Fuelling Sales Growth Through Marketing
Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
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Bringing sales and marketing on the same page is easier said than done. Despite it being a popular topic, many organisations continue to struggle with making it work in practice. What’s keeping you from unlocking more value from marketing efforts? It starts with something often overlooked.
In our most recent episode of The Insiders, Mark Green (EMEA Vice President at Domo) and Richard Lane (Co-Founder at durhamlane) explored how sales and marketing can work smarter together. We also spoke with James Middleton (Head of Sales at durhamlane) to get his thoughts.
From Talk to Action
Sales and marketing alignment isn’t something you achieve once – it requires ongoing effort and intent. Successful alignment hinges on consistency: both teams need to share the same goals, look at the same data, track the same metrics and communicate regularly. This means identifying what’s working and pivoting when necessary.
There are 2 main keys:
- Consistency: “If the data is in the right place, the alignment’s there, communication is good, and it’s consistent, that’s where the alignment is” – Mark Green. Consistent communication helps keep marketing efforts in tune with sales priorities as well.
- Accountability: When both teams are responsible for revenue outcomes, alignment becomes natural. By sharing successes and challenges openly, marketing can refine campaigns to deliver better quality leads for the sales team.
Faster Wins: Shared Goals = Shared Reward
Revenue should be the north star for both sales and marketing teams, but reaching that goal requires more than just collaboration. It demands shared accountability.
The key factors are:
1. Co-owning the qualification process
Marketing’s role isn’t just to hand off leads, it’s to nurture potential buyers until they’re ready to buy. Tracking metrics like engagement, lead scoring and conversion rates, can help ensure the handoff happens at the right time.
Lead quality and speed in lead conversion are essential. Once a lead has been handed off, sales teams need to move quickly.
2. Sharing Targets and Rewards
With marketing having a quota tied to revenue outcomes, both teams get clear incentives to drive faster conversions and a higher-quality pipeline. Compensation structures that reflect this shared responsibility, lead to stronger collaboration, improved performance, and accelerated business growth.
“A valuable MQL makes the sales cycle quicker as marketing sourced leads convert in half the time of a sales prospected lead”.
James Middleton
Head of Sales, durhamlane
“The longer a lead has been sitting, the less the chances it’ll be converted”.
Richard Lane
COO & Co-Founder, durhamlane
Cracking the Code on Revenue Attribution
“If we’re not in CRM, we are dead” – Richard Lane.
Tracking marketing’s impact on revenue starts with accurate data and transparency. An updated CRM is non-negotiable, without it, following and attributing revenue becomes impossible.
Open access to CRM insights can also build trust. When sales can see how MQLs perform over time, they’re more likely to appreciate their value. Likewise, when marketing sees sales teams’ acting on MQLs, they’re motivated to keep improving. “The seller has to understand the world of a marketer and vice versa” – James Middleton.
“Revenue attribution starts with consistent data and communication. If teams aren’t aligned, the numbers don’t add up. Integrity and accuracy of the CRM are essential”.
Mark Green
EMEA Vice President, DOMO
Creating Content that Converts
Content should be more than promotional – it should address buyer challenges. To do this, marketing teams must understand the buyers’ journey from start to finish, helping them to generate content tailored to all different stages of the journey.
By focusing on the problems buyers are trying to solve, marketing can create resources that resonate with them. Collaboration with sales is critical here as they can provide insights into common buyer objections or questions, and main pain points. Understanding personas and delivering the right content, at the right time, on the right channel helps ensure messaging stays on point.
Bridging the Feedback Loop Gap
Feedback between sales and marketing should be frequent, transparent, and actionable. Sellers are on the front lines. Hence, their insights are invaluable for refining marketing strategies.
Creating open channels for feedback – whether through regular meetings, shared documents, or collaborative reviews – fosters trust and continuous improvement (along with building teamwork). Marketing should also have access to customer interactions when appropriate, as these insights can lead to more targeted campaigns.
“Sales need to capture information and data in CRM and share customer interactions to power Marketing”.
James Middleton
Head of Sales, durhamlane
What’s Next for B2B Marketing?
B2B marketing is evolving quickly, and sales teams need to stay ahead of these changes. ABM is a key strategy, especially for upselling and cross-selling. Mastering ABM techniques – such as those outlined in HubSpot – can help deepen relationships with existing customers whilst also engaging new target accounts with more personalised outreach, driving retention and growth.
Data-driven decision making will also play a larger role. Condensing large amounts of data into actionable insights can empower both sales and marketing to make smarter decisions and respond faster to market shifts.
Ultimately, success comes when both sales and marketing understand each other’s world. Sales teams with knowledge of marketing fundamentals will have a competitive advantage, leveraging strategies and technologies to better navigate today’s complex buying landscape. While marketers who grasp sales dynamics can create more effective campaigns and drive higher-quality pipeline. When both teams speak the same language, the entire revenue engine runs more smoothly.
So… Who’s Taking the First Step?
True sales and marketing alignment doesn’t happen by accident – it requires someone to take the first step. Whether it’s improving feedback loops or strengthening collaboration, every small effort moves the needle closer to achieving revenue goals.
To unlock the full potential of your sales and marketing teams, they need to start stepping into each other’s world. Empathy, communication, and shared success are the foundation to start working smarter and driving better results.
Book in some time with our outsource sales experts to find out what outbound can do for your business and how we shoulder responsibility for your success.
