Introduction
Smarketing combines the efforts of the marketing and sales teams to improve a company’s performance. This approach pursues clear goals: increasing sales, retaining customers and reducing customer acquisition costs. It relies on a shared understanding of customer expectations and behaviours, and encourages an open dialogue between teams to deliver a unified, personalised customer experience that guides the buyer from discovery to loyalty.
In this guide, we explain what a smarketing strategy is, why it matters for your business and the steps to implement it effectively. You will also find successful case studies and recommended practices to get the most out of it, including when it comes to prospecting well on LinkedIn.
What is smarketing?
Definition and objectives
A smarketing strategy refers to the strategic alignment and effective collaboration between the marketing and sales teams within an organisation. Its main aim is to improve overall performance, with the objectives of increasing sales, maximising customer retention and minimising acquisition costs.
Smarketing is above all a way of working, organising and structuring a company. Today, breaking down the silos between sales and marketing teams has become vital for any business.
Based on a common knowledge of customer needs and behaviours, as well as continuous communication between marketers and salespeople, smarketing aims to deliver a unified and tailored customer experience. This experience accompanies the prospect from discovering the product or service to becoming a loyal customer, ensuring a smooth transition at every stage of the buying journey.
Why aligning sales and marketing teams matters
Harmony between sales and marketing teams is crucial to the success of smarketing. This alignment helps avoid friction and misunderstandings, simplifying interactions between two departments whose goals can sometimes diverge.
A good example of smarketing that works well is LinkedIn prospecting:
- Sales reps pass their needs and their targeting on to the marketing team.
- The marketing team builds the databases and writes the prospecting messages.
- The marketing team sets up the LinkedIn automation tools.
- Sales reps take over as soon as a prospect replies, from their follow-up tool (CRM or multi-account automation tool).
This small workflow example shows how quick and easy it can be to set up.
Successful alignment is characterised by shared objectives, the sharing of relevant information and data, and the coordination of actions and communications. Thanks to this collaboration, the two teams can together attract qualified prospects, convert them into customers and retain them over the long term.
This alignment offers several benefits to the company, including:
- A deeper understanding of the market and its needs
- A notable increase in revenue and return on investment
- A significant reduction in the sales cycle and in customer acquisition costs
- Improved customer satisfaction and loyalty
- The ability to stand out from competitors
Aligning sales and marketing objectives
Defining shared objectives
The key to success in smarketing lies in establishing shared missions between the marketing and sales teams. These objectives, in line with the company’s overall vision and strategy, must meet customer needs and expectations.
Shared objectives can include the number of prospects to acquire, the conversion rate, sales volume or customer satisfaction. They require the buy-in and commitment of all the teams involved to be achieved effectively.
The SMART method for precise, measurable objectives
The effectiveness of shared missions depends on their precision and on the ability to measure them. The SMART method is an effective tool for setting clear, achievable objectives. SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-bound.
Applying the SMART method helps to define clear, engaging objectives that are rigorously tracked. Here is the detail of each SMART criterion:
- Specific: the objective must be explicitly defined, answering the fundamental questions: who, what, where, when, why and how.
- Measurable: it must be possible to quantify the objective or to know concretely when it has been reached.
- Achievable: the objective must be attainable given the resources and skills available.
- Realistic: it must be consistent with the company’s overall strategy and goals.
- Time-bound: the objective needs a precise deadline.
An example of a SMART objective in smarketing could be: “Increase by 20% the number of qualified leads handed over by the marketing team to the sales team by the end of this quarter”.
Implementing the service level agreement (SLA)
The role of the SLA in smarketing
The Service Level Agreement (SLA) plays a fundamental role in aligning the efforts of the marketing and sales teams. It frames their respective commitments, clearly defining responsibilities, objectives and performance indicators, as well as the collaboration and monitoring processes.
This agreement aims to ensure excellence in the management of leads (in terms of both quality and quantity) generated by marketing and handled by sales. In addition, the SLA makes it easier to resolve conflicts by relying on objective, quantifiable information.
How to build an effective SLA between sales and marketing teams
To put a productive SLA in place, follow these essential steps:
- Clearly identify the needs, expectations and points of friction between the teams.
- Set precise, measurable shared objectives, using the SMART method.
- Deploy solutions that are useful to both marketing and sales. For example, renting dedicated LinkedIn accounts from MirrorProfiles gives the marketing team additional accounts to publish on LinkedIn, and lets the sales team multiply its weekly prospecting volume.
- Establish lead qualification criteria, define the buying journey and specify the process for handing leads over between teams.
- Determine the commitments and responsibilities of each party, as well as the resources needed to fulfil them.
- Write the SLA, detailing its main components: the description of the services, the service level objectives, the exceptions, the procedures in case of a problem and the consequences of non-compliance.
- Obtain validation and signature of the SLA by the parties concerned, and share it with all the people involved.
- Regularly check compliance with the SLA, assess its effectiveness and adjust it if necessary, based on the teams’ feedback.
Tools that make smarketing easier
CRM and marketing automation: the allies of smarketing
To succeed in smarketing, having the right tools is crucial. They must not only enable the effective management of interactions with prospects and customers, but also their optimisation. Two tools stand out for their major role and their complementarity: the CRM (Customer Relationship Management) and marketing automation.
The CRM, a piece of software designed to centralise data on contacts, opportunities and sales, is indispensable for sales teams. It lets them track and steer relationships with prospects and customers, from the first contact through to loyalty. The CRM supports smarketing by making it easier to share data between teams, measure performance and improve customer satisfaction.
Marketing automation, for its part, makes it possible to run personalised, automated marketing campaigns based on the behaviour and profile of contacts. It helps marketing teams attract qualified leads, engage them with relevant content and hand them over to the sales teams at the right moment. Marketing automation makes smarketing more effective by coordinating actions and exchanges between teams, shortening the sales cycle and improving the conversion rate.
To make the junction between prospects, leads and customers even smoother, one option is to add a pre-CRM upstream of your CRM, dedicated to outbound prospecting, so that prospects and leads are not mixed in the same system.
Other tools needed to align the teams
Beyond a CRM strategy and marketing automation, other elements play a part in harmonising sales and marketing teams. They fall into three categories:
- Sharing solutions: essential for exchanges and feedback between teams, sharing best practices and solving problems. This includes instant messaging, video conferencing and project management.
- Content creation solutions: crucial for producing quality content that meets the expectations of prospects and customers. This covers copywriting, design and video production.
- Analytics solutions: indispensable for measuring and optimising the performance of marketing and sales campaigns against precise objectives. This includes web analytics, reporting and A/B testing.
In short, choosing, using and integrating the right tools correctly is fundamental to the success of smarketing.
A culture of feedback and communication
Holding regular follow-up meetings
To strengthen the integration of smarketing efforts, it is crucial to organise frequent follow-up meetings between the marketing and sales teams. These meetings are used to discuss performance, identify potential pitfalls, seize opportunities and decide on the next steps. If you are not a fan of meetings, you can also set up internal feedback mechanisms with a tool such as TeamMood.
These sessions are also a good opportunity to share experiences, adopt best practices and make recommendations for improvement.
The frequency of follow-up meetings can vary (weekly, monthly or quarterly) depending on the specific needs and goals of the teams concerned. They should be short, productive and engaging for all participants, including both managers and team members, who should come prepared with the essential data to discuss performance and progress effectively.
The importance of open exchanges between teams
Maintaining a fluid contact between the marketing and sales teams is just as vital. An open exchange involves continuously shared information, mutual consultation, mutual support and shared respect. This helps to create an atmosphere of trust, cooperation and transparency.
To promote this openness, it is advisable to use suitable tools such as instant messaging, video conferencing or file-sharing solutions. It is also essential to encourage constructive feedback that celebrates successes, identifies challenges and suggests areas for improvement.
This feedback should be given and received with kindness, sincerity and openness.
In conclusion, cultivating an atmosphere where feedback and exchange prevail is essential to the success of smarketing. It strengthens the relationships, unity and complementarity between the marketing and sales teams.
KPIs to track to improve your smarketing strategy
KPIs shared by sales and marketing teams
To measure the effectiveness of a smarketing strategy precisely, it is crucial to track key performance indicators, or KPIs. These indicators are essential to assess whether shared objectives are being met, compare actual results with forecasts, and identify the strengths and areas for improvement in marketing and sales activities.
Many KPIs can be considered; some, however, are particularly relevant for sales and marketing teams because they measure the collaboration and alignment between the two. Shared KPIs include:
- The number of leads generated: the total number of contacts who have expressed interest in the offer by filling in a form, downloading content or requesting a quote.
- The visitor-to-lead conversion rate: the percentage of website visitors who turn into leads, based on the ratio between the number of visits and the number of leads obtained.
- The cost per lead: the average cost of generating a lead, calculated by dividing the total marketing budget by the number of leads produced.
- The lead-to-customer conversion rate: the percentage of leads who become customers, taking into account the total number of leads and the volume of closed sales.
- Revenue: the total sales over a given period, obtained by multiplying the number of customers by the average basket.
- Customer satisfaction: how satisfied customers are with the offer they bought and with their buying experience. This can be measured through surveys, testimonials or reviews published online.
Adjusting strategies based on results
KPIs are used not only to measure performance but also to guide and improve marketing and sales strategies. They reveal the gaps between results and the objectives set, making it possible to analyse the underlying reasons. Teams can then adjust their actions according to performance, reinforcing what works and correcting what does not. This is where measuring the effectiveness of your prospecting campaigns becomes essential.
To refine strategies, you should:
- Collect and analyse KPI data with the right tools, such as the CRM, marketing automation or web analytics.
- Compare results with the objectives set and identify gaps using dashboards, charts or reports.
- Identify the causes of the gaps, taking into account the context, the actions carried out, and feedback from the teams and from customers.
- Propose and prioritise corrective or preventive actions, according to the resources available and the opportunities.
- Implement the selected actions by mobilising the teams concerned and communicating about the changes.
- Evaluate the effectiveness of the actions by measuring the KPIs again and analysing the results before and after the adjustments.
In short, choosing and using performance indicators wisely is crucial to measuring and optimising the effectiveness of smarketing.
Best practices for successful smarketing
Training teams and raising awareness of smarketing
For smarketing to succeed, it is not enough to simply set shared objectives and tools between marketing and sales. It is crucial to train employees and make them aware of the importance of this approach, which requires a significant shift in company culture and mindset.
Training teams means giving them the knowledge and skills they need to apply smarketing effectively. This includes, for example, training on the specific tools, lead qualification criteria, the different phases of the buying journey, and effective methods of exchange and feedback.
Raising awareness, for its part, aims to help teams understand the benefits of smarketing, both for the organisation and for them individually. This can take the form of presenting the successes achieved through smarketing, involving people in setting objectives, or encouraging the sharing of experiences and best practices.
Mistakes to avoid when implementing smarketing
Smarketing is not a miracle solution that guarantees automatic success. It requires constant will, discipline and adaptability.
Some common mistakes can undermine the effectiveness and sustainability of smarketing:
- Not securing management support: to be effective, smarketing must be fully backed by leadership, who must also define its vision and mobilise the necessary resources.
- Poorly defined roles and responsibilities: smarketing requires close but clear collaboration between marketing and sales teams. Each must know its missions precisely to avoid confusion or duplicated tasks.
- No measurement or data analysis: a good smarketing strategy relies on measurable objectives. It is therefore essential to collect, analyse and share data regularly to optimise marketing and sales strategies.
- A lack of dialogue: open, continuous exchange between marketing and sales teams is vital. Use suitable tools, hold regular follow-up meetings and promote a culture of positive feedback.
- Refusing to adapt and innovate: smarketing must evolve with expectations, the market and the competition. It is therefore critical to keep listening, experimenting and innovating.
Case studies and smarketing success stories
How companies transformed their results with smarketing
Far from being a mere theory, smarketing has proved to be a decisive practice in the success of many companies. To understand its impact, let’s look at a few concrete cases where smarketing has been a real growth engine:
- HubSpot: a pioneer of smarketing, HubSpot has aligned its marketing and sales teams since its creation in 2006 through the inbound marketing method. The company put in place an SLA, CRM and marketing automation tools, and a strong culture of feedback. This strategy enabled it to grow rapidly, expand its customer base to more than 100,000 customers worldwide and establish itself as a reference in its sector.
- Slack: by adopting smarketing in 2014 with the creation of a team dedicated to lead generation, Slack saw its number of daily active users jump from 500,000 to more than 10 million in just four years. This strategy propelled Slack to the rank of must-have communication and collaboration application.
- Shopify: faced with insufficient collaboration between its marketing and sales teams, Shopify adopted smarketing in 2015. Setting up a dedicated smarketing team significantly improved its lead-to-customer conversion rate, from 20% to 40%, and helped it become one of the most popular e-commerce platforms.
Lessons learned from these successes
These case studies demonstrate smarketing’s ability to improve company performance, whatever the size or industry. Here are the lessons for a successful implementation:
- Management commitment is crucial to provide a clear vision, allocate the necessary resources and lead by example.
- An approach based on inbound marketing, aimed at attracting, converting and retaining customers through relevant content, is essential.
- Establishing a clear SLA between the teams, stipulating commitments, obligations and KPIs, is fundamental.
- Using suitable tools to manage interactions with prospects and customers, and to share and analyse information, is indispensable.
- Constant exchange and feedback foster a collaborative, transparent and trusting work environment.
- Smarketing must remain flexible and innovative, ready to adjust to customer demands and to changes in the market and among competitors.
Smarketing, the fusion of marketing and sales efforts, aims to optimise a company’s performance by focusing on increasing sales, retaining customers and reducing acquisition costs. The concept rests on a strategic alignment of teams around a shared understanding of customer expectations and behaviours, as well as an open dialogue, both key to a unified, personalised customer experience.
Implementing smarketing also involves setting precise shared objectives, often built with the SMART method (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time-bound), and writing a service level agreement (SLA) that formalises each team’s commitments.
Tools such as the CRM, marketing automation systems and MirrorProfiles dedicated accounts play a major role in smarketing, making it easier to manage interactions with prospects and customers and supporting marketing and sales campaigns. Continuous team training and a culture of feedback and open exchange are also essential to the success of this strategy.
In conclusion, smarketing is a strategic approach that requires serious commitment and continuous adaptation to improve the company’s overall performance and position it favourably against competitors.
