10 Step Guide to Sales and Marketing Alignment

Sales and Marketing alignment is the holy grail for companies, helping them achieve 19% faster revenue growth and makes them 15% more profitable.

We teamed up with Steve Armenti (ex-Google) to create the ultimate, practical workbook for your sales and marketing teams to work through.

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10 Steps to Sales & Marketing Alignment

Step 1 - Understand Your Business Goals & Metrics

Objective: Gain a deep understanding of your business goals, metrics and challenges to identify areas for alignment and collaboration.

Ask questions like:

What are your specific sales targets for the upcoming quarter or year?
What KPIs are you using to measure sales’ success?
What are the definitions of all targets and KPIs?
What do you expect to be contributed from marketing?

DOWNLOAD OUR 10 STEP GUIDE HERE

Step 2 - Define your ICPs for Sales & Marketing to Align on

Objective: Develop a shared understanding of ideal customer profiles (ICPs) to ensure marketing efforts are targeted to attract the right buyers.

Ask questions like:

Who are our most profitable customer segments in the last 12 months?
What are their common characteristics, pain points, and buying motivations?
What are the key firmographics and technographics that identify our ICPs?

Step 3 - Map the Customer Journey

Objective: Develop a shared understanding of ideal customer profiles (ICPs) to ensure marketing efforts are targeted to attract the right buyers.

Ask questions like:

What are the different stages of the customer journey?
What marketing content or interactions are most effective at each stage?
Who is the buying committee? When are they involved at each stage?

DOWNLOAD OUR 10 STEP GUIDE HERE

Step 4 - Defining Sales and Marketing Lead Qualification Criteria

Objective: Establish clear lead qualification criteria to ensure marketing and sales have a shared understanding of what constitutes a high-quality lead.

Ask questions like:

What defines a lead for sales and marketing?
What specific information or data points do we need to evaluate lead quality?
How can marketing effectively prioritize, segment, and route leads based on a shared qualification criteria?

See the remaining steps (5-10)👇

STEP 5 - Align on content marketing strategy

What content formats and topics resonate most effectively with your target audience?
What specific content themes can help sales teams engage with leads and move them through the sales funnel?
How can marketing measure the impact of all content creation activities on generating sales outcomes?

STEP 6 - Establishing joint sales & marketing activities

How will sales and marketing collaborate on events to target high value accounts?
How can marketing support sales during customer interactions, such as demos or presentations?
Are there any specific sales driven campaigns that require marketing support?
Are there any cross-sell or upsell opportunities that marketing can support?

STEP 7 - Implementing Sales enablement tools and resources

What sales enablement tools or resources are currently being used by the sales team?
What additional tools or resources would be helpful for sales teams to effectively engage with leads?
Can marketing support with case studies and customer stories?
What training does the sales team need to effectively be able to follow up on marketing-generated leads?

STEP 8 - Establishing regular communication and feedback loops

What is the current cadence of communication between marketing and sales leaders, and their teams?
What kind of information, updates and feedback is currently shared?
Do you have documented, measurable SLAs between teams that are reviewed monthly?
What will the teams measure to see whether or not communication is working?

STEP 9 - Metrics and Measurement

What sales metrics need to be measured to prove success in the sales funnel?
What marketing metrics need to be measured to prove success in the marketing funnel?
What data sources will the teams use to track performance?
What does the unified funnel look like and what metrics are presented to leadership?
What dashboards or reports do we need to create to communicate these insights?

STEP 10 - Continuous improvement and innovation

What is the process to enable marketing and sales to ideate and test new strategies?
How will the team react to emerging trends in the market and be more agile?
What issues or organizational blockers exist today that prevent the two teams from innovating?

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P.S... B2B Marketers LOVE The B2B Incubator
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The structure and the templates were super… having something I can plug and play and act on… was super helpful… Even my bosses and my supervisor and the other people from like product, customer, developer – they’re all impressed.

The B2B framework has allowed me to lead as a manager… I am now able to point out: this is what we need to do, this is the strategy, this is the process, and this is how we can scale the process in the team.

Recommended to all B2B marketers out there in a small team thrown in the deep end and wondering what to prioritise and how to generate demand from your dream customers. The B2B incubator will guide you through it in 3 steps, giving you the frameworks and practical tools to bring together a comprehensive marketing strategy. I’m really looking forward to fully putting it into action.

George and his Incubator are a great opportunity if you’re looking to learn a new marketing methodology or want to refocus your marketing efforts As an early-stage marketer, I know I will frequently revisit the resources and knowledge provided by the program.

Without a dedicated internal marketing team, we were finding it difficult to set aside time to work on our Dream Customer. The B2B Incubator has allowed George and I to collaborate to bring clarity to our vision and structure to our processes. As a team, we have been able to clarify our Dream Customers and adjust our digital marketing and product offerings accordingly.

Name: Ati Aziz
Position: Growth Marketer
Size of Marketing Team: 3 people
Business Type: B2B SaaS
Company: ClearCalcs

Name: Shahed Abotouk
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Business Type: B2B SaaS
Company: Commutifi

Name: Ben Grossberg
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Business Type: B2B SaaS
Company: Weel

What Marketers Like You Are Saying...

Love the podcast and the way you 'waterfall' content from it (and the genuineness that comes through)!

Just wanted to reach out to let you know how much I’m enjoying the podcast - I definitely get the feeling that I’ve learned something I can use after each episode

Been following for a bit and trying to catch up on the podcast. You post some great content and the podcast is 🔥

Starting and growing a business isn't easy no matter how good your service or offering is. Doing digital marketing feels like climbing Everest. Thankfully the B2B playbook podcast breaks it all down for you. George & Kevin are great to listen to & step you through the 5Be's of how to get your marketing right. After a few listens you can start climbing that mountain to your marketing success.

Enjoying all your content and listening to the B2B podcast episodes. Always get some value from them 👌

George and Kevin are a wealth of knowledge in B2B marketing. They passionately share their knowledge in their B2B Playbook podcast and each episode brings on new insights. I recommend it to any new marketers starting in the B2B space: it's like having your own marketing mentors on the go!

I have been following some of your content on LinkedIn and started listening to your podcast. I really like the stuff you guys are putting out there.

Hey George, Just want to tell you how much I enjoy your content (podcast, posts on LinkedIn,...) As a web dev with no prior marketing know how who is now CEO of a small agency with marketing responsibility there is so much to learn. Your work is a great source. Love it

Really do love the work you guys do and appreciate how you make B2B marketing more accessible ❤

Starting and growing a business isn't easy no matter how good your service or offering is. Doing digital marketing feels like climbing Everest. Thankfully the B2B playbook podcast breaks it all down for you. George & Kevin are great to listen to & step you through the 5Be's of how to get your marketing right. After a few listens you can start climbing that mountain to your marketing success.

The main reason I love the podcast is I can get to know the B2B marketing mindset & experience. There’s tons of blogs/ courses online to talk about B2B marketing on strategies, tools, and models...but I found not many deliver the message of mindset to the audience. The mindset and experience are something you gained and tested from day-to-day work, and not easy to be googled.

Honestly, I really like your podcast format. The breakdown and analysis angle of different companies B2B strategies mixed with your own framework and some tactical approaches is a B2B podcast mix that I haven’t stumbled upon other than yours and I really enjoy it. DG does mostly interview, Chris Walker has his Demand Gen approach, Metadata talks about what they do internally. And I enjoy all of them. But you two have figured out an interesting mix that brings something new and that’s not easy. You’ve got a routine listener here!

Come 5am every Monday morning when I do my daily run, I tune into The B2B Playbook podcast. George and Kevin are excellent at distilling the many complex aspects of B2B marketing. And more importantly, giving away very practical advice on how to create a sound marketing strategy and execute it on a tactical level. As a bonus, George is a genuinely helpful, all around nice guy. He practices what he preaches. On LinkedIn you can see George doesn't just talk the talk - he does what he advises his audience should do. And shows how his playbook works for his business. It's true people! - Helpful marketing content leads to inbound opportunities that turn into revenue!

The B2B playbook is just that - a practical guide to B2B marketing, providing endless tips, tricks, and insights. It's really practical. Particularly how to get experts to write for you. I'm in a pretty niche industry with tricky applications, so that helped a lot. Awesome stuff! Please keep it coming!

Your podcast is such a great resource for us - wanting to make the change to Demand Gen, keep it up 🙂

I am really enjoying your podcast and learning so much so big thank you

Love the podcast George - plenty of epic wisdom, making massive impact - very much appreciated!

Hi George I love your podcast, very interesting and easy to listen to!

Marketing podcasts are everywhere. And there’s nothing worse than ear candy that you can’t clearly apply. But the B2B Playbook brings a unique and timely perspective that’s especially actionable.

I have been listening to the B2B Playbook since George and Kevin launched it. The podcast episodes have such rich practical knowledge and they took one step further and created the B2B incubator. B2B incubator looks promising especially because they do not say “learn this, and you will be a millionaire overnight” it has a concrete strategy, how to learn from your mistakes, and the nitty-gritty of being a B2B marketer. Listen to their podcasts and also be a part of this program as I am sure like their podcasts their strategy is doable and will yield results. Remember, you have to implement what you learn from them!

I don't listen to podcasts, but I do make the exception for yours if I'm driving. It is so well thought out, researched, and logical and adds a tonne of value. I'm very confident your B2B Incubator would be the same.

I was listening to your podcast. It's amazing. The 5 BEs framework, the way you diagnose educational content strategy... 💥🚀

Checked out your latest episode- though I got interrupted but I sat down there nodding with a little grin on my face because demand generation is such a misunderstood and elusive concept for many marketers. Anyways, just wanted to say keep it going!

I am a follower on Spotify and am a huge fan of your reporting episodes!

George has truly created a safe place for early stage marketers. They can listen in on some insightful conversations about everything B2B marketing. The lessons learnt can be applied to your business with immediate effect. In particular, I loved the repurposing framework. So please do yourself a favor and dig into the podcast right away!

I'm one of your avid listeners on the B2B podcast and I would just like to thank you for regularly sharing your industry insights along with Kevin. It's truly fantastic. I work in multiple B2B companies right now with small marketing teams where I mostly do the end-to-end digital marketing by myself: from strategy, execution and optimization. It's mostly me having inputs and no one out there to bounce ideas with (at least in digital marketing in general). That's why listening to your podcast is like having colleagues at work who share great ideas.

I've listen to your eps of your podcast and loved it!

Love your content and I'm learning a ton thanks to you 🙏 The content is something they don’t teach in schools and I appreciate that, like many other marketers I’d assume

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I just wanted to say I love the material you post, soo insightful and on the ball. Keep it going 🙏

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I learn so much from the frameworks you share!

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I've only been tuning in to your podcasts for a couple of weeks now, and I have to say, they're incredibly valuable and informative. I'm so glad I found them! As a Digital Marketer they are helping me a lot in coming up with strategies, Brand positioning, Demand generation and more

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I am also a part of the B2B space and a big fan/ avid listener of your podcast.

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I saw your podcast before, love it!

I love your pod man you guys are going to blow up. The guests you have had on have given a lot of actionable ideas Honestly, some of the most helpful content is how to handle clients and bring innovation to clients to continue to add value instead of being reactionary. (Reactionary to issues, bad analytics, whatever) Helping people be innovative and thoughtfully creative with their clients stays out in front of the ick

The podcast has been super helpful!

Really appreciate your Podcast and what you are doing to educate on demand gen. Learning from your content. Keep up the great work.

Been watching your stuff since I watched episode 85 and realised you guys do what I’ve been doing the last decade just from the sales and marketing Great message and method First solid advice I’ve seen in years

I often read your newsletter & listen to your podcasts. Learn a lot of new stuff in B2B. Keep creating the content man! It's super valuable!

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Not gonna lie, I am a big fan of what you do, I love watching your videos on YouTube, I'm subscribed to your newsletter. Keep it up! 🤘

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I’ve listened to your podcast before and thoroughly enjoyed! ☺️

10 Step Guide to Sales and Marketing Alignment

Collaboration powered by Factors.ai

Want to Download The Workbook and Edit it?

10 Steps to Sales & Marketing Alignment

Step 1 - Understand Your Business Goals & Metrics

Step 2 - Define your ICPs for Sales & Marketing to Align on

Step 3 - Map the Customer Journey

Step 4 - Defining Sales and Marketing Lead Qualification Criteria

See the remaining steps (5-10)👇

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL >

Sales & Marketing Alignment Workbook Created by Experts

Steve Armenti

George Coudounaris

Subscribe To Our Newsletter
So You Don't Miss Out!

P.S... B2B Marketers LOVE The B2B Incubator
to drive Sales and Marketing Alignment

What Marketers Like You Are Saying...

10 Step Guide to Sales and Marketing Alignment

Collaboration powered by Factors.ai

Want to Download The Workbook and Edit it?

10 Steps to Sales & Marketing Alignment

Step 1 - Understand Your Business Goals & Metrics

Step 2 - Define your ICPs for Sales & Marketing to Align on

Step 3 - Map the Customer Journey

Step 4 - Defining Sales and Marketing Lead Qualification Criteria

See the remaining steps (5-10)👇

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL >

Sales & Marketing Alignment Workbook Created by Experts

Steve Armenti

George Coudounaris

Subscribe To Our NewsletterSo You Don't Miss Out!

P.S... B2B Marketers LOVE The B2B Incubatorto drive Sales and Marketing Alignment

What Marketers Like You Are Saying...

Subscribe To Our Newsletter
So You Don't Miss Out!

P.S... B2B Marketers LOVE The B2B Incubator
to drive Sales and Marketing Alignment