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Is It Time to Integrate Marketing and Sales?

Marketing and sales alignment remains a hot topic among B2B marketing and sales professionals. People on "both sides of the aisle" have recognized that successful demand generation requires a coordinated effort by both marketing and sales. Now, a growing number of marketing/sales thought leaders are beginning to argue that alignment may not go far enough.

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Question added by Natasha Khan , Assistant Manager , Publishing Company – Coventry
Date Posted: 2014/05/21
Abdul Samad Nadeem Malik
by Abdul Samad Nadeem Malik , Business Support Officer , Thimar Al Jazirah - 3M ESPE

Marketing represents the whole process in order to reach consumer target. It's discipline I consider coordination of policy in product, price, distribution and communication; obviously including sales.

Abdullah Mohammad Awais
by Abdullah Mohammad Awais , Assistant Procurement And Logistics Manager , CHBIB Trading Company Ltd

In this era it's very difficult to sell without marketing.

because marketing is a tool that convince the  people to buy and show what thier needs are .

Most corporation whose business carried out a big product variety and its likely to deal  with different target markets across the country or international markets ,make use of integrated marketing.  Integrated Marketing is a strategic plan combining both traditional and non traditional marketing principles, carried a very well verse detailed plan of a company marketing activities using all the tools. The plan that is describe as strategic in order to inform, educate, aware and communicate of the product and services that a company provide and offer.  Sales is  an integral part of it.  But the scope of sales is quite big and the bottom line of all the plans. As the Marketer you need to know whats going on, and make a detailed report, an evidence that will make a clear report of the outside markets through the measures of sales income and market feedbacks

How is sales become an integral part and plays a big role out from the carried detailed plan? 

Sales is part of PLACEMENT - it carries the product or services for the consumption or use directly to the target markets.

For a big corporation who is the owner itself, it is possible to integrate sales in marketing.

Emmanuel Wamweta
by Emmanuel Wamweta , production supervisor , Tembo Steel Rolling

I think these two disciplines are intergrated & display a dependency relationship. It is very important to maintain & enhence that relationship because these functions play a very big role in success of a business.

Samer Abdullah Bakri Abdullah Bakri
by Samer Abdullah Bakri Abdullah Bakri , Financial Director , lozn international company

OK.marketing and sales are always integrated but marketing concept always results into greater and sustainable volume from sales because the target of marketing concept is to satisfing the consumers need and wants by using marketing tactical tool,,4Ps

sellig concept focus on volume of sales.

Henwa Naguib
by Henwa Naguib , Sen. Marketing Manager , Al Futtaim Group Real Estate

It is only advised in certain sectors to align Marketing and Sales in the "commercial function" Sales is mostly associated to short term decisions and tactics While marketing is all about securing today's and high attention to tomorrow's sales and growth Conflict in this perspective is always advised because it keeps an open flow of information and insights from both sides to the top management especially in the b2c dynamic sectors.

Fabrizio Rossi
by Fabrizio Rossi , IT Manager , Carestream Health

It's time to implement a job rotation program...

MohamedAli MohamedAhmed Abdelhamid
by MohamedAli MohamedAhmed Abdelhamid , HR Manager , Yemen Dairy & Juice Industries

Sales was a function and one of marketing activities before, but now a day, in some business organizations sales department acquire more power and influence, but as putting it in a professional way, there should be a big integration and coordination between marketing an sales, none of them can make the maximum success if they try to work completely dependent, as they are most departments depend on each other as twins, so integration helps a lot to achieve business's goals an objectives.  

Felix Balaccua
by Felix Balaccua , General Manager , Superhawk Logistics, Inc

No. They should remain independent. A successful sales and marketing team is like your left and right hand. They know when to work independently for you and they know when to join together. Don't join them for good.

Behzad Safaeian
by Behzad Safaeian , Head of Department , Kemp & Lauritzen

 

Well, it depends on several things, most of all how large a company is and how technically complicated the products you are selling, are.

 

In large companies you have to separate divisions to manage all processes and to have a good control of how goals are been achieved continuously, so you have to have Marketing and Sales separated.

 

The same is when the product(s) you are selling is a technically complicated product, then you will have to have a very technically oriented sales division, which normally cannot cover Marketing as well.

 

However, in such cases you can arrange a very close relationship between these two divisions by having case-related and work-together marketing and sales strategies.  

 

If we see deeply, we shall find that these two have already been integrated in every part of life from personal to professional. The need is that, it should be now customized as per the trends and we can see, it is being done.

As for the opinion of some leaders, may be they are correct or not correct, but what I would say is that these two points are attached with humans from ancient times even when there was barter system and will continue untill we close our eyes and the deepest point I want to mention is that, at our death, sales & marketing active to sale & purchase of coffins too. What you say  ?

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