When sales decline, Marketing and Sales start pointing fingers. The owner becomes upset and Department VPs become defensive. Even solopreneurs who wear both hats, need marketing and sales actions working together.
Are Marketing and Sales At Odds
Review best clients and recent prospects to know what does and does not work and to show leaks in your sales pipeline:
- Best clients – What makes them special? What were their needs? What was your lead source? In what industry and networking groups are they active?
- Best clients – What did they do to show interest in you? What actions (i.e., demo) did they take to show buyer intent?
- Recent prospects – What is different about them compared to your best clients? At what stage did they stop being prospects?
Understand why your best clients became clients and use those actions with new prospects.
Tofu, Mofu, and Bofu
Divide your sales funnel into 3 stages – Top, Middle, and Bottom of Funnel. Review recent prospects. At what stage did they drop out? What actions made a prospect buy?
The point at which a prospect drops out is telling:
- Tofu – When many prospects drop out at the top, marketing may be focused on the wrong lead sources. Or buyer interest has not been triggered.
- Mofu – Buyers seek details, proof, and personalization. Buyers leave Mofu when sellers do not follow up or motivate buyers with Mofu Magnets to pull buyers in. Free roof inspections by roofers is a Mofu Magnet.
- Bofu – Relationship or lack thereof is the #1 reason you lose. When the relationship is nurtured, trust and respect are established, and pricing is discussed. Buyers seek less risk, best price, and personal attention.
Track buyers to see what triggered their interest and apply those actions.
When Marketing and Sales Are United
At BrightEdge Partners, Executive Coaching, Robert Bright was swamped, serving clients, calling prospects, and questioning sales reps about missed opportunities.
The 3 Reps felt like they were running a marathon on a treadmill. Sales had plateaued over the past year and the pressure was intense. Their results were puzzling so they convened a meeting.
They reviewed clients and prospects and found:
- Best clients originated at 1 of 3 business associations and paid to attend BrightEdge’s seminars.
- Tofu dropouts originated from general business networking.
- Mofu dropouts were caused by inconsistent follow up.
- Bofu wins were 8% of total prospects.
They agreed to make “Bofu Wins” 15% of Tofu prospects within 6 months.
BrightEdge Was Bright
BrightEdge’s team decided to increase seminars and change networking groups. They used X2CRM to manage and measure prospects by stage and automate manual, repetitive outreach. Six months later, their results are:
- Webinar attendance increased, creating 2X qualified prospects.
- Tofu and Mofu prospects are engaged and show interest.
- Sales conversion are 20% of Tofu prospects.
The marketing and sales efforts were aligned.
“X2crm changed our business and our future.”
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