The B2B industry underwent a profound transformation marked by the convergence of digital advancements, changing customer expectations and a globalized business environment. As organizations grapple with these shifts, the imperative to enhance sales acceleration strategies has emerged as a key driver for sustainable growth and competitiveness. With 73% of B2B organizations actively investing in sales acceleration initiatives, they’re focusing on strategizing and creating campaigns that actually deliver value to customers.

Cutting-edge technologies — such as artificial intelligence (AI), data analytics and automation — are playing an integral role in reshaping traditional sales methodologies. As sales teams strive to build lasting relationships in an era characterized by increased connectivity and information accessibility, this special report will outline:

• The latest advancements and uses of predictive analytics, sales intelligence platforms and AI-powered coaching tools;
• The focus on creating an integrated omnichannel strategy that delivers consistent messaging and personalized engagement at every stage of the buyer journey;
• How to leverage data to segment audiences, create dynamic content and deliver personalized offers and recommendations;
• Why sales teams are embracing AI-powered forecasting and lead scoring; and
• How companies are empowering sales teams with social selling skills.

In an era where personalized content and brand differentiation are critical, corporate gifting remains a potent tool within the B2B marketing arsenal. As gifting evolves from alma mater-branded swag and company t-shirts, practitioners are navigating the complex landscape of corporate gifting to elevate brand perception and foster enduring client relationships.

This report will examine the fusion of experiential marketing and corporate gifting, showcasing innovative approaches that transcend traditional gift-giving and create memorable brand experiences for recipients by infusing technology with gifting. Specific topics of discussion will include:

• The integration of AI, machine learning and data analytics into the corporate gifting paradigm, with a focus on predictive modeling and personalized recommendation engines;
• The growing interest in gifting experiences that create lasting memories and foster stronger relationships, such as virtual cooking classes, personalized wine tastings or tickets to exclusive events related to the recipient’s hobbies;
• How practitioners are leveraging data and analytics to understand gifting preferences, track campaign performance and measure ROI to personalize gift choices and optimize spending; and
• Why practitioners are moving beyond just physical gifts and embracing a multi-faceted approach that mixes electronic delivery with tactical items.

When thinking back to 2023, some words that come to mind are volatile, rocky and uncertain. Despite delivering several blows to morale and budgets, high-level B2B marketing executives capitalized on the limited resources available in 2023 to keep their teams’ spirits high and continue delivering high-performing marketing campaigns. Now that we’ve entered a new year, marketing executives are preparing to reclaim the land by embracing new technologies, phasing out outdated systems and adapting to changing buyer behaviors.

As marketing leaders aggressively start rebuilding their foundations, they’re also focusing on improving internal operations and enhancing existing strategies to help their businesses thrive in the new year. To better understand the current B2B landscape and examine their goals throughout the new year, the “2024 CMO Outlook Guide” queried six marketing leaders to uncover:

• The latest advancements in digital technologies reshaping B2B interactions;
• The steps they’re taking to understand, meet and even exceed changing buyer expectations;
• The impact of interactive and immersive content formats;
• The steps they’re taking to build a diverse and inclusive workforce and how they’re demonstrating those values to prospects and buyers;
• The increasing role of AI and machine-learning, with insights into how they’re harnessing them and incorporating them into business practices; and
• A forward-looking view into their 2024 goals, strategies and priorities.

The great irony of personalization is that once a tactic becomes widespread, the novelty of the experience — and by extension, its impact on potential buyers — wears off. After all, it wasn’t too long ago that first name email personalization was all the rage, but that won’t wow buyers today.

According to Demand Gen Report’s “2023 Content Preferences Survey Report,” 42% of buyers said they were more likely to engage with a sales rep if the content is personalized or tailored to their specific needs. But the survey findings reveal a sizable gap between buyer preferences and the content experiences that marketing teams are currently delivering. This report will explore what’s working in personalization today, including best practices and expert insights into crafting customized, engaging content for each stage of the buyer’s journey. Topics covered include:

• The value of creating binge-able content hubs with dynamic recommendations;
• How account-based marketing (ABM) can not only improve content strategies, but also better equip sales teams for personalized outreach; and
• The role of AI in executing personalization at scale.

More than two-thirds (67%) of practitioners are leveraging an account-based marketing (ABM) strategy — and for those who aren’t, 81% plan to adopt an ABM approach within the next year. Given the (soon-to-be) wider spread of ABM adoption, the “2023 ABM Benchmark Survey” revealed the nuances of each company’s account-based strategies. Specifically, practitioners’ views of their strategy’s success varied greatly, as most marketers were merely meeting expectations and nearly one-third were underperforming.

The top challenges of lower-performing strategies include scaling existing efforts and lack of internal resources — but more on that later. Throughout this survey report, we’ll examine the current state of ABM to understand practitioners’ creation and deployment of ABM
campaigns. Notable findings include:

• The increased integration of demand generation and ABM to enable stronger personalization and account targeting;
• The top technologies and partnership opportunities companies are relying on;
• The specific datasets practitioners are relying on, with insights into how successful companies are enriching and cleansing their data;
• The most popular content messaging, formats and channels; and
• The top benefits marketers derive from their ABM campaigns.