When I first heard the term "Smarketing", I automatically thought it meant smart marketing. I zoned out and thought about what smart marketing looked like. It was reaching the right people (your target customer), through the right communications or mediums (social media, email, phone calls, video, etc). Then after I let my mind wander for a minute, I realized what I was thinking about the entire time was actually just good ol' marketing.
That said, HubSpot defines Smarketing as "alignment between your sales and marketing teams created through frequent and direct communication between the two."
Often times our sales and marketing teams are running as two separate entities. On the marketing team, there are so many creative minds. Marketing teams come up with these wonderful ways to promote the brand and bring more exposure to the company through indirect or almost subliminal strategies. Sales teams on the other hand are the ones out there talking to people. The ones hitting the road, the phones, whatever communication channel it might be...but they are out there actually speaking to people about the brand through direct and personal communication.
So on one hand we have a team of people who know how to create the clever material, and one team who is gathering info on how people want to be reached, or what type of material they would be persuaded by. Doesn't that seem like something that we should align?
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I completely understand that this may not feel like it pertains to you, or your sales & marketing team. However let me ask you to take a minute and step back, ask yourself - when is the last time you put a focus on CONSTANT communication between the sales and marketing team? Not just that you say hi to them in the break room. Not just that you go to them when you need something. But rather, constant communication to make sure the marketing team is making the right content and material that will help the sales team reach the right people at the right time.
Now what I'm about to tell you may make your eyes roll. You may have let out a light groan. If I'm being honest I did the same thing when I finally came to the realization that this was the best option for us at HIVE. The tactic that we have added however that has helped align the team is adding a smarketing meeting. Every Monday, at 10:30am, the HIVE sales and marketing teams meet up to align, talk about our needs, and develop our strategies.
Now I've never met anyone who's said, "You know what I'm missing in my life, more meetings". That being said, by having a meeting every Monday it has boosted team continuity. It's built better internal relationships. We get a few minutes to hear about everyone's weekends and wins from their last week. Then we dive into marketing and sales strategy to help move the brand forward. The sales team can report back on the materials they need to support their sales efforts. They can give real feedback, from customers, target customers, and companies that have said no based on what type of content they want to be seeing. The marketing team is no longer building content and material that they think would work best, but rather content and materials that our customers and potential customers want to see.
By aligning the two teams our inbound leads have skyrocketed. Our sales team is equipped better to close deals. The marketing team is working efficiently on content that we know will move the needle. So take some time, readjust your strategy and get to smarketing!
The first step in all of this, though, is understanding who your target personas actually are. Do you know who you want to be marketing and selling to - more than just the generic, women 25-35? If not, it's time to really develop your personas! Download our free Persona Development Worksheet and give both your sales and marketing teams a better understanding of who you want to be prioritizing and working with!
