Sales and Brand: the Dance

What is the most popular space at a middle school dance? The snack area! That’s where young boys are free to congregate and talk about baseball while ignoring the core problem facing them: they don’t know how or whether to ask a girl to dance. The gulf between the snack bar and the dance floor may only consist of a few feet, but on a deeper level, it spans galaxies. 

The relationship between brand and sales can often feel the same way. We may only be a few feet apart in the office, or a few centimeters on the org chart. Nonetheless, it feels like the gulf between the two can span galaxies. But the best organizations close the gap entirely, and choose instead to…well…dance.

The Dance

The relationship between brand and sales is essential for any business looking to achieve sustainable growth and success. We like to think of this relationship as a dance. A strong brand is the sharp dressed partner who makes the first impression, while sales are the smooth moves that seal the deal.

A strong brand can be the foundation for a successful sales strategy, while a weak brand can hinder a company's ability to generate leads and close deals. In this article, we will explore the importance of the relationship between brand and sales, and how companies can leverage it to achieve success in the marketplace.

The Importance of a Strong Brand

A brand is more than just a logo or tagline; it’s “the art and science of becoming more knowable, likable and trustable.” (See What’s In A Brand to unpack that definition, it’s our spin on John Jantsch’s definition.)  It's the perception that customers have of a company and its products or services. A strong brand is one that is consistently communicated and differentiated, and that evokes positive emotions and associations in the minds of customers. To quote our founder, Kerry Bural, “Every decision is a brand decision.” In other words, brand is truly all encompassing. 

Because of its all-encompassing nature, a strong brand can help a company establish trust and credibility with potential customers, making it more likely that they will consider making a purchase. This is because when people trust a brand, they are more likely to engage with it and recommend it to others.

In contrast, a weak or inconsistent brand can make it more difficult for a company to generate leads and close deals. Potential customers may have a hard time distinguishing the company from its competitors, or may not have a positive impression of the company based on past experiences.

Building and Maintaining a Strong Brand

In order to leverage the relationship between brand and sales, companies should focus on building and maintaining a strong brand that resonates with their target customers. A strong brand is like some sharp threads. When you’re looking fly, it helps establish trust and credibility with potential customers, making them more likely to consider making a purchase.

On the other hand, a weak brand is like showing up to a party in sweatpants and a stained t-shirt—you may still be able to dance, but you’re probably gonna be dancing alone.

You can maintain a strong brand through a variety of marketing and branding strategies such as:

1. Creating a strong visual identity: A consistent and recognizable visual identity can help customers easily identify and remember a brand.
2. Building a strong online presence: A strong online presence can help a company reach and engage with potential customers where they are spending most of their time.
3. Consistently communicating key brand messaging: Consistently communicating key brand messaging can help customers understand what sets a company apart from its competitors and why they should choose it.
4. With those foundations established, the people involved in branding and marketing should be closely involved in creating assets for your sales team to use as lead cultivation. Pitch decks, special offer landing pages, downloadable resources with helpful and targeted content. 

Get it done, son. If you don’t, you’ll regret it and your sales team WILL suffer. 

Aligning the Sales Team with the Brand

It's also essential to ensure that the sales team is aligned with the company's brand and messaging. This includes providing them with the knowledge and resources they need to effectively communicate the value and benefits of the company's products or services.

In addition to #4 above, companies should provide sales team members with the tools and resources they need to effectively communicate the value and benefits of the company's products or services. This can include:

1. Sales training: Providing sales team members with training on the company's brand messaging and values can help them understand how to effectively communicate the value and benefits of the company's products or services.
2. A seamless tech stack: Providing sales team members with access to a CRM that syncs well with other tools the company uses can help them effectively track and manage leads and opportunities.
3. Support from other team members: Providing sales team members with support from other team members, such as marketing and customer service, can help them effectively communicate the value and benefits of the company's products or services.
4. Accountability: bake in systems, even if it’s just a quarterly huddle, to ensure there is accountability between Sales, Marketing and Delivery—you don’t want Marketing promoting and Sales promising what the team can’t deliver. Rather, you want Sales and Marketing’s efforts to be deeply rooted in what is true about the company so you can attract the right type of client and serve them well. 

Conclusion

A strong brand can be the foundation for a successful sales strategy, while a weak brand can hinder a company's ability to generate leads and close deals. By focusing on building and maintaining a strong brand and aligning the sales team with the company's brand and messaging, companies can leverage the relationship between brand and sales to achieve success in the marketplace.