MarTech Interview with Tony Uphoff, President of Pipeline360

Greetings, Tony, can you please share a bit about your professional journey and how it led you to your current role as President of Pipeline360?
I have been in the business of building, growing, and leading tech, data, media, and marketing services companies for over three decades. I’ve held leadership roles at Thomasnet.com, UBM TechWeb, VNU Media, The Hollywood Reporter, InformationWeek and Business.com.

Most recently, I led Thomasnet.com through a transformative turnaround and growth phase, which led to its acquisition by Xometry, a prominent player in the on-demand manufacturing marketplace, for $300M in December 2021.

After Thomasnet.com, I was initially going to take some time off and go surfing and play my guitars, but then I got a call from a recruiter saying that the folks at Integrate know me and have an interesting idea of separating out their media marketplace offering and their SaaS platform into distinct business units. Having been in the media business, I’ve known Jeremy Bloom and the folks at Integrate since their early days in the 2010s, so I immediately said yes to the opportunity to run the Pipeline360 business.

Given your expertise, what do you see as the most significant challenges B2B marketers are currently facing in their pipelines? How can they overcome these challenges?
B2B marketers today are facing four key challenges:

1. Acquiring high-quality leads at scale. In a recent survey we conducted on “The State of B2B Pipeline Growth,” we found that 42% of B2B marketers aren’t getting ​enough leads, and 46% aren’t satisfied ​with the quality of their leads.

2. Data governance that assures all leads adhere to local and global data privacy laws and guidelines. In that same survey, we also found that 93% say data privacy and accuracy is important or critical.

3. Analytics that allow them to optimize program performance. In an Integrate survey on “The State of B2B Marketing Budgets,” 50% of B2B marketers say their biggest challenge is using data to inform decisions & measure performance.

4. Outcomes that demonstrably drive pipeline. In “the State of B2B Pipeline Growth” survey, we found that 53% of B2B marketers say they can’t meet their pipeline goals.

In today’s digital-first world, the traditional B2B sales funnel is horribly broken. In fact, according to industry analysts, 70-80% of every B2B purchase process is done before a buyer even engages with a sales rep. And what that means is that Marketing needs to take on a larger role across every touchpoint in the funnel. Marketing needs to align brand awareness with lead generation to ensure that when Sales engages, potential customers are already familiar with their brand.

Considering the ongoing disconnect between sales and marketing, what strategies or practices have you found effective in fostering better alignment between these two crucial departments?
The first step to fostering better alignment across Sales and Marketing is to set common revenue goals. Sales and Marketing should not be competing with each other on attribution – they should be partners in accelerating revenue.

And then the next step is for Marketing to take a full-funnel, branded demand approach.

In today’s world, we often see a convergence of brand and demand. How can marketers effectively balance building a strong brand presence while driving immediate demand for their products or services?
Marketers need to bring brand and demand together concurrently. In today’s world, Marketing’s role is to surface high-quality leads through a combination of targeted display (top of the funnel) and content syndication (middle and bottom of the funnel). Having this brand awareness makes it easier for Sales to engage with prospective customers, and also shifts Sales teams to a more value-added role where they can provide additional content and resources toward a reason to buy, instead of constantly pushing for meetings and demos.

The importance of data privacy and compliance is at the forefront of discussions. How can businesses navigate this landscape effectively to ensure both ethical practices and legal compliance?
Ensure the martech vendors and suppliers you work with are fully vetted and data-compliant, with data privacy looked at from every angle, from federal to state and global regulations.

On a personal level, what strategies or routines have you found most effective in maintaining a successful and dynamic career in the industry?
Embracing a growth mindset is, in my view, the cornerstone of fostering both personal and professional development. Growth is more than numbers; it’s about evolving and expanding our capabilities. Adopting a growth mindset means a commitment to constant learning, resilience in the face of challenges, and a willingness to view failures as opportunities for growth. It is a mindset that perceives obstacles not as insurmountable barriers but as stepping stones toward mastery. In both our personal and professional spheres, this mindset propels us beyond comfort zones, encouraging us to embrace challenges and glean valuable lessons from every experience. As we cultivate a growth mindset, we open doors to new possibilities, unlocking our full potential and fostering a lifelong journey of self-discovery and accomplishment.

Considering your wealth of experience, what piece of advice would you give to our readers who are aspiring B2B marketers or industry professionals looking to enhance their strategies and performance?
Read Carol Dweck’s book, “Mindset: The New Psychology of Success.” It’s the seminal book on the power of a growth mindset, and also the book that turned around Microsoft in the 2010s.

From your perspective, what emerging trends in the B2B marketing landscape do you find particularly intriguing or game-changing?
Marketers are reaching a tipping point in terms of technology, with Scott Brinker at ChiefMarTec reporting that there are currently over 13,000 martech solutions. Yet, Marketers aren’t looking for another technology; they are looking for performance. Companies need more high-quality leads, and they need them now. And in today’s budget and resource-strapped environment, they’re looking for demand as a service.

With the fast-paced nature of the industry, how do you strike a balance between fostering innovation and maintaining stability in your approach to leadership and business strategies?
Balancing innovation and stability in a fast-paced industry involves embracing a customer-obsessed mindset and a bias for action.

Being customer-obsessed involves a deep understanding of your customers’ needs, preferences, and pain points. By prioritizing the customer experience, you create a foundation for innovation that directly addresses their evolving demands.

A bias for action complements this by emphasizing quick decision-making and implementation, crucial for staying ahead in a rapidly changing market.

By combining a customer-obsessed mindset with a bias for action, we can create an environment where innovation is driven by real customer needs.

As we conclude, what final thoughts or key takeaways would you like to leave our audience with regarding the current state and future direction of B2B marketing?
At Pipeline360, we’re addressing the key challenges B2B marketers are facing by bringing content syndication management and campaign management — including display advertising, lead validation and standardization — under one roof with links to CRM and marketing automation data.

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