TLDR: Most B2B marketing campaigns fizzle after a few months, even though buying cycles stretch over quarters—or years. Research from Ogilvy’s Adaptive GTM framework shows that short-term tactics are at odds with long-term buyer realities. CMOs need to stop thinking in “campaigns” and start building adaptive, always-on systems that flex with both business priorities and buyer behavior.
The Short Game Problem in B2B Marketing
Here’s the harsh truth: less than 25% of all B2B marketing campaigns run longer than six months.
That means most teams are locked in a cycle of:
- Launching campaigns every quarter
- Retargeting the same audiences with slightly tweaked creative
- Reporting on short-term metrics under executive pressure
- Restarting from scratch when results plateau
Meanwhile, B2B buyers aren’t playing on the same timeline. The average deal cycle spans three to 12 months or longer, with buyers weaving between self-guided research and direct engagement with sellers.
Put simply: short-lived campaigns are mismatched to long-cycle sales realities.
The Long Game Opportunity
Research from the LinkedIn B2B Institute has shown that only 5% of your target market is actively in-market at any given time. Yet 96% of marketers expect campaign results in just two weeks. No wonder CMOs feel trapped between brand building and performance pressure.
Case studies prove that companies who take a long-term marketing approach see double the growth of those that don’t. The logic holds:
- Branding builds “memory structures” so buyers think of you when they’re finally in-market.
- Always-on engagement ensures your brand is consistently present, not just at launch.
- Continuous optimization compounds results instead of resetting momentum every quarter.
Enter Adaptive GTM: A System, Not a Campaign
Ogilvy calls this shift an Adaptive Go-to-Market (GTM) system. Instead of treating marketing like a series of one-off plays, Adaptive GTM treats it like a team sport with a living playbook:
- From immediate results → to balanced metrics: Mix short-term pipeline KPIs with long-term brand equity measures.
- From hub-and-spoke campaigns → to holistic teams: Replace siloed bursts with horizontally aligned programs that share insights.
- From short bursts → to continuous engagement: Always-on activity flexes with business priorities and market shifts.
- From set-and-forget execution → to iterative programs: Treat campaigns as living systems that evolve based on real-time performance.
The payoff? A system that adapts with buyers and market conditions—without burning out teams.
How Adaptive GTM Works in Practice
1. Build Always-On Foundations
Instead of launching one-off content campaigns, build content clusters around buyer pain points. Update continuously, interlink assets, and maintain SEO authority so content works 24/7.
2. Align Metrics With Buyer Reality
Traditional KPIs (MQL volume, cost per lead) push short-termism. Adaptive GTM blends:
- Near-term: engagement, pipeline velocity, sales enablement impact.
- Long-term: brand lift, share of voice, customer lifetime value.
3. Integrate Brand and Demand
Stop pitting brand campaigns against performance campaigns. Adaptive GTM combines them—so memory structures built by branding fuel demand capture when buyers move in-market.
4. Empower Agile Teams
Instead of resetting every quarter, establish cross-functional pods that monitor signals weekly (buyer intent, sales input, content performance). The team evolves the program continuously, rather than restarting it.
Why Adaptive GTM Matters Now
Three forces make this shift urgent:
- Economic pressure: Marketing budgets are tighter, but CEOs still expect growth. Restarting campaigns every quarter wastes resources.
- Buyer control: With 70% of the journey often self-guided, brands need a consistent presence to stay top of mind.
- AI disruption: Generative AI and zero-click search mean buyers discover brands in fragmented ways. Adaptive GTM ensures you’re always present, no matter the channel.
Overcoming the Barriers
Many CMOs struggle because Adaptive GTM feels like a mindset shift as much as a tactic. Here’s how to start:
- Reset expectations with leadership: Explain that long-game marketing produces higher growth, even if it doesn’t spike short-term dashboards.
- Pilot one adaptive program: Choose a core buyer segment and run always-on content + nurture + sales enablement for six months.
- Layer in adaptive measurement: Pair campaign dashboards with brand lift surveys and pipeline velocity metrics.
FAQ
Q: Does Adaptive GTM mean no campaigns?
Not at all. It means campaigns feed into a larger system. Campaigns are plays; Adaptive GTM is the playbook.
Q: How do I prove ROI without short-term spikes?
Track incremental gains (engagement lift, pipeline quality) alongside long-term metrics like brand preference and customer lifetime value.
Q: Is this just Account-Based Marketing rebranded?
No. ABM is one tactic. Adaptive GTM is an operating model that blends brand, demand, and enablement into a system.
Short-term campaigns aren’t enough for long-cycle buyers. With only 5% of prospects in-market at any time, the other 95% still need consistent engagement. Adaptive GTM is the shift B2B leaders need: a marketing system that adapts continuously to buyer needs and business priorities.
Next step for CMOs: Audit your campaign calendar. Ask: which efforts are truly always-on, and which are just short bursts? Then redesign one program to operate adaptively for the next six months.
