Nobody likes uncertainty. But in B2B marketing, the challenges it creates can be even more pronounced—fuelling longer sales cycles, extra budget scrutiny and a laser focus on ROI. So in a world where the only certainty is uncertainty, how can marketers respond? By rethinking pipeline management to drive more predictable results.
As recent research on the 2025 State of B2B Pipeline Growth reveals, the highest B2B marketing performers in the UK and Europe are those prioritising data quality, compliance and accuracy. This serves as a foundation to enhance lead nurturing, in concert with brand awareness and demand generation, resulting in a pathway to higher quality leads and more efficient conversions.
A precarious world
Economic uncertainty has come to define the world we find ourselves in today. So it’s perhaps unsurprising that it is the biggest concern of B2B marketers. The State of Pipeline Growth research reveals nearly half (47%) of UK/Europe respondents rate it as their biggest issue, and one that’s certainly feeding another—resource challenges (cited by 37%). Yet while few are growing headcount, a not insignificant 42% of marketers in the region report increased budgets. That’s compared to just a third in the US.
On the face of it, this bodes well. Yet just one in 10 British/European marketers say their strategy is effective. Why? Longer sales cycles certainly aren’t helping. More people are getting involved in buying decisions—perhaps as many as 20. Some of these may be finance stakeholders who arrive late in the process with a bunch of new questions to ask. Their short-term focus on costs may end up pushing decisions out even further.
Yet this isn’t the only reason for ineffective strategy. Sales-marketing misalignment is perhaps having an even greater impact, especially on lead nurturing. A quarter of British/Europeanmarketers cite this as a challenge.
Sales and marketing have problems
This misalignment causes the most damage at the bottom of the funnel – in qualifying leads, closing deals and retaining customers. This is where sales and marketing should both be invested in driving positive outcomes. So why is the handoff model breaking down?
Part of the issue is that different teams have different ways of measuring things: MQLs and SQLs. They fight over attribution models and, in larger companies particularly, suffer from matrixed and siloed organisational structures. Focusing on the bigger picture—teaming up to drive revenue for the business—sounds straightforward in theory, but is often harder in practice.
The pathway to growth starts here
Against this backdrop, traditional B2B marketing approaches are coming up short. Increasingly the only KPIs that matter are revenue-driven, as teams are asked to provide value, not vanity metrics. High performers know this, and are more likely than most respondents to cite revenue as their primary KPI. They’re also tracking more metrics overall, in order to gain better visibility into what’s working and what isn’t.
So how can regular marketing teams join these overachievers at the top table? By taking the same proactive approach. Three strategies stand out:
- Improve data effectiveness
Data handling is strongly correlated with performance. Yet 54% of global marketers admit they need to improve their ability to collect, analyse and interpret data to refine strategy and measure success. Better quality data ultimately leads to better decision making. But it can also improve the measurement of success, enabling marketing to gain leadership buy-in for their efforts more readily.
Teams should prioritise performance analysis to uncover audience behaviours and campaign performance. But they should also focus on data interpretation and ensuring collection methods are optimised for completeness and reliability.
- Tighten alignment with sales
Shared KPIs and open lines of communication will help to overcome the misalignment challenges facing many sales and marketing teams. This has to come from the very top—a commitment from the CMO and CRO to work more closely together. Three-quarters of high performers say they’re mostly or fully aligned and are more likely to share KPIs and collaborate on lead qualification.
- Invest in lead nurturing — not just lead gen
This is key. Some 69% of high performers report being “very good” or “excellent” at nurturing leads, while 59% of teams across the board admit to performance gaps. This is where the concept of “branded demand” comes into play.
At a high level, it’s about combining demand generation with brand awareness so that prospects become familiar with a brand while being nurtured. Running content syndication alongside targeted display ad campaigns is a powerful approach to achieve this. It means that prospects already know plenty about the brand when sales engage, and are therefore more likely to buy.
Investing in this kind of lead nurturing approach can also help improve alignment, and drive the smarter engagement which marketers need to support longer sales cycles.
Getting personal
Of course, even a branded demand approach can’t afford to ignore lead nurturing best practice, including: improved lead qualification and scoring, engagement tracking and data-driven content personalisation. To support these efforts, generative AI offers great potential for content creation and personalisation at scale, as well as campaign optimisation.
Most importantly, don’t be paralysed by caution. Times are tough. But some marketers out there are still managing to thrive, with data-driven playbooks and innovative approaches like branded demand. The key is to embrace the uncertainty, and adapt.
