The Interface Between Marketing and Sales: The State of the Art and a Research Agenda

Abstract

Marketing and sales often have to work hand in hand. Therefore, several studies have investigated the drivers and consequences of the quality of cooperation between the two departments. We review empirical research on the effect of the quality of cooperation on business performance and on the drivers of the quality of cooperation, to achieve two objectives. First, we summarise the most important findings on the marketing–sales interface in a compact and structured way to give guidance to managers on how to facilitate high-quality cooperation. Second, we identify the major gaps in the literature and outline a research agenda with suggestions for future research on how to address them.