Business is a team effort, and no department reaches its full potential without effective cross-functional collaboration. Marketing has a critical role in building and nurturing new relationships with customers and prospects, while also holding responsibility for activities some stakeholders may perceive as a cost center. In today’s economic environment, where doing more with less has never before been more urgent, it’s critical for marketing leaders to collaborate, share strategies, measure results and continually adapt their approach over time. Below are four strategies for elevating confidence in the marketing department.
1. Collaborate with other departments, especially Sales. Marketing should collaborate with Sales to understand how Marketing can support and complement the Sales process. Marketing should be as responsive to Sales support needs as possible, while balancing its tactical support and strategic planning roles. Although it may take some effort to find balance initially, the benefits of collaborating with and supporting Sales are significant. Sales can help Marketing to build a better awareness of competitive activity and customer needs in the field, while Marketing can share insights to help shorten the sales cycle. Finally, collaboration with Sales links Marketing’s contributions directly to Sales activity and revenue generation, which helps to quantify Marketing’s organizational impact and value.

With the introduction of new and increasingly complex digital technologies,
marketing directors face tough challenges. They have to be experts on new technology before it has matured while simultaneously digesting results from the last marketing campaign. It's like driving down an unfinished road and checking your rearview mirror – all at the same time. Sometimes, it’s all too easy to let marketing strategies become ineffective and stale.

Over the last several weeks, marketing professionals have been blogging and tweeting about the marketing trends and strategies that they expect to be big in 2011. There have been many blog posts on the growth of social media and 2011 being the year of mobile advertising. Other marketers are talking about the impact that personalized, printed marketing collateral will have as consumers begin to require the tangible, relevant, and unique touch offered by a piece of mail specifically meant for them. Still, others are questioning how successful email campaigns will be as prospects begin to receive more and more emails on their smart phones. Needless to say, all of this can get a little overwhelming and you may find yourself wondering what is it going to take to make your organization stand above the competition in 2011?