Two-thirds of B2B marketers say lead gen tactics changing

In a challenging market characterised by persistent volatility, lengthy buying cycles and disruption from AI, B2B businesses are looking for fresh ways to generate leads, new Marketing Week data suggests.

Two-thirds (66.7%) of the 450 respondents to the 2025 State of B2B Marketing survey say their tactics for generating leads are changing. That’s compared to just a quarter (25.4%) who report tactics are staying the same.

Some 69.5% of marketers in SMEs (250 employees and under) and 63.7% of those in large B2B firms report their approach to lead generation is evolving.

When asked what this change looks like, most B2B marketers (69.9%) say their business is increasingly focused on creating content to drive engagement, such as thought leadership articles and podcasts.

Almost half (48.9%) of the total sample work for a business which has upped its focus on social media, including LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok. Over two-fifths (45.1%) of B2B marketers have seen their company start using employees as influencers to raise awareness and are seeking to develop deeper relationships with key accounts (44.4%).

Fifth of large B2B brands have cut agency spend in favour of AI

Some 35% of B2B businesses are ramping up their presence at events and wider experiential efforts, while a third (33.5%) have placed a bigger focus on using performance marketing to drive leads.

To a lesser extent, B2B marketers are also investing in direct marketing (22.9%) and sponsorships (16.5%) for lead generation.

Using content to drive engagement (70.3%) is the main shift in lead generation tactics seen within SMEs, with over half (55.2%) of these smaller B2B firms also upping their focus on social media via platforms like LinkedIn and TikTok.

Over two-fifths (42.8%) of small businesses are promoting employees as influencers in a bid to raise awareness. Over a third of SME B2B brands are also looking to generate leads by developing deeper relationships with key accounts (38.6%), investing in events/experiential (37.9%) and focusing more on how to best use performance marketing (35.2%).

These smaller firms are less likely to have pivoted towards increased investment in direct marketing (22.1%) and sponsorships (12.4%).

There are some slight variations when it comes to larger B2B firms, although the data suggests content, such as thought leadership and podcasts, is growing in popularity (70%) as a form of lead generation.

Over half of these bigger businesses are seeking to develop deeper relationships with key accounts (51.7%) as a means to drive leads, while 48.3% are increasingly positioning employees as influencers to raise awareness.

Two-fifths have ramped up their focus on social media (40.8%), while under a third are putting more energy into performance marketing (31.7%) and events/experiential (30.8%) to deliver leads.

Just under a quarter (24.2%) are investing in direct marketing and sponsorship opportunities (21.7%) as a form of lead generation.

Social focus

Looking specifically at the way B2B brands are investing in social media, over half (51.2%) of the State of B2B Marketing sample are investing in social ads – specifically on LinkedIn – to drive short-term returns.

Indeed, social ads are cited as the top source of short-term focused spend, ahead of content marketing (46.3%), paid search (45.1%), email marketing (43.1%), display ads (22.5%) and affiliate marketing (10%).

When it comes to long-term brand investment, well over half of the sample (59.1%) are pouring money into social campaigns, just behind general brand campaigns (61.4%) and events/experiential (60.8%).

The sample are more likely to be investing in social media to deliver long-term results than PR (56.7%), general advertising (44.4%) and sponsorships (36.3%).

Despite the growing focus on social media within B2B businesses, the data suggests a skills gap could be emerging.

A fifth (19.6%) of firms have identified a social media skills gap within the marketing team, which is more of a concern than a lack of ecommerce expertise (15.4%). The social skills gap is, however, lower than that reported for performance marketing (34.3%), and content and copywriting (24.3%).

Marketing Week will continue its reporting of the 2025 State of B2B Marketing survey over the coming weeks.