Terminal Science: Media and Technology Unite

The pandemic transformed B2B marketing. The sudden switch to digital tactics dramatically changed the way companies generated leads. Content marketing became critical, and getting that content in front of the right decision makers became every marketer's biggest challenge. This transformed the previously unglamorous business of content syndication into a key channel for generating sales-ready leads.

New Markets

There was just one problem with this approach: content syndication rarely produces sales-ready leads. In the years since the pandemic, it has become clear that while content marketing is great at driving awareness, content consumption is seldom a good measure of purchase intent. This has forced content syndication vendors to expand their range of services.

Anteriad are a great example of the transformation undergone by most of the leading content syndication publishers. They've been buying up telemarketing agencies and expanding their third-party email offerings. The idea being that leads who have engaged across multiple channels are inherently more qualified than leads who have only engaged once. This has helped improve lead quality, but not to the degree that content marketing can replace events as the key driver of lead conversion.

Meanwhile, everyone in B2B marketing has been trying to improve their data management capabilities. Content syndication vendors have been no exception. Many have been buying data brokers in order to improve their media targeting and in-house data quality. A couple of weeks ago, Demand Science took this trend to the next level when they announced their acquisition of Terminus, a dedicated ABM platform.

Data First

Terminus have been eclipsed in recent years by the success of 6sense. However, they are still among the leading ABM technology vendors, offering an end-to-end platform for managing ABM programs from account selection through to campaign delivery and funnel reporting. Consequently, the acquisition of Terminus by a company better known for lead generation and data acquisition is unexpected.

It marks a dramatic shift in strategy for Demand Science, but one which makes sense when considered as part of a broader transition towards data services. Content syndication is now pitched as part of a wider collection of data acquisition solutions, which also includes traditional list purchases and intent data. Terminus's ABM management capabilities are a good fit within the context of this broader service portfolio.

Self-Service

That's because of one relatively understated trend within the data marketplace: self-service. It is increasingly common for purchased lists to be delivered through an online platform that integrates with many of the leading marketing automation technologies. ZoomInfo are the most well-known example of this trend, but they are far from the only one. Demand Science are no exception. Thus, acquiring Terminus can be seen as an extension of this strategy.

It was TechTarget who popularised the concept of content syndication as a technology, rather than as a service. Their TechTarget Priority Engine was pitched as an intent data solution, providing a view of accounts and contacts engaging with content across the TechTarget content syndication network. The key thing is that it provided marketers with a way of purchasing leads from TechTarget without requiring the intervention of a TechTarget account manager.

ABM First

Terminus provides a similar offering to Demand Science, allowing companies to execute their ABM programs within the Demand Science network. On top of that, it allows Terminus to leverage the Demand Science database to enhance their account discovery and account selection capabilities - two areas where they are seen as lacking in comparison to the competition.

The combined entity then provides an end-to-end ABM offering for marketers. That's important to Demand Science, given that content syndication is struggling to provide value as a lead generation channel. It's still a useful channel for driving engagement at target accounts and expanding awareness within the buying group. However, marketers are generally reluctant to commit their entire ABM awareness program to one vendor. Selling the tools to manage that program, is a valuable hedge against that risk.

Oracle Eloqua 24D Release

This month's Eloqua release marks a major milestone for the platform. Oracle's new Redwood UI has been in beta for what seems like years now. Over time it has expanded to cover more areas of the Eloqua platform, including some that missed the migration from the legacy Eloqua 9 interface. This month, Redwood finally reaches general availability, which means it becomes the default Eloqua UI.

Maximising Marketing Automation ROI

Understanding the effectiveness of your marketing efforts has never been more important. And understanding how your marketing technologies and systems are contributing to - or hindering - success is equally crucial. This new blog from CRMT Digital explains the thinking behind their new System Health Check service.

Marketing Operations Roadmap Matrix

A Marketing Operations Roadmap is an essential strategic tool that aligns marketing priorities with your overall business goals. Any roadmap begins with understanding where your marketing organisation is right now, and then defining where you want to get to. This free Marketing Operations Roadmap Matrix from CRMT Digital allows you to do exactly that.

,