In Part 1 of this article, we asked whether marketing and sales should be merged into a single function in enterprise software organizations.  While we heard some dissenting voices, by and large the consensus was that marketing and sales should remain separate, as they are in most enterprise software companies today. 
 
So here we are again, left with the age-old questions of how we keep the two functions separate yet connected, and what specific roles should marketing and sales play when it comes to lead generation, a point of frequent contention in almost every company. 
 
I spoke with Dave McNamara, a high-tech veteran who has held senior marketing and sales positions with both large and small companies, and is currently Director of Business Partner Sales at Application Security, Inc. 
 
“The rub between sales and marketing always comes down to lead generation,” says Dave.  “Let me give you some of the philosophy that our CEO uses at Application Security, Inc., which is quite effective.”
 
The CEO’s message to sales is: ‘Never tell me you are not hitting your numbers or your pipeline targets because marketing doesn’t give you leads. It is just not an acceptable excuse. Get out and sell, pick up the phone, generate your own leads, develop your own territory, build and deliver your own direct marketing capabilities.  You can expect some leads resulting from marketing efforts, but you cannot rely on them.’ 
 
At the same time, the CEO leans heavily on marketing to maximize the quality and quantity of leads within the confines of their budget.  So in essence, both organizations are driven to produce leads, but no one can point to the other to blame if they don’t hit their targets. 
 
Dave points out that this approach works well for Application Security because the market is relatively immature.  “There is no saturation issue to deal with, so the world is your oyster,” says Dave.  “It would be tougher to get salespeople to develop their own leads if eight out of ten people they called on already had a comparable solution.”  This is probably the situation for most young enterprise software companies; if it’s not, you’re probably not in the right market to begin with.
 
Amit Bendov, Senior VP of Product Marketing at ClickSoftware, has spent most of his career in technical and marketing roles, but has always been intimately involved in sales efforts.  Amit has a knack for really understanding customer pain points and clearly articulating a vision for a solution, a quality that has been the tipping point in closing many deals.  Most recently, Amit spent a short stint as acting VP of Sales.  You can see why his perspective carries such a unique insight. 
 
“Marketing should be the driving force behind the company,” says Amit.  “Marketing’s role is to define the company’s target market, help grow the overall market, and position the company to be a leader within this market.  Sales is essentially ‘marketing’s last mile’, to borrow a phrase from the utility business, carrying the marketing direction into specific customer engagements.”
 
Keeping this philosophy in mind can help define the roles of the two organizations when it comes to lead generation.  Says Amit: “For an enterprise software company with a finite target market [which I believe is always the case if the company is positioned correctly - Eran], the most effective way to sell is by targeting specific accounts.  Some salespeople have a tendency to go after any lead.  If both functions are doing their jobs correctly, marketing can help sales by pointing them towards accounts where they have a better likelihood of success.” 
 
“It is sales’ job to create the dialogue,” he adds.  “Marketing can provide sales with tools and targeted messages to develop the dialogue and overcome the inventible obstacles during the sales process.” 
 
Bob Lamkin of TVM, a technology-focused venture capital firm, further emphasizes the role of marketing in the sales process:  “It is not uncommon to see young enterprise software companies missing sales goals because some sales cycles have stalled and are taking longer than planned.  Crafting targeted messages for specific sales situations is probably the most powerful way for marketing to help move these sales cycles forward.  You don’t want salespeople to reinvent the wheel for every sale.  When a prospect raises an issue, it is a positive sign of interest.  If it takes a salesperson too long to respond, or if the response is not focused on the buyer’s issue, the momentum is lost.  It is also a way for marketing to help the company communicate a unified message, both inside the company and out to the market.”
 
In addition to sales messages and tools, both Amit and Bob see more ways in which marketing can help sales.  “Marketing can create initial interest and awareness, so the sales person doesn’t have to start completely uninitiated,” says Amit, “but it’s the salesperson’s job to start a more focused dialogue to further qualify the fit of the account and create the motivation for the buying decision.  Since the sales cycle in enterprise software is very long, marketing can assist with ongoing touch points along the way.  Things such as customer success stories, webinars, and industry-focused newsletters help strengthen the company’s image and reinforce the sales message.  Again, this only works if the salespeople are going after accounts that fall within the company’s target market as defined by marketing.  Otherwise, these marketing touches can confuse the prospect.”
 
Listening to Amit, Bob, Dave, and others that spend their days in the trenches of marketing and sales, I can see a pattern for collaboration that seems to work.  Not a perfect formula, but a work in process.  In my mind, this conversation is far from being over, but as an interim summary, here are some of the concepts that seem to work:  

1. Some overlap is good if nobody expects the other to do the job.

 
The concept of both marketing and sales working to generate leads seems to work, as long as they do not each expect the other to do the job.  While marketing should be measured on generating target market touch points (see The Marketing Dashboard article), sales should generate their own leads and treat any marketing activity as complementary.
 
Having both marketing and sales go after similar targets without annoying the customer requires some level of synchronization.  In most cases, working off a joint database (dare we say CRM?!) and a minimal dose of planning and consideration will do the trick.
 

2. Ongoing marketing touches can support the sales process.

 
This only works if the salespeople are going after accounts that fall within the company’s target market, as defined by marketing.  Otherwise, these marketing touches can confuse the prospect.
 

3. Marketing must help the company transition from initial the heroism to a repeatable process.

 
Every company that has seen any initial success has at least one very good salesperson that found a way to convince some customers to buy into the company’s solution.  As the company grows, marketing must capture this knowledge and turn it into successful selling tactics and messages that can be used by the expanded sales force. 
 

4. It all boils down to people.

 
Good salespeople will find the right way to work with marketing and leverage on it.  Conversely, good marketing people will find the way to both learn from sales and help the sales process. 
 
However, it is up to the company’s leadership to make marketing and sales create synergy rather than internal squabble.  A strong message from the CEO, such as in the case of Application Security, can set the stage for collaboration.  Otherwise, it is up to the sales and marketing chiefs to agree on a framework for cooperation that works best for the company. 
 

More ideas?  Other things you have seen working?  Other things you would like to find out about?  Let me know!