Podcast Summary: B2B Marketing with Dave Gerhardt Episode: The 7 Marketing Metrics Every B2B Leader Should Report On
Host: Dave Gerhardt
Guest: Aditya Vempathy
Release Date: April 7, 2025

Introduction

In this insightful episode of B2B Marketing with Dave Gerhardt, host Dave Gerhardt is joined by marketing expert Aditya Vempathy to delve deep into the essential metrics every B2B marketing leader should monitor and report. Aditya, with a rich background in scaling marketing efforts across notable companies like Nutanix, Amplitude, and Synthego, shares his expertise on selecting and utilizing metrics that not only demonstrate marketing effectiveness but also align seamlessly with broader business objectives.

Guest Background

Aditya Vempathy serves as the North America Marketing lead for MoEngage, a B2C customer engagement platform. His impressive track record includes driving revenue growth by nearly 900% at Nutanix and scaling Synthego’s revenue from $5 million to $65 million within three years, while also expanding the marketing team significantly.

The Importance of Marketing Metrics

Aditya begins by highlighting the critical role of metrics in marketing. He emphasizes that metrics are not just numbers but a common language that bridges marketing efforts with the company’s strategic goals.

[05:49] Aditya Vempathy: “The marketing metrics really do is communicate the impact the marketing team is having in the industry and how they're doing as a team, but also to the rest of the company how they're delivering on what they said they would do.”

He underscores the necessity of being deliberate in choosing metrics that accurately reflect the marketing team’s contributions and resonate with stakeholders across the organization.

The 7 Essential Marketing Metrics

Aditya outlines seven key metrics, categorized into four primary areas: Driving Pipeline, Efficiency, Awareness, and Sales Alignment. Each metric is discussed in detail, providing actionable insights for B2B marketing leaders.

1. Driving Pipeline

a. Opportunity Count

Aditya stresses that instead of merely tracking pipeline value, marketing leaders should focus on the number of opportunities generated. This approach provides a clearer picture of lead quality and generation effectiveness.

[12:45] Aditya Vempathy: “A lot of people will say, hey, I drove X amount of pipeline, Y amount of pipeline. Honestly, who gives a shit? That actually doesn't matter. It matters, actually, the amount of opportunities that you generated because that pipeline value can change.”

b. Pipeline Close Rate

Understanding the percentage of generated opportunities that convert into closed deals is crucial. This metric helps in forecasting and assessing the reliability of the pipeline.

[12:55] Matt: “That's why it's more actionable to have the opportunity count than the pipeline value count.”

c. Pipeline Close Rate Quarter on Quarter

Tracking how the close rate evolves over consecutive quarters allows teams to anticipate pipeline flow and adjust strategies accordingly.

2. Efficiency

a. Programmatic Cost per Opportunity

Aditya highlights the importance of measuring the cost-effectiveness of marketing spend by calculating the cost per generated opportunity. This metric excludes fixed employee costs to provide a more accurate assessment of marketing efficiency.

[19:41] Aditya Vempathy: “If you start understanding where you can make the investments and where you can't...it's about knowing how much to spend to generate opportunities.”

3. Awareness

a. Aided and Unaided Brand Awareness

Measuring both aided (recognition) and unaided (recall) brand awareness through surveys provides a comprehensive view of the brand’s market presence.

[24:35] Aditya Vempathy: “If all the efforts you're doing are working, you will see both metrics move. It's as simple as that.”

b. Organic Web Traffic

Tracking organic traffic offers insights into how potential customers are discovering the brand naturally, reflecting the effectiveness of SEO and content strategies.

[27:32] Matt: “How do I simplify this? In the most common language that shows the impact that marketing is having on the company.”

4. Sales Alignment

a. Internal Sales CSAT (Customer Satisfaction Score)

Aditya emphasizes the importance of regularly surveying the sales team to gauge their satisfaction with marketing support. This metric fosters alignment and ensures that marketing efforts are effectively aiding sales objectives.

[31:02] Aditya Vempathy: “This tells us like the relationship that Marketing has with the rest of the organizations, particularly sales.”

Implementing and Reporting Metrics

Aditya shares practical strategies for integrating these metrics into existing systems like Salesforce and HubSpot, advocating for centralized dashboards (e.g., Tableau) that compile data from various sources for weekly reviews. This approach ensures that both marketing and sales teams have real-time access to relevant metrics, promoting transparency and trust.

[36:07] Aditya Vempathy: “We collectively pumped all this into Tableau, took all the data sources and we run these dashboards on a weekly basis where possible.”

He also advises regular synchronization with sales leaders to align on metrics and ensure that surveys effectively capture the sales team's needs and perceptions.

Conclusion

Aditya wraps up by reiterating that while there are numerous metrics available, the key is to select those that align with the company’s strategic goals and facilitate clear communication across teams. He advocates for a proactive approach to metric management, allowing marketing leaders to anticipate challenges and adjust strategies in real-time.

[40:30] Aditya Vempathy: “The metrics should show if you're reaching those goals or not. Don’t conflate goals with numbers.”

Key Takeaways

1. Focus on Opportunity Count and Close Rates: Prioritize metrics that measure the quality and conversion of leads rather than just pipeline value.
2. Measure Marketing Efficiency: Calculate the cost per opportunity excluding fixed costs to assess the true effectiveness of marketing spend.
3. Assess Brand Awareness: Utilize aided and unaided awareness surveys to understand market presence and brand recall.
4. Track Organic Traffic: Monitor organic web traffic to gauge the effectiveness of SEO and content marketing strategies.
5. Ensure Sales Alignment: Regularly survey the sales team to maintain alignment and ensure marketing efforts support sales objectives.
6. Centralize Reporting: Use centralized dashboards to aggregate data from multiple sources, enabling real-time monitoring and transparency.
7. Align Metrics with Strategic Goals: Choose metrics that directly reflect the company’s strategic objectives and facilitate clear communication across departments.

This episode provides a comprehensive guide for B2B marketing leaders aiming to refine their metric tracking and reporting processes. Aditya Vempathy’s experience and practical advice offer invaluable insights into selecting and utilizing metrics that drive meaningful business outcomes and foster interdepartmental alignment.