AMA: Google Head of Marketing, Google Maps Platform, Madeline Ng on Sales Enablement

In well run marketing teams, the metrics for the business are assessed holistically instead of piecemeal among each marketing function.  The contribution of Product Marketing to a growth result is setting up the strategic positioning, messaging, and core assets that can be used by your demand generation teams. The contribution of demand generation teams is taking that understanding of the audience, problem, and markets and selecting channels that best reach and resonate with those audiences and ...Read More

In my personal ideal launch world, PMM would develop the core messaging, positioning, and Bill of Materials that would then be handed to Sales Enablement to transform into compelling trainings. PMM may end up guest starring in some trainings as presenters, and Sales Enablement would be a critical feedback mechanism to fine-tune the launch assets. This would allow each organization to demonstrate their expertise and skills - PMM with placing the launch most advantageously for the business, Enable ...Read More

First, I think you shouldn't expect 100% wholesale usage of the sales enablement materials you create. Sales enablement materials are meant to create a solid foundation for reps to use but, ultimately, every prospect and customer requires some level of customization so expect adaptation.  There's really a spectrum here of tracking and it depends on what metrics you need to justify the resourcing you put to sales enablement, and to whom you need to justify that resourcing. On one hand, you can si ...Read More

I love that you've already identified that sales is one of the most important stakeholders in your launch process. It's true - having sales involvement early in the product development cycle (ideally well before launch) is critical to stress-testing the value of the product, clarifying its benefits, and therefore aligning the GTM strategy.  The best way to get sales involved is to make it worth their time. How does your launch help them better engage their prospects? How does your launch help th ...Read More

There's no quick answer here, but I'd consider the following factors when deciding how far in advance to enable the sales team. I would also caveat that this is less about how far in advance you train and more about how much repetition you offer to the sales team to learn about the thing.  How complex is the thing that is launching? More complexity requires more repeated training so I would suggest training earlier than later. How familiar is the sales team with the thing that is launching? If y ...Read More

Sales enablement is a function that helps scale learning within an organization. I've seen sales enablement focus on topics as broad as:  Market/competitive intelligence Sales skills development Deal structure Product or solution launches Sales compensation and more As with any function that exists as an organization scales, you will most likely want to think about bringing on the function when you have a large enough sales force with a complex enough offering changing at a reasonable rate. With ...Read More

If your sales team is like any sales team I've been privileged enough to work with, your team is full of highly savvy individuals who know what needs to get done to hit their numbers.  As a result, anything you want your sale team to sell must first be sold to them as a way that they can, in the end, meet and exceed their targets.  Your job is to create that excitement. Perhaps this new persona influences the traditional buyer, and selling them the product will help not only net new sales but al ...Read More