales with your marketing—B2B Marketing University is where you can get answers and take your game to the next level.

Attendees will learn more about what is really working best today from top B2B marketing, lead generation and marketing automation experts (including me), including an end-of-day roundtable discussion with some of your peers.

Attendance is free for those responsible for approving, directing or implementing B2B marketing and lead generation.

Lunch and a networking reception at the end of the day are also included at no additional charge.

Click here for the agenda.

Speaking of free, perhaps the best part is that B2B Marketing University is also refreshingly free of product pitches! Even the sponsor, Silverpop, gets little more than a mention.

Your attendance is free, so why not join us for the afternoon of June 23rd at the Westin Galleria in Dallas?

Click here to register or to learn more.

If you are reading this as an email or RSS feed, here's the link:

http://sdm3.rm04.net/servlet/SignUpForm?f=113980&acquireb2b

If you'd like to learn more, please use my Contact Form, call me directly at 1-800-944-5553 or +1-401-294-7730, or check out the marketing consulting or speaking and training pages on my website.

What: B2B Marketing University

When: May 18, 2010

Where: W Hotel, 100 Stuart Street, Boston, MA 02116

Click here for the agenda and to register.

As one of the presenters, I can promise you that by attending the Boston session of B2B Marketing University you and your team will get expert insights into the latest strategies and innovation you can deploy today to get better results and a higher ROI from your marketing.

This all-new-for-2010 B2B Marketing University is focused on helping you stay ahead of the curve and excel in the changing B2B marketing environment.

If the Boston session on May 18th is even close to being as good as it was in Palo Alto a week ago, or in Washington DC a month ago, it is sure to be well worth attending.

Why bother attending?

Today is both a challenging time and an exciting time to be a B2B marketer. The impetus for marketers to generate leads, drive sales and support customer lifetime value has never been stronger. Yet change is everywhere. Major forces are provoking evolution in how B2B marketers operate. Meanwhile, significant innovation has brought new tools and capabilities to B2B marketers' arsenals.

Ask yourself:

• Are you on top of the latest strategies and tactics for B2B lead management, marketing automation and inbound marketing?
• Are you leveraging dynamic campaigns, lead scoring and social media to improve engagement with buyers?
• Do you have what it takes to excel in the new B2B marketing environment?

If you are not sure—or you are looking for additional ideas you can put to work driving more leads and sales with your marketing—B2B Marketing University is where you can get answers and take your game to the next level.

Attendees will learn more about what is really working best today from top B2B marketing, lead generation and marketing automation experts (including me), including an end-of-day roundtable discussion with some of your peers.

Attendance is free for those responsible for approving, directing or implementing B2B marketing and lead generation.

Lunch and a networking reception at the end of the day are also included at no additional charge. Click here for the agenda.

Speaking of free, perhaps the best part is that B2B Marketing University is also refreshingly free of product pitches! Even the sponsor, Silverpop, gets little more than a mention.

Your attendance is free, so why not join us at the W Hotel in Boston on May 18th for B2B Marketing University?

Click here to register or to learn more.

If you are reading this as an email or RSS feed, here's the link:

http://sdm3.rm04.net/servlet/SignUpForm?f=113670&acquireb2b

If you'd like to learn more, please use my Contact Form, call me directly at 1-800-944-5553 or +1-401-294-7730, or check out the marketing consulting or speaking and training pages on my website.

Webinar Leads Demystified: Best practices for leveraging both webinar registrants and attendees

Wednesday, April 28, 2010 2:00 p.m. EDT (11:00 a.m. PDT)

For more information and to register, click here.

A webinar, or webinar series, can be a strong performer in a marketer’s demand-generation program. But one of the key mistakes that reduce the return on this marketing investment is sending the entire batch of registrant and/or attendee names over to sales immediately for conversion.

Instead, learn how to maximize the value of these prospects with:

• lead evaluation strategies
• data collection ideas for additional qualification
• nurturing best practices
• tips for perfecting the sales hand-off process

Come to this session armed with your questions. You’ll be able to submit questions directly to our panelist for a live Q&A session during the hour.

Webinar Leads Demystified: Best practices for leveraging both webinar registrants and attendees

Wednesday, April 28, 2010 2:00 p.m. EDT (11:00 a.m. PDT)

For more information and to register, click here.

Can’t make it on April 28? No problem! This webinar will be archived for 90 days after the live event. Click here, to register and get access to this webinar on-demand.

If you'd like to learn more, please use my Contact Form, call me directly at 1-800-944-5553 or +1-401-294-7730, or check out the marketing consulting or speaking and training pages on my website.

This all-new-for-2010 B2B Marketing University is focused on helping you stay ahead of the curve and excel in the changing B2B marketing environment. And if the Palo Alto event is even close to being as good as it was in Washington DC a couple of weeks ago, it is sure to be well worth attending.

As one of the presenters, I can promise you that you and your fellow attendees will get expert insights into the latest strategies and innovation you can deploy today to get better results and a higher ROI from your marketing.

Your attendance is free, compliments of B2B Marketing University’s sponsor, Silverpop.

The best part is that B2B Marketing University is 100% pure education for serious B2B marketers. No product pitches. Just learning.

Register today for April 7 in Palo Alto.

Why attend B2B Marketing University?

Today is a challenging time—and an exciting time—to be a B2B marketer. The impetus for B2B marketers to generate leads, drive sales and support customer lifetime value has never been stronger. Yet change is everywhere. Major forces are provoking evolution in how B2B marketers operate. Meanwhile, significant innovation has brought new tools and capabilities to B2B marketers' arsenals.

Ask yourself:

• Are you on top of the latest strategies and tactics for B2B lead management, marketing automation and inbound marketing?
• Are you leveraging dynamic campaigns, lead scoring and social media to improve engagement with buyers?
• Do you have what it takes to excel in the new B2B marketing environment?

If you are not sure—or you are looking for additional ideas you can put to work driving more leads and sales with your marketing—B2B Marketing University is where you can get answers and take your game to the next level.

Attendees will learn more about what is working best today from top B2B marketing and lead generatio experts  (including me), and the end-of-day roundtable of additional B2B marketing experts.

Your attendance is free, so why not join us at B2B Marketing University?

Register today for B2B Marketing University on April 7 in Palo Alto.

Just in case you need it, here's the link:

http://sdm3.rm04.net/servlet/SignUpForm?f=113496&acquireb2b

If you'd like to learn more, please use my Contact Form, call me directly at 1-800-944-5553 or +1-401-294-7730, or check out the marketing consulting or speaking and training pages on my website.

The use of technology to generate, nurture, score and qualify leads, and drive sales, using customized, multi-touch marketing communications tailored for each contact's profile, level of interest, behavior or place in the buying process.

Unfortunately it's a mouthful, isn't it?

In my view, the primary benefits of B2B marketing automation are:

• It allows marketers to accomplish more, usually at a lower cost, than they can get done manually;
• It facilitates continuous improvement by allowing marketers to track and measure the results of their campaigns, then make necessary adjustments, in near real-time.

What do you think?

Do you have a better definition of marketing automation?  Do you see other benefits that marketing automation delivers?

Please join the discussion by clicking on the word “Comments” in the line below the Share button.

If you are reading this as an e-mail or via an RSS feed, please use this link to add your comments:

http://www.sales-lead-insights.com/2010/b2b-marketing-automation-definition/

If you'd like to learn more, please use my Contact Form, call me directly at 1-800-944-5553 or +1-401-294-7730, or check out the marketing consulting or speaking and training pages on my website.

Ask any salesperson if all inbound inquires are leads, and when he or she stops laughing, you will probably get an earful about how inquiries, unless they have been prequalified, are a waste of salespeople’s time.

I blame the mailing list and database compilers for starting the problem by calling the contacts in their databases or mailing lists “leads.” In my experience, contacts from compiled databases aren’t leads until they have been qualified. Until then I believe they are really just “suspects.”

Not-yet-qualified contacts, such as inquiries (responses) generated by inbound and outbound marketing, are a bit better than suspects, as they indicate that someone actually took some kind of action (e.g., inquired, downloaded, visited, registered, or attended). But I wouldn’t classify these inquiries as “leads” either; I’d classify them as “prospects.”

Now back to my earlier comment: that some of the information being touted by companies with a stake in inbound marketing can be misleading. I believe that if studies like HubSpot’s The State of Inbound Marketing 2010, instead of categorizing all inbound inquiries or responses as “leads,” rather talked about a lower cost per “prospect” from inbound than from outbound marketing, the results would be a more accurate reflection of reality.

Which leads me to another observation (no pun intended) . . .

The majority of inbound inquiries need to be nurtured and qualified with outbound marketing in order to be “qualified” as leads. Don’t believe that? Look beyond the hype and you’ll see that even inbound marketing companies like HubSpot use outbound marketing tactics such as e-mail and telemarketing to proactively follow up on, nurture and qualify their inbound inquiries.

The bottom line?

The most effective lead generation programs involve both inbound and outbound marketing.

What do you think?

Please join the discussion by clicking on the word “Comments” in the line below the Share button.

If you are reading this as an e-mail or via an RSS feed, please use this link to add your comments:

http://www.sales-lead-insights.com/2010/are-inbound-leads-really-leads/

If you'd like to learn more, please use my Contact Form, call me directly at 1-800-944-5553 or +1-401-294-7730, or check out the marketing consulting or speaking and training pages on my website.

If you are a B2B marketer or are responsible for B2B lead generation, do not miss this free, half-day seminar on March 3, 2010 at the Westin Grand Hotel in Washington, DC or April 3, 2010 at the Crowne Plaza Cabaña Hotel in Palo Alto, CA,

This all-new-for-2010 B2B Marketing University is focused on helping you stay ahead of the curve and excel in the changing B2B marketing environment.

As one of the presenters, I can promise you that you and your fellow attendees will get expert insights into the latest strategies and innovation you can deploy today to get better results and a higher ROI from your marketing.

Your attendance is free, compliments of B2B Marketing University’s sponsor, Silverpop.

The best part is that B2B Marketing University is 100% pure education for serious B2B marketers. No product pitches. Just learning.

Register today for March 3 in DC.

Register today for April 7 in Palo Alto.

Why attend B2B Marketing University?

Today is a challenging time—and an exciting time—to be a B2B marketer. The impetus for B2B marketers to generate leads, drive sales and support customer lifetime value has never been stronger. Yet change is everywhere. Major forces are provoking evolution in how B2B marketers operate. Meanwhile, significant innovation has brought new tools and capabilities to B2B marketers' arsenals.

Ask yourself:

• Are you on top of the latest strategies and tactics for lead management, marketing automation and inbound marketing?
• Are you leveraging dynamic campaigns, lead scoring and social media to improve engagement with buyers?
• Do you have what it takes to excel in the new B2B marketing environment?

If you are not sure—or you are looking for additional ideas you can put to work driving more leads and sales with your marketing—B2B Marketing University is where you can get answers and take your game to the next level.

Attendees will learn more about what is working best today from top B2B marketing experts including: Carlos and Jay Hidalgo with The Annuitas Group, Adam Needles with Silverpop, (yours truly) Mac McIntosh, and the end-of-day roundtable of additional B2B marketing experts.

Your attendance is free, so why not join us at B2B Marketing University?

Register today for March 3 in DC.

Register today for April 7 in Palo Alto.
 

If you'd like to learn more, please use my Contact Form, call me directly at 1-800-944-5553 or +1-401-294-7730, or check out the marketing consulting or speaking and training pages on my website.

Advanced B2B Sales Lead Management Strategies: A front line report for CMO’s on what’s really working today

Direct from the front lines, hear the latest trends, and learn about successful programs, strategies and tactics from three of the top experts in B2B marketing. 

Cost: Free

Date/Time: Thursday, March 11, 2010 11:00 AM Pacific Standard Time

Click here to learn more.

If you are reading this as an RSS feed, use this link to learn more:
http://tinyurl.com/yfc65vj

If you'd like to learn more, please use my Contact Form, call me directly at 1-800-944-5553 or +1-401-294-7730, or check out the marketing consulting or speaking and training pages on my website.

Why? Because it validates some of what I've been recommending to my clients for years.

The Forrester research study and white paper about sales lead management, commissioned by Silverpop, reports that when it comes to increasing the ROI from B2B sales lead management, there are four key performance indicators (KPIs) that pay off in more qualified leads and sales.

The numbered items below are the four KPIs from the white paper, but the comments about each are mine:
 

1. Profiling and targeting. By understanding your customers and using them as a model for the right prospects to target with your lead generation activities, and by targeting those right prospects, you will get a better ROI.
2. Lead scoring. This is the latest name for the process of determining which leads are qualified leads that meet the minimum definition of a “sales-ready lead.” Lead scoring provides us with the criteria for determining which leads need further development and which are ready for sales follow-up.
3. Content. Developing and offering information that meets the needs of your prospects, particularly as they move from awareness to inquiry to consideration and on to purchase, is essential both for getting prospects to identify themselves to you and for helping move your prospects forward in their buying process.
4. Nurture early-stage buyers. B2B research about sales leads repeatedly shows that the B2B buyers who are still in the early stages of their buying process represent three out of four of the total sales opportunities you will net from your leads. Only one in four sales opportunities comes from those prospects who are already at the later stages of their buying process.

Want a quick summary of how to take advantage of these four KPIs? Read my short post titled B2B Sales Lead Generation Is Easy: Four Rights Will Get You There.

What are your thoughts about the four KPIs that increase the ROI from B2B sales lead management?

Please add your comments by clicking on the word “Comments” in the line below the Share button.

If you are reading this as an RSS feed, please use this link to add your comments:
http://www.sales-lead-insights.com/2010/b2b-lead-management-kpis/ 

If you'd like to learn more, please use my Contact Form, call me directly at 1-800-944-5553 or +1-401-294-7730, or check out the marketing consulting or speaking and training pages on my website.

This all-new-for-2010 session of B2B Marketing University is focused on helping you stay ahead of the curve and excel in the changing B2B marketing environment.

Join us and take your marketing and lead generation to the next level.

As one of the presenters, I can promise you that you and your fellow attendees will get expert insights into the latest strategies and innovation you can deploy today to get better results and a higher ROI from your marketing.

Your attendance is free, compliments of B2B Marketing University’s sponsor, Silverpop.

The best part is that B2B Marketing University is 100% pure education for serious B2B marketers. No product pitches. Just learning. Register today.

Why attend B2B Marketing University?

Today is a challenging time—and an exciting time—to be a B2B marketer. The impetus for B2B marketers to generate leads, drive sales and support customer lifetime value has never been stronger. Yet change is everywhere. Major forces are provoking evolution in how B2B marketers operate. Meanwhile, significant innovation has brought new tools and capabilities to B2B marketers' arsenals.

Ask yourself:

• Are you on top of the latest strategies and tactics for lead management, marketing automation and inbound marketing?
• Are you leveraging dynamic campaigns, lead scoring and social media to improve engagement with buyers?
• Do you have what it takes to excel in the new B2B marketing environment?

If you are not sure—or you are looking for additional ideas you can put to work driving more leads and sales with your marketing—B2B Marketing University is where you can get answers and take your game to the next level.

Attendees will learn more about what is working best today from top B2B marketing experts including: Carlos and Jay Hidalgo with The Annuitas Group, Adam Needles with Silverpop, (yours truly) Mac McIntosh, and the end-of-day roundtable of additional B2B marketing experts.

Your attendance is free, so why not join us at B2B Marketing University in Washington, DC, on March 3?

Use this link to learn more or reserve your seat for B2B Marketing University: http://tinyurl.com/ybwscmv

If you'd like to learn more, please use my Contact Form, call me directly at 1-800-944-5553 or +1-401-294-7730, or check out the marketing consulting or speaking and training pages on my website.