I recently had the pleasure of seeing one of my favorite sales trainers, Jeffrey Gitomer speak. His speech was informative as well as entertaining and drenched with energy. There however was one thing that stuck in my mind, Jeffrey would often talk about the materials that marketers provide their sales teams and how the marketers should try to sell with the tools they had produced.

Truth is as marketers we often overlook the needs of the sales team in order to create marketing materials that are drowning in branding terminology and less on the information that will help sales convert prospective customers and clients into new customers and clients.

I understand how hard it can be to step away from traditional marketing techniques and transform our marketing materials into sales tools that work, but it's never been more important to do this than in today's economy. It's time to work together to come up with tools that make that conversion happen.

Take the time to gain an understanding of the phases your sales people go through, and start creating materials that will make you both superstars in your company. It's time we stop working against each other and started work together to benefit the companies that we support. Are you up for the challenge? Learn how you as the marketing department can support your sales team.

Your turn: How do you work with your sales team to make sure that you are creating materials in your marketing department that help them convernt potential customers into new customers?

Viral marketing is a fantastic thing when it works and works in your favor. It's free, it's effective and it gets results. There are millions all over the world that share their passion about companies, products and services. They also share their viewpoints and opinions rather openly.

When viral marketing works, it really works. It has the ability to propel a company to the next level and create awareness nearly overnight about a brand. Oh, and wait - all of this -- well, it's free.

Many of us in the marketing field know that when we have others that tell our story it drives action in consumers. One person tells another and then that person tells another, and on and on it goes.

Did you know that viral marketing can also be the death of your business? I'd love to just talk about the fluff of viral marketing, but we must face reality the same viral marketing that has the ability to drive you to success has the same capabilities of driving you to the ground. A prime example of this is reflected when it comes to the marketing of movies in the box offices; Depending on what's said a movie can soar or die on opening day.

Can you hear your consumers talking? They are. They are talking about you. They are talking about your brands. They are talking about your products.  Will you be the next viral marketing casualty or success?

Marketing is changing and if you are stuck in the old patterns of marketing you may be taking your business down a destructive path. Consumers want more engagement and interaction from those that they buy from. Our consumers have faced an overstimulation of marketing messages over the last several years and now in order to get their attention you must do something different.

Consumer are getting smarter and making choices. We are no longer telling them what to buy, they are listening to other consumers and paying attention to word-of-mouth marketing now more than ever.

As consumers we like to buy from people that others recommend. We like to purchase our products and services from people we feel we have a relationship with.

I can see some of you shaking your head and wondering if what I am telling you is true. I understand, but I think you can answer that on your own without any research statistics. All you have to do is think of your own lifestyle and those around you for a moment and your own buying behaviors.

How are you doing when it comes to reaching your potential customers? Are you interacting with them or interrupting them?

Learn why it's now more important than ever to interact with potential customers in order to gain their business.

I'm going to ask that you allow me to step up on my soapbox for a minute this week. When I hear of companies that have suffered from brand sabotage at the hand of an employee or employees it infuriates me. I suppose it's because I've been an entreprenuer most of my career and in that career I have worked hard to help companies establish and build their brands. It's a bit hard to swallow when an employee's video posted on YouTube has the ability to shake a 50 year old brand like Dominos.

The great thing about social media is it's transparency and that transparency works well when working to market your brand. Transparency is what consumers crave. They want to like you before buying from you. It's about connection and engagement. The bad thing about social media is that same transparency. Social media transparency has the ability to throw your company in crisis and recovery mode because of an employee's actions.

In today's world of social media It only takes a YouTube video, a Facebook status update, or a misguided Tweet to throw a company into crisis mode. This truth has created fear in the core of companies. They are afraid to delve into social media marketing because what if an employee says the wrong thing or a customer complains? Their biggest fear is that of their own employees. They cringe at the thought of what their employees are posting on facebook or what photos they are posting on Myspace. Why do you think most human resource departments Google candidates before calling them in for an interview or handing them an official job offer?

You can't stop individuals from participating in social media and truth is you don't want to. Social media is a viable marketing tool that is growing daily. The more you participate the more you can be aware of what's being said about your brand. However, with that being said it's also important to create guidelines and a code of ethics for your employees to follow. They are your brand ambassadors everyday 24/7.  Do they understand that?   They need to and hopefully they have just as much passion for your brand as you do. A social media policy will help them understand what's expected of them and what you tolerate or don't tolerate in the social media realm.

A good social media policy will be a win-win for both you and your employees. You will know that you are successful in creating your policy if the final draft allows employees the opportunity to be themselves online, but yet at the same time protects your brand.

Do yourself a favor and don't put off creating a social media policy even though it's daunting, you don't want your brand to be the victim of the next public relations disaster. Social media disasters caused by networking sites and employees of companies is happening too often.Learn how to create a social media policy that will protect your company's brand and offer guidelines to your employees.