Elearning! Magazine: Building Smarter Companies via Learning & Workplace Technologies.
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Tips Tips Elearning! December 2014 / January 2015 39 Sales Sales and marketing alignment has become a hot topic as leaders real- ize that getting the two groups on the same page yields greater rev- enue growth, shorter sales cycles and higher customer retention. Many organizations, however, struggle to create sales and mar- keting synergy that delivers a mea- sureable business impact. Tey fail to recognize and address one of the key barriers to alignment: a lack of marketing training. Marketo's "2013 Sales and Marketing Alignment Study" reported that in organizations with one to three days of market- ing training annually, 21 percent of MQLs (marketing qualifed leads) close. Increase training to eight to 10 days a year, and that closing percentage jumps to 35 percent. Organizations with more than 10 days of marketing train- ing per year see closure rates of 60 percent of sales qualifed leads that had resulted in proposals. Why does training make such a big diference? One possible explanation: well-trained mar- keters deliver more efective pro- grams. Tey're better equipped to create the types of messages, experiences and calls to action that resonate with their audi- ences. Tey're also more likely to understand how to track pro- gram results and optimize based on past success or failure. "In the past, sales has had personalized, one-to-one conversations with prospects, while marketers have delivered higher-level messages target- ing broader audiences," notes Valerie Witt, MarketingProfs vice president of Professional Development Solutions. "Now, marketers are challenged to deliver more personalized communications that leverage what they know about some- one based on their behavior. It's a diferent approach. Tere's also greater emphasis on using technology and data to deliver more efective marketing cam- paigns. Companies that com- mit to developing their mar- keters' skills give themselves a competitive advantage." While investments in sales- centric learning and develop- ment are increasing according to the ASTD "2013 State of the Industry" report, marketing training is not keeping pace. In fact, investments in marketing professional development are shrinking as companies at- tempt to maintain fat budgets while adding in new marketing technologies and tactics. Te recent "CMO Survey" reported that spending on market- ing training and developing new marketing capabilities have steadi- ly decreased since August 2012. Te survey also found that while companies expect to increase spending on marketing analytics over the next three years, less than half believe they have the right tal- ent to fully leverage analytics. In addition, most companies plan to increase spending on social media and digital advertis- ing, though only 16 percent have qualitative data on the impact of social media on the business. Almost half — 49 percent — have not been able to show the impact of their social media investments. "Most businesses are asking marketers to think diferently and use new tools without preparing them to do that," Witt says. "Until companies invest in learning for marketers the way they invest in leadership, management and sales development, they're unlikely to realize true sales and marketing alignment." to Creating Sales and Marketing Alignment Learning is Key In one study, only 16 percent of companies had qualitative data on the impact of social media on the business.