The integration will reportedly help users:

• Identify, prioritize and target accounts that are actively consuming contextually relevant buy-cycle content;
• Inform better list segmentation and enable deeper personalization at scale with actionable insights into granular topical research and engagements with vendor content; and
• Drive sales and marketing efficiency, focus outreach and shorten sales cycles by eliminating false signals.

“This partnership is very exciting as our customers are now able to directly access the breadth of TechTarget’s account intent signals within the 6sense platform,” said Michael Cotoia, CEO of TechTarget, in a statement. “Priority Engine Account Intent Feeds provide unmatched precision to confidently identify high-value accounts that are most likely to buy. This rich data source, combined with 6sense’s proprietary intent data, provides them with a more complete view of who is in market. This is truly a ‘better together’ story that will help our mutual customers further refine their approach and more easily leverage this unique data directly in the 6sense platform to build segments and orchestrate account-based efforts.”

The post TechTarget Reveals New Integration With 6sense appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

Gong Engage is a full-cycle sales engagement solution designed for creating, managing and converting pipeline, and the integration with Demandbase will reportedly provide users with better access to important account and contact in one place. Specifically:

• Sellers will be able to search Demandbase’s third-party company and contact database to help paint a clearer picture of overall account and contact engagement, set up connections and more; while
• Marketers will unlock a new channel for integrated campaigns that include sellers’ workflows.

“Our goal is to bring the power of Demandbase data, insights and actions directly into the flow of work for advertisers, marketers and sellers,” said Michael Wilczak, Chief Strategy & Development Officer at Demandbase, in a statement. “This integration with Gong surfaces relevant contact and account intelligence right in Gong Engage to make it easy for salespeople to sync and add contacts to Gong. There’s a lot for our joint customers to get excited about, and we look forward to sharing more soon.”

The post Demandbase Unveils New Integration With Revenue Intelligence Platform To Enhance CX appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

The pair — who lead sales and marketing, respectively, for the account-based go-to-market company — wrote the book to provide a “refreshing” perspective on what achieving sales and marketing alignment really requires. The pair tapped into their experience and current working relationship to offer a glimpse at the origins of sales and marketing misalignment, the factors that have contributed to the current status quo and the steps needed to drive alignment. To that end, the Demand Gen Report team sat down with Eitel and Hopping to gather more insight into aligning these infamously disconnected departments.

Demand Gen Report: Can you provide a brief overview of the current sales/marketing alignment landscape, and discuss how misalignment impacts business?

John Eitel & Kelly Hopping: Sales and marketing alignment is a major issue today. When these two departments aren’t in sync, it can cost organizations more than 10% of their annual revenue. In the U.S. alone, this lack of coordination leads to a wasted $1 trillion or so every year. Misalignment also causes trust issues and misunderstandings, making collaboration difficult and slow. With teams more spread out, heavily reliant on technology and navigating an unpredictable economy, things have only become more challenging — in fact, 48% of teams said they’re not aligned, according to the “2023 C-Suite Go-To-Market Benchmark Survey.”

DGR: What are typically the top challenges with alignment, and what causes them?

Eitel & Hopping: To start, few people realize that sales and marketing were never created to be aligned in the first place. In the book, we credit Scott Albro with the idea that, early on, marketing was more of a communications and “arts and crafts” department, while sales was about long lunches and golf games. Only over time have we begun to recognize the untapped value in the intersection between the two.

Despite realizing its potential value, though, misalignment rages on. Currently, some of the biggest roadblocks are the geographical distance between team members, resistance to changing how things have always been done, lack of buy-in at the top… and the list goes on. But really, a glaring lack of relationship is the heart of the issue.

When you invest in the relationships between individual team members, tap into empathy, try to understand why one department operates the way it does and start reorganizing your daily practices to include shared goals and metrics, you can get past those challenges and truly achieve alignment.

DGR: What encouraged you to write “Yes, It’s Your Fault”? How did your respective experiences in the industry shape and influence the book?

Eitel & Hopping: We decided to write this book because the problem wasn’t going away on its own. We’ve spent many years in sales and marketing, respectively, dealing with all sorts of tricky situations. We’ve learned the hard way what works and what doesn’t — by sharing our experiences, we hope to help others avoid the same mistakes.

Our combined experiences taught us the critical importance of aligning sales and marketing. As the new CMO and CSO at Demandbase, we’re working on our own alignment story in real-time, which allows us to bring fresh, actionable insights to our readers. Through the book, we included true snapshots of our ongoing journey (the good, bad and ugly) so we could help others navigate their own paths to alignment.

DGR: Can you share a brief synopsis for our readers?

Eitel & Hopping: We’re all tired of the blame game between sales and marketing teams, especially because it’s created fractured internal cultures and lackluster business outcomes. The problem is that, despite a general awareness that misalignment is an issue, no one really knows how to fix it. In “Yes, It’s Your Fault!”, we present the ultimate guide to bridging this gap between sales and marketing and fostering true collaboration. The book first delves into the root causes of sales and marketing misalignment. Then, through anecdotes and practical insights, we cover the solutions (broken down into manageable strategies).

Our goal was to help practitioners and leaders transform finger-pointing and blame into handshakes and accountability, unlocking the full potential of their organization.

DGR: What sets your book apart from other literature in the industry? What are some takeaways you expect readers to walk away with, that they may not have heard before?

Eitel & Hopping: There have been other books on sales and marketing alignment, and it’s been a hot topic for many years, so we know we’re not the first with the message of its importance. But we do have a unique window into what it takes to achieve. Our perspective comes from our decades of experience in our respective departments and how we’re now bringing all that knowledge into our current relationship as leaders at Demandbase.

Some of the messages we’re most hopeful our readers will receive include:

• Misalignment has been caused by a variety of factors over many, many years — it’s not just your coworker’s fault;
• Alignment is all of ours to fix and to own (hence the title of the book);
• Investing in relationships and the human element in alignment is one of the greatest keys to achieving real unity;
• Getting your teams aligned won’t be easy or fast, but it is attainable – and one of the most worthwhile initiatives you can undertake; and
• Your people and your business will thrive once you’ve turned the ship around and created a culture of collaboration and true alignment.

DGR: What gaps in the industry do you think this book fills? How do you think it’ll shape the industry going forward?

Eitel & Hopping: We hope to offer a truly honest view into what’s worked in the past, along with what hasn’t — and what’s working for us right now, as well as what isn’t.

We’re very upfront about the fact that there is no silver bullet for alignment, and we hope our honesty and actionable guidance are refreshing and valuable.

If organizations follow the path we outline in the book, the industry will operate more smoothly and achieve much greater success. Better yet, practitioners and leaders (and customers, because of the trickle-down effect) will be more fulfilled in their roles and professional relationships. Life’s too short for contention between departments; it serves no one and hurts everyone. It’s time we all move forward to something better.

“Yes, It’s Your Fault” is available for purchase now — to learn more and get a copy of the book, check it out on Amazon.

The post Empathize To Realign: Demandbase Experts Weigh In On Keys To Sales & Marketing Alignment appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

To help support its growth, the company planned to increase the number of scheduled prospective meetings and facilitate multi-threaded meetings that would involve multiple representatives from the client’s side to lead to more fruitful discussions and successful outcomes.

The Challenge

AffiniPay wanted to implement an account-based strategy to support its meetings-focused endeavors but faced uncertainties in the execution, primarily due to a lack of alignment among operations, sales and marketing teams. That misalignment produced a lack of trust and inefficiencies, which included misunderstandings of marketing qualified accounts and platform integrations within existing workflows.

Moreover, foundational data issues in AffiniPay’s CRM plagued its systems across 6sense, Salesforce, Gong and Adobe Marketo, which contributed to lower conversion rates, prompting AffiniPay to seek ways to maximize its ROI.

The Solution

AffiniPay turned to B2B Fusion, a B2B sales and marketing performance firm, to facilitate the transformation of its operations, team cohesion and training processes and guide its shift from a transactional B2B approach to an account-based experience (ABX) motion strategy.

First, B2B Fusion helped AffiniPay develop a model qualified account (MQA) framework for consistent organizational management and established fundamental segments in 6sense for accurate targeting to boost conversions. B2B Fusion assisted with this by getting all parties in a room to align definitions and processes and, once that buy-in was achieved, the firm then installed that philosophy into the systems.

AffiniPay also wanted to reset its 6sense pilot program, so B2B Fusion crafted tailored marketing campaigns within the platform to streamline the sales funnel and devise a comprehensive omnichannel outreach plan. Following this, the sales and marketing performance firm developed a cohesive messaging framework for AffiniPay to help the company land more meetings with relevant stakeholders in prospective accounts. Then, B2B Fusion assisted in pinpointing and rectifying core challenges within the initial 6sense pilot program.

Next, B2B Fusion helped develop a full-funnel demand generation campaign framework focused on cross-selling opportunities among AffiniPay’s diverse product lines. By analyzing customer data and insights, B2B Fusion helped customize marketing campaigns for 6sense, including operationalizing the sales funnel and creating an omnichannel pilot plan. This enabled AffiniPay to create targeted campaigns to address specific customer needs and interests, thereby increasing the relevance and appeal of cross-selling propositions.

Other strategic contributions from B2B Fusion included:

• Designing seamless business processes that allowed marketing and sales to act effectively on MQAs;
• Conducting a thorough 6sense keyword audit for enhanced performance;
• Implementing integrated campaigns across various channels to optimize the full sales funnel;
• Enhancing the usability of 6sense to align with operational needs, which is still a work in progress; and
• Reporting assistance in defining ABX pilot launch criteria and objectives for future success.

The Results

Collaborating with B2B Fusion positively impacted AffiniPay’s operations, leading to significant growth in its business outcomes.

“We’re in early stages of the rollout but see some promising early results already,” said Paul Hernandez, Director of Lifecycle Marketing at AffiniPay. “This includes a nearly 70% MQA acceptance rate by sales, with an extremely high sales qualified lead-to-win ratio of 33%, which is indicating ABM is much more effective versus traditional lead generation techniques on a per-unit basis.”

Other key benefits from the partnership include:

• Strengthened sales and marketing alignment;
• Improved data quality across all departments and streamlined decision-making processes; and
• Cohesive processes and campaigns that moved beyond traditional lead generation and focus on high-value accounts; and
• Expansion into new markets and industries.

Looking ahead, AffiniPay wants to increase the model qualified account volume to make an even greater impact on revenue heading into 2025.

The post How AffiniPay Unlocked 70% MQA Acceptance Rate Via An ABM/ABX Framework appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

This shift — which will be underscored in the upcoming “2024 Marketing Measurement & Attribution Benchmark Survey” — highlights a broader trend in B2B marketing, where the precision and tailored strategies of ABM are increasingly valued for their ability to drive high-quality leads and deeper customer relationships.

ABM’s distinctiveness lies in its focus on key accounts rather than broad-based lead generation. Traditional inbound marketing metrics — such as website traffic and general lead volume — are less relevant in an ABM context. Instead, organizations are beginning to prioritize metrics that reflect the effectiveness of targeting specific high-value accounts. This evolution is crucial as it aligns marketing efforts more closely with sales objectives, fostering a more integrated and strategic approach to driving business growth.

Challenges In Integrating Traditional ABM Metrics

Despite the recognized need for ABM-specific measurement frameworks, many organizations struggle with integration. Almost all marketers (95%) measure ABM based on a combination of traditional inbound funnel metrics and ABM-specific metrics — a dual approach that leads to complexities and inefficiencies, particularly when integrating data across disparate platforms.

Data integration issues, cited by 45% of marketers, often stem from the use of multiple marketing and sales tools that don’t integrate seamlessly. This can result in fragmented data, making it difficult to gain a comprehensive view of account engagement and performance. Further, 40% of marketers face challenges with messy CRM data, which can hamper efforts to accurately track and attribute ABM activities.

Another challenge lies in mapping leads to their corresponding accounts, as reported by 35% of marketers. This process is vital for ABM, as it ensures that marketing efforts are correctly attributed to the right accounts, thereby providing a clearer picture of the program’s effectiveness. Additionally, 25% of marketers struggle to tie anonymous account engagement to known stakeholders, highlighting the need for sophisticated tracking and attribution tools that can link various touch points and interactions to specific accounts and individuals within those accounts.

Key Metrics For Measuring ABM Success

Conversion Metrics & Business Outcomes

One of the primary metrics for measuring ABM success is the conversion of engaged accounts to opportunities, with 65% of marketers prioritizing this metric. By closely monitoring how quickly engaged accounts transition into sales opportunities, marketers can gauge the effectiveness of their ABM strategies and identify areas for improvement. This metric not only tracks the immediate success of marketing efforts but also provides insights into the long-term potential of account relationships.

Influenced pipeline is another critical metric, cited by 35% of marketers. This measure assesses how ABM activities impact the sales pipeline and provides color around how targeted efforts contribute to overall business growth. By attributing pipeline value to specific ABM campaigns, organizations can better allocate resources and refine their strategies to maximize impact.

Engagement & Campaign Performance

In addition to conversion and pipeline metrics, detailed engagement metrics are essential. The most popular metrics to track include individual campaign and channel metrics (prioritized by 45% of marketers), which provide granular insights into the tactics and channels that are most effective at reaching and engaging key accounts. These metrics can include email open rates, click-through rates, event attendance and social media interactions, all of which help paint a detailed picture of account engagement.

Engaged accounts, also cited by 35% of marketers, are another crucial metric. This measure tracks the number of target accounts that actively engage with marketing content and campaigns. High engagement levels indicate that the ABM strategy is resonating with the intended audience, suggesting a greater likelihood of conversion. Tracking this metric over time can reveal trends and patterns in account behavior, enabling marketers to fine-tune their approaches for better results.

Navigating The Complexities Of ABM Measurement

The integration of ABM-specific metrics with traditional inbound metrics remains a complex task for many organizations. However, as more companies recognize the unique value of ABM, the development of more sophisticated measurement tools and processes is likely to accelerate. Solutions that can seamlessly integrate data from multiple sources and provide a unified view of account engagement and performance will be crucial for the continued growth and success of ABM.

Investing in advanced CRM and marketing automation platforms that support ABM-specific features can help address some of the integration challenges. These tools can offer more precise tracking and attribution capabilities, enabling marketers to link individual interactions to specific accounts and stakeholders more effectively. Additionally, ongoing data hygiene practices, such as regular data cleansing and validation, are essential to maintaining the accuracy and reliability of ABM metrics.

Future Trends In ABM Measurement

The growing emphasis on customer experience in B2B marketing is expected to shape ABM measurement frameworks, and metrics that capture the quality and impact of account interactions, such as account engagement rates, will become increasingly important. These measures can provide a more holistic view of ABM success, encompassing not only business outcomes but also the overall experience and satisfaction of key accounts.

While the current landscape of ABM measurement presents several challenges, the ongoing development of specialized metrics and tools is set to drive significant advancements. As more organizations adopt and refine their ABM strategies, the ability to accurately measure and attribute ABM activities will be critical for achieving sustained success and competitive advantage in B2B marketing.

The post Analyzing The Shift Toward Specialized ABM Metrics In Marketing Measurement & Attribution appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

• Annie Chamberlin, Account-Based Marketing & Experiences at Lumen Technologies;
• Sam Nohava, VP, Global Marketing at Blue Yonder; and
• Madeline Maguire, Head of B2B Marketing at Grubhub.

The trio of panelists took the stage to discuss the current ABM/demand generation landscape and provided insights into how their respective companies are leveraging the two strategies and differentiating between them.

Wes Lieser: How does your organization classify the difference between ABM and demand generation?

Anne Chamberlin: At Lumen, we are heavily invested in ABM — specifically, in the large enterprise segment. Everything that we are doing is account-based: We have our target lists, and then we work to capture demand within those specific accounts. There are aspects of the business that do have more traditional demand generation, which are the areas that have a higher volume of customers but lower annual contract values. And in those areas, we look to generate leads and pass those leads off to sales development reps, who will then work on conversion.

Sam Nohava: I have a team of demand gen and ABM marketers who are specialized by industry, region and function. And within those roles — specifically the field marketing team — they target prospects by demographic, firmographic and intent. Across my entire team, we’ve gone all in on intent; it’s intent-based everything. And the main delineation is that field marketers own industry-and product-driven campaigns, as well as field events. They are the right hand of the sales organization, but their primary focus is to drive at-bats and then disengage once sales takes over. On the ABM side, that team manages 1:1 and 1:few programs, and within that practice, they are engaged throughout the entire buyer’s journey.

Madeline Maguire: At GrubHub, demand generation focuses on 1:many efforts and ABM encompasses the strategies that are targeting a specific list of high value accounts. Within the scope of my organization, I have corporate accounts that are pretty evenly split between demand gen and ABM. The campus side, where we’re trying to sign up higher education campuses, is very heavy on ABM and long sales cycles. However, I also have merchant marketing under my purview, which focuses on the high-value VIP restaurants that we’re trying to sign. Within those accounts, it’s not a traditional content-lead account-based strategy. For that segment, ABM looks very much like turning up with popsicles on a hot day for all the employees that work in the restaurant, which isn’t a scalable approach. So, the difference between demand generation and ABM really depends on how you identify your buyer and then tailoring an approach that works for them.

Lieser: What are some of the common misconceptions between demand gen and ABM?

Nohava: I’ll cover three: The first is that the two functions are siloed and operate independently from one another. The reality is that it’s OK if they’re siloed, but they shouldn’t be; if you’re doing your job correctly as a marketing leader, you should encourage collaboration and partnership for the creation of one demand generation plan. The second misconception is that demand gen isn’t strategic; it’s just spray-and-pray and doesn’t leverage ABM technologies. And the third is that ABM is a silver bullet. My favorite saying is ABM is a strategy, not a tactic, and we should treat it as such.

Maguire: A lot of people also think ABM is just marketing’s responsibility, but it requires tremendous buy-in from every level of the organization up to the leadership. Particularly with the sales team, the moment that you have marketing and sales working in silos, you’re done. ABM needs a near-constant communication and feedback to become successful. If the sellers in the front lines aren’t coming back to their marketing teams and sharing how marketing can tailor content to be as relevant as possible to the targets, ABM is never going to resonate the way that buyers expect in 2024.

Lieser: What are some of the most important factors included in maintaining marketing and sales alignment?

Maguire: The first is being intentional about creating a strong relationship between the two departments: State the intention with the sales leader, and the team will take cues from them on how to respect the other team. You also can’t be afraid to set the example and make sure that when sales teams are celebrating big wins, they’re calling out the marketing team in their success — and vice versa. There also needs to be shared objectives so there’s no sense of competitiveness.

Chamberlin: At Lumen, we have a corporate narrative that the entire company is rallying around, and we’re currently developing commercial plays across sales, marketing and customer success to make sure our go-to-market is cohesive across the customer experience.

Lieser: As you look forward to 2024, what are some key initiatives and objectives that you’re putting forth to propel ABM and demand gen?

Chamberlin: We’re working to shift from product marketing to customer outcome-based marketing, so we’re conducting market research to help re-shape how we go-to-market. The other area that will be a big focus is bringing all of our ABM functions in-house, which requires hitting hard on campaign operations and discipline internally around data and operations so that we can orchestrate all of our different plays appropriately.

Nohava: I’m starting the conversations with leadership to guide our KPIs by function. Currently, my entire team is measured based upon sourced pipeline and sourced revenue. And unfortunately, that’s not fair or indicative of the true value that my teams add, especially in the ABM cases where they are owning and engaging across the entire buyer’s journey. I also want to advocate for more budget and refine our current strategies, as well as ensure we’re in lockstep with sales to meet our goals.

Maguire: We’re very excited about leveraging tech to accelerate pipeline velocity, so we’re looking at a few different options there. Additionally, a lot of our customers are under pressure to do more with less, so now more than ever, it’s really important to make sure that the content that we’re putting out there is relevant, helpful, adds value and speaks to the needs of our customers.

If you’re craving more real-world insights and conversations, B2B Marketing Exchange East is quickly approaching! The agenda’s already chock-full of panels, sessions, keynotes case studies, workshops, campfire sessions and more — make sure to register for the event now to snag tickets while they’re at their lowest price!

The post Navigating The Intersection Of ABM & Demand Generation In B2B Marketing appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

Smart Account Plans seeks to enable every go-to-market team member to view account activity, understand the buying committee and collaborate with stakeholders on how to best penetrate the account. Specifically, one of the features includes Smart Account Assist, which combines an AI-generated summary of recent account activities with a Q&A chat to answer critical questions around next steps and potential risks.

“Sellers need to understand their customer’s needs and goals to effectively move through the deal cycle,” said David Ruggiero, President of GTM at Outreach, in a statement. “Successful account-based sales strategies rely on shared information, constant alignment, detailed planning and structured workflows. By adopting a strategic approach, companies can improve their prospecting efforts, lower customer acquisition costs and maximize the value of their existing customers through thoughtful account management, which will drive ongoing business growth.”

The post Outreach Launches Smart Account Plans appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

The companies’ combined capabilities are designed to automatically adapt as accounts progress through their buying journey, with the goal of enabling marketers to build and launch brand-to-demand programs by understanding key metrics such as asset performance by persona, department, company and region.

“We’re excited to partner with INFUSE [to reshape] demand intelligence and activation by seamlessly integrating 6sense’s buyer intelligence with INFUSE’s omnichannel solutions,” said Elliot Smith, 6sense Head of Partnerships, in a statement. “This collaboration empowers our mutual customers to leverage powerful, customized demand-generation tactics at every stage of the buying process. Our dynamic capability ensures optimal engagement, converting predictive analytics into revenue, further demonstrating our dedication to innovation and efficiency in the industry.”

The post INFUSE Unveils Strategic Partnership With 6sense appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

Command Center is designed to provide a visualization of account status and progress by identifying an average of 15,000 in-market accounts. Specific features include:

• Next best action recommendations based on buying signals, fit and engagement behaviors;
• The ability to filter enhancements for more tailored insights based on parameters such as fit models and intent data; and
• Three dynamically updated “action cards” that highlight best practice actions for capturing demand and engaging high-potential accounts.

“ABM is critical for fostering growth, especially for marketers seeking enhanced performance and increased budgets,” said Vibhor Kapoor, Chief Business Officer at NextRoll, in a statement. “Our innovative Command Center makes it easy for our customers to incorporate ABM into their existing strategies, supercharging their success without impacting efficiency.”

The post RollWorks Launches Dashboard Designed To Optimize ABM Strategies appeared first on Demand Gen Report.

Turco brings three decades of experience driving corporate growth with expertise in business strategy, marketing technologies and advertising. Most recently, he served as Chief Growth Officer at MERGE, where he led double-digit new business growth. Turco succeeds Tom O’Regan, who has served as CEO since 2014.

“Over the past decade, Madison Logic has become a go-to partner for businesses seeking the very best in enterprise demand generation and marketing,” said O’Regan, in a statement. “As I hand the baton to Keith, the company is well positioned to build on this strong foundation, further enhance its value proposition to clients and drive long-term growth. I am extremely proud of what we’ve accomplished and wish Keith and our outstanding team all the best as they build on our momentum.”

Madison Logic News Flashback

In Q3 of 2023, Madison Logic entered the Connected TV (CTV) market through the release of ABM CTV, which is designed to unify four B2B channels — content syndication, display advertising, social advertising with LinkedIn and CTV — into a centralized platform. ABM CTV seeks to help B2B marketers activate multichannel ABM campaigns and achieve comprehensive visibility into program performance. Reported features of the channel include:

• Directly targeting in-market account prospects;
• Amplifying existing multichannel ABM approaches by adding CTV to surround prospects through the centralized Madison Logic Platform; and
• Tracking the performance of every dollar spent.

The post Madison Logic Names New CEO appeared first on Demand Gen Report.