Streamlining Marketing Alignment for a Leading Distributor
Objective: A major North American distributor of packaging, facility solutions, and print products with a new head of Marketing sought to refine its marketing structure to better align with its strategic growth goals. The company aimed to optimize collaboration between sales and marketing, restructure its internal teams, and establish a framework for effective agency management.
Challenge: The distributor’s existing marketing ecosystem faced several challenges, including misalignment between sales and marketing teams, inefficiencies in agency collaboration, and a need for a more strategic approach to marketing planning and measurement. The organization sought a more straightforward process for resource allocation, improved coordination, and a stronger emphasis on strategic, data-driven marketing.
Solution: Setup’s Marketing Ecosystem Planning provided a comprehensive evaluation of the company’s current marketing operations, including:
1. Stakeholder Interviews and Surveys – Setup conducted in-depth interviews and surveys with key stakeholders across marketing, sales, and leadership teams. This helped identify critical issues around team alignment, operational bottlenecks, and resource needs.
2. Strategic Recommendations – Following a thorough analysis, Setup presented actionable insights and a roadmap that addressed key issues, including:
Establishing a unified growth strategy and regular alignment meetings between sales and marketing to ensure shared goals.
Redefining team structures to create a clear handoff process between marketing and sales, with new roles such as a “Marketing Sheriff” to manage prioritization and a “MarTech Czar” to oversee digital tools.
Conducting an agency review to identify strategic partners better suited to support the company’s long-term needs and reduce reliance on order-taking vendors.
3. Process Improvements – Setup recommended implementing a streamlined process for interdepartmental interactions with marketing, allowing other teams to access and adjust marketing content in a self-service model where appropriate.
Outcome: Setup’s engagement provided the distributor with a robust framework for marketing alignment and efficiency, significantly enhancing collaboration between sales and marketing. The restructured team and process improvements positioned the company to manage agency partnerships better and prioritize strategic, data-driven initiatives. With more explicit roles, processes, and tools, the organization can now support sustainable growth and respond to market demands with agility.
Setup Service: Marketing Ecosystem Planning