10-15 years ago, Marketing collected contact info and passed to Sales to educate and create demand. The go-to places to consume content, for Buyers, were sales calls and in-person meetings at conferences.Today, with the way the Internet has evolved, buyers are more independent; they have access to review sites, transparent pricing, expertise content, communities/groups and peers.Sales no longer need Marketing to collect contacts (they can buy them through ZoomInfo and alike). Marketing can be freed up to do the things that matter: transition from generating MQLs (collecting emails & phone numbers) to creating demand in the market, which matches with how B2B buyers want to buy: research on their own and then speak to Sales and buy.As a business professional who executes growth marketing, my go-to-market strategy is:1. Create demand: push value-add information out to the market and therefore create a desire in them to prioritize and solve a certain business problem. Over time, seen as a subject-matter expert, my product is positioned well to be considered when they are ready to buy.2. Capture demand: be there for when buyers already initiated buying (Google search, review sites, retargeting...)3. Optimize the buyer experience: make it easy for buyers now on my site to reach Sales easily and buyThis strategy takes time but there are plenty of early indicators I look at along the way:- Reach and content consumption- Positive signals: New Users from Direct/Organic- Early leading indicators: Handraisers and booked meetings- Lagging indicators: qualified opportunitiesRather than optimizing for vanity metrics like website visits, webinar attendees or MQLs/PQLs, that don't help Sales to win, I create alignment between Marketing and Sales by optimizing for sales qualified opportunities. I look at pipeline velocity (win rate, sales cycle length, ACV), cost per qualified pipeline (qualified=25%+ win rate), marketing-sourced revenue and CAC payback period. I’m a fire starter, driven by internal fire and a deep craving to create. I can’t help but wonder: how can I make this better / faster / easier / more exciting? I’m passionate, craving for learning, intrinsically motivated, big-picture thinker, a touch of healthy rebellion, independent and autonomous.