How Leading Teams Are Closing the Revenue Clarity Gap
Marketing and sales teams are often flush with data but starved for clarity, reacting to noise instead of acting on real buyer signals. That’s the clarity gap — and it’s costing revenue teams in pipeline.
In our latest live session, Predictiv’s Head of Marketing, Lindsay O’Brien, and VP of Sales, Angie Waters, break down what 100 senior B2B marketers revealed as the challenges and best practices in revenue activation — and what it means for sellers on the ground.
This wasn't just a marketing conversation. It’s a cross-functional deep dive into how leading revenue teams are realigning their strategy around truth, timing, and total buyer activation.
You’ll hear how top-performing teams are:
- Prioritizing pipeline based on unified revenue opportunity signals
- Shifting from individual contacts to full buying committee engagement
- Closing the sales-marketing disconnect with shared readiness triggers
- Activating revenue through owned, first-party execution
Watch the full session, or scroll down for the full transcript.
Lindsay O'Brien: Great. Hi, everyone! I'm Lindsay O'Brien, I'mHead of Marketing and Operations at Predictiv. I am joined by Angie Waters, whois our VP of Sales in North America. Angie has a very interesting background, because she has spent the majority of her career selling marketing solutions, so she balances out that sales and marketing view. Angie, how long have you been in sales, and how much of that has been selling to marketers? (00:00:04.010 - 00:00:35.219)
Angie Waters: All of it. So, about just over 20 years selling toB2B marketers, so entirely been focused on the B2B marketing services space. (00:00:36.060 - 00:00:46.610)
Lindsay O'Brien: Cool. (00:00:47.020 - 00:00:47.790)
LindsayO'Brien: So, Angie, I know you know this, but just in case anyone who is joining us today is unfamiliar, this year we surveyed 100 B2B marketing leaders, senior manager level and above, to understand the challenges and what's working in revenue activation. I'll send that out as a follow-up in case you haven't caught it, but what was different is we didn't just send out a questionnaire, and we actually used a mixed-method approach, which means that we combined quantitative data, those data points that you typically get from a survey, and mixed it with qualitative interviews, so we could get more of the why behind the what. And honestly, I don't think we'll ever go back to an umbers-only survey, because when we paired the data with the real stories behind it, it completely changed the way that we interpreted the results. And one of the best examples of this was finding that, on average, leaders feel like their current strategies only reach about 42% of their total addressable market. And at surface level, that seems like we're failing, but when I was speaking to the marketing leaders, it's actually by design. They know that they don't have unlimited time, money, and resources to go after everyone, so they're be ingreally intentional about who they're targeting and who they're focusing on. And if we had just taken those data points without adding that additional layer of context, it tells a much different story. And just this takeaway alone really summed up the theme of the report and what we're talking about today, because the number one challenge for marketers is lack of unified data. It's the...you've got all of these numbers in front of you, but bringing all of the insights together to tell a really truthful story, and one that both sales and marketing can share together, is difficult. And it's not that... it's a lack of trying. They're actually struggling to figure out what's noise and what's actually real. So, Angie, from your perspective, what's your quick take on that? (00:00:48.410 - 00:03:09.730)
Angie Waters: So, I think context to the numbers definitely matters. When I hear that 42%,that doesn't panic me at all. I think, you know, the best sellers know that not everybody in the market is ready for us. It's not about chasing everyone. And probably everyone doesn't want me chasing after them, so I apologize in advance if I've done that. Because I probably have. But, you know, for me, I don't, you know, we usually don't find, our buyers, you know, kind of waving a flag, saying, hey, come sell. To me, it's really about recognizing what those real signals of opportunity are, and when I say signals, I do, you know, mean the people behind those signals, so when I'm hearing that marketers are going deep on high-fit segments, I think that mirrors what strong sales teams are doing, and what we intuitively know. But similarly, I think, you know, the challenge is also the same. Our data is not unified. Buyers are more elusive than ever.No one wants to be sold to. So, striking that kind of right balance on what's driving our activities, sitting somewhere between what our revenue goals are, our excitement to tell them how great our solution is, but more importantly, what and when the buyers are ready for us, so that they need to, you know, be ready to focus on having that sales conversation with us. (00:03:09.900 -00:04:40.100)
LindsayO'Brien: Yeah, one of the things that resonated with me as I was talking to these marketing leaders is that they're... the vast majority are saying, we actually have too much data, we don't need another data point, we need to make sense of the data swamp that we've kind of found ourselves in, and figure out what to do with all of those, quote, insights that they have already. So, just leaning into the total addressable market, one of the biggest ways that marketing teams are finding their best fit opportunities are through TAM audits. And we actually just went through this exercise internally. We did a whole new lead scoring and account scoring methodology. We really prioritized our CRM hygiene, and then did a quick overview of an analysis of our closed one opportunities, understanding the types of companies, the industries, the company sizes, the regions that are best fit for us. And I think TAM audits have really become this kind of something that you eye roll over, like, okay, great, we're gonna do this again, and but we're gonna make this list, and it's not going to do... go anywhere or do anything. And something that I found really interesting was that 93% of marketers who said that TAM audits made any positive impact on revenue growth, performed them at least once a year. But even more striking to me was that the subset that said TAM audits have a significant impact on revenue growth actually do them quarterly. And I just...I know there's so much work, but I think that really speaks to the discipline pays off in the long run. So, for you, Angie, now that, you know, it's very clear teams aren't trying to reach 100% of their TAM, they're... they're not trying to spread themselves too thin, they're actually trying to go really deep on those that make the most sense for them, that are going to show the most impact. From your side of the table, what are some of the signs that teams are chasing too wide instead of going deep? (00:04:40.260 - 00:07:01.699)
Angie Waters: Yeah, so that really also resonates with me. We're constantly looking at our pipeline and who we're going after, and it's a, you know, it's a... it's a regular audit, like, all of the time, right? So that's... I think that's going... going to... to change. People are not stagnant, businesses move, decisions stop and start. So I think, you know, it starts to feel when it's... when it's too wide, when you can't... you just can't get the coverage, you can't get across to all of the accounts, you can't get in touch with all of the people, the, the meetings start to lag.Conversations are shallow, people might be curious, but they're not committed because they're not really in the sales window yet. So the pipeline can look really full, and then we're spending a lot of time chasing pipeline opportunities, but it's not healthy revenue that's ready for conversion. So it does feel different when we're going deeper into the right segments that are both fit and they're ready to have the sales conversation. I think that's when, you know, everything sharpens, and it's not necessarily just about you know, the account lighting up, but who, you know, who are the actual buyers, who are the leads that want that engagement, and are starting to show that they are active with the people who they are making those decisions with. The conversations change, they're more relevant, to less about, like, why, but how. (00:07:02.830- 00:08:38.399)
Lindsay O'Brien: Yeah. And one thing about TAM audits is that they don't just cover accounts, they also cover the buyer committees with in those accounts, which is so important today, too, because there are these slower sales cycles because there are more people involved. Do you... I think you have a fun story about... I mean, not a fun story for you, but in the past, you were telling me that this has really impacted you. (00:08:38.730 -00:09:10.350)
Angie Waters: Yeah, it's not the best story. It turned well at the end, but... so, we, I had a deal where everything looked perfect. So, the solution fit their need, the timing and the momentum was strong. the champions were all in, there were multiple influencers and decision makers that I was talking to who believed that they had the budget with the authority to approve it, but when the CFO got looped in to sign the order, like, at the very 11th hour of things, the CFO was just disengaged. Every dollar was under scrutiny, and it caused a deal stall. So... and it wasn't even just stalling me, it was stalling the team, also, who had wanted to move this program forward. So there was a visibility gap there. And I know as a seller, you know, if I look at that with a critical sales eye, you know, I could take some ownership of that, too.But, you know, I think there are tools and things that we could leverage between our shared goals to kind of activate across the buying committee.(00:09:10.670 - 00:10:18.959)
Lindsay O'Brien: Yeah. I... I have no experience ever having to fight for marketing budget, so... (00:10:19.290 - 00:10:25.409)
Angie Waters: Right. (00:10:25.410 - 00:10:26.490)
LindsayO'Brien: No, I think that really illustrates what a lot of teams are feeling, and that marketers need to be very close to their financial counterparts as well, because sounds like they were also... surprised by that outcome as well. (00:10:26.490 - 00:10:45.010)
Angie Waters: Yeah, I think... oh, I was just gonna add there, I think, you know, I think part of it, too, is that's where, when we're having check-ins like this between sales and marketing, where we can look for those engagement patterns, but also share with you on the marketing team that this was an account who is in an active sales motion, so that we can, work together on those goals to tailor the marketing strategy. Of course, I know you need... you need budget to be able to influence across the buyer committee, but it's really important, because it's not necessarily that I needed the CFO to, say, download a piece of content, andI'm getting the contact information. But to know that they were touched or engaged and, you know, recently, about our brand. (00:10:46.080 - 00:11:40.250)
LindsayO'Brien: Or even had just something to give to them. Yeah, so after those TAM audits, you've got your nice long list of everyone who could be a potential fit, and that's a great starting point, but with these teams who are really trying to hone in on the accounts and the audiences who are going to make the most impact for them, this is where they really need to get into that ruthless prioritization phase, because as we've seen, if everything is important, nothing is important. And but I... I also think this prioritization phase is where teams struggle the most, because there's... you see this list, and it might include some of those really top strategic accounts that the C-level wants to see close. But those don't always match up with who's ready to buy, or who's closer to that buying decision. And what we saw in the data is that 9 in10 marketers are really worried about mis prioritizing, because the number one issue is missing revenue targets, and I... I can see that being a pain point on the sales side, too, but also having lower pipeline quality in general. And that's a big issue for marketers, too, because that's primarily the number oneway that they are measuring their successes through pipeline or revenue generated. But not to be all doom and gloom on that side, there is a way that marketers are trying to fix this, and trying to make this a little bit less pressure on both sides, and that's through sales and marketing alignment, whichI know is, you know, the B2B version of asking for world peace here, but actually, 3 in 4 teams are prioritizing that collaboration with sales to make sure that the data tells the whole story. So what we were talking about, the mixed method survey of the qualitative and quantitative insights, that's what they're really going for, and I heard it over and over again in the interviews that I... when I was speaking to leaders, because it's not just about the data, it's about that shared context. So, from your perspective, Angie, what are somethings that marketers could do to better support their sales counterparts? (00:11:45.590 - 00:14:12.479)
Angie Waters: Yeah, so I... I think it's just that collaboration, right? Having synchronized intention in what we're... what we're doing, who we're going after.understanding that, you know, marketing, you're building, you know, these beautiful campaigns that you have in motion, but also bringing us in a little bit earlier on what those shared metrics might be. We can also help validate some of that... those questions you might have about mis prioritization, because we can also inform you on what we're seeing. So, you know, salespeople are naturally curious, it's our job to validate. So, once, you know, campaigns are in motion, we can have regular check-ins, to make sure that we're aligning on shared truths between the engagement that you're seeing in the campaigns versus how those leads are, interacting with us and the conversations that we're...that we're having. So I think it starts to feel less like, a handoff, and more like a collaboration that we're in it together. (00:14:13.790 - 00:15:17.879)
LindsayO'Brien: What's the frequency of that? Do you feel like having those touch points? And should it be with the full sales team, full marketing team? Is it more of a one-on-one basis? What's... maybe this is just your preference, or... but what have you seen work well? (00:15:17.880 - 00:15:34.830)
Angie Waters: I mean, I think it's gonna depend on the size of your team. Like, I like our cadence here. We have those check-ins on a weekly basis. I think that works really, really well. Depending on how large the campaign is, it may be more of a, you know, of a quarterly kind of check-in. So I think a lot of this comes in, you know, to being able to personalize what's happening with you, with your sales team? How big is it? What are, you know, what are your segments? What is the size of the audience that you're going after? To really personalize what the right cadence is. You probably want to start with the sales leader, too, I would say, otherwise you're going to get a whole lot of, you know, different, (00:15:35.450 - 00:16:22.000)
LindsayO'Brien: I definitely agree with that. So... I agree, I love the weekly touch points as well. I'm curious what your preference is for the in-between moments. Like, is it... is it a Slack message? Is it an email? Is it a quick video? Are there any ways that marketers could do a better job in those in-between moments where you're not in a meeting, but still communicating? (00:16:22.370 - 00:16:47.960)
Angie Waters: So I like a Slack message, that's a great way to get in touch with me. I... I'm very collaborative, I think, as you've seen with my marketing leaders, so, I would be... I prefer to be looped in as much as possible if there's a question, but, yeah, I think... I think a Slack is great, and then there's time to respond to it if I'm on a call or whatever's going on, so we can prioritize accordingly. (00:16:48.590 - 00:17:16.520)
Lindsay O'Brien: Yeah. Alright, so we've gotten through, we've unified all of our signals, we've created that entire list of potential opportunities, then prioritized them. And then, I think, comes the fun part, is actually trying to figure out how we get to them, how we activate these opportunities and get them into... turn them into real pipeline. And something that I really loved, and something that I felt in my gut, but now that we have data to prove it, I love it even more, is that most teams are blending broaddem and gen with ABM. And I... I think that is the right play, because we know that, like you said before, only a fraction of our buyers are ready to purchase at any given time, so having that always-on motion with a really targeted motion, I think, is the best way to approach this, because we still need to be visible and relevant and top of mind, even if they're not ready to buy today.And so... I want to talk about the top channels, because I think sales and marketing, there's probably a little bit of a disconnect on where the best channels are, what people prefer, and our survey found that the top channels that marketers prefer are: sales outreach, company website, industry events, paid ads, and email. So... I'd like you to react to that. What are... where...does that match what you're seeing on the ground? And are there any that you disagree with? (00:17:17.979 - 00:19:01.439)
Angie Waters: Obviously, I'm in sales, so I'm gonna agree with number one is sales outreach.That's our job, right? That's what we should be doing. Content syndication leads, I think that helps with that, so that we can follow up, but the important part of all of those channels, I think, is the context on how to follow up and how to react with what the buyer's doing, how they're responding, engaging within each of those channels. So, in regards to paid advertising, I'm really glad to see that one on there, but again, I come from a perspective ofI'm selling to, marketers, and been working with you guys for over 20 years, soI've helped build out strategic segmented campaigns that way, but it makes perfect sense to me, because from the sales side, while you might get eye rolls on paid display ads, the truth is, I think they're essential. Because I want my buyer that I'm talking to to have had visibility, engagement, something about the brand. I think they're credible brand builders with display. You're able to influence people before I'm in the room with them. You're able to influence...like, the CFO story I shared, I didn't necessarily need a white paper lead on that, but had that CFO been touched with a customer story or an, you know, something... ROI assessment or something of that nature, that they would have had a little bit more familiarity with us before I'm in the room with the decision makers I'm talking to. So I think that channel... the channel and the context around it is very, very important throughout different phases of the buyer's journey, and specifically also when they are in the buy-in window. I'm also glad to see webinars in there. That's another kind of interesting, take I have on that. I've had, you know, marketers that really love webinars, and then marketers who were not really doing a lot of webinars because their sales leader didn't want those type of leads for their sales team, but I, you know, I just... I kind of disagree with that, because not every lead is for sales top ounce, so if you're on this webinar, I'm not going to pounce on you and come to you, like, with a hard sale, but you're probably curious about something, so then I feel like my role in sales is to work with you in marketing on then, how do we follow up with the content that was shared on that webinar to understand what the buyer might need to know next, so that also, I can help facilitate that, not just be kind of a coin-operated salesperson, but that, you know, I'm also trying to help the buyer understand, the questions they have solve their pain points. So I think all of those channels, that mix of channels, make sense, and having that kind of consistency, and it's always being aligned to what the signal is that the revenue signals or the intent signals are actually saying. (00:19:02.080 - 00:22:13.140)
LindsayO'Brien: Yeah, and I think another piece layered in with that context is by the time they get to you, like, especially if they're filling out that Get a Demo form, they've done their research, so your job really is to meet them where they are. At that point, you're likely on a shortlist, so if you haven't done all of the things leading up to it, you probably haven't even made the shortlist. (00:22:13.490 - 00:22:43.600)
Angie Waters:Yeah, that's where the website comes in to be so important, too. If you don't have enough content there, not enough education, then that can kind of cut you off from even being on the shortlist. (00:22:45.190 - 00:22:57.850)
LindsayO'Brien: Right. Yeah, so... I love it. Not... not all activity is created equal, and I think that brings us back to... it's not about having more data, it's about having that the data with the context, and being able to see the story that's actually being told, not just the one you're making up in your own head, or with the millions of dashboards that you have that have all different takeaways from them. So, I'd love to wrap it up with you. I know we're getting close to time. To me, if there's one message to take away into Q4 and beyond, it's that pipeline and revenue activation doesn't come from doing more, it comes from knowing what matters most and focusing there. So, before we end here, what's one piece of advice you would give to revenue teams? (00:22:57.850- 00:24:01.749)
Angie Waters: Yeah, yeah, I think it's, you know, build from shared truth. Find clarity in what that intentional alignment looks like, so that you can define your reality, really, on how you're executing and connecting with buyers. I kind of think that's where you're going to find your revenue and uncover, you know, revenue that's probably hidden from you. And asI like to say, all the stars align when we can do that. (00:24:03.710 -00:24:29.829)
Lindsay O'Brien: Awesome. Yeah, well, thank you so much for joining me. I love this. I love our one-on-ones, so this was just even more fun to share a one-on-one with everyone else. If any of this resonated with anyone here today, we'd love to talk to you if you need any help, or if you just want to talk something through that... you know, made a lot of sense to you, or maybe didn't make a lot of sense, and Angie and I are here. Reach out to us, and you will get this, recorded and in your inbox here in the next 24 hours.So, thanks again, Angie, and see you later. (00:24:30.560 - 00:25:10.919)
Angie Waters: Thank you, Lindsay. Bye! (00:25:11.130 -00:25:12.810)
LindsayO'Brien: Bye. (00:25:12.810 - 00:25:13.650)