Episode 11: Bridging the Divide Between Marketing and the CEO with Fred Diamond

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Fred Diamond, the Founder of the Institute for Excellence in Sales & Business Development (IES&BD) produces regular events to promote best practices and thought leadership in Corporate and Organizational Sales and Business Development and Operational Excellence.

Diamond is a well-recognized leading go-to-market strategy consultant in the Mid-Atlantic for growing high-tech and professional service firms. He has helped numerous organizations grow their sales efforts from Apple, Compaq and Microsoft to rising stars such as Contact Solutions and Pleasant Valley Business Solutions.

Fred’s Leadership Style:

• Prioritizes problem-solving and hard work
• Fred likes to benchmark himself against how few sales complaints his work gets.
• Style of humor: deadpan.

Key takeaways:

• Companies are on the right track where marketers understand that its about sales and are willing to subjugate their egos for the betterment of the company
• Marketers need to truly understand who the marketplace is, who is likely to truly buy whatever it is the company is selling – who is the true addressable marketplace.
• Tips for marketers that would like to get better:
  • Carry a recording device, listen, don’t just take notes
  • Schedule meetings
  • Get to know everyone in a leadership position in the organization
  • Ask “what should marketing be doing to get more to drive more sales to their target audience as compared to what interesting marketing things should I be able to do.”

Select Quote:

“Having spent the last 4 years with some of the true thought leaders in the world. I’ve learned a bunch of things from some of the top sales organizations in the world. Sales is hard. The difference between sales and marketing is I could create an amazing marketing activity and get 100 people in the room for a seminar then I’d go to sleep at night but if there are no customers in that room who are truly solid prospects then the sales people won’t go to sleep.”

The Future:

• There are  estimates that the number of salespeople in the marketplace will decrease by upwards 60-80% in the next 10 years mainly because the buyers are in charge.

Next Project:

IES BD is looking to expand into Atlanta and Chicago

Links:

• Cvent
• Weddingwire
• The Sales Hunter – Accelerating Prospecting
• The End of Advertising as we know it, and the end of marketing as we know it by Sergio Zyman
• Lisa Earle McLeod – Selling with Noble Purpose

Where to Reach and Learn More About Fred:

• DiamondStrategicMarketing.com
• FredDiamond.com
• The Institute for Excellence in Sales and Business Development:
• I4ESBD.org