New 2022 B2B Marketing Data: Budgets Are Up, But Critical Challenges Remain
Survey from Wpromote and Ascend2 reveals significant gaps in lead gen strategy, CX investment, and data privacy preparation
New research on the state of B2B digital marketing from Wpromote and Ascend2 reveals a generally optimistic outlook on budgets and performance but serious differences between best-in-class marketers and the rest of the field.
Based on a custom survey of hundreds of B2B marketers, the report indicates that 74% expect budgets to increase and 50% indicate confidence in the revenue-driving power of social media. But a deeper dive into the data quickly exposes a lack of alignment between executives and the rest of the field when it comes to where that budget should be allocated and which objectives should be top of mind.
Wpromote’s marketing experts zero in on three critical challenges facing B2Bs and how the most successful marketers are widening their competitive advantage when it comes to lead generation, customer experience, and data privacy preparation. Unsurprisingly, considering the rapid pace of digital acceleration across the past two years, many of those insights center on the intersection of data and technology:
- Top marketers are 2X more likely than their peers to point to building an efficient tech stack as a top challenge to lead gen success. But only 16% of marketers overall indicated they would be investing significantly in new tech, while 34% of best-in-class marketers expect a significant increase.
- Nearly half (48%) of B2B marketers providing the best customer experiences are prioritizing first-party data vs. 17% of other marketers.
- Over two-thirds (67%) of best-in-class B2B marketers are fully prepared for impending data privacy changes, while just 36% of marketers overall feel completely ready.
Christine Schrader, Wpromote’s Head of Content, noted that “the biggest competitive differentiator coming out of the 2022 data is between B2Bs that are putting the right strategies and technology in place to drive sustainable, long-term growth and the rest of the field. They’re focusing on lifetime value as a key performance metric, investing in full-funnel marketing, and prioritizing first-party data. Those businesses will be hard to beat because they’re operating at the level of top-tier B2C marketing teams.”
