PODCAST: Sales + Marketing NOT Sales Vs Marketing: A Real Talk with Jeff Peterson
Not long ago, buying something meant talking to a salesperson. Whether it was a car, a software platform, or new uniforms for a growing business, the process started with someone telling you what you needed to know.
That’s not how it works anymore.
Buyers today are more informed than ever. They research on their own, compare options, read reviews, and come to the table with decisions mostly made. In fact, 83% of a typical B2B buying decision happens before a buyer engages with a company directly (Gartner, 2023). They aren’t waiting to be sold. They’re waiting to be supported. That shift has created a real need for something many businesses still lack: true alignment between sales and marketing, one of the most overlooked but essential b2b marketing strategies today.
Why Marketing Can't Just "Raise Awareness" Anymore
In the past, marketing focused on awareness while sales handled the rest. But now, marketing doesn’t just create brand recognition. It plays a key role in helping buyers decide whether a business is even worth reaching out to. The sales process begins long before anyone fills out a contact form or connects with a salesperson. Your website, content, and reputation do most of the heavy lifting before any one-on-one interaction ever takes place. That’s why aligning sales and marketing is one of the most critical shifts in modern marketing strategies.
From Sales & Marketing Silos to Shared Strategy
When done right, marketing sets the table. It builds awareness, trust, and interest, while sales builds on that momentum. But for this to work, both teams need to operate from the same playbook. Regular communication, shared data, and feedback loops are critical. Without ongoing collaboration and accountability, marketing becomes disconnected from what sales actually needs, and sales loses the support that should be driving leads and closing deals.
Rebuilding Trust Between Sales Teams and Marketing (Agencies)
Many companies enter marketing partnerships with hesitation, often due to past frustrations. Maybe the agency didn’t understand their industry. Maybe they rarely met. Either way, trust was broken. Rebuilding that trust starts with transparency. Regular check-ins to review campaign performance, share real insights from the field, and make adjustments in real time create a healthier partnership between sales and marketing. When both sides work together, content becomes more relevant, messaging gets sharper, and the overall strategy becomes far more effective.
Your marketing team (in-house or agency) should have a seat at the table with the sales team to talk about real numbers, lead quality, pipeline management and close percentages.
Buyers Are Smarter. Sales Teams Have to Be Too.
Sales conversations today often start much later in the buyer’s journey. Prospects have done their homework. They’ve identified their needs and narrowed their options. What they’re looking for isn’t a pitch. It’s clarity. This means the role of marketing has expanded. It now owns a larger portion of the top of the funnel, guiding prospects through research and evaluation with content that builds trust and reflects real conversations happening on the ground.
According to LinkedIn, buyers are 52% more likely to purchase from a brand after reading its content (LinkedIn, 2022). If that content doesn’t show up early or doesn’t speak the buyer’s language, the brand is likely out of the running before the first meeting ever happens.
What Sales Enablement Looks Like in Real Life
One uniform company had an opportunity to win over a large account that prioritized sustainability. Just days before the scheduled pitch meeting, a campaign was launched focused on the company’s environmental practices, like water reuse systems, garment recycling, and biodegradable detergents. A blog post was written, emails were sent, and the sales team used the content as part of their outreach. This wasn’t created for vanity metrics. It was created to reinforce credibility at exactly the right time. The result? The deal closed. Not because of a flashy campaign, but because sales and marketing were working toward the same goal.
Why Today’s Marketing Teams Need More Than One Skillset
Modern marketing is technical. It goes far beyond social media posts and quarterly newsletters. It involves SEO strategy, CRM integration, automated email workflows, paid ads, and constant iteration based on data. According to HubSpot, only 30% of marketers say their marketing and sales teams are strongly aligned (HubSpot, 2023). That leaves a massive opportunity for businesses that are ready to upgrade their marketing strategies and close the gap between insight and execution.
Trying to cover everything with one internal hire rarely works. That’s why many companies are adopting hybrid models. An internal advocate who understands the business, supported by a team of specialists who execute across platforms and channels, is often the most effective structure. If you’re considering a new team to help you strategize and support implementation, let’s talk.
Align for the Long Run, Not Just the Next Lead
The most meaningful wins don’t usually come from one-off posts or campaigns. They come from long-term consistency, showing up with value over and over again. Sales and marketing teams that think beyond next quarter and work toward shared goals over the next year, three years, or five years are the ones that build momentum and trust. Marketing isn’t just there to generate leads. It’s there to build the reputation, authority, and pipeline that sales can build on for years to come.
A Modern Buying Process Needs a Modern Partnership
At the end of the day, it’s not about departments. It’s about people. Today’s buyers are more selective and more self-directed than ever. They expect transparency, relevance, and respect for their time. They want to work with businesses that show up early, speak clearly, and offer value before asking for a sale.
Sales and marketing alignment doesn’t just improve performance. It builds trust, clarity, and momentum. And in a market where the buying process begins long before your team is looped in, that alignment might be the edge that makes all the difference.
Meet The Author
Rebecca Dutcher, Founder & CEO
Rebecca founded RED66 Marketing, named after her red hair and her football jersey number. With over 15 years in marketing agencies, she brings deep expertise in SEO, SEM, branding, and strategy. A passionate leader, she believes in honesty, follow-through, and strong client relationships.
She’s a past two-time president of AMA West Michigan and currently serves as vice chair of the board for GROW. Rebecca frequently speaks at business events and was honored with the 2021 Alumni Award from Davenport University.
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