As a DG leader, you play a critical role in supporting Sales by driving the acquisition and conversion of prospects into leads and converting them into customers. Here are some hard and nice-to-have skills (the list isn't extensive) Hard skills: Vision and experience building a multi-channel demand gen strategy - Having a good understanding of the levers that are available to you is necessary to build out your plan. This includes understanding your target persona so you can address their pain points, behaviors, and the channels they like to consume content. Data driven decision-making - This skill has become very important as finance and executives are interested in ROI and the results of your programs, so being comfortable around metrics/numbers and the ability to have deep inspection of funnel conversions will help you diagnosis and evolve your strategies. Strong cross functional collaboration - In this role, you are often the go between with Sales, Product Marketing, and Content teams. Strong communicator - Getting buy-in and alignment are important, so if you are able to provide the strategy, successes, and challenges to executives, they will more likely support your requests for resources. Nice-to-haves: Deep technical proficiency with marketing tools - basic knowledge is adequate Advanced graphic design skills In-depth product knowledge Sales-specific skills as you won't be negotiating or closing deals.

Depending on your organization’s goals bringing in sales, CS, and operations can be key to running successful Demand Generation campaigns. I have more experience working in the B2B Enterprise space and the relationship with Sales and CS has been important to success. * In large-scale Enterprise sales (where deal lengths can extend beyond a year), the Field (sales, sales engineers, etc.) is critical to moving a deal from TOFU opportunities to POC and closed-won opportunities. Sales can help you understand the core influencers and buyers in the sales cycles and the problems customers are trying to solve. It’s important to align on the top accounts and how you are best positioned in the market. * Customer Success becomes more important in B2B buying cycles because customers who churn are very costly to the business. In addition, happy customers will buy more over time. If you have a large product portfolio, CS can be another seller for you, helping drive additional upsells and cross-sell opportunities in the buying cycle. Both of these teams help accelerate opportunities and can provide a unique perspective you may not have considered in past Demand Generation campaigns. 

Great question! Thanks for asking. I joined JumpCloud for five simple reasons (a framework I'll continue to use as I evaluate future roles): First, it's a great business with strong SAAS performance compared to industry benchmarks (especially in this day and age). Second, it's the right scale and complexity for me. Big and interesting enough to be a challenge for years to come...but familiar enough that I knew I could hit the ground running and begin to contribute right away. Third, and to the previous point, I joined JumpCloud because I thought I could help. They have problems to solve, I have the relevant skills and experiences. Fourth, it's a great product. You can validate that on the G2 grid - exceptional product satisfaction. As a Marketer, there is nothing worse than trying to sell a product that has poor market fit and does not provide customers with real value. Finally, the people are great. The C-suite is great. The Marketing team is great. The sales team is great. No politics, no bad apples, all good vibes and open minds.

I personally started my career as an entry level contractor at Salesforce, where I worked for 17 years and had 12 different roles. By the time I left, I was a Senior Vice President overseeing a large department that consisted of multiple functions and business units. My high level advice for anyone is to stay curious and slightly uncomfortable – because that will keep you learning and engaged. For recent graduates looking to start a career in Demand Generation, the key is to embrace continuous learning and adaptability. Demand Generation is a multifaceted field that touches many areas of marketing—paid media, content, email, field marketing, and analytics—offering exposure to a wide range of skills. This variety makes it an excellent starting point for those eager to develop a well-rounded marketing foundation. Early in your career, be open to taking on tasks beyond your immediate job description. In an entry-level role, saying yes to new challenges—whether it’s campaign execution, data analysis, or content development—can accelerate your growth. The more you immerse yourself in different aspects of Demand Generation, the more career pathways you create for the future. Since Demand Generation is both strategic and executional, building both soft and hard skills is crucial. Develop analytical skills to understand campaign performance, but also refine communication and collaboration skills to work cross-functionally. Being proactive, resourceful, and willing to experiment will set you apart. Finally, seek mentorship and stay curious. Follow industry trends, ask questions, and leverage every opportunity to learn from experienced marketers. Over time, this broad experience will help you identify your strengths and areas of interest, positioning you for long-term success in marketing. By staying open-minded, taking initiative, and continuously learning, you’ll set yourself up for a thriving career in Demand Generation and beyond.

If Demand Generation and Content Marketing were to share a single KPI, Marketing Engaged Leads (MELs)—also known as leads generated or new emails in the system—would be ideal. MELs provide a clear view of top-of-funnel content performance, it answers which blog posts, landing pages, and ad creatives drive new signups and grow the lead base. This KPI is powerful for understanding if content is attracting the right leads and if Demand Generation can scale paid traffic to that specific content effectively. However, there are additional KPIs and metrics to consider: For Pure Awareness Efforts: Content marketing can be assessed through web traffic metrics, such as page views and visits. It’s crucial to exclude any artificial traffic boosts, like those from paid promotion or newsletters, to get an accurate picture. I recall a time when a niche topic seemed highly successful in page views, only to later realize the blog post’s high traffic came primarily from onboarding emails rather than organic interest. Further Down the Funnel: Content and Demand Gen can align on KPIs like opportunity creation and revenue influenced by content. For instance, did a particular piece of content serve as the last touchpoint before someone started a trial or before sales created an opportunity? This alignment is even stronger when the sales team leverages content in outbound efforts, showcasing its value directly in the sales process.

* Net Promoter Score (NPS): While it’s a decent pulse check for customer sentiment, it doesn’t always correlate with growth or revenue. * Bounce Rate: Taken in isolation, it’s rarely actionable and often misunderstood. * Click-Through Rate (CTR) Alone: CTR without downstream metrics like conversion rate or cost-per-lead is incomplete. * Time on Page: Without context, this doesn’t tell you if the time spent was valuable.

Enterprise demand gen is complex. Buying committees are large, and the buying cycle is long. According to a Google/Bain study, B2B buying committees have an average of 17 stakeholders, and on average, it takes 40 touchpoints for each of these buyers to influence the B2B buying decision. Below are four steps to help you get started. * Step 1: Start with creating the content by persona mapped to the buyer's journey. Create content for primary and secondary persona. According to Gartner, B2B buyers have six jobs to be done to make a purchase 1. Problem identification 2. Solution exploration 3. Requirements building 4. Vendor selection 5. Validation 6. Consensus creation Use this as a framework to create content. This will serve as the foundation for your campaigns. Also, in the age of AI overviews and search GPT, consider structuring your website to follow the above framework. * Step 2: Invest in integrated, multi-channel digital campaigns to drive awareness and engagement with an ABM mindset * 1:1 ABM campaigns targeted at 10-50 strategic accounts * 1:few ABM campaigns targeting up to 300 accounts grouped by vertical/industry * 1:many ABM campaigns targeting up to 5000 accounts based on ideal company profile (ICP) criteria * Step 3: Build a webinar program * Top-of-funnel thought leadership webinars * Middle-of-funnel How-to webinars * Bottom-of-funnel Demo webinars * Step 4: Plan offline tactics such as highly targeted executive roundtable events and direct mail campaigns to accelerate the pipeline and drive closed won deals

As you take charge of the function, * Start with understand the current landscape across the business and marketing – what is currently working, what is the need of the business, etc. * The next order of business would be to establish short term and long term goals. * Short term goals, will help you establish credibility with the business and show some quick wins. * Long term goals, is where you will get to establish the function and show significant impact to the business. * As you go about the above, make sure to set up regular reporting so that everyone is aligned and aware of the goals you are working towards.

The ideal OKRs for demand generation depend on your organization’s specific goals, but they should always align closely with tangible business outcomes, particularly financial targets 💰. Demand generation operates closer to revenue than many other marketing functions, so the focus should be on metrics that directly support the growth and financial health of the business 📈. For example, OKRs shouldn’t primarily center on surface-level metrics like content downloads 📄 or website clicks 🔗. While these are helpful indicators, they’re not the end goal. Instead, demand gen OKRs should emphasize: 1. Pipeline Generation 🚀: * How many Sales Qualified Opportunities (SQOs) are being created? * Are you generating enough pipeline to meet the company’s growth targets? 2. Channel Growth and Optimization 🌟: * Set measurable goals for expanding high-performing channels, e.g., "Increase pipeline from paid search by 10% quarter over quarter." 3. Cross-Functional Partnerships 🤝: * Demand generation often works across multiple business areas, so include OKRs that enhance collaboration. For example, "Improve alignment with sales to increase the conversion rate of SQOs by 5%." By focusing on these areas—pipeline generation 🚀, channel growth 🌟, and collaboration 🤝—you’ll ensure your OKRs are meaningful, impactful, and aligned with broader business objectives.

Great Question! Here are a few to consider and why: Sales * Why: The sales team has direct insights into customer needs, pain points, and buying behaviors. They can provide valuable input on target accounts and help align sales and marketing efforts. * Role: Identify high-value accounts, provide feedback on messaging, and collaborate on account-specific strategies. Marketing * Why: The marketing team is responsible for developing and executing the ABM strategy. They bring expertise in content creation, campaign management, and analytics. * Role: Develop targeted content, manage campaigns, and measure the success of ABM initiatives. Customer Success * Why: Customer success and support teams have a deep understanding of customer satisfaction and can provide insights into account health and opportunities for upselling or cross-selling. * Role: Offer insights on customer needs, help with account retention strategies, and support customer-focused content. Executive Leadership: * Why: Executive buy-in is crucial for allocating resources, setting strategic goals, and ensuring alignment across the organization. * Role: Provide strategic direction, approve budgets, and support cross-functional collaboration.