What Sales really needs from Marketing

^{This 3-minute read brought to you by the team at Rogue Pine}

In this issue, you'll learn:

• The Misalignment No One Wants to Own

• What We’ve Learned from the Field

• 3 Questions to Audit Your GTM

• Start Fixing Your Funnel

Most teams say they’re aligned.

The pipeline says otherwise.

We sat down with Matt Hudson, a fractional CRO who’s led both marketing and sales teams inside high-growth companies.

He’s built sales teams from scratch, realigned go-to-market systems, and seen firsthand where even strong teams fall apart.

In this week’s episode of the Grow Rogue Podcast, Matt breaks down why most go-to-market (GTM) plans fall apart after the lead is generated…and what it actually takes to keep sales and marketing in sync.

The Misalignment No One Wants to Own

Everyone’s working. Everyone’s hitting their metrics.

But leads stall. Deals drop. And fingers point.

Matt called this out clearly: the real problem isn’t effort or intent. 

Instead, teams are chasing separate goals–without a shared system for what success looks like or how to get there together.

Most teams have:

• Activity metrics driving behavior on both sides

• Zero clarity around handoff and follow-through

• No shared language for what “qualified” really means

The result is a pipeline that looks busy but doesn’t convert.

This isn’t about who’s right. It’s about fixing a broken system that wastes good leads and frustrates great teams.

What We’ve Learned from the Field

Matt has worked in the trenches and led from the top. His approach is refreshingly simple and surprisingly rare.

Here’s what he’s seen that actually works:

1. Ride-Alongs Create Empathy
Want to close the gap? Have marketers sit in on sales calls. Have sellers review campaign data.

Encourage teams to stop assuming and start experiencing.

2. Shared Incentives Work Better
When sales teams get rewarded only for meetings set, they book fluff.

When they share upside from converted deals, they start thinking like revenue owners.

3. Communication Can’t Be a One-Off
You can’t fix alignment with a quarterly offsite.

Real alignment takes consistent, structured check-ins.

No assumptions. No silos.

3 Questions to Audit Your GTM

1. Do your teams define “qualified” the same way?
   If not, start there.
   

2. Do your handoff processes have names, owners, and next steps?
   Or is it still “just send it to sales”?
   

3. Are you optimizing for activity or outcomes?
   The numbers you track shape the culture you get.

Start Fixing Your Funnel

Want a system that supports sales and builds trust?

1) Get your FREE Marketing Clarity Report

2) [Watch the full podcast episode]

3) Book a strategy call to build your content system the right way