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The Center for Sales Strategy Blog

What's a Marketing Qualified Lead? What's a Sales Qualified Lead?

sales qualified lead vs marketing qualified leadWhen it comes to lead generation, when does the marketing department’s role end and the sales department’s role begin? Very specifically, when should a lead be passed from marketing to sales?

As with most marketing and sales best practices, it’s not always a black and white answer.

Every organization is different, and it’s important that your organization have it's own marketing and sales agreement plan that outlines in detail how you will qualify, distribute, track, and ultimately close your marketing leads.

Topics: Lead Nurturing Lead Generation Inbound Marketing sales and marketing alignment

Considering Hiring More Salespeople? Check Out These 3 Reasons to Invest in Inbound Marketing First.

three reasons to invest in inbound marketingMost small growing businesses know they need to continue to make strategic investments to sustain their growth. The challenge is knowing where to invest. If the obstacles to growth that you’ve identified are branding and visibility, hiring additional recruiters will not solve these problems.

Topics: Lead Generation sales strategy Inbound Marketing Inbound Sales

Prospecting is Dead… Long Live Prospecting

inbound marketing prospecting funnelDid you know that your chances of making a sale go up a gazillion percent when the prospect actually asks to be contacted by you? Of course you knew that! So how do you make this happen?

Topics: content marketing Lead Nurturing Inbound Marketing

Not Enough Appointments? You Must Whip It!

inbound marketing generate qualified leadsWhen a problem comes along, you must whip it.
When something's going wrong, you must whip it.
Now whip it into shape… shape it up, get straight, go forward, move ahead.
Try to detect it… it's not too late to whip it!
Whip it good!
-Devo, "Whip It"

Topics: sales strategy Inbound Marketing sales and marketing alignment Inbound Sales

Weekly Roundup: The Balancing Act Of Sales Management + More

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- WHAT'S MOTIVATING US THIS WEEK -

"When we tell people to do their jobs, we get workers.
When we trust people to do their jobs, we get leaders."

-SIMON SINEK

- DON'T MISS THIS -

<< FREE LIVE WEBINAR AUGUST 29TH>>

How Inbound Can Turbo Charge Your Outbound Sales Efforts — LEADG2

Outbound sales tactics are alive and well. The key is that your sales organization can't survive relying solely on this alone. That's where inbound comes in... In this webinar, we'll explore how inbound and outbound efforts work together to help your salespeople improve sales performance and reach revenue goals. We'll also explore tactical inbound sales strategies that you can start implementing right away. REGISTER HERE.

- WHAT WE'VE BEEN READING THIS WEEK -

<< If you only read one thing >>

The Balancing Act Of Sales Management: Person Vs Process  LinkedIn

Sales management is the most important role in revenue generation for any business but how do you balance 'managing the person' with 'managing the process'? How do you love and encourage your people, yet hold them to account for doing what's necessary in creating sales and customer success?

Topics: Inbound Marketing Sales Wrap-up

How to Stop Cold Calling and Get Your Salespeople Out Selling

salesperson_on_phone2.jpg 

research study by McKinsey Global Institute reported that salespeople on average spend less than 13 hours a week actually selling.

Considering that going out and selling solutions is what salespeople actually are best at, and what is most profitable for them and the company they work for, it’s a little disheartening that so much time is spent doing other things like office tasks, answering emails, researching leads, and internal communication (I’m guessing this includes one too many meetings a week).

However, I’m not so sure we can eliminate those other tasks and give salespeople back another 20 hours a week. And even if they had that extra time, I’m not sure they’d be spending it in the most effective way. It’s not about how much time we have to actually sell. It’s about how much time we waste on trying to get to that point of the selling process.

Topics: Inbound Marketing Sales sales and marketing alignment Inbound Sales

Weekly Roundup: How Inbound Can Turbo Charge Your Outbound Sales Efforts + More

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- WHAT'S MOTIVATING US THIS WEEK -

"Many of life's failures are people who did not realize
how close they were to success when they gave up."

-THOMAS EDISON

- DON'T MISS THIS -

<< FREE LIVE WEBINAR AUGUST 29TH>>

How Inbound Can Turbo Charge Your Outbound Sales Efforts — LEADG2

Outbound sales tactics are alive and well. The key is that your sales organization can't survive relying solely on this alone. That's where inbound comes in... In this webinar, we'll explore how inbound and outbound efforts work together to help your salespeople improve sales performance and reach revenue goals. We'll also explore tactical inbound sales strategies that you can start implementing right away. REGISTER HERE.

- WHAT WE'VE BEEN READING THIS WEEK -

<< If you only read one thing >>

How ABM Helps Sales and Marketing Work Together — LinkedIn

Marketing and sales should work together. It sounds so simple and obvious, in theory. In practice, however, many sales and marketing teams work independently, leaving them unaware of otherwise obvious opportunities. There’s a better way, and that way is account-based marketing (ABM). It’s a strategy that doesn’t just call for alignment between sales and marketing teams, but generates it.

Topics: Inbound Marketing Sales Wrap-up

Weekly Roundup: Sales Experts Share The Skills You Need to Raise Your Salary + More

raise-sales-salary

- WHAT'S MOTIVATING US THIS WEEK -

"Successful people do what unsuccessful people are not willing to do.
Don't wish it were easier; wish you were better."

-JIM ROHN

- WHAT WE'VE BEEN READING THIS WEEK -

<< If you only read one thing >>

4 Sales Experts Share The Skills You Need to Raise Your Salary — TalentDesk

Why should you pursue a career in sales? Hear from CSS Managing Partner, Matt Sunshine, as well as other industry experts as they speak to this topic and what skills a sales professional needs to increase their salary.

B2B Companies: Super-Serve Your Clients To Success— LeadG2

Not all clients are the same, and the best B2B companies know this and super-serve their clients however they can. By super-serving your clients with excellent communication, defined expectations, and focused efforts on their goals, you will assist your clients on their way to success, in turn setting the relationship up for future success and growth for your company.

Topics: Inbound Marketing Sales Wrap-up

Weekly Roundup: Guide to Target Markets, Get Meetings with CEOs + More

get-meetings-with-ceos

- WHAT'S MOTIVATING US THIS WEEK -

"Don't let the fear of losing be greater than the excitement of winning."

-ROBERT KIYOSAKI

- WHAT WE'VE BEEN READING THIS WEEK -

<< If you only read one thing >>

The Straight-Forward Guide to Target Markets — Hubspot

Every sales team needs to know their customer. Who is the ideal fit for your offering? What are their interests and priorities? Answering these questions can help you prioritize the deals you’re most likely to win.

Topics: Inbound Marketing Sales Wrap-up

Weekly Roundup: Prospecting Strategies for Salespeople + More

prospecting strategies for salespeople

- WHAT'S MOTIVATING US THIS WEEK -

"Someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago."

-WARREN BUFFETT

 

- WHAT WE'VE BEEN READING THIS WEEK -

<< If you only read one thing >>

Is Cold Calling Dead? 17 New Prospecting Strategies Salespeople Should Use — Hubspot

Is cold calling dead? Let's be honest. That answer is "No." Cold calling used to be one of the best -- and only -- prospecting strategies salespeople could use. But in the past 40 years, a variety of more effective alternatives have emerged.

Topics: Inbound Marketing Sales Wrap-up