We all know the phrase “there’s no ‘I’ in team”. This was something repeated to us many times growing up in terms of school, sports team, and basically any activity you were involved in. It’s a good thing most of us learned this as kids because the phrase still rings true in business. When you work for an organization where departments are willing to compromise and put the success of the organization above their own, that is when you see success. However, it’s not always easy to do especially if you are used to doing things a certain way. James Winter, VP of Marketing at Brandfolder, discusses this in his episode of Real Marketers, particularly the importance of sales and marketing being willing to compromise.
Can’t Succeed Without Compromise
Within a company, there will always be compromises, like it or not. Unfortunately, we don’t have unlimited resources so sometimes the sales team will have to give a little, or sometimes the marketing team will have to give a little. But when you are willing to compromise, you will find that at the end of the day everyone can win because the organization is succeeding. James gave a great example of this on Real Marketers. When you work for a company that can technically sell to anyone, it makes it that much harder to figure out who to sell to. So you might have to focus on a certain industry or type of business at the expense of others to maximize revenue. Unfortunately, you can’t treat every lead the same, even if you want to.
Don’t Be Afraid to Change Something That Isn’t Working
Things are constantly changing, 2020 has shown us that. With the digital transformation happening and new technology being released every day, you have to learn how to expect the unexpected. Therefore, you can’t hold onto your processes so tightly that you are unwilling to change them. Sometimes changes need to be made in the way sales and marketing are done to benefit the company as a whole. Plus, if there is a better way to do something why wouldn’t you want to try it?
Sales and Marketing are Friends Not Enemies
Finally, sales and marketing shouldn’t be enemies, they should be friends. I know there can often be tension between the two areas, but the most successful organizations are the ones where sales and marketing support each other. Edwin Abl, CMO at Modular, talks about the importance of this relationship on Mobile Matters, and how when the sales and marketing leaders have a good relationship where they help each other and hold each other accountable, it will set both departments up for success.
The biggest takeaway here is that compromise in an organization is key, and at the end of the day everyone should be winning because the business is winning.
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