As a marketing leader, would you rather stand up at the next executive meeting and say:
“Our team generated $16M in new pipeline this quarter.”
Or…
“Our team created 6 new opportunities with our ‘Top 50’ target accounts, 10 new customers for our new AI Analytics product, 20 new qualified accounts for our sales team in Germany, 18 new cross-sell opportunities with Manufacturing clients, and 8 wins in the Insurance market that displaced our top competitor. These wins contributed to a total of $16M in new pipeline this quarter, helping us make significant progress against both our pipeline goals and our strategic GTM priorities.”
We’ll take the latter ten times out of ten – and we bet your exec team and board members would as well.
Is Your Demand Gen Strategy Driving the Business Forward?
If your demand generation team is laser-focused on overall lead volume and pipeline numbers, you’re not alone. Most B2B marketing teams are tasked with driving a certain amount of MQLs or marketing-sourced pipeline each quarter, and they prioritize those results above all else. But if that’s all your demand gen function is focused on, it’s probably falling short of its full potential.
Today’s best demand gen teams are evolving from tactical lead generation machines into strategic growth engines that serve the broader goals of the entire go-to-market (GTM) organization. And it starts with one important question:
Are your demand generation programs aligned with your company’s strategic GTM imperatives?
If not, it might be time to rethink your approach. Because what takes your demand programs from good to great isn’t just the lead gen results – it’s whether your programs serve both pipeline targets and your GTM imperatives.
Why Strategic Alignment Matters Now More Than Ever
According to GTM Partners, companies with highly aligned GTM teams experience 3.1x higher win rates and 62% lower customer acquisition costs compared to those who don’t – underscoring the importance of alignment in both GTM execution and strategy.
Modern GTM teams span Sales, Marketing, Customer Success, and Product. Each function has a critical role in driving revenue, but they also share strategic objectives that are designed to create new competitive advantages and/or set the business up for long-term growth. And most, if not all, of those strategic GTM imperatives can (and should) be supported by marketing-led demand generation programs.
If demand gen is viewed only as a “lead supplier,” it’s easy to miss opportunities to:
- Invest in programs that win critical accounts
- Drive the adoption of new products that are key to long-term growth
- Strengthen brand trust in strategic markets
- Grow the business in key geographic regions
- Expand share-of-wallet within your customer base
- Win more market share from a key competitor
All of which directly contribute to new pipeline and revenue, but in ways that also create strategic advantages for your business – and give marketing a stronger voice at the executive leadership table.
10 Strategic Imperatives That Should Shape Your Demand Gen Strategy
To level up your impact, start by identifying which GTM imperatives matter most to your business right now. For example, is your GTM team prioritizing expansion in new markets? Growing its thought leadership and brand reputation? Displacing a key competitor that has emerged as a significant threat to long-term growth? Driving the adoption of your latest AI-powered product or feature?
Here are 10 common strategic GTM imperatives we see across the B2B landscape, along with practical campaign ideas to support each initiative via demand generation:
1. Expanding into new markets
Plan an awareness and lead generation campaign that includes localized landing pages, language-appropriate assets, and paid search targeted to the new region. Include regional influencers or media partners to build credibility quickly and ensure precise targeting.
2. Increasing penetration in strategic industries or segments
Launch a multi-touch campaign built around a key industry pain point. Use industry-specific whitepapers, webinars with subject matter experts, relevant customer stories, and intent data to target in-market buyers from those segments.
3. Taking market share from a key competitor
Create competitor comparison content and case studies that show customers switching from that competitor to your solution. Use paid social ads targeted to job titles and companies known to use the competing product. Work with demand generation partners who can target leads based on currently installed technologies.
4. Driving adoption of new products
Pair your product launch with a full-funnel content journey: teaser video + thought leadership + product walkthrough webinar + downloadable guide. Leverage content assets in cross-channel marketing campaigns and content syndication programs while retargeting engaged leads with demo CTAs and nurture emails.
5. Strategic thought leadership and market differentiation
Run a co-branded research study with a respected media brand. Publish the results as an industry research report, follow up with a webinar panel, and turn highlights into snackable social content for extended reach.
6. Strengthening brand trust and reputation
Use earned media placements, native advertorials, customer success stories, and expert commentary on trending industry issues. Promote these across owned and third-party channels to build authority and association.
7. Winning key accounts on your target account list
Deploy an ABM campaign targeting stakeholders at key accounts. Use display ads, personalized landing pages, content syndication, direct mail, webinars invitations, and one-to-one outreach to surround and influence the buying committee.
8. Expanding current client base via upsell or cross-sell
Segment your database by product usage and industry. Build campaigns that recommend complementary solutions based on current adoption, and engage users through customer newsletters, tailored webinars, and promotions via various digital channels.
9. Strengthening channel and partner ecosystems
Invest in new programs to build your brand and generate demand from potential resellers, MSPs, and other channel distribution partners. Find new ways to run co-marketing programs with channel partners to generate more downstream pipeline for your partner ecosystem.
10. Generating sustainable, predictable pipeline
Run always-on brand-to-demand programs that build awareness with your target buyers, educate them through the buying journey, and capture demand from in-market prospects. Go beyond short-term lead generation targets by working with partners who can help you build sustainable pipeline programs that drive more efficient long-term growth.
Example: Capturing Market Share in Financial Services
Let’s say one of your top GTM imperatives is to gain market share in the Financial Services sector—particularly from Competitor X. Here’s how you might bring that to life:
Start by identifying the specific differentiators your product has over Competitor X. Maybe it’s ease of implementation, better security compliance, or more responsive customer support. Build a piece of thought leadership content around those themes (like a comparison guide or expert POV article) that showcases your unique value.
Next, launch a content syndication program to get that thought leadership in front of key decision-makers in Financial Services accounts known to be using Competitor X. This can be paired with a targeted digital ad campaign that addresses common pain points faced by Competitor X users, such as poor customer service or outdated architecture. Work with partners who can deliver precise targeting to reach the right contacts at the right accounts.
To deepen engagement, host a webinar featuring a customer who recently switched from Competitor X to your solution. Let them tell the story of why they moved, what results they’ve seen, and what they’d tell others considering the same move.
You can then activate these assets within your existing database (to re-engage known leads) and also partner with demand gen providers to extend your reach to new, relevant accounts across trusted third-party media platforms. This kind of dual-purpose campaign doesn’t just generate leads, it reinforces your brand in a strategic segment, fuels long-term GTM growth, and aligns with the top priorities of your Sales and Product teams.
The Big Shift: From Single-Purpose to Dual-Purpose Programs
Rather than building programs with the sole purpose of hitting MQL targets, reframe them through a dual-purpose lens:
- How can we build a campaign that generates leads and increases awareness in a key market?
- How can we use this research report to find new opportunities and drive adoption of our new product?
- How can this webinar generate leads and drive demand from key accounts on our ABM list?
When your campaigns serve both pipeline goals and strategic GTM priorities, you multiply the value of every dollar spent.
And you don’t have to do it all alone. Demand generation and lead generation partners can be powerful allies in activating highly targeted, dual-purpose programs. With access to large global audiences and sophisticated targeting capabilities, the right partners can help you:
- Reach specific industries, roles, buying stages, or accounts using specific products
- Amplify product launches or thought leadership content
- Run account-based or region-specific campaigns
- Build your brand reputation via trusted third-party media channels
By aligning with publishers and demand gen partners who understand your GTM imperatives, you can execute campaigns that drive measurable results and support the strategic goals of your business. The key is to treat them not as vendors, but as extensions of your team with shared success metrics.
This Isn’t Just Smart Marketing. It’s Strategic Leadership.
The demand gen leaders who thrive in today’s B2B landscape are the ones who connect their programs to the bigger picture. They speak the language of revenue and partner closely with their Sales, Customer Success, and Product counterparts. But they also understand market expansion, competitive plays, thought leadership, and product adoption.
In short: they’re not just hitting goals. They’re driving the business forward with every campaign they run.
Join Us for the Webinar: How to Align Demand Gen with Your GTM Strategies
Want to see how leading B2B marketers are putting this into practice?
Join us for our upcoming webinar where we’ll walk through real-world examples of dual-purpose demand gen programs that:
- Drive leads and pipeline
- Support key GTM objectives
- Position Marketing as a strategic partner to Sales and beyond
Reserve your spot now — and start thinking bigger about your demand gen strategy.
