If you dig up an old college business book, you would likely find plenty of information about “sales and marketing” teams–how they work hand-in-hand to advance company sales goals.
More recently, however, and certainly since the dawn of the Digital Age, the two groups have been a bit more segregated. One seems responsible for meeting bottom line goals and the other has the job of “getting the word out” and making sure branding sticks.
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While both sales and marketing teams do have many different methods of reaching goals, marketing–specifically content marketing – has the job of, let’s say, “leading the horse to water.” (It’s the sales team’s job to make them drink.)
That being said, high-quality digital content, important for both Google and User Experience (UX), has to veer into the sales lane quite a bit when it comes to actually convincing a website visitor to take action. That’s why all those “buy now,” “click here,” “download this” buttons are examples of what digital marketers refer to as “calls to action.”
Simply put, great content intrigues and offers information and insight into more than just the product but how the product solves the customer’s problem. Content also does more than simply inform; it has to connect with the prospective customer so they want to buy from this particular website, now…as opposed to continuing their research and possibly making the decision to buy on the competition’s website.
So, content helps get the customer to the transaction, sales closes the deal, but there’s one more part of the puzzle that is extremely important. And, funny enough, it circles back to great content once again. (They don’t say “Content is King” for nothing!)
Customer service and strong customer nurturing are both critical to keeping customers happy. According to Superoffice.com, “customers no longer base their loyalty on price or product. Instead, they stay loyal with companies due to the experience they receive. If you cannot keep up with their increasing demands, your customers will leave you.”
But, how does a company keep customers “happy” when everything is transactional? Long gone are the days of “face to face” sales for the most part–certainly as it relates to online shopping.
This is where the three pathways converge. The content marketing team and customer service can support the sales team, digitally and by phone/chat, respectively.
In the next segment of this multi-part blog series, we will focus on how nurturing emails keep your company and product top of mind for customers. Look out for it next week!
In the meantime, Harmonia Media is looking for companies, like yours, that want to improve their user experience online and nurture their prospects and customers so they not only remain loyal but they brag about you to their friends and family.
If you are willing to jump on a quick consultation call–FREE of Charge–to see if there are ways we can help you grow your business online, click here and fill out our convenient online contact form.
