The B2B Demand Generation Playbook: From Zero to $10M Pipeline

I've built and scaled demand gen programs at companies from Series A to growth stage, generating over $10M in pipeline and $3M+ in closed-won revenue. This is the playbook I use.

The Demand Gen Framework

Effective B2B demand generation has three layers:

1. Capture Demand - People actively searching for solutions
2. Create Demand - People who don't know they have a problem yet
3. Convert Demand - Turning interest into pipeline

Most companies only do #1 and wonder why growth stalls.

Layer 1: Capture Existing Demand

These are high-intent buyers actively searching. Capture them first.

Paid Search (Google Ads)

What works:

• Brand terms (protect your name)
• Competitor terms (capture comparison shoppers)
• High-intent keywords ("best [category] software", "[competitor] alternative")
• Bottom-funnel terms ("[product type] pricing", "[category] demo")

Pro tip: Start with exact match keywords, expand to phrase match once you have conversion data.

SEO for Bottom-Funnel

Create pages targeting buyers ready to purchase:

• Comparison pages: "Your Product vs. Competitor"
• Alternative pages: "Best [Competitor] Alternatives"
• Category pages: "Best [Category] Software 2024"
• Integration pages: "[Your Product] + [Popular Tool] Integration"

At Skedda, our competitive alternative pages generated 5+ customers and $1,000+ MRR in the first 3 months.

Review Sites & Directories

Be present where buyers research:

• G2, Capterra, TrustRadius (B2B software)
• Industry-specific directories
• Respond to every review (good and bad)

Layer 2: Create New Demand

Most of your market isn't actively searching. You need to create awareness and interest.

Content Marketing

Content that generates demand:

| Content Type | Purpose | Metric | |-------------|---------|--------| | Blog posts | SEO + education | Organic traffic | | Ebooks/guides | Lead capture | Downloads | | Webinars | Education + leads | Registrations | | Case studies | Social proof | Influence on deals | | Tools/calculators | Interactive value | Leads + backlinks |

At Skedda, we launched a hybrid-work grader tool that generated 50+ leads in the first month.

Paid Social

LinkedIn and Meta for B2B awareness:

LinkedIn:

• Thought leadership ads (promote best content)
• Lead gen forms (higher conversion than landing pages)
• Retargeting website visitors

Meta:

• Lookalike audiences based on customers
• Video content for awareness
• Retargeting with case studies

Email Nurture

Not everyone converts immediately. Build nurture sequences:

• Welcome series (days 1-7): Product education
• Value series (weeks 2-4): Use cases, case studies
• Conversion series (weeks 4+): Demos, trials, offers

Layer 3: Convert Demand to Pipeline

Getting attention is useless without conversion.

Landing Page Optimization

Every campaign needs a dedicated landing page:

• One CTA per page (don't confuse visitors)
• Social proof above the fold
• Benefit-focused headlines (not feature-focused)
• Form length matched to offer value

A/B test continuously. At Teikametrics, always-on testing improved conversion rates by 5-10%.

Lead Scoring

Not all leads are equal. Score based on:

Demographic fit:

• Company size
• Industry
• Job title
• Geography

Behavioral signals:

• Pages viewed (pricing = high intent)
• Content downloaded
• Email engagement
• Product usage (if PLG)

Sales Handoff

Define clear handoff criteria:

• MQL: Marketing Qualified Lead (fits ICP + engaged)
• SQL: Sales Qualified Lead (budget, authority, need, timeline)
• PQL: Product Qualified Lead (usage-based qualification)

At Ketch, proper lead scoring helped us lower Cost-per-Opportunity by 75%.

The Metrics Dashboard

Track these weekly:

Volume Metrics

• Leads by source
• MQLs generated
• SQLs generated
• Pipeline created
• Closed-won revenue

Efficiency Metrics

• Cost per Lead (CPL)
• Cost per MQL
• Cost per Opportunity
• Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)
• Marketing-sourced revenue %

Conversion Metrics

• Lead → MQL rate
• MQL → SQL rate
• SQL → Opportunity rate
• Opportunity → Closed rate

Budget Allocation

For a $2M annual budget (like I managed at Ketch):

| Channel | % of Budget | Purpose | |---------|-------------|---------| | Paid Search | 30% | Capture demand | | Paid Social | 25% | Create demand | | Content/SEO | 20% | Long-term growth | | Events/Sponsorships | 15% | Brand + leads | | Tools/Tech | 10% | Infrastructure |

Adjust based on what's working. Double down on winners, cut losers quickly.

Common Demand Gen Mistakes

1. No attribution tracking - You can't optimize what you don't measure
2. Spreading budget too thin - Better to own 2 channels than dabble in 10
3. Ignoring the funnel - Only focusing on top or bottom
4. No sales alignment - Marketing and sales must agree on definitions
5. Giving up too early - Most channels take 3-6 months to optimize

Getting Started

If you're building demand gen from scratch:

Month 1: Set up tracking, launch paid search for high-intent terms Month 2: Build landing pages, start content production Month 3: Launch paid social, implement lead scoring Month 4-6: Optimize, scale what works, cut what doesn't

Demand gen is a system, not a campaign. Build the machine, then feed it.