Can B2B Marketers Show ROI?
-Digital transformation, technology adoption and pressure from management drive marketers to show ROI-
Amstelveen, 17 March 2015 – Today spotONvision published and presented the findings of a qualitative research study on marketing performance management (MPM). The study encompasses in-depth interviews with marketing executives from leading B2B companies in the Netherlands.
The objective of the report is to understand what challenges marketers face in proving their value to the business, how they measure ROI, and how they plan to improve their efforts in the coming months and years. Critical insights have been gained through the research into best practices and industry-specific challenges of leading firms in IT, Financial Services, Utilities, Media & Communications, Technology, Logistics, Wholesale, Manufacturing and Professional Services.
Doubts about marketing’s contribution to revenue
The results of the research unveiled strong concerns about how marketing is perceived by executive management and an apparent lack of trust in marketing’s ability to contribute to revenue. According the Adwin Gerritsen, senior consultant at spotONvision, “We found a clear relationship between marketing organisations that are assigned well-defined revenue responsibilities by top management and their maturity level in marketing performance management. We also found that marketing organisations that adopted technologies such as marketing automation are definitely leading the pack with marketing performance management.”
Despite concerns about how marketing is perceived within organisations, the study has also revealed a positive outlook based on the current transformation taking place in marketing and the role of marketing performance management in driving that transformation.
Innovative solutions can make marketers more efficient
The changes are providing an opportunity to improve the current perception and change the mind-set that many executives have that marketing is a cost-centre. At the same time, this transformation is providing marketing with a better understanding of which of their activities and efforts contribute the most to revenue generation and customer satisfaction. “B2B marketers are driven to take the next steps in their journey,” says Shimon Ben Ayoun, co-founder and Managing Partner of spotONvision. “We work closely with B2B marketers on a daily basis and we see how innovative solutions like marketing automation are making them increasingly efficient and effective, allowing them to achieve better results without increasing resources or budget.”
The report ‘Can B2B Marketers Show ROI’ is now available and is being presented today as part of the keynote session at the B2B Marketing Forum taking place in Utrecht.
The B2B Marketing Forum is an initiative of spotONvision. It is a yearly event in The Netherlands for business-to-business marketing- en communication professionals. More than half of all Netherlands-based companies are active in a B2B environment. The B2B Marketing Forum is is a place where content and ideas can be shared. B2B marketers usually face complex challenges. Think of long sales cycles, complex products, reseller models, lead nurturing, social media in B2B, how to measure ROI of Marketing, and so on. These topics are discussed all day in keynote sessions, break out sessions, coaching sessions and more.