2024 : The Year the Future Arrived? 🛸

Back in the depths of time, OK in 2014, B2B Marketing celebrated its 10 year anniversary. As part of the birthday celebrations, I was asked to provide my thoughts on what B2B marketing would look like in 10 years. A bit of fun, but always dangerous to do predictions easily within one’s own lifetime, let alone career. Reminds me of Gerry Andersen’s 70s TV series Space 1999 forecasting a future just 20 years away. Bold!

Well, as we've just exited 2024 I can now do a quick hope vs reality check. And looking at my contribution I’d put my predictions down as a solid “B” grade. Firstly, here's what I said

"My dream is that B2B marketing will be a discipline people aspire to build a career in, rather than fall into. And that Cannes Lions will recognize B2B marketing excellence more than B2C.

My hope is that B2B marketers will base more and more decisions on fact not gut-feel, fuelled by greater insights and automation tools to scale out their marketing efforts. We’ll be fully in the land of real time, hyper-personalized marketing based on individual customer behavior. Campaigns and content will be tested on the fly to drive dynamic content at the point of interaction. 80% of marketing budgets will be spent on digital, not events. And marketing will be seen as driving the business not supporting it."

So how did I do?

➖ Aspirational career? Not so sure, but definitely less stigma in 2024 vs 2014.

✅ Cannes Lions Champions? Not much has changed, but Marketing Week not only nominated their Marketer of The Year to a B2B marketer, but also their Campaign of the Year was B2B. I’ll take the win!

✅ Fact, not gut-based decisions? Yes! Some may say we’ve now gone too far 🙄

❌ Hyper-personalised marketing? I think not. Privacy concerns knocked the wind out of knowing everyone’s inside leg measurements and our track record in martech implementation hasn’t exactly been commendable (just wait until we have a crack at AI).

❌ 80% of spend on digital? Well maybe during the pandemic, but my view is we’ve snapped back to the comfort zone of events-is-the-answer, now what’s the question?

➖ Marketing as driver not passenger? Jury’s out. We’re certainly attuned to the conversation of being “commercial" marketers but as an industry progress has been mixed.

So on balance, we’ve made some progress in 10 years but still a lot to do. Its definitely better to be a B2B marketer in 2024 than 2014, and the industry continues to innovate. So I’m going with that solid “B” grade. What do you think?

Stop press: B2B Marketer Wins Marketer of The Year!!!

Source: PwC

I know climate change is a scourge of our planet, but has hell frozen over? 😂 A B2B marketer has won the prestigious Marketing Week Marketer of the Year 😳

Testament to how far the industry has come from being the poor relation to B2C marketing. I’ve always said it’s harder to be a B2B marketer 😀

So massive congratulations Antonia Wade. And kudos to the judges for shining a light, quite rightly, on all the good stuff going on not only at PwC but in B2B marketing more widely, hopefully raising the profile of the segment. 👏👏👏

Read more here.

8 Tips on becoming a "Commercial CMO"

There seems to be a lot of chat right now around demonstrating the business impact of marketing (has it ever been any different?!) with the added twist of CMOs becoming “commercial marketers”. I’ve already written about what I think this means but in a recent interview I was asked “What advice would you give to future CMOs on becoming a commercial marketer?”.

For me, the journey involves a combination of strategic career moves, continuous learning, and honing a diverse skill set. So, after some thought, I came up with 8 tips:

1. Master the Fundamentals of Marketing

• Deep Dive into the Basics: Some things never change (part 1). Understanding the core principles of marketing—market research, product positioning, customer segmentation, brand building, and channel management—is essential. Solid knowledge of these fundamentals will be critical as you grow into more senior roles.

2. Embrace Data-Driven Decision Making

• Understand the Metrics: Marketers should develop a strong understanding of KPIs and metrics that matter in marketing—like customer lifetime value (CLV), return on marketing investment (ROMI) and customer acquisition cost (CAC). And put them front & centre in every conversation, presentation and review.

• Learn Analytics Tools: Familiarity with marketing analytics tools (Google Analytics, HubSpot, or any data visualization platforms) will enable you to make informed decisions and demonstrate your impact on the business.

3. Cultivate Cross-Functional Skills

• Financial Acumen: Since CMOs are held accountable for budgets and ROMI, it’s important to understand financial principles. Learning the language of finance will help you align marketing strategies with business objectives.

• Sales Collaboration: Build strong relationships with the sales team. As marketing often works hand-in-hand with sales to drive revenue, understanding sales processes and how marketing supports lead generation and conversion is key.

• Broaden Exposure: Work on cross-functional projects to understand the interconnectedness of marketing with product, technology, and operations teams. Join sales calls, sit in on SDR/BDR activity. A CMO needs to be a business leader, not just a marketing leader.

4. Build a Diverse Marketing Skill Set

• Customer-Centric Mindset: Some things never change (part 2). Always put the customer at the heart of your marketing strategy. Great marketers understand the customer journey and leverage customer insights to create personalised experiences. Speak to customers at events, running surveys and getting involved with writing case studies are easy ways to get started.

• Channel Versatility: Experience across all channels, online and offline is essential. At least know the basics of paid media, how the different social media platforms work, what’s involved in running events, how your business partnerships are structured and the landscape of moden media relations, will allow future CMOs to create integrated marketing strategies.

5. Develop Leadership and Communication Skills

• Learn to Lead Teams: Aspiring CMOs need to cultivate leadership skills early. Seek opportunities to manage projects and lead teams, even if informally. This will help develop decision-making, delegation and motivational skills.

• Effective Communication: A CMO communicates not just within the marketing team but with the entire organization and external stakeholders. Developing excellent written and verbal communication skills is a must. Use AI to brainstorm ideas for written communications, take every opportunity to present your ideas to others. Start with your immediate team if that seems daunting!

6. Be a “Learn-It-All” not a “Know-It-All”

• Be a lifelong learner: Learning never stops. Marketing evolves rapidly. Continuously learning about new marketing trends, tools, and technologies is critical. Read industry reports, attend third party events, and stay active in professional networks. Hire smarter people than you. Learn from them

• Embrace Change: The ability to adapt quickly to market shifts, new technologies, and customer behaviours will distinguish successful marketers from others. Flexibility and innovation are key traits of CMOs. Take a “Growth Mindset” - change your behaviour from seeing changes barriers to opportunities to adapt. It sounds woolly(!) but you need to put in the work!

7. Network and Seek Mentorship

• Find a Mentor: Having a mentor, especially someone in a CMO or leadership role, can be invaluable. A mentor can provide career guidance, help with decision-making and offer insights based on their experience.

• Build a Strong Network: Networking with professionals within and outside the marketing field can open doors to opportunities, provide inspiration and help you stay on top of trends.

8. Be Entrepreneurial

• Own Your Career Growth: CMOs often have an entrepreneurial mindset, always looking for innovative ways to grow the business. Cultivating this mindset—thinking outside the box, taking initiative, and being proactive—can accelerate career growth.

• Take Risks: Junior marketers should not be afraid to step outside their comfort zone and take on challenges. Learning through experiences—both successes and failures—will shape you into resilient and adaptable leaders.

So there we have it. Not exhaustive I’m sure, but hoping it helps!

Purpose is just fluffy marketing talk that doesn't impact the bottom line?

"Purpose is just fluffy marketing talk that doesn't impact the bottom line."

This is a very common misconception in the business world.

If you're an aspiring marketing leader, I urge you not to dismiss the power of purpose in driving growth. Always remember: Purpose and profitability are intrinsically linked.

As Dominic Rodgers from Frog Capital recently said on an episode of the always excellent Unicorny podcast (pithily summarised by Dom Hawes!), "The more you scale your purpose, the more you scale, and the more you scale, the more you scale your purpose."

This symbiotic relationship between purpose and growth isn't just feel-good rhetoric. It's a powerful driver of business success. Here's why:

🧲 Talent Magnet: Purpose attracts top talent, fueling innovation and growth.
🎯 Focus Driver: It keeps your team aligned on what truly matters to customers.
🔗 Brand Builder: Purpose creates deeper connections with your audience.
💡 Innovation Catalyst: It inspires creative solutions to real-world problems.
📈 Long-Term Value: Purpose-driven companies often outperform their peers.

But here's the kicker: Your purpose must be authentic and deeply rooted in your business model. It's not what you'd like it to be. It's about clearly articulating why your business exists and the value it brings to customers. Which is why I've loved getting involved with LettsSafari (building rewilding parks to tackle climate change) and LettsArt (empowering any artist to manage, distribute and sell their art directly, all for free) - two very purpose-driven ventures.

As marketers, our job is to communicate this purpose effectively. It's not a veneer or an afterthought - it should be at the core of everything we do.

So, let's challenge ourselves: How can we better align our marketing efforts with our company's true purpose? And how can we demonstrate the tangible impact of purpose-driven marketing on our bottom line?

Share your thoughts! How has purpose impacted your marketing strategy or business growth? 🚀💬

#PurposeDrivenMarketing #BusinessGrowth #MarketingStrategy