How to Overcome Demand Generation Challenges

"Our funnel is completely clogged, and our CEO and investors are starting to panic," shared a CMO from a $375MM SaaS firm. The other Huddlers sympathized, noting they were facing similar challenges. Sound familiar? The old playbook of flooding the funnel, scoring MQLs, and handing off to sales isn't just broken; it's toxic. Here's why your funnel is clogged and what actually works now: 1. Your data is a disaster. The average customer contact database health score? A pathetic 47%, according to research from BoomerangAI. More than half of B2B companies haven't updated their database in six months—or ever. Bad data isn't just an operational issue. It erodes every layer of your funnel. Fix this first. Assign database ownership cross-functionally. Tie enrichment to your GTM motions. And please activate alumni contact programs. Only 12% of companies have formal programs for contacts who left employers, yet they're gold mines. 2. You're still pitching tours when buyers want tools. Recent TrustRadius research shows that 52% of buyers say prior experience is their #1 decision input. Only 13% say a demo "blew them away." 3. Stop the demo obsession. Launch website-based product exploration tools. Add pricing guidance. Create modular content for AI summarization since 90% of buyers who see AI-generated summaries click through to cited sources. 4. The MQL addiction is killing you. As one CMO put it: "MQLs are problematic... we’re trying to figure out how to get fewer, better leads." Track conversion quality at each funnel stage. Hold weekly demand gen and sales alignment meetings. Ditch vanity metrics for outcome-based KPIs. 5. You're pitching spend instead of displacement. Few CFOs are greenlighting net-new spending, but they will approve reallocation when the ROI is crystal clear. Reframe your pitch: "Invest in this → reduce spend on that." Connect to CFO logic, not just user pain. 6. You're making promises instead of proving value. Buyers want proof in 120 days or less. The "trust us, it'll pay off eventually" era is dead. If you have the data, create 120-day value realization case studies. Use prospect data to build "speed-to-value" narratives. Lead with time-to-value, not feature lists. The companies unclogging their funnels aren't working harder—they're working smarter. They've ditched the old playbook for data-driven precision. Your move. PS - For a longer look at this issue, please check out my May 2025 #HuddleUp newsletter.

Let's talk about the Demand Conversion challenge. Below is the situation I see in ~50% of the companies I engage with. ** The better marketing becomes at creating demand, the more likely sales is dropping the ball on converting that demand to revenue ** The specifics: - Marketing shifts away from low-quality lead gen. - Marketing focuses on creating demand. - High-intent leads raise their hand to engage (e.g., demo request). - Qualified Lead growth reaches a new high. However: - Qualified Pipeline doesn't grow at the same rate. - Revenue doesn't grow at the same rate. - CEO and Sales Leader blame marketing. - Marketing pressured to do more lead gen. This isn't a marketing issue. ** It's a Marketing and Sales Alignment issue ** To fix this problem 👇 Review your demand conversion / inbound sales process. 1 - Marketing talks with Sales The issue starts with sales treating all marketing leads equally. Historically, marketing leads have been low quality, so sales have built a process for triaging low-quality leads. Align on treating the leads who want to talk with sales differently. 2 - Ensure you can measure lead to revenue. You need to measure lead to meeting to qualified pipeline with customer and lead enrichment to segment for qualification, routing, and stage progression to revenue.   3 - Assess if meetings happen. You will likely find that less than 40% of your high-intent leads meet with sales. The reason is a lack of urgency and efficiency in booking meetings. Effective automation can raise this to > 70%. 4 - Review your first call process. You will find SDRs taking first calls using a process designed for leads who don't want to talk to you. Instead, have AE's take first calls using a process optimized for qualified leads who WANT to talk with you. 5 - Align lead qualification between marketing & sales. You don't need MQLs and SQLs. Instead, it's one qualification criteria to route leads to sales. Adjust criteria based on what you learn by running a purposeful process. 6 - Determine if prospects need more education. You don't want sales spending the entire first call educating the prospect. The education process should be under 10 minutes. If it's longer, determine why and prioritize educating prospects before the first call. 7 - Verify sales criteria for Qualified Pipeline. Validate the degree of subjectivity in how sales convert stage 1 opportunities to Qualified Pipeline (ex: stage 2). There should be less subjectivity AND different criteria for leads who want to talk with you. 8 - Continually optimize for efficiency This process isn't "set it and forget it." You need an eye on performance with clear metrics & goals aligned across marketing and sales. Your volume and sales cycle will dictate how often to review. The above isn't visionary. It's data, logic, and systematic thinking. It's marketing and sales aligning to convert demand into revenue. Give it a shot. #b2bmarketing #b2bsales #leadership

Revamping Your Demand Gen Strategy? I've sat with countless B2B leaders, each recounting the trenches they've dug in their demand gen wars, only to uncover unforeseen mines. Let's unmask the real-life challenges: ✅ Data Disconnects One leader spoke of investing thousands into premium data sources, only to discover their CRM wasn't ingesting 40% of it. The lesson? Before chasing advanced data, ensure your foundational tech can absorb, process, and actualize it. ✅ Silent Budget Bleeds Another recounted a PPC campaign promising high-intent leads. Months in, the budget was bleeding with little to show. A closer look revealed competitors artificially driving up bid prices. We switched gears, focusing on organic growth and more reliable paid channels. ✅ Engagement Illusion Webinars with hundreds registered, but mere tens attending. The challenge isn’t just catching eyes; it's ensuring you hold their attention. Crafting follow-ups that reignite the initial spark is a strategy too few capitalize on. ✅ Pivot Paralysis A firm I collaborated with clung to a once-successful email strategy. Open rates plummeted, but change was feared. Together, we embraced A/B testing, allowing data, not nostalgia, to guide the next step. ✅ Misunderstood Value Proposition: You might understand your product's value inside out, but is that mirrored in your prospect's understanding? Dive into sales call recordings, identify communication gaps, and bridge them in your messaging. The real task? Distilling our value proposition into concise, compelling narratives that resonate. Revamping isn’t mere tweaking; it’s introspection. It's understanding that demand gen isn't just about the 'how,' but the 'why' behind every strategy. It's this depth that separates leaders from the crowd.  Dive deep, challenge norms, and sculpt gold from grit.  #demandgeneration #demandgen #demandgenstrategy #b2bmarketing

You can’t capture demand if people don’t trust you. And trust doesn’t happen overnight. It’s built through consistent, relevant exposure across channels. That’s real demand generation. Brand comes first. Always. But brand alone won’t convert pipeline. If you’re casting too wide you’re burning budget and hoping the right people notice. Hope isn’t a strategy. So. I fumbled my way through my first Clay table. I needed a high-intent prospect list for a March initiative. Not just ICP-fit accounts, but companies with a reason to engage. So, a few bourbons and 48 hours I went from idea to a fully enriched, segmented list. BAM. Step 1 → Cutting the cold list down to accounts that matter A cold ICP list = ICP without intent aka guessing. I used Keyplay to trim the list down, filtering for: ➝ Company size & industry to match our ICP ➝ Product fit based on how they sell ➝ International presence to see if they were expanding ➝ Funding rounds (new budgets = new opportunities) ➝ Website traffic growth to spot momentum Now instead of a big list of potential fits, I had accounts with tangible buying “signals” …I loath the word signals because everything is a signal depending on who you ask…but it makes sense in this context…. Step 2 → Enriching the list without wasting time A list of accounts is useless if you don’t have the right peeps to hit. I needed real contacts and didn’t want to pull an all nighter. I uploaded the list into Clay, screwed up a few times. Tried again and let it do its thing: ➝ Pulled in verified contacts (decision-makers, roles, emails) ➝ Connected to multiple sources (LinkedIn, Clearbit, Apollo, company sites) ➝ Tracked real-time activity (LinkedIn posts, podcast appearances, hiring trends) ➝ Cleaned and de-duped the data so I wasn’t working with junk Now I had a list of accounts and the right people. Only a few tokens later. Step 3 → Structuring it for execution Now because no one but me wants to dig through raw data. I needed to make it easy to act on. I built a structured table with: ➝ Company name & website ➝ Key intent signals (funding, founding & rev) ➝ Decision-maker name & email ➝ Recent LinkedIn activity (who’s posting and engaging) ➝ Tech stack (what tools they use) Next Up → Paid Media, Outbound, and Content With the list built, we’re planning on executing ads, direct engagement, and content to build trust before outreach even starts. It’s about creating demand, reinforcing trust, and making sure the right accounts know us before we reach out. Brand. Demand. Expand 🔁 I’ll share what’s working (and what’s not) soon. Stay tuned. #demandgen #claypartner

I admit it. Planning season is my favorite time of year. Don’t give me that look. Something about the cross between GTM strategy, demand gen tactics, analytics, creativity, innovation, excel sheets, budgets and pipe talks gets my excitement levels way up. Call me crazy. You won’t be the first. The thing is, in over a decade of planning seasons in SaaS, I’ve seen planning go south in various ways, and i’ve seen finalized yearly plans crash and burn on the hard concrete of reality as soon as February 15th. To all my friends in CMO, CRO and GTM leadership roles: we need to face it - traditional pipe and revenue planning often falls short. Siloed approaches, misaligned compensation structures, and overly optimistic assumptions can derail even the most promising strategies. Here's what I've learned after years of refining this process (the hard way): ✅ Break down the silos. Bring all stakeholders together for a joint kickoff, aligning on business assumptions, challenges, and GTM priorities. Marketing, SD, Sales and CS MUST operate on the same exact baseline. ✅ Assign different market segments and motions to different channels, based on speciality and efficiency. If you use a set ratio for pipe/revenue sources across all regions and segments, you’re not even scratching the surface of optimal efficiency. ✅ Balance top-down and bottom-up. Start with a high-level targets, then dive into team-specific plans and resources. Finish with a thorough QA round to catch conflicts and gaps in your model. I know it sounds obvious, but make sure your head counts and budgets actually fit your bottoms up model and basic physics (i.e. don’t allocate 5.35 SDRs for a region). ✅ Be realistic about efficiency gains. It's tempting to bank on big improvements from new strategies, but tread carefully as new strategies rarely generate the impact you aim for in a short timeframe. Validate assumptions against current benchmarks and minimize projected uplifts. ✅ Align compensation with KPIs and key assumptions! This is huge. Ensure personal incentives match the company goals AND your model assumptions - from ICs to leadership. SLAs, efficiency metrics, etc. People focus on what they get measured and paid on. ✅ Don't forget the handshakes. Establish clear accountability for efficiency metrics across the funnel. Who owns the MQL to SQL conversion rate? SQL to Opportunity acceptance? Make it super easy to identify issues in the model mid-year and hold different functions accountable accordingly. Lastly, keep in mind that excels are cool (🤓), but reality prevails and the pace of the market can be neck-breaking. Have a mechanism in place that allows you to adjust and update your models in-between Qs, for better or for worse :) Enjoy your planning,  and please share additional tips for planning that worked for you!

The #1 question I get asked about building demand gen from scratch: What’s the best mix of ads (case studies, thought leadership, etc)? My answer usually surprises people: I don’t know what the best mix of ad types is, but I can tell you that CoLab had no mix at all for the first 9 months of building our program We ran 100% the same ad type: Ad creative with messaging on pain points and solutions, segmented by use case, linked to a use case LP The objective is to get people to consume the whole LP and then request a demo We now mix in other formats, but these are still the highest performing ads for pipeline creation The process for launching them goes like this: 1. Pick 2-3 priority use cases (business processes your product is used for today) 2. Interview customers to identify their jobs to be done and pains/frustrations when it comes to these use cases 3. When you start to see patterns (should happen after 5-6 interviews), prioritize the pain points and map your solutions to them 4. Ship creative and landing pages with LinkedIn paid A focused, high performing team can complete this entire cycle in 2-4 weeks - even if you have never worked together before. This is literally the exact sprint I ran in my first 2 weeks leading marketing at CoLab. Like I said, we iterated on this formula for 9 months before layering in anything “fancy” Now we’ve got a lot more going on, and our ROAS has improved since then But you can’t get to that point if you don’t start with solid fundamentals #b2bmarketing #demandgeneration

Forget chasing vanity metrics and pouring money into fancy ad campaigns. True demand generation for startups isn't about blindly casting a wide net, it's about nurturing relationships with your audience and delivering real value. Let's cut through the noise and dive into the fundamentals that actually move the needle."" --- ↳ **Step 1: Define Your Target Audience** - Understand the demographics, behaviors, pain points, and aspirations of your ideal customers. - Create detailed buyer personas to align your messaging and tactics with their needs. - Gather insights through surveys, interviews, and data analysis to refine your targeting strategy. --- ↳ **Step 2: Craft Compelling Content** - Develop a content strategy that resonates with your target audience and addresses their challenges. - Create a mix of educational, entertaining, and engaging content across different channels. - Emphasize quality over quantity to build trust and credibility with your audience. --- ↳ **Step 3: Implement Multi-channel Campaigns** - Utilize a mix of channels such as social media, email marketing, SEO, and partnerships to reach your audience. - Ensure consistency in messaging and branding across all touchpoints to maintain brand visibility. - Track and analyze the performance of each channel to optimize your campaign efforts. --- ↳ **Step 4: Nurture Leads and Drive Conversions** - Implement lead nurturing campaigns that guide prospects through the buyer's journey. - Personalize interactions based on user behavior and preferences to build stronger relationships. - Test different conversion tactics and continuously optimize your funnel for better results. --- 🔍 Learn more about mastering Demand Generation for startups: [The Startup Marketer's Resources](https://lnkd.in/diqtzpBW) --- Don't miss out on valuable insights! Subscribe to [The Startup Marketer](https://lnkd.in/dwMpcTSP) for regular updates and exclusive content. --- This playbook format provides a structured approach to understanding the fundamentals of Demand Generation for startup marketing, guiding readers through actionable steps to drive meaningful results. By combining expert advice with practical tips, startup marketers can elevate their strategies and achieve sustainable growth. https://lnkd.in/dzy_V_hk"

Agencies and consultancies, here's the cold, hard truth: SEO is over! We all know how inbound marketing is supposed to work. You write a blog or white paper, wait for your prospects to find it, and watch the leads roll in. But today, search engines are cutting organic reach, social media algorithms are limiting who sees your posts, and AI-powered tools like ChatGPT are dishing out quick answers before anyone clicks a single link. All of this while the volume of content explodes. Case in point: A recent study by 10Fold Communications reveals that 92% of B2B tech marketers are creating more content compared to 2023. You're essentially shouting into a hurricane if you rely on SEO and passive inbound to bring in clients. Yes, you still need top-tier thought leadership. But generic content won't cut through the noise. You need hyper-specific, insightful ideas that speak directly to the massive problems your enterprise prospects care about. Even that's not enough on its own. You have to pair your content with targeted demand generation. Think email newsletters, LinkedIn thought leadership ads, and webinars. You must make sure the right decision-makers actually see your brilliance. Then, once they read it, you don't just wait for them to call. You must proactively reach out through multiple channels, such as email, LinkedIn, the phone, and even, in some cases, the mail, to start conversations and prove you can solve their challenges. Bottom line? SEO isn't the golden ticket. True thought leadership plus a rock-solid demand gen plan—and a willingness to reach out—is what will get you in front of decision-makers in today's crowded digital world. Please don't wait around for them to find you… because they likely never will. ___ 📥 𝗘𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀? Join 40,000+ agency and consulting leaders getting smarter about business development—subscribe to my "𝘕𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘉𝘪𝘨 𝘞𝘪𝘯" newsletter. https://lnkd.in/gv2CvHNU

Think Google Ads are easy? This $30M startup Demand Gen Head disagrees. ↳ The assumption: You’ll benefit from competitors' demand creation and capture the intent with search ads. ↳ The reality: Last week, I spoke to the Head of Demand Gen at a Series A company ($30M+ raised). Despite being in a well-established category with billion-dollar competitors, they struggled with search ads. Here’s why: → Competitors had 10x the funding and stronger brand presence → Most of the search demand came from “competitor alternatives” keywords → Higher competitor ACV and LTV allowed them to outspend my client on CAC → CPCs were hitting $100+, making Google Ads financially unviable What worked instead? ☑  Physical events: 50+ meetups across the U.S. to build brand recall and trust ☑  Podcasts with industry leaders: Repurposed into blogs and amplified on LinkedIn ☑ - Outbound emails with high-value content: Guides, benchmark studies, followed up by calls The takeaway? There’s no one-size-fits-all GTM strategy. Each company operates in a unique environment, and generic LinkedIn advice—like “Outbound doesn’t work” or “Physical events have low ROI”—won’t always apply. What would you prioritize if Google Ads were no longer viable for your company? #demandgeneration #googleads #ads #seo #saasmarketing #enterprisesales

Stop chasing shadows in your demand generation. The issue isn't your strategy; it's your understanding of the buyer's journey. 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆: 𝗕𝘂𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗵. ↳ They navigate a maze of choices and influences, making linear strategies a NULL point. Also, life happens to us all, including your potential buyers. 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗰𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱. ↳ Prospects interact with a myriad of ads and platforms, diluting the impact of singular channel focus. You cannot set yourself up for disappointment by thinking of anything other. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝘆𝗲𝗿'𝘀 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗹𝗮𝗯𝘆𝗿𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗵, not a straight line. ↳ It's characterized by complexity, unpredictability, and the nuanced behaviors of potential customers navigating through a sea of information. Interest does not equal intent. Browsing isn't buying. Recognize the difference. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲: Assuming a linear path ignores the reality that potential customers wander, often aimlessly, through digital landscapes, driven by curiosity rather than clear intent. Our advertising efforts fall short when they fail to recognize that engagement does not equate to readiness or willingness to purchase. Forcing a linear model leads to marketing misfires, with messages that either overshoot or miss the target altogether, failing to meet the buyer where they truly are. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄. 𝗗𝗲𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆 𝗢𝗺𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗹 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀: ↳ Dominate every platform. Your visibility should be ubiquitous, leaving no digital stone unturned. 𝗖𝗿𝗮𝗳𝘁 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲-𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗲 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗖𝗮𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗹 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗝𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘆 ↳ Deliver exactly what your audience needs if and when they are in different stages. No fluff, just precision. The buyer's journey is a labyrinth, not a straight line. Conquer it with omnichannel strategies, pinpoint content, and use data to help inform the when, where, and how in a logical but NOT overly technical way. It's time to meet buyers on THEIR journey, not the journey you wish they were on. #Marketing is not magic; it's a means of communication. #demandgen #demandgeneration #b2b #b2bsaas #saas #paidmedia #advertising