Marketing and finance. Two key business functions, two very different roles. That difference is a common and enduring source of misalignment in businesses, perhaps down to the perceived poacher:gamekeeper scenario when it comes to budgets.

But both teams, and their organisations as a whole, benefit when they’re working effectively together. So we wanted to look beyond the stereotypes of the fluffy marketer and penny-pinching accountant to get to the bottom of the puzzle. What exactly do finance want from B2B marketers? Will anything keep those avaricious money people happy (joke)?

We’ve pulled back the curtain and gone directly to the source – asking a group of CFOs and FDs what they really think about their marketing colleagues and what can be done to keep the relationship with finance working as well as possible. A note before we start – our hope for some juicy takes were not dashed, but we’ve changed the names of our respondents so they can speak freely without fear of the CIM hunting them down for revenge.

Chalk and cheese?

We started by asking what people saw as the common causes for differences between marketing and finance. Maria is CFO at a large construction company:

“Quite often a cause of differences between teams is down to personality type. Most accountants tend to be driven by logic, facts and detail; in terms of personality colours they tend to be blue. Whereas most marketers I’ve worked with have tended to be more driven by creativity and the social aspects of work – more yellow personalities.

“That can lead to misunderstandings over how information being shared by one person is regarded by the other. So it’s really important that teams understand they might need to adapt their approach depending on the type of person they are communicating with. For a typical “blue” accountant that means laying out a careful argument that’s well substantiated with facts and numbers where possible.”

The irony in this isn’t lost on us – given what we do for a living, we marketers should be amongst the best in understanding how to adapt communications to suit the audience. 

Speaking the lingua franca

So we’ve seen how understanding the common personality types in finance teams is important, but what about the nuts and bolts of the finance role? What key metrics and data do the finance team need from the marketing department? 

An almost universal response here was on ROI – highlighting the need for finance to get a clear handle on how investment in marketing is returning for the business. People were at pains to point out that this didn’t necessarily have to be a short term metric, eg money in today means £x back in the coming weeks, but a well substantiated argument was critical. Steve is a university lecturer in finance and a former FD in the public sector: 

“The case for marketing investment can at times feel like jam tomorrow – there’s often very little specificity on the return expected or achieved. That makes it difficult to decide whether we have made a good investment or not. Finance teams shouldn’t be expecting anything unreasonable in regards to what the returns will be, but clear thinking on what you expected to achieve and how you measured up against that is really important.

“Without this, there can be real difficulties in getting budget signed off for an activity – and it doesn’t help the case in the next budget cycle when we might be thinking twice about what the marketing team can deliver without that clear thinking.”

Janice, FD at a national professional services firm agrees:

“We need to see a clear business case for how we spend money on marketing. What commercial value will it drive for the business? Will it help to bring in more sales? As a finance team we recognise the importance of marketing, especially given the competitive industry we operate in. But we must hold the case for marketing expenditure to the same high standards we do the rest of the business.”

A credibility gap?

Steve’s comment about marketing teams often making a poor case for investment raises the issue of credibility. Is this an important factor for finance? How can marketers foster the right perceptions?

Maria observes that the cliches about marketers can precede them: “There’s an unfair perception of marketers as the team at the end of the corridor who are more interested in the drinks reception at events than the commercial or technical realities of the business. Unfortunately, I think that can sometimes influence how other departments see them, and how they’re perceived when presenting on matters that impact finance.

“It’s important that marketers can demonstrate they understand the fundamentals of the business. Understanding profit is critical. If I know that service A is inherently more profitable for us than service B, then commercial plans (marketing included) should be geared towards making the most of this. If marketing plans focus more on service B then there is a disconnect with our fundamentals and that can affect credibility.

“This also relates to personality types. As an experienced marketer you might know instinctively that a certain project is going to work commercially, but you still need to present a structured argument to convince some people that it’s a good idea.”

Budget realities

Budget is perhaps the biggest source of disconnect here. Finance are, rightly, the gatekeepers of spending for the business – and therefore the people marketers must convince if they’re to have the money they need for the year ahead. What tips do our finance experts have when it comes to influencing marketing budgets?

Janice: “Having a clear plan up front as we create annual budgets is absolutely essential. Once the total budget figure is set at the start of the year it’s beyond our control to change, so any additional spend is a case of sacrificing something somewhere else. If you make a clear business case then you might get it, but only at the cost of another department.

Maria agrees: “Something has to give elsewhere if extra budget is needed, and that’s the case for when budgets are being set just as much as during the year. You might liken it to being chased by a bear – you need to outrun the slowest person not the bear. So make sure your argument for more money is stronger!”  

“Being pragmatic is another important consideration here. If there’s a compromise being made with budget elsewhere then show you can find a way to help. If you want an extra £20, then find £5 on your existing budget and ask for the £15.”

Physician, heal thyself

So what can B2B marketers take from all this? Perhaps the most striking point made is on the general reputation of marketers with other commercial functions and how this often comes down to handling different personality types. That’s a central part of what marketers do, but our finance experts reckoned we weren’t doing enough of it with colleagues. Perhaps we need to consider how we can carefully adapt communications internally just as much as we do for customers and other external audiences.