Fix the Silo Spiral: B2B Marketing Alignment That Actually Works

Struggling with B2B marketing alignment across Sales and RevOps? Even experienced go-to-market teams fall into the “alignment trap,” where collaboration looks great on paper, but campaigns stall, follow-up lags, and attribution gets messy.

In this post, we’ll show you how to build a cross-functional GTM system that actually works, from clear roles and campaign handoffs to goal setting, sync agendas, and scalable execution.

🚨 Where B2B GTM Alignment Breaks Down

Misalignment isn’t always obvious. But when marketing goals are set in silos — and execution lacks structure — the symptoms are easy to spot:

• Campaigns launch off-cycle or miss their moment

• Attribution fights break out across Sales, Marketing, and Partnerships

• Handoffs get lost in Slack threads

• Teams operate on assumptions instead of shared processes

For example: Marketing might source a new opportunity. But if Partnerships helped warm the lead and Sales gets credit for closing it, all three functions may count the pipeline — without realizing it.

That’s not alignment. That’s chaos with KPIs.

✏️ Marketing Needs More Than a Seat at the Table

If you’re in Marketing, your job isn’t just to execute. It’s to understand how goals are set, how attribution works, and where overlaps can create mis-incentives.

If you’re not in the room during planning? Learn the rules. Map the attribution model. And flag the pitfalls before performance reporting turns political.

🧠 The Two Big Alignment Traps in B2B Marketing

🔹 1. Misaligned KPIs Across the GTM Org

When Sales, Marketing, and RevOps (or Partnerships) set goals independently, they unintentionally compete for credit. Attribution overlaps create confusion and break trust.

🔹 2. Poor Execution Alignment Within Marketing

Even if your GTM goals are clear, execution breaks down when:

• Campaign ownership is fuzzy

• Timelines don’t match resource availability

• Content, demand gen, and PMM operate on different calendars

Alignment isn’t just strategic. It’s operational.

✅ 3 Systems That Drive Go-To-Market Alignment

1. Clarify Marketing Roles & Campaign Intake

Start internally. Map what each team owns, supports, or needs visibility into:

Function	Owns	Supports	Informed
Demand Gen	Campaign calendar, pipeline goals	Content, Enablement	Sales, PMM
Content	Messaging, asset production	Demand gen briefs	PMM, Sales
PMM	Positioning, ICP validation	Content, Launch strategy	Demand Gen
Sales Enablement	Playbooks, internal assets	Content reviews	Sales, RevOps

Each org is different. Treat these as starting points.

Then document the how:

• What intake forms are required to request campaign support?

• How far in advance must requests be submitted?

• What criteria determine whether a campaign gets prioritized?

These are the guardrails that prevent backlog chaos and wasted work.

2. Structure GTM Syncs Around Action, Not Updates

Your go-to-market sync should be a working session — not a reporting loop.

Suggested GTM Sync Agenda:

• Wins + Workflow Blockers (5 min)

• Performance Pulse (10 min): What’s working, lagging, changing

• Account Activation (10 min): Where can Marketing support Sales?

• Campaign Feedback (5 min): Are messages landing? Are leads converting?

💡 Tip: Send key performance metrics and open opportunity summaries as a pre-read to create space for meaningful discussion during the meeting.

3. Align on Goals and Contribution (Not Just Campaigns)

You don’t need everyone working on the same campaign, but you do need clarity on:

• Shared ICPs and segments

• Attribution logic and influence definitions

• Campaign goals and expected contributions

Also: create space to discuss in-funnel accounts. If Sales is chasing an enterprise deal, Marketing should know how to activate support, through ABM content, persona-specific ads, or buyer group engagement.

⚡ Quick Win: Run a GTM Campaign Audit

For your next campaign, ask:

• Was there a clear request and brief?

• Was it approved with goals defined?

• Were assets created and delivered on time?

• Was Sales properly enabled with messaging and timing?

• How are results being tracked?

• Is follow-up happening fast enough, and are leads converting?

If you don’t know the answer to all five, you’ve found your first fix.

🔁 Long-Term: Build a GTM Operating Rhythm

To scale B2B marketing alignment, you’ll need:

• SOPs for campaign creation, enablement, and measurement

• Shared quarterly planning and retros

• Internal “How We GTM” playbooks

• Onboarding paths for new hires

Alignment doesn’t happen in a kickoff. It happens in how you plan, launch, and optimize — over and over again.

📊 Want to See Where You Really Stand?

The GTM Systems Audit Kit benchmarks your alignment across Marketing, Sales, and RevOps and gives you tactical, prioritized action plans based on your score.

👉 Download the Audit Kit