Marketing Campaigns Need an Enablement Advantage

High-impact campaigns are strategic initiatives that align with core customer needs, navigate complex buying journeys, and deliver tailored marketing programs. They require a unified organizational effort to deliver seamless buying and customer experiences. This is why 20 percent of B2B marketing decision makers identified increasing the focus on employee experience, enablement, and engagement as a top priority for their organization’s marketing strategy over the next year. Campaign enablement is the catalyst. By empowering every team member with the knowledge, tools, and motivation to excel, you transform ordinary campaigns into exceptional outcomes. A shared campaign vision unites your team, creating a cohesive customer journey that drives measurable outcomes.

Empowering Your Team for Campaign Success

Equipping teams with the knowledge and resources to thrive is essential for effective enablement. To achieve this, focus on educating and guiding your team toward seamless campaign execution:

• Set clear, measurable goals, such as increasing campaign launch readiness by 20 percent within three months through comprehensive training for 80 percent of key stakeholders.
• Track output metrics like content or resource utilization rates, or activity metrics like assets created or questions asked in the enablement forum.
• Measure impact by tracking job performance improvement, post-enablement skills gap analysis, or decreased time-to-market campaign rollout.
• Identify key stakeholders, curate targeted training materials, and anticipate challenges with a flexible plan that adapts to campaign evolution.
• Equip sales and partner teams with in-depth product knowledge, including specific industry applications and unique value propositions.
• Enable marketing teams to deeply understand buyer personas, customer needs, market trends, and differentiators to create targeted content and interactions.
• Provide customer success teams with access to case studies, best practices, and customer support tools to deliver exceptional post-purchase experiences.

As the measures above illustrate, teams can never have too much knowledge. Therefore, accelerate knowledge transfer and maximize campaign impact with a dedicated knowledge mobilization plan.

The Knowledge Catalyst

This strategic blueprint aligns content, assets, and delivery methods with campaign objectives. Optimize resources and team performance by identifying core audiences, creating relevant materials, and establishing clear ownership. Detail key roles, content, delivery methods, ownership, and timelines. Employ an iterative approach, prioritizing critical information and ensuring continuous updates. Meticulous knowledge management optimizes resource allocation, enhances team performance, and ultimately drives campaign results, through tangible growth metrics like revenue or customer retention or by shaping perception, building brand loyalty, and fostering a thriving ecosystem. For instance, develop a knowledge base of frequently asked questions, create interactive product demos, or offer role-specific training modules. By centralizing information and making it easily accessible, you empower teams to become self-sufficient and make informed decisions.

Accelerate Your Success

To translate these principles into actionable steps, focus on the following:

• Invest in enablement. Recognize enablement as a cornerstone of campaign success. Allocate the necessary resources and support to build a robust program. Align with industry trends, as Forrester Research survey data shows that over a third (36 percent) of B2B marketing decision makers plan to increase their enablement program budget by at least 5 percent.
• Foster collaboration. Break down silos and encourage cross-functional teamwork. A unified front is essential for delivering exceptional customer experiences. When B2B marketing decision makers were asked what they most needed to support their priorities over the next 12 months, 30 percent said improving marketing processes to better enable adaptability to market changes, collaboration among marketing functions, and a connected experience for the buyer.
• Measure and optimize. Track key metrics such as program completion rates, knowledge retention, and campaign performance. Use data-driven insights to continuously refine your efforts. Twenty-eight percent of B2B marketing decision makers said that to support their priorities, they need to make better use of analytics to measure marketing contribution and enhance decision making.
• Cultivate a culture of learning. Encourage a growth mindset and provide ongoing training and development opportunities. Stay ahead of industry trends and best practices.

Rani Salehi is a principal analyst serving B2B CMOs and senior marketing executives at Forrester Research. Based in California, Salehi has more than 25 years of experience in strategy formulation, campaign planning, digital initiatives, and organizational transformations to foster growth.