Intent Data Drives Lower CPCs, Higher CTRs, Stronger Performance In PPC Campaigns
B2B marketers have said that they can typically achieve 2.5-times greater pay-per-click (PPC) campaign efficiency when they use intent-based audience targeting, with a cost-per-click (CPC) coming in some 59.6 percent lower than not using audience intent targeting — two of several findings of interest to B2B marketers contained in newly-published report data. MediaPost

The new Google Search Generative Experience: Here’s what it looks like
Search giant Google has begun rolling out a limited preview of its latest generative AI-based search technology, featuring its new Search Generative Experience (SGE) which will place AI-generated search answers — including citations to the primary websites used to provide them — above traditional search engine result pages (SERPs), Google parent company Alphabet recently announced. Search Engine Land

“The gap between SEO as a performance channel and SEO as a brand channel was already closing, and with all these new changes from Google, we’ll see that gap start to diminish at an even more rapid pace.” — Krista Doyle @KristaKDoyle
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4 Points About Marketing-Sales Alignment
When it comes to improving the joint relationship between marketing and sales, 53 percent of marketing leaders have said that they plan to focus on integrating data throughout their customer journeys, while some 42 percent will optimize the touch-points along those journeys, with 35 percent planning to integrate technology between marketing and sales and service, according to newly-released survey data. MarketingCharts

IBM unveils new watsonx, AI and data platform
Integrating AI into business operations has become the aim of IBM’s newest incarnation of its storied Watson namesake platform, as the firm launched watsonx, which will enable companies to train and deploy AI models along with natural language code generation and more, IBM recently announced. Reuters

LinkedIn Shares Key Milestones of its 20 Year History [Infographic]
Microsoft-owned LinkedIn recently celebrated its twentieth anniversary, and from its initial launch in 2003 through to topping 900M members in 2023, a new infographic from LinkedIn (client) takes a look at the professional social platform’s top milestones over the years. Social Media Today

Google Helpful Content System To Find Hidden Gems In Blogs & Forums In Future Update
A forthcoming Google search ranking update has a primary aim of showcasing helpful online information that may have been hitherto difficult to find, with the inclusion of search results featuring more message forum comments and data from articles with unique topical expertise, Google recently announced. Search Engine Roundtable

56% of B2B marketers have achieved lead generation goals by working with influencers.

New Report Highlights the Best Times to Post to Social Platforms in 2023
When it comes to the best times to post company page content on the LinkedIn platform, Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 10:00 a.m. to noon came out on top in newly-published Sprout Social survey data — which also covers Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest, Sprout Social recently announced. Social Media Today

Generative AI Causes Consumer Search Patterns To Change, Study Shows
Marketers have seen a 41 percent increase in searches coming from Microsoft’s Bing, and some 38 percent fewer coming from Google, while 75 percent said that generative artificial intelligence (GAI) will result in greater personalization, with 74 percent noting that it will allow marketers to get a better understanding of customer needs — four of numerous findings of interest to B2B marketers contained in newly-published survey data. MediaPost

70% of B2B marketers have invested in AI powered search.

The State of Search 2023 [Infographic]
One in five Google searches resulted in a click on the first search result during 2022, while the number of commercial keywords by search intent increased to 12.6 percent from 2021’s 10.6 percent, with transactional keyword searches climbing from 19.3 percent in 2021 to 22.4 percent during 2022, according to recently-released Semrush data. Social Media Today

Scott Brinker unveils 2023 martech landscape
The marketing technology product landscape has seen growth of over 7,000 percent since 2011, with the number of products currently available tallying over 11,000, according to the newly-published 12th annual marketing technology landscape report. MarTech

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE:

A lighthearted look at “Digital Upskilling” by Marketoonist Tom Fishburne — Marketoonist

Mycologist Answers Mushroom Questions From Twitter — Wired

TOPRANK MARKETING & CLIENTS IN THE NEWS:

TopRank Marketing / Cherwell — How to Crush Audience Engagement in 2023 — Marketing Insider Group
Lee Odden — Marketing Leaders Reflect on 20 Years of LinkedIn — LinkedIn (client)
Lee Odden — Must-Read Marketing Books of the Past 20 Years — LinkedIn (client)

FRIDAY FIVE B2B MARKETING FAVORITES TO FOLLOW:

Michele Linn @michelelinn
Carlos Hidalgo @cahidalgo
Doug Kessler @dougkessler
AJ Wilcox @wilcoxaj
Sydni Craig-Hart @SydniCraigHart

Learn more about TopRank Marketing‘s mission to help elevate the B2B marketing industry.

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Thank you for taking the time to join us for this edition of the Elevate B2B Marketing News, and please return again next Friday for another array of the most up-to-date and relevant B2B and digital marketing industry news. In the meantime, you can follow us on our LinkedIn page, or at @toprank on Twitter for even more timely daily news.

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