The relationship between sales and marketing doesn't have to be antagonistic. Tom Blondi, heads both Sales and Marketing at SocialWhirled, and shares his experience at InboundPHX, Sept 30, 2015 in Phoenix AZ.

1. InboundPHX
Integrating Sales and Marketing
…from an inappreciably used Chief Revenue Officer’s perspective
InboundPHX
September 30, 2015
Tom Blondi
Chief Revenue Officer

2. SocialWhirled Overview
• SocialWhirled is a digital publishing platform and campaign management
system for brand leaders and their agencies.
• Social-mobile-digital campaigns launched in Hours not Months. Enables
fast/easy creation and management of fully synchronized campaigns –
dynamically changed on the fly.
• Customers include Pepsi, Intel, Macy’s, Mattel, McDonalds

3. • Wolf and the Raven
• Shark and Pilot Fish
• Sales and Marketing
Sales and Marketing – Symbiotic or Antibiotic???

4. • Sales
• Marketing
• Wrong….it’s buying
In the past 5 years, what has changed the most?

5. • By 2020, Gartner predicts customers will self-manage 85% of their
relationships with companies without ever directly engaging a
human (hello, Marketing…).
• In the next 3–5 years, more than 50% of respondents to an
Economist survey said Marketing will own the customer buying
experience. By comparison, less than 20% of respondents said sales
will own that experience.
• As of January 2015, there were nearly 2,000 vendors of marketing
technology services. Even Accel Partners’ highly vetted and carefully
curated list contains 600 entries.
Source: BrightFunnel, July 31, 2015 - By Nadim Hossain
There used to be a divide….clear line of demarcation between sales and marketing.

6. The Engagement Journey
Influence
Direct Impact
…”engagement journey” is the new "disruptive innovation" which was the new “game changer” which was the new “paradigm shift" which was the new…

7. • Who’s expanding and why
• Who’s adopting an why
• Who’s raving and why
• Who’s converting and why
• .
• .
• .
• .
Now reverse this and go to work finding where those people “live”

8. • Stop thinking about it as a sales and marketing challenge and start
thinking about it as an “engagement” challenge.
• People engage with you and your brand for their reasons…not yours
• They will engage more meaningfully when they are
• Compelled
• Interested
• Have a need/desire
• Feel you are “listening”
• Understand those reasons and what those behaviors translate into
• Build your engagement programs/processes around those behaviors
• Start this process BEFORE you reach out
Sales and Marketing or Engagement?

9. • B2C…yeah, we get it…listen, watch, learn, adapt, relate
• B2B
• 2012 CEB* study: B2B buyers are 57% of the way through the purchase
decision before even talking to a supplier.
• Find the right buyer profiles
• Understand their buying cycle(s)
• Earn their trust
• If you’re still making cold calls you are likely still watching cable…
• The attention span of a human has dropped to 8 seconds…one second below
a goldfish… Statistic Brain Research Institute, 2015
Not So Much Anymore…
*CEB: Corporate Executive Board, insights and research

10. • Whether you are:
• Attracting…don’t forget the influencer
• Engaging
• Converting/Buying
• Using
• Raving/Ranting
• Sharing
• I know, sounds a lot like dating, doesn’t it….
Funnel schmunnel…it’s all about the engagement journey…

11. • tofu, mofu, bofu….foofoo
• It’s not a funnel as much as it’s a pipe that adjusts to the flow…a
journey to be managed:
• Before the sale
• During the sale
• After the sale
We’re not in a funnel anymore, Toto.

12. • The Sales Cycle is only one piece of the puzzle…and the least important
• Your Sales Cycle depends entirely upon the Buying Cycle
• If you understand, manage, monitor the buying cycle, your most efficient
Sales Cycle will follow…
Philosophically speaking…

13. Attract
Engage
Nurture
Convert
Delight
Share
Engage
Nurture
Convert
Advertising/Promotion $
Marketing Automation
How many funnels do you see?

14. • Tofu
• Mofu
• Bofu
• Wtfc
Where does sales fit?

15. • Then
• Engage – phone or visit
• Discover – understand why/if they are looking
• Present – show them how you can help
• Propose – provide price, implementation
• Close – get their signature
• Hand off - Move On
• Now
• Understand – who, what, when, where, how
• Engage – sit tight
• Discover – analyze, interpret
• Present – educate, inform
• Propose – allow them to find the best fit
• Close – allow them to buy
• Onboard, Utilize, Create, Rave, Share
Sales Role Then and Now

16. • Change…don’t get too comfortable or too rigid in your interpretation
11 years ago someone called Mark Zuckerberg appeared on TV to talk about something called
'the Facebook‘.
• Buyers decide…not us…listen, watch, learn, adapt…rinse and repeat
The Final Word…
Tom Blondi
tom.blondi@socialwhirled.com