Marketing vs. Sales: Why Blurring the Lines Sets Everyone Up to Fail
When Did Marketing Become Sales-Lite?
Let me share a story that honestly made me wince. A senior marketing leader recently reached out after being laid off from his role. The reason? He didn't hit a direct sales quota of $400K in six months. Here's the kicker - the Head of Sales in his region didn't even have a sales target. Yes, you read that right.
The Great Marketing-Sales Muddle Let's get something straight - one of the key traits of senior marketers isn't their ability to close deals. Marketing isn't just sales-lite or a backup sales team. It's actually the broader strategic function that helps make sales possible in the first place.
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What Should We Really Expect?
I'm hearing from more and more marketers who are being handed sales quotas. While I understand the pressure to show ROI, here's what we should actually be looking at:
How efficiently we're acquiring customers (CAC)
Whether we're delivering quality leads that match our ideal customer
How well we're moving prospects through the pipeline
The overall marketing influence on revenue
Finding the Sweet Spot Don't get me wrong - marketing and sales absolutely should work together. I've seen great examples where:
Marketing and sales share collaborative goals
There's clear tracking of marketing's impact
Teams focus on creating meaningful customer touchpoints
Everyone understands their distinct but complementary roles
IN SUMMARY:
Look, the key traits of senior marketers are evolving, but let's not throw the baby out with the bathwater. Great marketing leaders drive revenue - they just do it through strategy, brand building, and pipeline development rather than direct sales. Want better results? Start by setting the right expectations.
About Karen Lloyd
As the founder and director behind our recruitment approach, I bring almost 30 years of unique expertise spanning both recruitment and marketing. Having placed my first candidate in 1996, I've since built 5 start-ups, served as a Board Director for 25 years, and developed recruitment strategies that work in competitive talent markets.
I'm also the host of "Spotlight on Marketing", where I explore B2B marketing trends with industry leaders. My passion lies in helping global businesses grow their revenue-generating teams through strategic hiring and fractional CMO services.
About Armstrong Lloyd
Armstrong Lloyd goes above and beyond being a pure search firm - we partner with your business because we have all stood in your shoes as experienced hiring managers, marketing, and operational business leaders. We have a hidden network that goes beyond LinkedIn searches, adverts, or referrals from ex-colleagues to ensure you're getting the top 1% of talent.
Whether you need interim leadership, marketing team building, or executive search across the UK and beyond, The Team at Armstrong Lloyd are here to ensure you reach your commercial business goals by building the best marketing team and strategy to give you a competitive advantage.
Ready to transform your marketing team? Let's talk about how we can help you hire the right talent at the right time.
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