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Alright, let’s cut to the chase.
Sales and marketing should be the ultimate power duo working in sync, feeding off each other’s strengths, and driving business growth like a well-oiled machine. But in reality? They’re often more like distant relatives who only talk at family gatherings when forced.
And that’s a massive problem.
Because when sales and marketing aren’t aligned, revenue slows down, customer acquisition costs rise, and opportunities get lost in the void.
On the other hand, businesses with tightly aligned sales and marketing teams see:
67% more efficiency in closing deals.
208% more revenue from marketing efforts.
36% higher customer retention.
24% faster revenue growth.
Sounds like a no-brainer, right? Yet, most companies still struggle with misalignment. Let’s break down why sales and marketing alignment is so important, where things typically go wrong, and how to fix it (lxahub.com).
Imagine a figure skating duo (stay with me). Marketing is the skater setting up the routine, building momentum, and grabbing attention with an elegant entry. Sales is the closer, the one executing the final spin and landing the jump.
If they’re out of sync, someone’s falling flat on their face.
The same applies to your business. Sales and marketing shouldn’t operate in silos. They should be working toward the same goals, using the same playbook, and sharing insights at every step.
The numbers don’t lie
If you need cold, hard proof of why alignment matters, here are some eye-opening stats:
Aligned teams close more deals - Companies with strong sales and marketing alignment are 67% more effective at closing deals and 38% sales win rates.
Misalignment = revenue loss - B2B companies that fail to align sales and marketing lose 10% or more of their annual revenue.
Higher retention and bigger deals - Companies with aligned teams experience 36% higher customer retention and 47% larger purchase values from nurtured leads.
Faster growth - Businesses with “tightly aligned” sales and marketing functions see 27% faster profit growth and 24% quicker revenue growth over three years (lxahub.com).
And yet…
79% of marketing leads never convert to sales because they aren’t properly qualified or nurtured.
Sales ignores 50% of marketing leads because they don’t see them as valuable.
65% of sales reps say they struggle to find relevant content to send to prospects (lxahub.com).
So, what’s causing this breakdown?
There are plenty of reasons sales and marketing don’t always get along. But most of them boil down to a lack of communication, unclear goals, and misaligned processes.
They’re chasing different goals
Sales cares about hitting revenue targets. Marketing cares about driving leads and brand awareness. Both are valid, but if there’s no shared revenue goal, they’ll always be pulling in opposite directions.
Fix it: Set shared KPIs (e.g., revenue from marketing-sourced leads, MQL-to-SQL conversion rates).
Leads are handled poorly by both sides
Marketing generates leads and expects sales to close them. Sales sees low-quality leads and ignores them. Rinse and repeat.
Fix it: Establish lead scoring criteria and create a clear handoff process between marketing and sales.
Sales and marketing doesn’t communicate
Sales has frontline data on customer objections, deal breakers, and key pain points. Marketing has data on engagement, messaging effectiveness, and lead behavior. But if they’re not talking, both sides are missing critical insights.
Fix it: Hold regular sales-marketing meetings to exchange feedback and refine messaging.
Let’s talk solutions. Here’s how to get sales and marketing working together like a synchronized figure skater duo.
Build a shared revenue model
Marketing shouldn’t just be responsible for lead volume. And sales shouldn’t just be responsible for closing deals. Instead, both should own revenue outcomes.
Changing to a revenue focused mindset makes it easier to align sales and marketing goals around pipeline contribution, MQL-to-revenue conversion, and customer retention.
When both teams are accountable for revenue, collaboration improves, and growth becomes more predictable.
By sharing insights and KPIs, marketing and sales can optimize the entire customer journey, from first touch to long-term loyalty.
Define and enforce lead scoring
Not all leads are created equal. Create a clear lead scoring model that helps both teams prioritize the best opportunities.
MQL to SQL criteria: Set a minimum engagement threshold before leads are passed to sales.
Re-engagement process: Create a structured nurture plan for leads that aren’t ready to buy yet.
Get sales involved in content strategy
If sales teams are ignoring marketing content, it’s usually because it doesn’t help them close deals.
Involve sales in content planning: What objections do they hear most? What case studies would help?
Tag content by sales funnel stage: Organize assets by awareness, consideration, and decision stages.
Make it easy to find: A well-organized sales enablement library will make a big difference.
Hold sales-marketing sync meetings
You wouldn’t send a sports team onto the field without a game plan, right? Same goes for sales and marketing.
Set weekly or bi-weekly check-ins to:
Share performance insights (what’s working, what’s not).
Identify pipeline bottlenecks.
Optimize messaging based on real sales conversations.
Align technology and data
Nearly 96% of well-aligned companies are also aligned in their tech stacks. If marketing and sales are using separate, disconnected tools, alignment will never happen.
Use a shared CRM (e.g., HubSpot, Salesforce) so both teams have visibility into pipeline data.
Integrate marketing automation tools (e.g., email sequences, lead nurturing workflows).
Track attribution metrics (e.g., which campaigns generate revenue, not just leads).
Aligning sales and marketing isn’t just a nice-to-have. It’s a revenue multiplier.
When done right, it leads to higher close rates, lower customer acquisition costs, and faster growth. And the best part? It doesn’t require a massive overhaul. Just a commitment to better communication, shared goals, and smarter processes.
So, ask yourself:
Are sales and marketing playing by the same rules in your company?
Do they have shared revenue targets and a clear lead handoff process?
Is sales getting the content they need to close more deals?
If not, it’s time to fix it. Because the companies that do? They’re the ones winning in today’s market.
Want more insights on how to optimize your B2B sales and marketing strategy? Let’s talk.
Email: nh@profoundnorth.com
Phone: +45 93 93 75 63
Or reach us through the form below.