Marketing does not just happen out in the world. Some of the most important campaigns a marketer will ever run are not public at all. They happen internally.
In the debut episode of Beyond the Billboard, hosts Charlie Riley and Greg Wise break down the critical concept of internal marketing — the art of selling your ideas inside your organization.
Whether you are trying to get buy-in from your sales team, rally executives behind a new campaign, or simply build credibility in cross-functional meetings, internal selling can make or break your success.
Here is a deeper look at the key strategies they explored, all aimed at helping marketers improve their internal influence and turn their ideas into action.
Watch the full episode below.
Internal Marketing Is Not Optional — It Is Foundational
At its core, internal marketing means treating your internal audience with the same strategic thinking and care you bring to your external campaigns. According to Charlie and Greg, this is not something you tack on at the end. It is something you build in from the beginning.
That means understanding who your stakeholders are, what matters to them, and how your ideas align with their goals. It also means taking time to articulate not just what you are doing, but why it matters to the business.
Marketers are often focused on reaching the customer, but the first hurdle is getting alignment inside the organization. That is where internal marketing starts.
Be a Seller First, a Marketer Second
One of the boldest takeaways from the episode is this idea: great marketers are great salespeople. To get internal support, marketers need to sell their ideas just like they would sell a product.
Greg emphasized this point, noting that marketing teams must understand their internal stakeholders the way a sales rep understands a prospect. That includes anticipating objections, demonstrating value, and, critically, pre-selling ideas before ever stepping into a formal presentation.
By floating concepts early, gathering feedback, and involving key voices, marketers can build momentum before the “big pitch” even happens. It is about creating advocates early and minimizing surprises later.
Tailor the Message to the Audience
Just like customers have unique pain points and goals, so do internal stakeholders. The language you use with a CFO should not be the same as what you say to a product lead or sales manager.
Greg highlighted the importance of understanding those differences. The finance team might care about ROI and budget efficiency, while your product colleagues want to know how the marketing strategy aligns with the user journey. If you are talking to a CEO, they probably want to hear about long-term brand equity or competitive positioning.
One-size-fits-all messaging will fall flat. Instead, marketers should speak the language of each department and connect marketing outcomes to what stakeholders already care about.
Transparency Builds Trust
Internal marketing is not about spin. It is about clarity and consistency. One of the most overlooked strategies, according to Charlie and Greg, is simply sharing more — the wins, the losses, the in-between.
When marketers openly share performance results, they create a culture of accountability and learning. This builds trust and keeps colleagues informed about what marketing is doing and why.
Whether through internal newsletters, monthly metrics reports, or regular team syncs, the key is to make marketing visible and accessible to the rest of the organization. Transparency does not just inform. It invites others to participate.
Find Your Champions and Build Relationships
No marketer succeeds in isolation. Internal success depends heavily on relationships.
Charlie and Greg encouraged marketers to identify potential champions across the business — people who understand and support marketing goals and are willing to speak up in support of campaigns.
These champions could be sales leaders who value the content your team creates or executives who appreciate the strategic thinking behind your latest brand initiative. When these allies help carry your message, it multiplies your influence and increases the chances of getting meaningful traction.
Relationship-building is not just about approval. It is about momentum.
Conclusion: Internal Marketing Is a Skill Worth Mastering
Episode 1 of Beyond the Billboard offers an important reminder. Marketing does not stop at the company’s front door. The best ideas in the world can fall flat if they do not earn support from the people inside the building.
To succeed, marketers must learn how to:
- Sell their ideas internally with the same confidence and clarity they use externally
- Tailor messaging for different departments and decision-makers
- Share transparently and invite collaboration
- Build strong relationships that turn colleagues into champions
The result is not just smoother execution. It is smarter, more integrated marketing that brings the whole business along for the ride.
So, before you launch your next campaign, take a step back and ask yourself: Have you marketed it internally yet?
Take a listen to the full episode on here.