It’s one of those age-old questions – every business wants all teams singing from the same hymn sheet and working well together. Integrating sales, marketing, PR and other teams is a positive goal. But easier said than done?
“It depends on the culture and the organisation, as well as the ethos of collaboration that comes from the top,” says Thea Parnell, head of digital at MHP Mischief.
As an agency, MHP Mischief is constantly asking where its clients have space for internal collaboration. Another key element is to take an audience-first approach to campaigns, asking what channels and content are most relevant and working to find collaboration opportunities.
“This is no longer a push to the audience; it’s about engagement,” Parnell said.
Speaking at PR Week’s B2B Summit, the panel agreed that integrating different teams within an organization is critical. It allows businesses to effectively communicate with external people, be it third-party partners or customers. But it’s easier for some organizations than others.
Kathryn Arbour, partner at Deloitte, points out that larger, older organizations tend to be more siloed, with teams for branding, social, PR or sales sometimes working in different direction. “In older organizations you have teams of people with different KPIs. Each team can meet their KPIs, but you won’t grow as a whole because [different teams’ goals] compete.” Instead, companies need to enable experts on different teams to do their jobs in a way that ensures everyone is pulling in the same direction – and toward what the customer wants.
In addition to KPIs, another important aspect is putting the right processes, tools and tech in place to enable integration – primarily by offering everyone access to the same information. Erica Faltous, senior director, EMEA communications at ServiceNow, says different teams need to be able to access customer information.
“How do you put the tools and systems in place to give everyone in the business access to that information, and how do you create linkage of that information? It has to be very intentional. But things are evolving, and technology is helping us democratize that information.”
Data has become a critical part of B2B marketing, enabling PR and marketing teams to comprehensively understand their customers and the content they want to consume. Sam Shrager, head of marketing and communications at BCB Group, said: “The key thing for us is testing channels and looking at data.”
He adds that it’s particularly useful to see how different channels are performing, and keep it in a central customer relationship management (CRM) system. “We can see what people are doing and track where they are in the pipeline. So, it’s about querying the data at a fairly granular level.”
Parnell agrees with MHP Mischief that this is important. “Do we have all the pieces to understand where we’re going to take the customer, the insight into who they are, and the data to understand what they’re doing? And do we know how to be part of the conversation in a way that is welcoming rather than intrusive?”
Using data wisely means finding a way to have a place in people’s lives and worlds, he says, and enabling teams to have a clear shared vision. “Try to collaborate as much as possible, and make sure the data is there to lead you to that insight.” Plus, of course, data also helps brands understand campaign results.
Sometimes, there may be more straightforward steps that can help promote collaboration and ensure that everyone is on the same page. Shrager told BCB Group that it can be as simple as making sure different teams are included in relevant calls and meetings that will help them understand the marketing perspective.
It also helps external partners understand how different teams work across the business, giving them a broader view of how the company works. “I’m always keen to bring in someone from the sales or product team to talk to our SEO or PR agency. The better they understand what we do, the better those external partners work with us.”
Underlying everything is the crucial role of culture: none of this can be done if it is not part of the culture, values and goals of the organization. As Faltous told ServiceNow, it’s crucial to put integration “at the heart of your culture and values. Then, decision making becomes easier.”