Does staying in your lane help or hurt collaboration?

When companies decide to make some really big changes, they need approval from the top and sometimes a helping hand from an outsider with relevant experience.

This is the story of a large manufacturer who decided to change their marketing in a big way. They moved from traditional trade shows and print materials to all-in digital marketing. For help with the transition, they called us to provide the expertise they recognized their team didn’t have - yet. 

Over the course of a year, the company went from a basic website, product brochures, print ads in industry publications, and attendance at trade shows to a fully-digital approach. Their efforts are getting them noticed internationally by new prospects, and is creating engagement with customers. Most importantly, it’s generating hundreds of leads each month. 

Working with an external consultant requires clarity. Not only on the scope of the contract, timing and cost, but who does what. In-house teams and their agencies need to work together to agree on expectations about their roles from the beginning. Setting expectations around roles keeps things clear and efficient and is vital to building and preserving relationships.

When roles are clearly defined no one feels like their toes are getting stepped on and companies prevent work from being unnecessarily (often with the best of intentions) repeated. Clarity is a key element of successful collaboration. 

When Mezzanine was brought in to help our client, roles on both teams were defined from the outset. Mezzanine was being brought in to share expertise in lead generation and the ability to work with the existing internal marketing team. No more, no less. 

Specific roles and responsibilities were determined using the RACI model: 

• Who is responsible, 
• Who is accountable, 
• Who is consulted, and 
• Who is informed. 

As a result, “Mezzanine integrated seamlessly with the existing marketing team,” says Andrew Green, Mezzanine ‘s Vice President of Client Strategy. 

“Our client realized they weren’t strong in this one area, so we came on board to complement their skill set. We defined our lane, sticking to planning, execution, content and measurement,“ he adds. “There are, of course, points of collaboration. We’re one team and while we may be in different lanes, we’re all on the same road, with the same destination.” 

This is the fourth lesson in our series on how to build a lead generation machine for a manufacturing or B2B company. The whitepaper that this post is created from is a guide that illustrates how our client increased leads tenfold and filled their sales pipeline with $400 million worth of potential deals within a single year. The lessons can be used as a formula to accelerate growth and realize real results - fast. It also explains how changes to existing processes could better support both sales and marketing and offers advice on how and why developing a high-performance lead generation engine works for B2B companies of all sizes, including manufacturers.

Read more lessons:

Lesson One:  how to develop a clear and actionable business case. Doing so will help articulate what you want to accomplish and spell out how it will do it.

Lesson Two: how to find opportunities. Knowing what to focus on and moving quickly can make big difference. 

Lesson Three: covers the importance of establishing definitions upfront. This way, there is no opportunity for confusion and you can stay focused on their current tasks and goals. Clarity on things like terminology are critical to getting a large project off the ground and moving forward. 

Interested in learning more? Watch this webinar on how a manufacturer produces 500+ leads a month through an efficient and effective process.  

Lead generation programs differ. Just like a car, their quality, efficiency and state of repair determine how well they function. The only way to get a ‘high-performance engine’ that moves businesses forward with efficiency and speed is to pay attention and watch for changes, along with being prepared to make adjustments along the way - like ensuring everyone is clear on terminology and expectations.

If you’re wondering what an outsourced marketing agency can do for your business, read:

• Four Major Sales Problems that an Outsourced Marketing Agency Can Solve
• Seven Compelling Reasons why Mezzanine is Your B2B Outsourced Marketing Agency
• Taking Care of Business By Outsourcing Lead Generation, 
• then call us for more.

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