The road to distribution success entails a closer alignment between sales and marketing teams. That's one of the takeaways from SwanDog Marketing's recently released report, Sales and Marketing In Concert -- It's Time to Rock!

"For firms to be successful in our maturing marketplace, marketing departments must be liberated from their existing role as supporting Sales (the department) -- and take seriously their role in creating sales (the activity)," wrote the report's authors, SwanDog founder and managing principal Dave Swanson and Scudder Investments alum Susan Crawshaw.

In an interview, Swanson noted that sales and marketing often "reside in two, almost distinct, silos." That should not be the case. "Firms should work on bringing these two entities closer together," he said.

The report identifies three types of relationships between sales and marketing: distinct, whereby there's a clear cultural gap between the two; linked, where there's a tighter alignment and synched, in which the two are fully integrated. The most common type is "distinct."

What should fund firms do to forge closer links between the two?

Having sales and marketing share the same mission is a start.

"Everyone has a role to play in -- and a stake in -- profitably attracting, engaging, qualifying, activating and perpetuating relationships with financial advisors, professional buyers and their firms," according to the report.

SwanDog did an online poll of large, medium and small money managers and conducted dozens of interviews with heads of distribution and marketing and other senior executives. 

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