Imagine you’re an exceptional marketing leader who has achieved impressive results through strategic execution of your go-to-market (GTM) strategies. You’re working hard to enhance your brand’s presence in the market, and your pipeline is looking robust with deals sourced and influenced by marketing. You effectively communicate your department’s achievements to the board and throughout the organization. It seems like you have everything under control, and your demand generation engine is running smoothly.
However, there’s a surprising statistic: the average CMO tenure in Fortune 500 companies is just 40 months, which is half that of the typical CEO. If everything appears to be going well, why don’t top-performing CMOs remain in their roles longer than three years, and what can you do to beat the odds?
Legacy Processes vs. Modern Buyer Realities
The answer may lie in the outdated practices still prevalent in many B2B marketing organizations. Many are still relying on GTM playbooks from the early 2000s that prioritize generating marketing qualified leads (MQLs). This approach often means that marketing teams expend significant effort generating MQLs, passing them to sales development representatives (SDRs), and then assuming sales will close the deal—leaving little room for marketing’s involvement once the lead is handed off.
However, buyer behavior has shifted dramatically, and so have the MarTech tools available to support GTM efforts. Today, buyers prefer to conduct independent research, with studies showing that 83% of IT buyers explore options without vendor input. Additionally, the average buying team now consists of nine members, all of whom influence the final purchasing decision. Modern technology provides valuable insights that extend beyond a single MQL, helping sellers identify opportunities and close deals more efficiently.
Continuing to rely solely on MQL generation is no longer a viable strategy for driving revenue in tech companies. This outdated approach risks leaving potential revenue on the table, which competitors may seize. Marketing leaders must recognize the risks associated with being held accountable for suboptimal results.
Shifting from MQLs to Intent Signals
If moving away from the traditional MQL-centric approach is essential, where should you focus to capture potential buyers? Start by examining the intent signals demonstrated by your buyers as they engage with your website, consume content on third-party editorial sites, or participate in relevant webinars. By prioritizing behavioral signals over traditional MQLs, you can gain deeper insights into the buying group and evaluate real opportunities to address their challenges.
Intent data allows you to track the behavior of a buying group across both your owned channels and independent publisher websites. This evolution in monitoring buying signals reveals whether the broader buying team is conducting research and evaluating vendors, indicating a higher likelihood of purchase. It also helps avoid sharing misleading leads with Sales while providing valuable context about the entire buying group.
Moreover, not every potential buyer will interact with your website or content, so capturing active demand is critical. Relying solely on MQLs risks missing out on in-market buyers. Utilizing second-party intent signals from independent publishers can uncover buying teams that are researching your competitors but have yet to engage with your brand.
Navigating Cultural Shifts Within Organizations
While it’s clear that MQL-centered processes are insufficient for maximizing revenue, and intent signals can bridge those gaps, some GTM leaders remain hesitant to adopt this buyer-centric approach.
Resistance to change may stem from ingrained attitudes within organizations. Behavioral science debates whether changing attitudes or context drives behavioral change. While some argue that aligning Marketing, Sales, and Customer Success teams towards common revenue goals is essential, others contend that changing context and systems is equally important. For instance, many marketers advocate for stronger alignment between marketing and sales, yet simply believing in alignment isn’t enough; actionable changes to processes and insights sharing are required.
Marketing leaders, who have established MQL-centric systems, are in the best position to initiate this shift. They can lead the way in disrupting existing reporting and processes to foster a more integrated approach.
Importantly, adopting a transitional approach rather than an all-or-nothing strategy is crucial. There’s no need to abandon MQLs entirely, especially if they’ve been integral to your reporting and performance metrics.
The Necessity of Change in a Rapidly Evolving Landscape
In the fast-paced tech industry, evolving your marketing strategy is essential. If you’re not progressing, you risk falling behind competitors. While significant changes can seem daunting, a thorough evaluation of your GTM strategy can reveal opportunities for improvement in engaging with buying teams, measuring performance, and facilitating prospect engagement with Sales.
To explore how to implement these organizational changes in your revenue processes, consider participating in relevant discussions or webinars that focus on building an intent-driven revenue engine.
