Done right, marketing is one of the most powerful and important tools in your entire organization. But in too many companies it becomes marginalized - especially in smaller to mid-sized organizations. More often than not, this is an issue that becomes ingrained in the culture - and as the leader of your company, it's your job to fix it.
The folks who marginalize marketing have typically been exposed to underperforming marketers. Their past teams didn't add real value, didn't get involved in meeting company goals or, the likely culprit, they just didn't correctly communicate what the business was doing and why the company had value. It’s your job to help your colleagues understand marketing related growth and that when the marketing team wins, the company wins.
DO: TELL THEM TO SHOW UP
And show up with purpose; tell them to bring their A game. Why come to the meeting if marketing is just going to sit there quietly until it's over? Make marketing a resource -- tell them to bring some ideas and speak up. Present a new way to handle a repeating concept, or suggest something new the company can try to overcome an ongoing challenge. Then incentivize that challenge and use the opportunity to fuel cross-departmental collaboration. You won't believe the level of interest folks have once they are connected to a solution. Not to mention, they may just realize they have more in common than they thought -- they were both hired by the same company for a reason.
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Anchor.FMMake the most out of the experience, learn from it, report on it and then do it again. Insert marketing perspective into every nook and cranny in your organization and pound out value.
DO: ENABLE THEM TO BANG THEIR GONG
You (should) already know what's important to your organization, fiscally, politically, and culturally. After designing your marketing efforts around delivering results for these KPI's, the last step is to make sure the marketing team reports on their success (and failures) to your entire organization in a compelling manner. Let them show how their department is getting the rest of the company closer to its goals. Let the marketing team show how they are adding value.
Start by showing them how to structure their reporting around metrics that actually matter. Describe to them their audience (they are marketers after all!) so they can tell their story best.
DON'T: LEAD THE STEREOTYPICAL MARKETING TEAM
You didn’t hire stereotypical marketers, so you shouldn’t feel the need to constantly defend your marketing team from the rest of your company. In the same regard, don’t let your marketing team use the stereotypical excuses to explain why your marketing isn’t working. Stand up and show your company their marketing team is not only capable, but understands their own worth.
If they need more resources, handle it - but don't let them use it as an excuse not to perform. Being a "go-to" resource company-wide and crushing projects for all the teams who need it is what will really drive your internal value as a leader. Does marketing want a bigger budget? Do they want a larger team? Give them the chance to make a pitch for why.
DO: GIVE THEM SPACE
Every marketing initiative doesn't need to be monumental and you don't need to be involved in every project at all times. Embolden your marketing team by giving them the responsibility to perform at their highest level and most efficient clip. And of course, help them bang their gong when there’s a win to report.
Effectively leading a marketing team is not easy. If you don't know where to start, try here: Perform a Marketing Analysis of Your Business. We can show you exactly how to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of your marketing team while also identifying new marketing opportunities and sales channels.
