Here's how to get sales excited about contributing to content

As a content manager, you have a mission: to create valuable content that appeals to your target audience and generates leads. But you keep running into the same problem. Your sales colleagues, who talk to potential customers every day, seem to have little interest in collaborating on content. They say they're too busy, that it's not their job, or that they don't see how it helps them sell more.

Frustrating, right? You know their input is indispensable for creating content that truly resonates with your target audience, but it seems like you're talking to a wall.

At Buzzlytics, we have helped several companies implement They Ask, You Answer over the past few years. A crucial part of this is involving the sales team in the content creation process. We have experienced firsthand how challenging this can be, but also how incredibly valuable the results are when successful.

In this article, I share five proven ways to get your sales colleagues excited about creating content. You'll learn why their input is so important, how to overcome their most common objections, and concrete tactics for engaging them in the content creation process. After reading this article, you'll have a clear plan for bridging the gap between marketing and sales, which will result in stronger content, better qualified leads, and ultimately more revenue for your business.

Without inside information from sales, you run the risk of creating content that doesn't match what your potential customers are looking for.

As a content manager, you may think you can create content just fine on your own. You have done research, you know your target audience and you know how to write a catchy article. Yet without input from sales, you're missing an essential ingredient: direct knowledge of what's really going on with potential customers.

Your sales colleagues speak with prospects every day. They hear firsthand:

• What questions prospects have before they decide to buy
• What concerns and doubts they have
• What is the deciding factor in whether or not to choose you

These insights are golden for creating content that truly resonates with your target audience. Without this inside information, you run the risk of creating content that may be well written, but doesn't really connect with what your potential customers are looking for.

Now that you know why sales input is so important, of course you want to get started right away. Chances are you'll then run into a wall of resistance. These are the most common objections from sales people when it comes to collaborating on content:

1. "I don't have time for this."
2. "This is not my job."
3. "How does this help me sell more?"
4. "I've never done this before and I'm doing just fine."

These objections are understandable. Your sales colleagues have targets to meet and may see content creation as something that distracts them from their core task: selling. It's up to you to show them that collaborating on content can actually help them achieve their goals.

So sales is often not eager to contribute to content creation. So how can you get them excited anyway?

Here are five effective ways:

Explain how good content can accelerate and facilitate the sales process. Content marketing is like a 24/7 salesperson informing and qualifying prospects even before they contact sales. This means salespeople:

• Spend less time answering basic questions
• Getting better informed and qualified leads
• Being able to close deals faster

Show concrete examples of how content contributed to closed deals. Share reports that show how potential customers consumed content during their customer journey. Tools such as HubSpot Attribution Reports can help with this.

Ask your sales colleagues about prospects' most common questions and concerns. Let them suggest topics themselves that they would like content on. This ensures that they immediately see the benefit of the content being created.

Avoid "fluffy" topics that have little practical value to the sales process. Instead, focus on topics such as:

• Price comparisons
• Pros and cons of your product/service
• Differences from competitors
• Frequently asked questions during sales calls

Not everyone enjoys writing. Offer alternatives, such as:

• Conduct interviews and write the content for them
• Record short video clips in which they answer questions
• Recording a podcast episode with their expertise

The point is that their knowledge is recorded, not necessarily that they are the ones writing everything out.

Organize biweekly meetings between marketing and sales. Keep these short and to-the-point, say 30 minutes. A possible agenda:

• 10 minutes: Discuss recently published content
• 15 minutes: Brainstorm new topics
• 5 minutes: Prioritizing topics

These meetings create better alignment between marketing and sales and make sales staff feel like their input matters.

Make it easy for your sales colleagues to share their expertise by choosing a format they are comfortable with.

Give your sales team a say in what content is created. You can set up a simple system for this where sales staff can vote on suggested topics. This ensures that the content being created is actually valuable to the sales process.

For example, create a Google Sheet that you share with your colleagues, where they can suggest topics and where they can vote on topics. The articles, videos or podcasts on topics that received the most votes will then be produced first.

Give your sales colleagues the opportunity to review the content before it goes live. This ensures that the information is accurate and consistent with what they say in sales conversations. This also gives them ownership of the content, making them more likely to use and share it.

By applying these strategies, you create a culture where sales and marketing collaborate on content that truly adds value for your potential customers. The result? Better content, more qualified leads and ultimately more sales.

Involving your sales team in content creation is not a luxury, but a necessity in today's digital world. By incorporating their valuable insights into your content strategies, you not only create better content, but also build a stronger bridge between marketing and sales.

Remember that overcoming initial resistance takes time and patience. Keep emphasizing the benefits, make the process as accessible as possible and stay consistent in your approach. The results will speak for themselves: content that truly resonates with your target audience, better-informed leads and a more efficient sales process.

Getting sales involved in content creation is not a luxury, but a necessity.

At Buzzlytics, we see time and again how companies thrive when marketing and sales join forces. We have guided countless teams through this transformation, and the positive impact on both company culture and the bottom line is undeniable.

Now that you know how to get your sales colleagues excited about creating content, you naturally want to get the most out of this collaboration. But how do you ensure that the valuable content you create together is used to its fullest potential?

The answer lies in content repurposing. By cleverly reusing your content, you can increase its reach, extend its lifespan and save valuable time. In our article "Content repurposing: get the most out of every piece of content," we share concrete strategies for repurposing your content on different platforms. That way you'll get even more return on your efforts!