Top Channels for B2B Sales

the "boring" marketing channels that outperform your flashy one-off campaigns (data from actual b2b companies). while everyone's chasing the latest tiktok trend or ai-powered whatevs, the unsexy channels are quietly delivering the best roi. here's what the data actually shows: 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺𝘀: the silent revenue machine 84% of b2b decision makers say their buying process starts with a referral. yet most companies treat referrals like an afterthought. referrals have 3-5x higher conversion rates than any other marketing channel and 71% of b2b companies report higher conversion rates from referrals than other customers. but here's the kicker: only 11% of salespeople actually ask for referrals, even though 91% of customers say they'd give them. (stats from 👉 Referral Rock + Influitive + Propello) 𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹 𝗻𝘂𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀: email is defs not dead. if marketing sends more than 8 emails between deal creation and closure, the close rate increases by 47%. yet 94% of emails are sent before any pipeline qualification - meaning most companies abandon prospects right when nurturing matters most. the average conversion rate from email marketing campaigns in b2b is 2.5%, but companies with solid nurture sequences see much higher returns because they're playing the longgg game. (stats from 👉 Powered by Search + HockeyStack) 𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗴𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗲 this is the most overlooked channel. 75% of marketers use abm for customer marketing as it helps increase client retention rates. existing customers are 50% more likely to try new products and spend 31% more than new customers - yet most marketing budgets focus almost entirely on acquisition. (stats from 👉 Terminus (by DemandScience) UserGems 💎) 𝘄𝗵𝘆 𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀 - longer-term thinking = compound returns - relationship-focused vs transaction-focused - less competition for attention - sustainable without constant optimisation the flashy stuff gets the conference talks.  the boring stuff gets the revenue.

The two channels you can't buy directly are the ones that matter most. We asked 101 B2B SaaS CMOs which channels they use to discover and research vendors. Google: 89% AI tools: 84% Peer recommendations: 82% G2/Review sites: 68% LinkedIn: 52% Analyst reports: 38% Look at the top three. Google you can buy. But CMOs use google primarily for verification (look into a specific company directly), not overall vendor discovery. AI recommendations? You can't buy those. Peer word of mouth? You can't buy that either. At least not directly. 84% of CMOs now ask ChatGPT, Claude, or Perplexity for vendor recommendations. In 2024, that number was basically zero. In 2025, it was 24%. 82% ask their peers. Slack groups. CMO Coffee Talk. Exit5. WhatsApp threads. One CMO told us: "I triangulate everything. If AI says it, peers confirm it, and G2 reviews back it up - then it's on my shortlist." Here's what this means: You can't run ads to get into ChatGPT's recommendations. You can't sponsor your way into a Slack group conversation. These channels are earned through product quality, customer satisfaction, and actual market presence. The channels CMOs trust most are the channels least susceptible to marketing spend. That's a problem if your GTM strategy is built on buying attention. It's an opportunity if your product is actually good and your customers actually like you. The new discovery stack: • AI gives the landscape view (84%) • Peers validate with real experience (82%) • G2 provides social proof (68%) • Google checks for red flags (89%, but often last, not first) You need to win in AI and peer conversations to even get to the Google search. When's the last time you asked ChatGPT to recommend tools in your category? When's the last time you checked what your customers are saying about you in their private communities? (This is finding #4 from Wynter's 2026 CMO Software Buying Survey. Full report link in comments and Wynter website).

There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to GTM. Maja Voje and I studied 12 leading B2B SaaS companies. (including interviews with their teams) Here’s what we learned: 1. PLG is eating the world >80% of the companies in our study employ PLG in some fashion. Even enterprise companies like Snowflake and Salesforce are adding free trials & freemium. It’s the new normal. Why is this working for them? In 2024, the best marketing is often your product. Users rarely want to lock in a $500K+ contract without trying the product first. But you do need to layer on a strong product-led sales motion to make enterprise work. 2. Dominate one at first, then layer on many Every company we studied got one GTM motion massively right. And, in each case, they still use that GTM motion in some form today. But, they layer on other motions over time. The ideal way to layer is symbiotically: • ABM couples nicely with outbound • Inbound supports outbound • Partnerships amplify PLG For instance: Dropbox grew at first massively on referrals. Now, other channels are much more important. 3. ABM and Outbound are pillars of enterprise For 5- and 6-figure deals, it’s difficult to rely on inbound or PLG alone. The buyer is used to a different process. They want to be hand-held. This is where motions like ABM and outbound shine. That’s why you still see the Snowflake’s and Salesforce’s of the world focusing on them. They’re the bread and butter of enterprise. So… bringing it all together, here’s where to start based on your buyer. If you’re selling to consumers or prosumers: • Lean into PLG, community, and partnerships early on • Layer in paid marketing as you find product-market fit and have budget to scale If you're selling to SMBs: • Blend inbound and outbound motions to build awareness and relationships • Paid digital can accelerate pipeline generation as you dial in your ICP If you're selling to enterprises: • Focus on targeted ABM and partner ecosystems • Inbound is great for air cover, but outbound is crucial for landing large accounts If you have a complex or technical product: • Make sure you have developer docs, free tooling, and community support from day one • Don’t underrate channels like partnerships & paid digital; they can still be crucial support And above all: 1. Remember what works at one stage may not work another 2. Remember the law of diminishing returns 3. Be willing to pivot when necessary

Introducing the 2025 GTM scorecard, just in time for annual planning ⤵️ Maja and I surveyed 195 B2B leaders about which GTM channels are working right now. We then mapped how popular different GTM channels are (x-axis) versus how likely they are to be impactful among adopters (y-axis). The shorthand for interpreting this two-by-two: 1. Tried-and-true (upper right) 2. Oversaturated (lower right) 3. The next big thing (upper left) 4. Figuring it out (lower left) I then cut the data for startups (<$10M ARR) vs. scaleups (>$10M ARR) & it's fascinating to see how the channels shift. The best channels for startups*: - LinkedIn (#1) - Founder brand (#2) - Warm outbound (#3) - Intent-based outbound (#4) - Intimate events (#5) *The magic tends to happen when you can combine these channels into a cohesive strategy, i.e. founder brand + LinkedIn + warm outbound & intimate events for those who engage. The best channels for scaleups*: - Large conferences (#1) - SEO (#2) - Intimate events (#3) - Big product launches (#4) - Ecosystem marketing (#5) *Scaleups are still seeing returns from their years of SEO investments. The question is whether they can translate their SEO into AI discovery or if they'll be leap-frogged by new entrants. The TL;DR: No matter what stage you're at, you might want to plan for more intimate events (dinners, happy hours, etc.) next year. They're not the most scalable, but they're one of the few things that seems to work. PS, the full report is available here: https://lnkd.in/ea_zYUzB #marketing #gtm #startups

We spent the last 12 months trying to find a better B2B channel than LinkedIn. And we failed. Over the past year, we’ve quietly tested different ways to expand our service. We’ve trialled new platforms. We’ve experimented with distribution techniques. We’ve looked at outbound channels. And we’ve run head-to-head comparisons to see what would actually drive demand faster. Every single time, LinkedIn won. (Often it wasn’t even close.) We’d build a campaign on another channel, using a sharp message, clear ICP and watch it underdeliver. Engagement would stall. Leads would drip, not flow. Conversations took longer to start, and even longer to convert. Then we’d go check back on LinkedIn, and… - We’d have consistent inbound leads. - 100s of conversations started monthly. - Content driving millions of impressions. It’s more visibility, more relevance, but most of all, it’s just easier to start conversations with B2B buyers here. Mainly because of the sheer number of them on this platform. Within 11 seconds, I can open Sales Navigator and see over 9,500+ people in our ICP who’ve visited my profile in the last 6 months. Not a cold list, 9500 people who’ve shown some interest in what we do. No ad platform does that. No other social platform does that. No newsletter sponsorship does that. Yes, other channels can work. But nothing works like this. For me, it’s easily the most effective B2B marketing channel right now. That’s why we’re now all-in on it. My advice: If you’re a B2B company, you probably should be too. ---- Follow me for more B2B marketing Niall Ratcliffe

If you're in B2B marketing, PLEASE pay close attention to what is happening with YouTube. I believe it has the biggest unrealized opportunity in B2B, and has the potential to be the #1, #2, or #3 marketing channel driving pipeline for you. The Trends: 1) TV viewing is moving to streaming, and away from cable. 41% of all TV viewing now is on a streaming platform. 2) YouTube is the #1 streaming platform on TVs. More people are watching YouTube on their TVs than Netflix, Disney+, or Amazon Prime Video. This has now been true for ~23 months in a row, and is not going to slow down. People are starting to watch YouTube channels (both educational and entertainment channels / series / shows) in their living room the same way they used to watch TV. There are endless possibilities of what you could do with this insight in B2B. 3) YouTube is the #2 social platform in the world based on monthly active users, AND time spent on it per month. I think it's a safe bet that your ICP is consuming YouTube to a little, moderate, or large degree, and that they can be reached there. 4) YouTube has everything a B2B marketer could want: - Organic top-of-funnel awareness - Organic mid-funnel trust building - Organic bottom-of-funnel keyword / search intent - Paid top-of-funnel awareness - Paid bottom-of-funnel keyword / search intent - Paid to organic top-of-funnel awareness - Paid to organic mid-funnel trust building - All content format types (short-form, mid-form, long-form, written, educational, entertainment, sales enablement, VSL's, etc.) - Organic YouTube is a growth multiplier (you can have the same inputs of money and effort to achieve a greater and greater level of outputs / pipeline) - Paid YouTube can get more profitable as you scale it (this is the opposite of pretty much every other paid channel) - Some very solid targeting + re-targeting + ABM capabilities (granted, not as strong as LinkedIn) 5) Almost everyone in B2B is sleeping on YouTube, either because they don't believe their buyers are there (they are in most cases), or because it's moderately difficult / complicated to execute correctly (it is, but the prize for solving it is large). All this means is that there is very little competition at the moment. ------ I'd encourage everyone to start thinking of YouTube as a platform / channel that has almost every B2B marketing lever you could want, and to not think of it as a place where only 13-year-olds watch Mr. Beast videos. Instead, get ahead of this trend that is definitely happening and think of YouTube as having the potential to be 50% of your sales team (that is working for you 24/7 + 365). Just a little food for thought on this Monday morn ✊

Sounds crazy in 2025, but your best B2B marketing channel might not be digital at all. When the sales cycles are long, trust is more important than clicks. Everyone’s fighting for attention online, but people buy from people they know and trust. Real relationships still win. Some of my highest ROI deals came from offline plays: ✅ Customer dinners that created real connections ✅ In-person events with the right buyers in the room ✅ Partner recommendations that tapped into trust and credibility ✅ Sending a book to a lead with a bookmark on the page that talks about their problem Digital marketing is powerful and irreplaceable. I say this as a CEO of a marketing agency. But it can also be crowded, transactional, and easy to ignore. Especially in B2B. Offline channels take more effort, but they create leverage in ways digital often can’t. If you're working with ABM, long sales cycles, or large buying teams, add offline channels to your mix. That's where relationships are made.

Google Ads or Facebook Ads? Wrong question. The real question is: 👉 Are you capturing demand? 👉 Or are you creating it? Here’s how to decide which channel actually grows your business: ✅ CAPTURE Demand → Google Search & Shopping Best when people already know what they want. Think: “urgent care near me,” “affordable CRM for coaches,” “buy electric standing desk” • Start with Search (Lead Gen) or Standard Shopping (e-commerce) • Segment brand vs non-brand terms • Use Max Conversions or manual CPC to start • Once it’s working → layer on PMax to scoop warm traffic But if your Search Impression Share + Click Share > 80%? You’ve likely tapped out the market. That’s where most brands stall. ✅ GENERATE Demand → Meta, YouTube, LinkedIn, TikTok Best when people don’t know they need you yet. Or they’ve never even heard of your product or service. • For B2C → Start with Meta (broad reach, creative matters most) • For B2B → Start with LinkedIn (laser targeting by role + company) • For eCom → Meta (low AOV, young demos) • For higher-ticket or visual brands → YouTube (after Meta) Pro tip: These are top-of-funnel platforms. Don’t expect neat attribution. Instead, watch for brand lift, higher direct traffic, and search volume spikes. Make sure you measure the backend of your business and consider typical time to conversion. 🎯 Use Advantage+ and PMax strategically These are warm-traffic engines. • Meta Advantage+ scoops up website visitors • Google PMax works best when fed high-quality cold traffic from somewhere else → Use other campaigns and channels to feed PMax They're not top-of-funnel systems. They shine after you’ve built awareness. The truth most brands miss? They pour more money into the same campaign types... …without realizing they’ve already maxed them out. Your next level of growth doesn’t come from picking the “right platform.” It comes from mapping the right campaign type to the right stage of your buyer journey. That’s how you scale sustainably.

Is cold email dead? Does cold calling still work? Here's the definitive tier list of outbound channels for July 2026: S TIER: - Cold Email: Cheapest CAC of any B2B channel and you can scale to millions of sends in a single month. - LinkedIn Open InMail: Every Sales Navigator account gets 400-800 free InMails to open profiles and almost nobody uses them. - LinkedIn DMs (Manual): If you're doing it yourself, personalizing messages, and actually being human, you will always stand out. A TIER: - Multi-Channel Sequencing: S tier for ABM, but you physically cannot match email volume on LinkedIn or phone, so it breaks at scale. - Cold Calling: Great channel, but most people quit within 60 days because they can't manage no-show rates from unqualified bookings. - LinkedIn Voice Notes: Massive pattern interrupt (I've received maybe 3-5 voice notes on LinkedIn in my entire life), just not super scalable yet. B TIER: - Paid LinkedIn InMail: $100/month for ~50 credits on a core plan, and even with elite reply rates you're looking at 2-3 interested prospects. - LinkedIn Connection + Note: ~200 requests per week, ~10% accept rate, and most decision makers just scroll right past connection requests from strangers. C TIER: - SMS Outreach: TCPA litigation risk is real and even our internal test didn't produce anything worth scaling. - Video Prospecting (Loom): Nobody is sitting through 8 minutes of video from someone they've never met. D TIER: - Ringless Voicemail: Never seen a pure RVM campaign work at volume, only useful as a supplement alongside email or calling. - WhatsApp / Telegram: Only viable if your ICP is international (we've seen 20%+ reply rates targeting India and Europe), but almost useless for US buyers. IT DEPENDS: Direct Mail: If your LTV is massive and sending AirPods lands you a meeting with an enterprise decision maker, the math can absolutely work. — Long list but worth the read!

Yes, every startup is a beautiful, unique snowflake, but here is how I'd approach the stages of marketing for most orgs. Marketing is about building a layered, connected ecosystem where each channel supports and amplifies the others. Here’s how I think about the foundational sequence of channels to create a scalable, efficient, and impactful marketing strategy: 1️⃣ Start with Paid Search & Organic Content Why: Paid search (Google Ads) captures high-intent, in-market traffic—people actively searching for solutions you offer. -Shorter sales cycle and amazing fuel for all your other efforts. Organic content (e.g., thought leadership videos) builds trust and authority over time, setting the foundation for long-term success. This style of content (TL Videos) also makes great ads and improves the impact of other channels like LinkedIn, Meta, and Programmatic. 2️⃣ Activate LinkedIn Ads (start with retargeting) Why: LinkedIn is unparalleled for B2B targeting. You can layer on company size, job titles, and industries to reach decision-makers directly. Impact: Use LinkedIn to qualify and convert paid search traffic (or traffic from any source), leveraging retargeting frameworks to make your entire ecosystem more efficient. Doing LinkedIn ads before you have paid search, organic content, and SEO is going to result in a very expensive experiment. 3️⃣ Enhance with Website Visitor Identification Why: You don’t need to wait for prospects to fill out forms. Identify companies and individuals visiting your site, enrich the data, and turn anonymous traffic into leads. (I recommend DemandSense - ask me for free trial form.) Impact: Get more value from existing marketing efforts and create "nearbound" flows. 4️⃣ Launch Nurture + Outreach Campaigns Why: Most B2B sales cycles require consistent, personalized touchpoints. Combine LinkedIn and email to warm up leads and build trust over time. Impact: A well-orchestrated nurture sequence ensures no lead slips through the cracks, while outreach activates high-potential accounts. 5️⃣ Expand with Meta + Programmatic Ads Why: Meta (Facebook/Instagram) and programmatic platforms extend your reach, ensuring your message follows your audience wherever they go. Impact: Create omnipresence and retarget warm audiences from LinkedIn and search, converting them faster and more efficiently. Why the Sequence Matters? Each channel is more than a standalone tactic—it’s a building block in a larger framework. The foundation of paid search and organic content ensures you have an engine for consistent visibility. Then, LinkedIn ads and website visitor IDs provide a direct path to your ideal buyers. Finally, nurturing and omnichannel expansion amplify and accelerate conversions. This approach creates a flywheel effect where channels complement each other, increasing overall efficiency and ROI. What do you think?