On a broader scale, language defines who we are, what groups we belong to and our culture.   

In Quebec, almost 50 years ago, the Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF -  Quebec Board of the French Language) was established to ensure that French would be the primary language in the province of Quebec assuring the rights and identity of the French-speaking majority.

Supposedly first dubbed  ’The Language Police’ by the TV show 60 minutes, the OQLF accepts language complaints filed by Quebec citizens.     Although having no police powers, the OQLF can fine or even shut down an offending business.

Do we need language police in our world of B2B sales & marketing?

The ancient Greeks used the word bárbaros to describe foreigners as ‘those who babble’  (hence the word ‘barbarian’)

Perhaps this is an early example of mis-aligment between sales and marketing.   Could it be that ancient Greek salespeople referred to their marketing colleagues as bárbaros?  

Whatever the case, we continue to face basic issues in B2B sales and marketing.

The core concept of the definition of a sales lead and its workflow is the subject of endless debate and lack of clarity within B2B organizations.

The sales lead is the currency upon which sales and marketing transact their business.     If sales does not agree with marketing on the definition of a sales lead or their role in the lead lifecycle, then marketing’s efforts are futile.     This is akin to doing business between sales and marketing but in different currencies.

The agreement between sales and marketing acts as the catalyst for sales effort.

I propose that it is not the definition of the lead that matters but rather that sales and marketing agree on that definition.    

So here is my definition of a lead that provides any sales and marketing organization with a base to work from: 

The Sales Lead: A defined prospect to be engaged by Sales.  

Implied in this simple definition:

1. A sales lead is defined and agreed upon between sales and marketing and
2. Sales agrees to follow-up on such prospects in a consistent way.    

This approach provides the flexibility that is often needed.    Depending on buying behavior and selling processes, organizations may categorize a lead as an inquiry, an appointment or a qualified lead.   As time moves on, this definition can evolve.

If we can’t get consensus on something as simple and vital as a sales lead, then we should summon the language police.   As B2B organizations we have lost our way and our identity.

Related Blog Posts
An Identity Crisis for the Sales Lead
Sales Leads vs. Appointments
10 Signs that Sales & Marketing are Mis-Aligned

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New research from McKinsey & Company identifies destructive sales practices and prioritizes what customers want from B2B sales organizations.

The research is focused on end users and is statistically significant: McKinsey interviewed 1,252 purchasing decision-makers of high tech products and services at small, medium and large business in  the US and Western Europe. 

Research on end users and on this scale is relatively rare in the B2B world.   

Here are some of the key research findings from McKinsey:

1. The buyer’s experience with sales and product or service features were the most important factors in a purchase decison – not price.        (All the more interesting given that the survey was conducted during the recession).
2. A high performance sales force can boost share of customer by an average of 8 to 15 percent.
3. The two most destructive sales behaviors were inadequate product knowledge and excessive customer contact.

In my mind, there are a number of considerations for a B2B sales organization:

1. Quantifying the Impact - For a sales organization to change, the impact from poor sales practices will need to be defined.    The impact of an 8 to 15 percent customer share increase (per McKinsey) is substantial, especially for high ticket, complex B2B solutions.     Prospect and customer surveys (e.g. Win/Loss) on their sales experience can be used to quantify the impact of the sales experience.
2. Better Sales Training - Training on solution knowledge and how best to engage customers are two key training areas for sales.    McKinsey calls for a centralization of content development and creation of compelling value propositions.    This seems to be a call for marketing and sales to align their efforts better on messaging.   Rather than grand training programs, it’s interesting that McKinsey calls for experiential training and on-the-job training.
3. Raising the Bar on Sales Personnel -  Customers are empowered by online information sources and social networks.      Knowledgeable sales reps who bring a consultative approach and value to customers are a much better fit to today’s customer.      This heightened requirement should help to raise the bar on the calibre of B2B salespeople.
4. Innovative Sales Methods & Tools - Innovative approaches to sales and lead generation enable sales to be smarter and faster.     Done right, sales can be more proactive and more meaningful in touching customers.    The risk is that customer concerns on the frequency of contact could increase should sales not add value or act smarter with that contact.

There are a number of events that could perpetuate rather than reduce destructive sales practices:

1. The Sales Funding Squeeze- According to IDC’s Tech Barometer, in 2010 investment in sales will again outstrip IT investment.    This gap between revenue and costs will pressure sales organizations to scrutinize training expenditures.   
2. Unrealistic Quotas- some of the comments on the McKinsey research pointed out that unrealistic quotas and short term horizons create destructive B2B Sales Practices.   According to CSO Insights, in 2010 sales quotas continue to rise even though attainment of quota was lower in 2008 versus the prior year and sales resources are less.
3. Tech Mergers & Acquisitions - In Q1 2010, $68.8 billion of tech deals were announced versus $19.2 billion for the period a year earlier (source: Reuters).      More sales forces will be merged and rationalized consuming resources and creating distraction .      A recovering economy will create more opportunities for salespeople.   In this environment, sales education will be adversely impacted.

Comments Are Welcome

Are we on the path to resolving destructive sales behaviors?     What action will it take to be successful?

Resources

Blog Post on the Sales Renaissance
Webinar on the Sales Renaissance featuring LivePerson, Ariba and TriNet

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The irony of course, is that the deliverable for sales is crystal clear – the sale. The contract is signed and the PO received. The heavy lifting from sales is finished and that of accounts receivable begins.

But for marketing, whose key deliverable is often the qualified lead, the picture is confusing: the definition of a sales lead can be all over the map. Is a lead an appointment or a qualified lead (or both)? Is a lead an inquiry, a trade show visitor, a webinar registrant, a downloader of a white paper or a referral?

To some, a lead is defined as an interested responder. To others, a fully qualified BANT lead (Budget, Authority, Need, Timeframe).

A poorly defined lead is one symptom of a crippling disease: sales & marketing mis-aligment (see my post on ten signs that sales and marketing are mis-aligned).

In the simplest possible terms: a lead is a prospect that sales agrees to accept, engage and close. Best-in-class sales & marketing organizations will add richer criteria to the definition, but the willingness of sales to accept a lead from marketing is elegant in its simplicity.

It also takes into account an important distinction: the definition of a lead may vary by the sales rep. For example, a new sales rep with no sales funnel may accept ‘loosely’ defined leads versus a sales rep who has a full funnel who will only accept ‘strictly’ defined, fully-qualified leads.

Unfortunately, the term ‘lead’ is frequently taken out of context by the vendors that sell to B2B marketers. This may artificially enhance the perceived value of the vendor’s solution but adds to the malaise and confusion in the market.

Ask yourself after reading the examples below and apply the simple acceptance rule: can you fathom a field salesperson accepting these ‘leads’?

Data Vendors – A significant number of data vendors continue to merchandise their lists as ‘leads’. Nothing could be further from the truth. These are lists of ‘Accounts and Contacts’.

CRM Vendors – Most CRM solutions have separate buckets for accounts/contacts and leads. Although I agree that leads need a home in the CRM system, the lead bucket seems to be a dumping ground for all flavors of inquiries and marketing responders. A more applicable label would be ‘Prospects’

Marketing Automation Vendors – A popular and vital process in the demand generation process is ‘lead nurture’. I agree that this is an easy to understand term for describing the cultivation of prospects until the prospect is sales-ready. However, these contacts are not leads but are prospects that are not yet ready to speak to sales. At one time, some of these prospect may have spoken to sales and subsequently disqualified. A better term would be ‘Prospect Nurture’.

It is important for marketing to under-promise and over-deliver to sales. It makes sense to ask their vendors to do the same.

Call me a stickler if you want, but until we see greater success in sales and marketing alignment and in particular, lead definitions, we need to be a lot more careful in the way that we throw around a pivotal term like ‘lead’.

Otherwise, it becomes one of those four letter words.

Your thoughts?

Photo Credit: Ash-rly

As a provider of lead generation services, we are afforded a unique position at the intersection point between sales and marketing to observe many of these ‘canaries’.

Today, I have tallied our top ten signs that sales and marketing are mis-aligned:

1) Wrestling in the Office – Sales and marketing settle their differences like cro-magnon men (see photo).

2) Rental Lists as Leads – Marketing refers to accounts and contacts on rental lists as ‘leads’. Any marketer who indiscriminately parrots this term from list vendors should be sent back to B2B marketing school.

3) Inquiries as Leads – Marketing categorizes an inquiry as a ‘lead’. A responder is just that: someone who is interested in your offer and may not be evaluating solutions.

4) Multiple Definitions for a Lead – Marketing and sales can’t agree on a single definition of a qualified, sales-ready lead.

5) Recycling Marketing Messaging for Sales – Dragging-and-dropping a message from a marketing brochure or website does not satisfy the needs of inside and outside sales for precise, distinct and succinct messaging.

6) No commitment from Sales on Lead Handling – Once marketing hands off a lead to sales there is no agreed upon course of action for lead engagement, lead reporting or lead recycling.

7) Fuzzy Sales Lead Feedback – The reports from sales are full of emotion but not facts. Leads are tossed aside with little detailed feedback as to why the lead did not meet the lead criteria.

8 ) A Qualified Prospect Calls Back – A lead who is expecting a call from sales, never receives contact. The lead re-contacts your organization to find out when someone will call.

9) Leads Generated by Marketing are Not Factored into Quota – Sales does not count on marketing-sourced leads to achieve their quota.

10) Marketing is Measured on Inquiries or Responses – Marketing is measured on activity metrics, rather than results metrics.

What signs do you see that cause you concern about sales and marketing alignment? What would you add to the list?

Great efforts are underway by our organizations to better align sales and marketing department in pursuit of the common goal of closing more sales.

Although it is clear that a core player in all complex sale demand generation programs is the sales person, I would like to pay specific attention to the hand off from marketing to sales.

This key `moment of truth` is realized when the prospect responds and then looks to the vendor for a live discussion or when the prospect expects the vendor to reach out to them.

As more and more responses move online, the buyer`s expectations have changed.

Have our sales teams modified their approach to engaging online responders?

In future postings, I would like to discuss a number of key areas for vendors to better address the needs of online buyers but two stand out today:

1. Responding to buyer inquiries in a timely and consistent manner.
2. Providing value to prospects.

Do you remember when companies started publishing an email address on their website and the first time that you sent an email to sales? Like most of us, you were probably dismayed when your inquiry remained unaddressed and reluctantly you returned to the telephone to get the job done.

In that same vein, let`s take a closer look at this moment of truth.