Improving Digital Content Distribution for Multi-Territory Sales Teams
Misaligned companies often have one thing in common: their sales and marketing teams are at odds. While these two should naturally cooperate, their distinct goals and methods create friction between them. This is all too apparent when it comes to digital content production and distribution for multi-territory companies.
Sales representatives aim to meet the demands of specific markets. That requires custom content that reflects the interests of potential clients in a territory. Intending to convert them as fast as possible, sales experts modify their materials as needed. At times, they sacrifice consistency which affects brand awareness.
Marketing teams, in contrast, provide brand-consistent materials that guide leads throughout their buying journey. Their content is often based on the logic of purchasing the product. They offer information that compels the prospect to move to the next step of the funnel. But, it takes a while to see results, especially with content marketing alone.
With related yet distinct objectives, is there a way to combine sales and marketing efforts to maximize revenue? How does this translate to digital content creation and distribution in large, multi-territory teams? Can marketing experts help sales members in different locations sell more while increasing brand awareness?
Main Focus of Sales Teams
Sales teams are tasked to maintain and increase a company’s revenue by converting leads into loyal customers. They formulate strategies that position the company’s products and services to solve the customers’ problems. They establish the initial relationship with a prospect through consistent communication and personalized content.
Sales experts work with the most unpredictable part of the process: people. They formulate strategies and processes based on the needs of their target customers. On top of that, they also compete with other companies vying for the same leads. while also adjusting to ever-changing market demands and circumstances.
For instance, Gartner’s 2021 report highlights the shift of priorities among sales leaders due to the pandemic. Sales teams are now doubling down on keeping their existing customers happy while closing as many leads as possible.
The focus on rapid conversions is also evident in the updated blueprint for customer acquisition. Up to 49% of sales experts say that accelerating early pipeline efforts and effective lead management campaigns are crucial to the company's success within the following six months.
Field sales teams for multi-territory operations are also enhancing their virtual customer engagement. Around 43% of sales leaders are fully prepared to provide the same value in virtual engagements using video conferencing, chat interactions and digital content.
Main Focus of Marketing Teams
The goals of a marketing team can be summed up in five points:
- Generating high-quality leads
- Creating brand awareness
- Maintaining and growing thought leadership
- Increasing customer value
- Empowering other teams in the company
The backbone of these objectives are collateral and materials. Marketing teams create resources for prospective clients and their colleagues, specifically the sales team. They establish brand awareness and control leveraging print and digital content through various distribution channels.
Similarly, the pandemic further highlights the aims of marketing efforts. About 87% of customers appreciate brands that take extra steps to deliver relevant information in a timely manner. The limited movement of potential clients means marketers are also accelerating their efforts to deliver digital content through channels such as social media, email and search engines.
Bridging the Sales-Marketing Gap Using Ingage
At the end of the day, sales and marketing are about the customer experience. And the collaboration of the two teams is especially critical for companies that juggle different product lines and territories. Bridging the gap between these two teams lies in using the right presentation platform, like Ingage, in three phases of the customer journey:
Increase Closing Rates
The collaboration of sales and marketing teams results in better messaging that addresses specific pain points. By utilizing digital content, multi-territory companies can attract more leads even if they have different demands.
Ingage emphasizes media-rich content to attract and engage potential clients. Sales teams can use video demonstrations to showcase use cases that are parallel to the leads’ interests. Marketing teams can add images and interactive elements that establish the company’s brand identity.
This creates a powerful storytelling aspect that builds trust with the company’s prospects. Brand narrative leverages human emotions through presentations and materials that position the customer at the center of the brand.
Improve Customer Retention
While it is important to convert leads, the true lifeblood of the company is its loyal customers. Ingage helps companies develop targeted content that will keep customers coming back for more. Using data from their market research, sales and marketing teams can collaborate and develop multiple campaigns simultaneously. For example, real estate companies can highlight different types of properties depending on the city or state they operate in.
Ingage allows you to easily create, edit and distribute digital content, particularly presentations, to meet multiple sales needs. Create dynamic and interactive digital content for websites, social media pages or one-on-one demonstrations. And, marketing teams can easily share product updates in just a few clicks. Sales teams do not have to worry about which version of their materials to use as they always have the latest content.
Consistent Branding Messaging
Ingage helps create resources that both teams can use to showcase the business to potential clients. The cloud-based software provides easy access to distributed teams regardless of their location. That means they can collaborate on creating different materials for a specific target audience without sacrificing brand messaging.
The marketing team can create collateral that is consistent with the brand identity of the company. These pages are added to the presentation and instantly shared with different sales teams on various territories. With Ingage’s page locking capabilities, brand-specific elements and narratives are consistent, giving the sales team the freedom to create custom materials without affecting the branding of the presentations. Then, sales reps can highlight specific product lines depending on the market demands of their areas.
Wrapping Up
Sales and marketing might have some differences, but their common goals - converting leads and improving the custom experience - closely connect them. With the right presentation tools, digital content distribution and production are much more efficient, even for multi-territory marketing and sales teams.
Ingage makes it possible for sales and marketing to work together by providing digital content resources that would meet both teams' needs. These two teams can easily collaborate through Ingage’s cloud platform and create custom materials with consistent brand messaging to meet varying marketing demands. And when sales and marketing teams are aligned, the company is poised to attract and qualify more leads, generating more revenue in the long run. Book a demo to explore how Ingage helps sales and marketing teams work together.