Here is a general framework for the various roles in a
Marketing, Sales, and Customer Success organization at an Enterprise SaaS
company. What I am trying to do here is
illustrate how they all need to work together to provide a continuous flow for
each customer and maximize productivity.
Ideally, you have a savvy or experienced Executive who
oversees all 3 departments and ensures collaboration and cohesion. All to often
I have seen a big divide between Marketing/Sales/Customer Success. This can be
mitigated to some extent if you have a Chief Customer Officer or Chief Revenue
Officer overseeing all 3 departments.
Basic Role Types:
·
Marketing
o
Drives top of the funnel
o
Generates brand awareness and more importantly
leads for sales
o
Should be “on the hook” for a deliverable for
sales
§
A data driven lead gen manager in marketing is
critical
·
SDR
o
Sales Development Representative
o
Responsible for qualifying inbound leads and
passing on to sales
o
Separate role also responsible for outbound
prospecting which is critical to supplement
marketing’s efforts and fill sales reps’s pipeline
·
AE
o
Account Executive, responsible for new business
§
Presenting
§
Finding a decision maker
§
Navigating politics
§
Negotiating
§
Delivering a signed agreement with a new
customer
·
CSM
o
Customer Success Manager
§
Pre and Post Sale Consultant. Typically
Responsible for educating customers as to how to maximize value of your
product/service and driving usage
·
SE
o
Sales Engineer
§
Pre and Post Sale responsible for collaborating
with technical representatives at customer (IT/Security) to
·
Pass security review, get their “blessing”
·
Educate as to how technology fits in to their
infrastructure
·
Assist with integrations and configuration
·
Renewals
o
Typically a strong former sales rep who is good
at negotiating, so upsell upon renewal can be maximized. Responsible for
extending agreement with customer once 1st term expires. Maximizing
size and duration of 2nd agreement.
Customer Cycle
1.
Marketing
typically has 2 objectives: 1. Create brand awareness 2. Generate qualified
leads
a.
Ideally, Marketing owns a title called Lead Gen
Manager who owns a quota for number of “qualified leads generated per month.”
i. This
role partners with sales to define what a qualified lead is, refine their
model, and score leads coming in
ii. Lead
Gen Manager will use a series of strategies including:
1.
Email campaigns
2.
Webinars
3.
Events
4.
Whitepapers
iii. Note:
it is critical to have a Lead Gen Manager who is compensated on number of leads
they generate that are accepted by sales. Also, everyone’s compensation in
Marketing should have a component tied to leads handed off to sales.
iv. Leads
from Lead Gen are handed off to the SDR Team
2.
SDRs typically have 2 separate roles 1) Qualify
Inbound Leads 2) Generate new leads via Outbound prospecting (phone/email)
a.
First, SDRs need to determine what a Qualified
Lead is. Then, once they find Qualified Leads they will set meetings with these
leads for the AEs to pitch and close.
i. Typical
criteria for a qualified lead
1.
Job title
a.
Ability to influence sale or provide intro to
influencer
2.
Do they have a problem to solve
3.
Industry
4.
Size
b.
Number of Inbound SDRs will be contingent on
lead flow. Typically an SDR can handle 400 contacts, so assuming 3 contacts per
company, an SDR can handle 133 leads/companies.
c.
Typical ratio for Outbound SDRs is 1 for every
2-3 AEs. Ideally the ratio is 1 for every 2 AEs to maximize pipeline and
productivity of AEs.
i. Outbound
reps will generally be paired directly with selected sales reps, this can
increase productivity as the SDR refines the specific companies and tactics the
AE prefers. This relationship will boost the learning curve for SDRs as they
progress towards becoming an AE.
d.
Since SDRs are the “front lines” of any sales
organization, it is important they are assertive, but avoid being too pushy and
burning bridges as a poor reputation can spread quickly and block you from
customers for sustained periods of time.
3.
AE
and CSM
a.
AEs are responsible for pitching customers,
securing trials or evaluations, RFPs, etc.., and ultimately bringing a customer
on board via a signed agreement.
b.
AEs receive qualified lads from SDRs and also
prospect themselves into new
opportunities
c.
AEs will build relationsihps with customers,
demonstrating an understanding of their business, and teaching customers about
how they can benefit from using your product or service
d.
CSMs will often become involved in the sales
cycle
i. This
offers value in two ways:
1.
Paint a post-sale picture of how CSM helps
customer roll-out the product and maximize adoption/value. This puts customer
at ease and ensures they are confident they will derive value when they buy.
2.
Project Manage a trial. Training users and
executives, gathering feedback, helping aggregate final proposal with trial
findings and results.
a.
CSMs typically gain deep access in an account
since they are not a sales reps and are trusted more by default
4.
Once AE secures and agreement , they will pass
the account on to Post-Sale CSMs and the
Renewals team
i. Unless
there is significant growth available, it is best to have the AE step aside and
focus specifically on generating new business
1.
Sometimes it makes sense to allow AEs to keep a
handful of “holdout” accounts where the sales is more “land and expand”
ii. Once
AE obtains a signed agreement, he/she will typically arrange an intro call with
customer and CSM/Renewals for a smooth transition. It is critical that
knowledge is passed on post-sale and the customer experience is smooth. This
transition can be the largest cause for churn (customers cancelling) if not
handled with care. Generally the AE will hold an internal transition meeting
with CSM before scheduling transition call with customer.
iii. The
Renewals team is typically responsible for re-signing a customer once the 1st
agreement expires. They will operate similar to a sales rep but over a longer
time frame. The earlier renewals rep gets involved the better.
iv. Often
the same CSM who was involved pre-sale will stick around post sale, this
generates a deep relationship and understanding of any customer and reduces
churn significantly.
v. Sometimes
it makes sense to sell Premium Services to a customer to ensure engagement and
adoption. This can include a menu of different roll out, training,
configuration, and certification packages.
1.
When a customer pays for services, they
generally engage at a deeper level post-sale and this drives up their success
and adoption. It also increases the probability they will assign an FTE to
“own” your product’s success internally.
2.
Selling Premium Services will generally increase
adoption and reduce churn.
3.
Larger customers will expect to pay for services
anyway