This is a great question! Demand generation marketing and content marketing should work hand-in-hand to achieve broader marketing objectives. When identifying KPIs and metrics to measure demand generation and content marketing together, you should consider the type of content being distributed and the channels through which it's being distributed. This will help determine your KPIs. For example, a blog post may not have the same KPIs as a gated piece of content or a video. The channel mix of promotions will also factor into KPIs. Is this a larger integrated marketing campaign that will require a more extensive mix of promotions and budget? Or is this a smaller campaign, perhaps targeted at a specific/smaller audience, that won't require as much external distribution and promotion? Once you understand these components, you can determine your KPIs. Here are some general KPIs to consider: * Number of site sessions to a blog post * For gated content: Conversion rates, form fills * Number of video views * MQLs, SQLS, sourced opps and/or influenced opps from the content being promoted (how many deals/opps were generated or influenced by this content) * Impressions * Share of voice * SEO metrics - keyword rankings, organic search traffic to the content

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.

Short answer: Yes, it's one of the very best paths to CMO at a growth stage startup. Medium answer: I could be wrong but my experience tells me that growth stage startup C level roles (the only space I know) come from one of two backgrounds: PMM or Demand Generation. They are going to hire to solve the problems they are facing. It's usually driving predictable demand first, with a measure of brand building second. Worth thinking as you navigate your path forward. Longer answer: Please see my answer to "Is there a single career path for demand gen? Or what are some good career paths that can lead to a demand generation leadership role like yours?" I go into more detail there!

I answered this more comprehensively in another question, but to summarize: 1. Vanity Metrics: Anything that can be gamed or doesn't directly reflect impact with your target audience (e.g., raw traffic, followers, engagement metrics, etc.) 2. "Leads" Without Context: There are lots of low-value, scam-y ways you can incentivize someone to fill out a form on the internet. For that reason, "lead" volumes without context (qualification criteria) tell you very little about whether demand gen efforts are working.

* Understand the Funnel: Map out the buyer journey and identify key points where demand gen has the most impact. * Collaborate With Sales: Agree on definitions (MQL, SQL) and where demand gen takes ownership. * Start Small: Focus on a few key metrics initially (e.g., pipeline contribution, MQL to SQL conversion). * Evolve Metrics: As the function matures, layer in additional KPIs like cost per lead and velocity metrics.

Having transferrable skills and being able to show examples that tie into the specific job requirements will help convince the hiring manager that you are the right candidate. If you have an extensive marketing background, you already have a leg up on your fellow peers. Demand generation encompasses a lot of different skills (analytics, project management, communication, understanding of marketing principles and channels, etc). If you look back on your experience, I'm certain that you can find some connections.

Whenever there is an open position on the Demand Generation team, we go through an exercise to understand the overall technical skill set we want this person to have, and we review the team’s current strengths and weaknesses. We often look for someone who can lift the team up. That being said, when I interview, I find strong candidates have the following qualities: * Initiative—They are always trying to push themselves and run programs that do better each time. They have a mindset of constantly pushing the envelope. * Curiosity—They are willing to chase an idea and learn new things, and although they have a POV, they are willing to hold it lightly, e.g., changing their decisions to reflect new inputs. * Energized by Data—Someone willing to dig into the data to understand the “why” behind the results and, therefore, can pull new levers and run experiments to optimize future performance. * An Empathic Business Partner—We partner with many cross-functional business partners in Demand Generation. This is why it’s not just about what you do or achieve but also how you do it. You want to work with people who have a collaborative mindset.

Depending on your business model and offering, I recommend first and foremost partnering with your cross-functional stakeholders and building trust. For example, in a traditional B2B sales led go-to-market motion, you should make it a point to become best friends with your sales leadership team and understanding what is most important to them. If you're not aligned with what is important to sales, it'll be very difficult to see success. If you're part of a self-service SaaS go-to-market motion, partnering with Product leadership will be critical so you can work together to understand product dependencies that lead to successful customer acquisition while decreasing product barriers for customers.

It depends on the duration of your customer life cycle. Since I've been in mostly B2B where the sales cycle is 6 plus months, I would focus on one and then the other.

For large scale events, create different content focused on the key buyers you know will attend and their key objectives. It may mean you have a range of break out sessions from deep dive workshops, 1:1 expert meetings to thought leadership roundtables. Having a good attendee survey tool to check on whether you were resonating with the different audiences will help you optimize over time. I like to remind my team that the follow up is just as critical as the event itself. Having custom follow up can help advance the conversation forward. For larger scale events, ensuring you have a sound follow up strategy with your fields teams as well as nurtures set up can help drive conversion at scale. If this is meant for a smaller scale executive event, we often will create a prep doc to inform the hosts about the key attendees' pain points, interests, and who they know at the company. We'll audit the session and/or collect notes from the notes from the host to ensure a customized follow up goes out via the host and includes the account team to continue the discussions where needed. If it's a buyer earlier in their journey, building an email nurture campaign with thought leadership content around the topics discussed at the event can also help primed them to take a call at a later stage.