It is raining great buckets of technology. It is filling the rivers of innovation and forever changing the landscape of business. In the face of all this innovation, a modern B2B marketing strategy can no longer hide under an umbrella—we need to get wet and get in the game.
I believe significantly greater achievement is within our reach, if we have the nerve to lean far out over the carousel horse and grab the ring.
I certainly don’t have all the answers, but I am going to rub our noses in a few foundational areas. Our thinking, our testing, our concerted effort here will pay big dividends for the companies we serve, and us.
Rethinking the Modern B2B Marketing Strategy for Long-Term Profit?
World peace?
Big picture – the goal is either revenue or profit. We all need to be aligned. One flag.
Revenue is a short-term, incomplete metric, but it is most definitely money in the door. Profit, revenue minus cost, is the long-term metric that I’m signing up for. That’s the future.
Most investment right now goes to producing revenue. Here’s one example:
Commissions, whether for sales or CX, are largely paid on the transaction. That’s short-term thinking. Sure, relationships include many transactions, but it holds out a short-term carrot to the people who have the responsibility to nurture the relationship.
We need some perspective and innovation that is both measured and rewarded. Profit is generated by creating happier customers that stay longer and buy more. Customer Lifetime Value is what we should be investing in.
Are we optimally organized?
Let’s evolve to an organization whose goal is profitability and that is structured around bringing value to the customer. Increasing customer lifetime value.
The stone in my shoe starts with the names of the departments, as they exist today. These names feel inconsistent with a new customer focus. It’s very basic:
“Marketing” is no more than a label to a customer, no specific value… maybe a whiff of brand. The label “sales” may even make you wince. (“Please hold while I transfer you to sales.”)
Perhaps having two separate departments, sales and marketing, is old thinking and is inefficient in this new age. Arguably, two siloed departments are an impediment to a company’s evolution.
Here’s what I do know.
B2B is personal. Always was and always will be. Nothing replaces the personal touch. Nothing is more effective in generating trust.
The best salespeople are innovative marketers. The best marketers I know sell everyday of their lives. The only time we have separate skills is when we’re thinking like B2C, where there are oceans of customers and we need a closer.
Your high-value prospects are looking for the human touch – the empathy, the commitment, the ongoing investment in their success. Long-term relationships require continuity, and that, too, is personal.
I keep coming back to what one CEO told me when I asked, what is the primary value your company provides? The answer – our salesman. He is part of our team. He knows what we need and goes and gets it.
In contrast, becoming a new customer often involves a series of hand-offs over the first few critical months of the relationship. Each hand-off starts cold. What if there was a central point of responsibility, birth to earth?
How are we going to market?
It makes intellectual sense for our prospecting efforts to be driven by the ICP (ideal customer profile), but that is not the behavior of many companies, especially new companies. I understand why, but I do not agree.
Many current tactics cast the net wide—which is quicksand. It’s a risky move that ignores the principles of a modern B2B marketing strategy, which emphasizes targeted outreach and long-term value.
I know that new companies, especially, are under enormous pressure for new logos and to show some numbers. But many of the prospects that do convert are low value. They produce less revenue, cost more to maintain, and churn faster.
This is a treadmill – you’re expending a lot of effort but not really going anywhere.
How does marketing become a stronger partner in martech?
Frans Riemersma, founder of the Martech Tribe, believes that we are entering the golden age of marketing operations, but technology alone cannot solve all the problems. (Martechvibe) I agree. This is our ticket to greater impact, and greater career longevity.
Bringing this golden age to fruition will require strategic planning, collaboration, and adaptability from marketing and martech. We need to be strong partners in bringing our expertise to the table. We need, together, to find the best use cases, and to determine when and where human involvement is required.
There are two distinct areas where we can and must exert our influence because they promise the greatest return: composability and the strategic use of data. These are tailor-made for our contribution.
Composability
Increasingly, technology, including agentic AI, will be composable. Kind of like putting Lego[BS1] together. This democratizes the sandbox. Suddenly we’re able to craft the customer experience using the best tech available. Marketing should be the architect.
This is a crazy good opportunity for us to move the goalposts.
Strategic use of data
I don’t think we’ve even begun to realize what martech can teach us. But I do think we’re not asking enough questions. That may be because we don’t know enough.
I submit that the first step is to become the master of our new tools. While I acknowledge change is a bitch, we are not there. I don’t believe we’re even close to mastering these new tech tools, including AI.
Will marketing survive?
If reengineering marketing for greater relevance and contribution doesn’t get you going, survival might. AI looks at marketing today and licks its chops. I think marketing and the creative arts, are at P(doom) max[BS2] (the probability of catastrophic outcomes as a result of AI), unless we get wet, get busy, and get in the game.
To survive and thrive, we must embrace a modern B2B marketing strategy—one built on empathy, innovation, and measurable impact.
The human touch brings it all home. There is no technology that’s going to replace it. However, too many corporations will settle for what AI thinks is right. Speed, cost, and scalability are pretty convincing. It’ll be “good enough” for them. But will it produce revenue? Customer lifetime value? Results?
I say no, it won’t. If we put our heads together, we can build it and prove it. And if not, AI will eat our lives.
Colleagues, we do not have to set the table.
More articles from Scott Hornstein:
- Profitability Starts with Identifying Your Ideal Customer Profile – ICP
- This Would be a Great Business if it Weren’t for all Those Annoying Customers
- AI’s Competitive Advantage is Not What You Think
- Marketing L&D isn’t funny. But should it be?
- Make ‘Em Laugh: The Power of Humor in L&D
About the Author
International author, lecturer and consultant, Scott Hornstein has worked with clients in all phases of marketing strategy, research, and implementation. He has worked with companies large and small to build profitability, by improving marketing performance, and reengineering the customer experience to boost satisfaction, referrals, and customer lifetime value.