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As we face a continued economic downturn, companies are constantly looking to build pipeline and close sales fast. Any PR pro knows PR is paramount in supporting those goals, but a good PR pro knows PR can’t generate new leads overnight – or without a successful partnership with the sales team.
So, how do you align PR and sales to drive ROI? Here are 4 ways.
1. Open the lines of communication between PR and Sales teams
To maximize and enhance PR efforts contributing to the marketing funnel, there must be a clear line of communication between sales and PR teams. PR professionals can learn what brand differentiators to highlight in their efforts by hearing prospective customers’ feedback or objections directly from the sales team, while sales teams can gain a competitive edge by leveraging the results secured by the PR team for third-party validation.
Creating a clear line of communication between PR and sales is the first step in building a cross-promotional approach for increased marketing ROI. Sales teams will always be responsible for closing the deal, but strong brand awareness driven by PR makes it that much easier.
2. Understand how the marketing funnel contributes to building pipeline
Good PR builds awareness at the top of the funnel by putting a brand in front of its target audience through avenues like media placements. Ideally, these will include backlinks to a brand’s site to help boost referral, organic and direct traffic.
Moving through the funnel, prospects need to have multiple touches with a brand to keep consideration high, especially as they move into the intent and evaluation phases. This is where marketing and sales can work together to show why their brand or product is the best.
Elements like consistent, positive media coverage and credible collateral, such as customer anecdotes and case studies, indicate the health of a company and a strong position in the market. Sales pros can maximize this steady stream of available content by sharing it directly with their prospect via direct customer conversations, nurture campaigns and follow-ups. That way, the prospect has the information they’re looking for about your company at their fingertips instead of heading to Google and finding your competitor at the top of the heap.
3. Use customer storytelling to your advantage
Success stories can be a win for both a brand and its customer’s brand. Many customers would love the added exposure and opportunity to detail the growth of their own company. Media features on their journey with you can encourage customer retention and increase brand loyalty. Plus, good word of mouth from happy customers is priceless.
By inserting customer stories in the media, especially those that highlight how key customer pain points have been eliminated using a service or platform, can serve as a sales pro’s counterargument to objections from prospects. By learning top-tier publications or well-known industry influencers are writing about your brand, prospects might gain the reassurance needed to move the deal forward.
4. Empower sales teams to leverage PR wins
PR wins can be used to support efforts across the company, from serving as positive reinforcement when emailing prospects to boosting recognition around these efforts for sales leaders who are recruiting new reps (hint: better sales reps means more revenue!)
Encourage sales teams to add a clickable link to a top-tier media placement or award win in their email signatures. This is a simple, subtle trick to increase visibility around relevant news or anecdotes of interest to any prospect. Sales teams can also include logos from recent award wins in sales decks to boost credibility. Awards wins clearly demonstrate innovation, and they offer an edge against competitors who are in the sales cycle too.
The bottom line is PR and sales can be a match made in heaven when it comes to...well, contributing to the bottom line. By creating open communication between both teams and enabling each to better use the results secured by PR and sales, the impact on ROI can be instrumental.
Curious about kickstarting your own PR program to drive ROI? Reach out to one of our experts.
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