This article was written by Greg Kihlström for MarTech. Read the full article here.

What if all teams were truly working toward the same goal? Often, it feels like everyone is on separate paths, not fully aligned to reach the same destination.

For example, the social media team focuses on engagement. The email team aims for high click-through rates. The website team works to improve site performance. However, none of this contributes to a unified improvement of the company’s overall goals.

This happens when teams are given goals relevant to their work, which don’t align with organization’s strategic goals. As a result, opportunities to grow the company and create loyal customers are missed.

Let’s explore how shared goals and incentives can lead to measurable outcomes, with three key reasons why alignment is essential.

Reason 1: Unified vision and team dynamics

Let’s face it: disconnected goals lead to fragmented marketing efforts. While a team may succeed in a specific task, the ultimate goal should go beyond individual metrics. Everyone, even if it’s not part of their role, contributes to the bigger picture of growing the business.

However, focusing solely on one metric can distract from this broader goal. For example, suppose the aim is just to get people to open emails. In that case, you might use tactics that get attention but not with the right audience. This can lead to a “successful” campaign that doesn’t help your business grow.

Make sure all teams share a unified vision with common key performance indicators (KPIs). For example, the email team’s goal should be to target the best customers likely to purchase. This may lower open rates but will improve the campaign’s return on investment (ROI).

Achieving this requires communication and shared reporting on metrics. Your email team should still focus on their email-only metrics. However, sharing insights into the bigger picture helps them align with the rest of the organization.

The added benefit? Happier customers who see real value in opening your emails and interacting with your brand.

This article was written by Greg Kihlström for MarTech. Read the full article here.