Is it a great time to be a B2B Marketer? Of course it is.

Three times last week I heard or read that '2015 is a great year to be a B2B marketer'. And it is true. There are a great many interesting challenges facing marketers, particularly in business-to-business, today.

Mobile is clearly a sizzling hot topic. The huge adoption of mobile has changed our behaviour and the way we consume information. This affects the way B2B brands engage with their target audience, both in terms of user experience as well as content. Aaron Bean, senior strategist at BNJ, tackles the impact of mobile on UX in his latest blog post, concluding it is well past time to design for ‘mobile first.’ Google's Art, Copy & Code team are exploring how storytelling needs to change to adapt to mobile (with the first conclusion being that you need to actually tell a different story for mobile users).

The importance of data is also not losing any momentum. The fusion of big data with marketing automation is hugely exciting, enabling deep customer insight to steer marketing campaigns, particularly in terms of real personalisation (relevant messaging, timing, channel and device). Another development of real-time data has been the advent of predictive analytics, which improving ROI, as previously ignored or unknown leads and opportunities are delivering significant on-top earnings. There are dozens of articles including from Forbes, McKinsey and The Business Journal on how data is not just changing the way we practice marketing but more importantly the role of CMOs.

The impact of data is also positively impacting content marketing, allowing content to be developed based on real need rather than assumed interest. Data-driven profiles (personas and/or archetypes) allow marketers to gain a better understanding of buyer behaviour and buyer decision-making. Letting these steer marketing messaging and campaigns has a profound impact on relevance, as well as improving value of each piece of content and the efficacy of the channel in which it is distributed. The CMI argue that ‘a data-led approach to your content marketing not only gives you a stronger strategy, but also allows you to identify new opportunities from your competitors’ activity, and your audiences’ preferences.’

These are just some of the things that make B2B marketing extremely exciting at the moment, but somehow it feels a little arrogant to claim 2015 as ‘our’ year. Weren’t the late 90’s and early 'noughties' just as exciting as we came to grips with the Internet? How about social media going mainstream in 2007? That had us going giddy for years.

Maybe it is easier to conclude that 'it is simply great to be a B2B Marketer.’