2X now a Bombora partner; builds more intent data experts to navigate the dark funnel

More and more B2B buyers today are navigating the buying process anonymously, opting to self-educate instead of filling out a form for vendor content or speaking to a salesperson, leaving marketers completely in the dark. It is every B2B marketer’s nightmare.

A recent survey of over 2,100 technology buyers¹ saw that operating in the dark funnel—avenues that marketers typically can’t track—instead of the traditional sales funnel, is quickly becoming the rule, not the exception:

• 41% of Gen Z and 29% of millennials said visiting review sites was the first step in their buying process.
• Vendor-provided information sources such as marketing collaterals, vendor-produced case studies, and vendor reps showed a drop in usage from 2021 to 2022.
• 40% of buyers said having to contact sales for a demo or a free trial was among the three things vendors do that will make them less likely to buy.

Enter Bombora, a leading intent data provider that helps B2B companies pick up intent signals from external sources such as media sites, trade publications, community boards, and forums, and other sources of content on the web to identify prospects searching for best practices and solutions.

“Most prospects only become visible to marketers when they’re 85% of the way through their journey, and by then, it’s often too late. Rather than trying to guess which prospects could be in a buy cycle or trying to stretch a constrained marketing budget to cover an entire total addressable market at once, Bombora provides a treasure map for prioritizing targeting. Bombora is one of the intent data category creators, and the platform provides visibility to who is in the early stages of research and who is in market. This enables marketers to target high-intent buyers, which, in turn, improves marketing efficiency, accelerates conversion, and drives higher marketing contribution to revenue. In a do-more-with-less environment, Bombora is a must-have component of the tech stack” said 2X CEO Domenic Colasante.

We are proud to announce that 2X is now an official Bombora partner, giving 2X clients access to the platform’s full range of features plus a team of experienced Bombora specialists to execute them.

“Intent data is a game changer for B2B, but the hard part is no longer aggregating the information, it’s in activating intent data at scale. 2X understands how to activate intent in B2B organizations of all sizes and this capability to bring Bombora in connection with 2X services will pay large dividends for 2X clients. We are privileged to have 2X in our partner community”, said Charles Crnoevich, Vice President of Partnerships at Bombora.

A Team of Intent Data Experts at Your Fingertips

A 2020 Gartner report predicted that intent data will be an integral part of many B2B marketers’ playbooks in the years to come, but effectively adopting it may prove to be a challenge: “Because the use of intent data is still an emerging arena, the skills needed to plan and manage the related practices can be difficult to find. For instance, there may not be many marketers with experience running ABM programs that use intent data.”²

At 2X, we’ve been reaping the benefits of intent data for our clients for many years now, amassing a group of experienced MarTech managers proficient with intent data platforms like Bombora along the way.

2X Data Analyst Jack Lee has helped numerous 2X clients realize intent’s full potential: “A crucial part of my work involves knowing how to interpret the data that comes in from Bombora, and more importantly, leverage it to optimize our client’s campaigns. For example, how can I use that data to determine what’s the most suitable content to write or the best audience to market to? That only comes with having hands-on experience, using intent data to achieve client objectives day in, day out.”

Our partnership with Bombora spurs us on to continue expanding an intent-proficient talent pool, experts to help B2B companies implement an intent-driven marketing strategy.

For some mid-sized high-growth organizations that might not be ready for a full-scope ABM or Revenue AI platform, the 2X-Bombora partnership allows an entry-level step into intent, providing an easy-to-implement lightweight solution that can bring intent into your organization within just a few days.

A New Operating Model for MarTech Management

A recent Gartner report noted that on average, B2B companies leverage just 42% of their MarTech stacks today, compared to 58% in 2020, and declared that marketing technology utilization is tumbling into a new valley of unproductivity requiring “urgent attention to maximize impact in the face of potential economic headwinds that bring on greater CFO scrutiny or forced budget cuts.”³

Transforming the operating model is key to helping companies increase utilization of existing MarTech capabilities.

Marketing leaders are moving away from assembling their own in-house marketing teams, as hiring and retaining talent has become increasingly difficult and costly. Instead, many are outsourcing their execution functions, particularly MarTech management, to an offshore firm like 2X.

Backed by a highly qualified 2X team, they gain access to a dedicated team of certified marketing technologists who have a deep knowledge of cutting-edge MarTech tools and know how to apply them—at a fraction of the cost of an in-house hire—meaning B2B companies can hit the ground running with their intent-driven marketing strategy.

About 2X

A pioneer in the B2B marketing as a service (MaaS) category, 2X enables operating model transformation that drives growth in marketing’s contribution to businesses’ revenue and overall enterprise valuation. With global headquarters in Philadelphia, US, and delivery operations in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2X comprises a world-class, diverse team of marketing strategists, developers, analysts, designers, and writers who work together to deliver high-impact account-based marketing and demand-generation programs, data analytics, and marketing technology management. 2X’s unique approach brings scale to B2B marketing for greater revenue impact, execution efficiency, and capacity for innovation. It currently ranks #663 on the Inc. 5000 list and is recognized as a 2021 Diverse and Inclusive Employer by The Startup Weekly. For further information, visit: 2X.Marketing/Career.

About Bombora

Bombora is the leading provider of intent data for B2B marketers. Bombora’s data aligns marketing and sales teams, enabling them to base their actions on the knowledge of what companies are in market for which products. The source of this data is the first co-operative of premium B2B media companies. Members contribute content consumption and behavioral data about their audiences. In turn, they can better understand their audiences, serve advertisers, and monetize their inventory. Learn more about Bombora at bombora.

^{1 TrustRadius, ‘2022 B2B Buying Disconnect: The Age of the Self-Serve Buyer’, 2022, Retrieved from TrustRadius}

^{2 Gartner, ‘Emerging Technology Analysis: Leveraging Intent Data for Marketing and Demand Generation’, 2022, Retrieved from bombora}

^{3 Gartner, ‘Disruptions Derail Progress in Martech Utilization’, 2022, Retrieved from emtemp.gcom.cloud}