September 24, 2024

Working Alongside Your Marketing Department

Marketing and BD want the same outcome, yet they often work from separate files. A clear division of labor avoids duplicated effort and mixed messages.

Agree who owns what

Marketing usually owns brand, website, events and thought leadership. BD owns pursuit of specific opportunities and client conversations. Proposals sit between them. Friction between the two teams is usually about unclear roles and not about personalities.

Write a short agreement covering who approves firm descriptions, who owns the paragraph library and who decides on visual standards. Disputes over ownership are cheaper to settle in advance. Invite a marketing lead to the proposal review meeting once a quarter.

Share one set of approved assets

Credentials, case summaries, bios and firm descriptions should live in one place that both teams use. Two versions will diverge within a few months. Without a single source, credentials and bios exist in three versions, and nobody is sure which the client last saw.

Marketing is well placed to edit and approve the source text. BD is well placed to say what was useful in a live pursuit. Agree on who speaks for the firm on social and press matters, and who does not.

Use BD feedback to shape content

BD hears the questions clients ask and the objections they raise. Pass these to marketing on a regular basis, monthly is enough, so articles and events address real concerns. Marketing often knows which topics get attention, and BD knows which questions come up in meetings, so the two views are complementary.

Marketing, in turn, can tell BD what content is coming so it can be referenced in outreach. Credit case summaries to the team that delivered the work, with their approval.

Keep tools from creating parallel systems

A new BD tool should connect to, or at least respect, the contact lists and campaign records marketing already keeps. Duplicated contact data leads to double outreach and irritated clients. Every duplicate list is a chance for an error, such as writing to a client who has asked not to be contacted.

Agree on which system is the source for each type of record before adding a tool. Keep an updated list of approved images and logos for use in proposals.

Respect the brand review process

Marketing may worry that automated drafting will bypass brand standards. Involve them in setting up the approved blocks and templates, so their standards are built into the tool. Many marketers welcome the change, since it means fewer late-night requests to fix formatting in a proposal.

That shifts their role from correcting outputs to shaping inputs, which is a better use of their time. Ask marketing to look at the win and loss reviews for messages that resonate.

Meet on a schedule

A short monthly meeting with a fixed agenda is enough: upcoming pursuits, content needs, asset updates and any conflicts. Keep minutes and assign actions. Short, regular contact is easier to sustain than long, occasional workshops.

Small regular contact prevents most of the friction that grows when the teams only speak in a crisis. Settle the question of who can contact the press or clients in the firm's name.

Give marketing a clear way in

Marketing should not have to chase BD for feedback, and BD should not have to guess whom to ask. Set up a shared channel or a simple request form, with an agreed reply time, so questions and assets flow both ways.

Recognize each other's constraints. Marketing works to a calendar, BD works to client deadlines. When both sides know the other's rhythm, the requests become easier to plan and less likely to be seen as interruptions. Whatever you agree, review it after six months. Roles shift as firms grow, and an arrangement that suited a small team may need adjusting as new services and new offices join. Above all, treat marketing as a partner in the pursuit. Their skill with words and design is a real asset when a proposal has to stand out in a stack of similar documents.

VIPMarketing Editorial