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Ruth Stevens

Ruth Stevens
Ruth P. Stevens consults on customer acquisition and retention, teaches marketing at business schools in the U.S. and abroad, and is a guest blogger at Biznology and Target Marketing Magazine. Crain's BtoB magazine named Ruth one of the 100 Most Influential People in Business Marketing. Her newest book is B2B Data-Driven Marketing: Sources, Uses, Results. Ruth has held senior marketing positions at Time Warner, Ziff-Davis, and IBM and holds an MBA from Columbia University. Learn more at www.ruthstevens.com.

What’s New in B2B Marketing for 2023

Here’s a round-up of new ideas and trends I’m seeing in B2B marketing, to help us plan for 2023. Marketing spend trends for 2023.  The…

New Trends in B2B Conferences and Events

Events have been an essential part of the B2B marketing mix forever, and they are always evolving, adjusting to market forces.  The pandemic was not…

B2B Podcasters: YouTube is Your Best Way to Attract Listeners

Mary Ann Bautista and I first met in the ‘90s, when she was a remnant space broker, and I was buying a lot of media…

Big B2B Marketing Ideas

In-person conferences are back!  I recently had the pleasure of attending two B2B marketing events back-to-back.  Both were hybrid, which is clearly the new standard…

New Tools, Developments and Innovations Transforming B2B Marketing

Business buying is changing, and marketers must change with it—fast.  I take inspiration from Brent Adamson’s new article in Harvard Business Review, with the provocative…

10 B2B Marketing Trends to Watch in 2022

The last time I dared to compile a set of predictions was pre-pandemic, going into 2020. Astonishingly, many of them turned out to be true,…

Forget Rewards: Why B2B Loyalty Marketing is Different

Business buyers are highly dependent on their suppliers, for the success of their own businesses.  Companies need reliable support systems, services and deliveries—consider the current…

B2B CMOs: Shift Your Priorities Beyond Leads

It seems like every week I see a new research report naming leads as the top priority of B2B marketing departments. It’s no wonder CMOs…

B2B Senior Leadership: It’s Time to Face the Truth About Sales and Marketing

The yawning gulf between sales and marketing is a fact of life in B2B companies. What needs to be done?

Why B2B Marketers Should Try CTV Advertising

Over the last couple of years, Connected TV, via channels like Hulu and IMDB, has emerged as a productive new advertising medium. CTV offers two…

How to Find B2B Prospects Worldwide

Do you know of a growing B2B company that sells only domestically?  I can’t think of one.  U.S. producers of products and services for other…

How to Perfect Your B2B Marketing Message

We often think of marketing messages as springing from serendipitous breakthroughs, big ideas that come in a flash of creative brilliance.  And that may be…

Don’t Be a Jerk on LinkedIn

LinkedIn is one of the greatest business tools ever, but it can be misused—even abused. Your reputation is perhaps your most valuable business asset.   So your…

Six Ways to Connect with your B2B Website Visitors

Website visitors are among your most valuable prospects. They have found you, searching around for a solution. They’re clearly interested in your category and it’s…

Fresh Prospecting Ideas for B2B Marketers

Always on the lookout for new ways to identify prospects and generate leads in business markets? This year I’ve come across a handful of services…

What is Sales Enablement, Anyway?

The other day I was invited to speak on retention marketing as part of a 3-webinar series on sales enablement.  It got me thinking:  What…

The Ongoing Challenge of B2B Multi-channel Attribution: 7 Practical Workarounds

B2B marketers have long struggled to demonstrate results along the complex path from a campaign investment, to a sales lead, to a closed revenue deal. …

10 B2B Marketing Strategies for a World Without Face-to-Face Events

The pandemic has taken away one of B2B marketing’s steadiest, most reliable sources of lead generation and customer engagement, on a global basis.  What’s to…

Covid-19 Lessons for B2B Marketers

The global pandemic is affecting every area of our lives and our businesses today.  I reached out to my longtime colleague and friend Roger McDonald,…

New Technologies Drive Trade Show Marketing Productivity

How to explain my longtime fascination with trade shows and business events?  It’s because events often comprise the single largest portion of B2B marketing budgets,…

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