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As the calendar inches closer to 2025, the challenges and opportunities of planning for the future loom large for marketers and executives alike. At a recent virtual event co-hosted by Whitney Mitchell, Founder & Owner of Beacon Digital Marketing and Interim Chief Marketing Officer at American Banker, and Loni Jacobsen, President and Chief Client Officer at Beacon, industry marketing leaders convened to discuss strategies, budgets, and innovations shaping the next wave of B2B marketing. With a focus on fintech, cybersecurity, and B2B technology, the panelists offered invaluable insights into navigating a competitive and rapidly transforming marketplace.
Here are the key takeaways from the conversation:
Budgeting Smarter, Not Bigger
Across the board, panelists highlighted the reality of flat or closely scrutinized budgets. With spending constraints top of mind, marketing leaders are sharpening their focus on return on investment (ROI) and channel effectiveness.
Kate Reed, CMO of Delinea, shared how her team is shifting focus from costly large-scale trade shows to smaller, targeted events and highly personalized digital campaigns. “We’re prioritizing content marketing and refining our strategies to ensure alignment with sales,” she explained. Reed also emphasized leveraging data to identify and reduce low-performing activities.
Similarly, Aidan Flaherty, Senior Director of Marketing Strategy & Operations at Optiv, stressed the importance of tying every marketing investment to measurable business priorities, advocating for a deeper integration between marketing and sales teams to ensure a unified approach.
The Power of Account-Based Marketing (ABM)
Account-based marketing emerged as a central theme during the event, with leaders underscoring its critical role in modern B2B marketing strategies. ABM’s targeted approach enables organizations to focus resources on high-value accounts, driving engagement and fostering deeper client relationships.
Flaherty described how Optiv’s proprietary methodology, Optiv Market System, supports clients at different stages of their security journeys. This approach aligns seamlessly with Optiv’s ABM strategy, allowing the company to deliver tailored solutions and maximize impact.
Panelists also discussed tools like 6Sense, which provide data-driven insights into buyer intent, helping sales and marketing teams align their outreach efforts more effectively. “It’s all about creating an integrated marketing engine that operates with precision,” Flaherty remarked.
Balancing Brand and Demand
For companies striving to increase market awareness while driving demand, balancing these two objectives remains a nuanced challenge. As Sherry Lowe, CMO of Anomali, put it: “Brand activities and demand generation need to work in harmony. Otherwise, your efforts risk appearing fragmented.”
Lowe emphasized the importance of customer stories as a cost-effective and compelling way to enhance brand credibility while driving demand. Investing in interactive demos and video content was another strategy Lowe highlighted, pointing out how these formats help potential buyers understand product value in a direct, engaging way.
Investing in People, Processes, and Technology
Marketing leaders are also rethinking their internal operations to maximize efficiency. Karolina Kocalevski, CMO of eClerx, described how her team is optimizing their marketing tech stack to eliminate redundancies and improve productivity. AI tools are increasingly seen as essential for scaling output and driving efficiency, from content generation to lead scoring.
When it comes to outsourcing versus insourcing, Kocalevski stressed the importance of striking the right balance. While her team is largely self-sufficient, she values partnerships with agencies for specialized expertise in areas like public relations and digital advertising.
High-Impact, Intimate Events
A recurring theme throughout the discussion was the shift from traditional large-scale trade shows to small, high-touch events. Whether hosting clients at exclusive dinners, unique experiences like cooking classes, or even sports events, the goal is to foster authentic connections.
“Creating these smaller events internally allows for more control over the guest list and the experience,” Kocalevski noted. By working closely with sales teams to identify key attendees, marketers can maximize the ROI of these interactions.
Leveraging AI and Automation
Several panelists underscored the transformative impact of AI in modern marketing. From predictive lead scoring to personalized customer interactions, AI tools are becoming indispensable for scaling operations and enhancing performance.
Reed shared how her team is experimenting with AI-driven chatbots and automated video creation to streamline workflows and deliver more value to their audiences.
Looking Ahead: A Unified Approach to Strategy
As marketers gear up for 2025, the virtual event revealed a clear consensus: success lies in alignment—between marketing and sales, brand and demand, and traditional and digital strategies. By embracing innovative tools, creating more focused campaigns, and building deeper customer relationships, organizations can position themselves for sustainable growth in a competitive environment.
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Posted In: Strategy, Marketing, marketing budget, ABM Marketing, CMO
Cathy Johnson
As the Chief Growth Officer at Beacon Digital, Cathy is the architect of transformative growth strategies, steering the firm's trajectory towards new pinnacles of success. Leveraging her extensive background in marketing, events, and public relations, she expertly guides teams in creating resonant narratives that strategically connect clients with their target audiences.