Marketing & Sales for better attribution: Insights from A Leading Tech MArketing Director

FINITE is the private, global community for B2B marketers at tech and SaaS companies. What’s more, FINITE’s podcast is one of the most popular B2B podcasts on the market, with 12,000 listeners in 2023! It’s no surprise they attract top guests, including Mitali Israni, Marketing Director at dbt Labs. 

Mitali has spent the last 12 years of her career leading marketing at large tech companies like EY and Medallia, but her favorite specialism is attribution. Marketing attribution is a discipline whereby experts review marketing touchpoints encountered by consumers as they follow the sales funnel towards taking an action. In light of this, Mitali highly values the power of data for making smart marketing decisions, alongside the expertise to adapt attribution strategies to regulatory changes and technological advancements. 

We’ve collated our favorite takeaways from her interview on the FINITE Podcast here, including how to achieve full-funnel attribution, and how marketing can best work with sales. 

Listen to the full episode here: 

The Role of Sales in B2B Tech Marketing

One of the recurring debates in B2B marketing is the importance of collaborating closely with sales in an increasingly digital landscape. As self-serve SaaS (Software as a Service) models become the norm, how is the role of sales being redefined and leveraged? 

Mitali shed light on this topic, emphasizing the indispensable role of sales’ input, particularly for high-value deals. While marketing plays a vital role in driving demand through various channels and touchpoints, the presence of a salesperson adds a personalized touch and helps address the specific needs of prospective buyers, especially in enterprise markets. This cannot be said for lower cost products with shorter deal cycles, which audiences can travel through easily by themselves.

The Evolution of Attribution Models

Due to advancements in technology, attribution models have undergone significant evolution over the years. They have transitioned from simplistic first-touch (awareness and lead generation focused) and last-touch (conversion focused) models to more sophisticated multi-touch attribution frameworks. 

Mitali highlighted the effectiveness of multi-touch attribution that recognizes the complexities of the customer journey across multiple channels. By assigning appropriate weightage to each touchpoint, marketers can gain a comprehensive understanding of the factors influencing conversion, and optimize their strategies accordingly. To do this, she employs a sophisticated tech stack. For more details, listen to the episode at 11 minutes to learn how she builds personalized customer journeys and predictive analytics dashboards. 

Mitali also gave her perspective on the use of proactive data analytics to better align with sales. Rather than just collecting data, she recommends proactively seeking it out. Too often marketing relies on reactive data from website traffic trackers like Google Analytics or form fills. To prep sales with the insights they need to land high value deals, she collects data to learn more about prospects, their challenges, and needs through market research and customer surveys. 

The Impact of Data Privacy on Attribution

With growing concerns around data privacy and increasing regulatory policies, marketers face new challenges associated with data collection and therefore attribution. Mitali discussed the evolving landscape of data privacy and its implications for attribution strategies. As reliance on first-party data becomes more crucial, marketers must balance leveraging data for insights, and respecting consumer privacy rights.

Looking ahead, the future of marketing attribution will rely on technology, and audience consent. Mitali highlighted the importance of ethical data practices, and emphasized the shift towards a more consent-driven approach to data collection. By focusing on building trust and delivering value to consumers, marketers can drive sustainable growth while maintaining compliance with evolving regulations.

If you’re a B2B tech marketer, register for a FINITE community membership to join peers across the world, get support, and attend industry-leading events. Visit finite.community/membership