Beyond MQLs: Reframing success in B2B marketing (2nd edition)
Survey Results
For this second edition, we revised our poll questions to examine emerging challenges in B2B marketing, including buying group dynamics, prospect engagement patterns, and the evolution of marketing measurement. The responses from our interviewed marketing leaders reveal several noteworthy trends.
QUESTION 01
Which metric has your organisation primarily adopted to replace or supplement MQLs?
The results show a clear shift towards revenue-focused metrics, with 75% of respondents prioritising either direct revenue contribution or pipeline influence. This represents a significant move away from traditional volume-based measurements towards metrics that demonstrate marketing's financial impact.
QUESTION 02
How far into their buying journey are prospects typically when they first contact sales?
The data confirms that modern B2B buyers complete much of their journey before engaging with sales teams. With 40% of prospects reaching 70-80% of their journey before contact, marketing teams must focus on providing value and building trust during these early, often anonymous stages.
QUESTION 03
What is the average size of buying groups you typically engage with?
While our respondents report primarily engaging with smaller buying groups of 1-5 people, this likely represents their direct contacts rather than the full buying committee. Research indicates that B2B buying decisions often involve 9-10 stakeholders, many of whom may remain invisible to marketing and sales teams. This perhaps highlights an opportunity to develop strategies that can identify and influence both known contacts and the broader set of decision-makers within target accounts. For further reading please see 6sense’s B2B Buyer Experience Report for EU.
QUESTION 04
Which technology has been most impactful in helping you identify and engage in-market accounts?
Intent data and visitor identification emerge as the most valuable technologies, together accounting for 65% of responses. This highlights the growing importance of understanding and acting on digital buying signals.
QUESTION 05
What percentage of your website visitors convert to form-fill?
- 1-3%: 50%
- 4-6%: 25%
- Don't know: 25%
QUESTION 06
Which factor has been most challenging in aligning marketing and sales around an account-based strategy?
Despite progress in sales-marketing alignment, fundamental challenges persist. The emphasis on shared metrics and ROI measurement suggests that proving value remains a key hurdle in gaining buy-in for new approaches.
QUESTION 07
Which area do you expect to cause significant evolution in B2B marketing measurement?
The focus on predictive capabilities and cross-channel measurement indicates a shift towards more sophisticated, forward-looking analytics. This suggests marketing teams are seeking better ways to anticipate and influence buyer behaviour rather than simply tracking past activities.
QUESTION 08
Looking ahead, which do you see as the most significant changes coming to B2B marketing?
The results suggest that organisational and strategic changes will have more impact than technological advances alone. The strong emphasis on sales-marketing integration and buying group focus indicates a move towards more collaborative, customer-centric approaches.
About 6sense
6sense is on a mission to revolutionise the way B2B organisations create revenue by predicting customers most likely to buy and recommending the best course of action to engage anonymous buying teams. 6sense Revenue AI is the only sales and marketing platform to unlock the ability to create, manage and convert high-quality pipeline to revenue. Customers report 2X increases in average contract value, 4X increases in win rate and 20-40% reduction in time to close deals. Know everything, do anything, with 6sense.