So, you’ve been tasked with setting ROI benchmarks for your B2B marketing program, but you aren’t sure where to start.
Well, you’ve come to the right place.
Measuring the ROI of your marketing efforts isn’t just a task for quarterly planning — it’s essential for driving growth and accountability for your business and your marketing partnerships.
But for B2B marketers, where long sales cycles and complex funnels are the norm, setting the right ROI benchmarks can be a challenge.
At Conveyor Marketing Group, we specialize in helping businesses create measurable strategies that align with their business goals.
In this article, we’ll guide you through the process of setting actionable benchmarks across critical marketing areas like funnel metrics, awareness, paid media, organic social and email marketing.
Whether you’re new to benchmarking or looking to refine your approach, this framework will help you focus on what matters most: building a marketing strategy that delivers real, scalable results.
Are you ready?
Let’s dive in.
B2B marketing ROI benchmarks are measurable performance standards that help businesses evaluate the effectiveness of their marketing efforts. They provide target metrics across key areas like lead generation, conversion rates, and campaign performance, ensuring alignment with business goals and guiding data-driven decisions for long-term growth.
Benchmarks also extend to cost metrics, such as Cost per Lead (CPL) and Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC), which ensure campaigns are both effective and efficient.
By tracking these metrics, businesses can evaluate performance at every stage and channel.
Setting and tracking ROI benchmarks is crucial for aligning marketing activities with business goals. They help teams measure what’s working, identify areas for improvement and justify marketing investments to stakeholders.
According to LinkedIn’s B2B Benchmarking Report, 52% of businesses planned to increase their B2B budget.
But with a great budget comes great responsibility.
That’s why marketing benchmarking is so critical.
Benchmarks provide clarity. They guide data-driven decisions and ensure efforts are focused on high-impact activities that drive measurable results.
“With the right approach, you can demonstrate the tangible business impact of your digital marketing activities—from generating leads to boosting brand awareness and beyond. The key is taking a strategic, data-driven approach to your marketing strategy, management and measurement while utilizing best practices for managing and proving ROI on your B2B marketing campaigns.”
– thecmo.com
For businesses just starting to measure marketing performance, setting ROI benchmarks can feel… overwhelming.
Without prior data or clear metrics, it’s tempting to rely on generic industry standards—but these often fail to reflect your unique goals and challenges.
Industry metrics can be a nice starting point, but they can leave you setting goals that your marketing program isn’t scaled to achieve.
Relying on your own business data is almost always the best place to start.
The good news?
You don’t need years of data to create meaningful benchmarks.
By aligning your funnel metrics with business objectives and using a step-by-step approach, you can establish a solid foundation for measuring and optimizing ROI.
"Setting ROI benchmarks for the first time is about creating a starting point, not achieving perfection. It’s better to have an informed baseline to work from than to operate without any measurable goals. As you gather more data, those benchmarks will evolve and become sharper, but the key is to start with metrics that align with your business priorities.
– Meg Cintorino, VP of Marketing, Head of Strategy & Delivery, Conveyor Marketing Group
So, how do you get started?
We’ll start by outlining the framework for ROI measurement through your marketing funnel.
Then, we’ll dive into specific metrics you can track for 2025 and beyond.
The first step in setting meaningful ROI benchmarks is to align them with your overall business goals. By defining success and breaking it down into measurable components, you can create benchmarks that guide your marketing strategy and drive results.
ROI comes in a lot of forms.
We always recommend starting by identifying your business's top priorities.
Ask yourself, are you focused on:
Clearly understanding your goals will shape the metrics and benchmarks you track at each stage of the funnel.
SMART goals aren’t just for fun. By tying each goal to specific, measurable outcomes, you’re one step closer to making sure “ROI” really leads to return on your investment.
For example:
Quantifiable objectives ensure you can evaluate progress and adjust strategies as needed.
But where do you get your quantifiable goals? We can help with that.
Once your objectives are set, use them to determine the required activity at each stage of the funnel.
Here’s a real-life practicum:
Start with your revenue goal (let’s say you’re looking to get $1M in new business this year).
Here’s how you’d work that backwards using your historical metrics:
If you’re setting ROI benchmarks for the first time, historical data can provide valuable insights, even if it’s incomplete or not specific to your marketing funnel.
By leveraging existing sales performance and other data sources, you can establish an informed baseline to guide your benchmarks.
Start by reviewing your sales data to understand past performance. Key questions to ask include:
These insights can help you estimate conversion rates and identify where additional improvements might drive better results.
If you haven’t been tracking these data points consistently, now is a great time to start.
If you use a CRM system, even incomplete data can be useful.
Look for:
Analysis of this data provides a foundation for setting benchmarks and identifying areas for optimization.
Unreliable CRM? We understand that. Manually evaluate the process for your previous 10-20 customers to get a better understanding of your averages for benchmarking. At this point, you’re looking for any trends you can identify, even if your dataset isn’t 100% complete or accurate.
When internal data is limited, industry benchmarks can provide a helpful starting point. Research conversion rates and performance metrics for businesses in your industry or with similar models.
But industry data doesn’t allow you to factor in business size, website performance, digital engagement, brand recognition and so many other metrics. Relying too heavily on industry benchmarks can leave you feeling like a total failure.
When exploring benchmarks by industry, remember that these are guidelines only.
"Think of industry benchmarks as a reference point. Every business has unique dynamics — its audience, goals and challenges. The key is to use industry data as a baseline, then refine your benchmarks to reflect your own performance and priorities."
– Meg Cintorino, VP of Marketing, Head of Strategy & Delivery, Conveyor Marketing Group
Once you’ve analyzed your data and identified your business goals, the next step is to set baseline conversion rates for each stage of your funnel.
These initial benchmarks don’t need to be perfect — they’re meant to provide a starting point that you can refine as you collect real performance data.
Start by calculating approximate conversion rates for key funnel stages, such as:
If you don’t have historical data, use conservative estimates to guide you.
For example:
By applying these estimates, you can calculate the number of leads, MQLs, SQLs and opportunities needed to meet your revenue goals.
Imagine your business aims to close 10 deals per month, and your average SQL-to-Won conversion rate is 25%.
To hit this goal, you’ll need:
This reverse-engineering process ensures your benchmarks are grounded in your overall objectives and tied to actionable activities.
It’s better to set modest targets when you’re starting out. Overly ambitious benchmarks can lead to frustration and misalignment between teams, while realistic goals create momentum and opportunities to celebrate early wins.
Example: Instead of targeting a 50% SQL-to-Won rate, start with a conservative 25%, then increase the benchmark as you refine your strategy.
By starting with reasonable estimates and adjusting over time, you’ll build a benchmark framework that evolves alongside your business and ensures consistent, measurable growth.
Establishing benchmarks is an iterative process that evolves as you gather more data and refine your marketing strategies.
Starting small and making adjustments based on real-world performance allows you to build more accurate and actionable benchmarks over time.
Start with smaller, focused campaigns to test your initial benchmarks. Use these campaigns to validate or adjust your estimated conversion rates across funnel stages.
For example, you might consider running a three-month paid ad campaign targeting specific buyer personas and track how leads progress through the funnel.
These pilot efforts provide valuable insights without overcommitting resources to unproven benchmarks.
"Effective benchmarking is an iterative process. By starting small, testing campaigns, and refining your goals over time, you create a framework that evolves with your business. It’s not about getting it perfect right away — it’s about staying adaptable and learning from real-world performance to drive consistent growth."
– Meg Cintorino, VP of Marketing, Head of Strategy & Delivery, Conveyor Marketing Group
Analyze the data from your pilot campaigns to identify where actual performance deviates from initial estimates. For instance, if your expected MQL-to-SQL conversion rate was 30% but the actual rate is 40%, adjust future benchmarks to reflect the higher performance.
Iteration ensures benchmarks remain realistic and aligned with your business’s capabilities and growth.
Schedule regular reviews (at least quarterly) to assess your benchmarks in light of new data, market shifts or strategic changes.
Evaluate key questions:
Regularly revisiting and refining benchmarks helps you stay proactive and ensures they continue driving meaningful results.
Setting and managing ROI benchmarks is much easier with the right tools and technology. By leveraging analytics platforms, CRMs and marketing automation, you can efficiently track performance, connect marketing and sales efforts, and make data-driven adjustments.
To track performance across the funnel, use robust analytics platforms that provide insights into key metrics. Here are a few we like:
These tools offer valuable visibility into each stage of your funnel, enabling you to identify strengths and weaknesses.
CRM systems like Salesforce or HubSpot CRM help bridge the gap between marketing and sales, ensuring that your benchmarks reflect both efforts:
By connecting your CRM with marketing analytics tools, you create a unified view of funnel performance.
Streamline the process of tracking and analyzing data by automating reporting:
With a clear framework for setting ROI benchmarks, the next step is to understand the specific metrics that matter most for B2B marketers.
From funnel metrics that track lead progression to awareness KPIs and channel-specific performance indicators, defining the right benchmarks ensures your marketing efforts are aligned with business objectives and measurable at every stage.
In the sections ahead, we’ll explore key benchmarks that B2B marketers should prioritize, breaking them down by funnel stage, awareness goals and individual marketing channels like paid, organic social and email.
These benchmarks will provide actionable insights to help you measure success, optimize strategies and achieve meaningful ROI.
"The beauty of ROI benchmarks is that they’re more than just numbers — they’re guideposts that help teams stay focused on what truly drives business impact. By aligning benchmarks with specific goals across the funnel and marketing channels, B2B marketers can confidently measure success and make smarter decisions to fuel growth."
– Meg Cintorino, VP of Marketing, Head of Strategy & Delivery, Conveyor Marketing Group
Alright, let’s roll up our sleeves and dive in!
The B2B marketing funnel is the backbone of ROI measurement. By breaking down each stage of the buyer’s journey, you can set targeted benchmarks that align with your marketing and sales objectives.
According to LinkedIn’s Benchmark Report:
“B2B leaders are allocating their increasing budgets across the funnel. How to allocate budget and spending across branding, lead generation and demand generation, especially during times of economic uncertainty, is a core issue for most B2B marketing leaders. In the absence of a silver bullet strategy, data suggests B2B marketing leaders are allocating budget with a focus on the full prospect funnel.”
But what makes up the traditional B2B marketing funnel?
Let’s review the basics:
The starting point of your funnel. This includes all website traffic, encompassing organic search, paid ads, referrals and direct visits. High traffic volume is a good indicator of awareness, but quality is crucial — low bounce rates and engagement metrics signal visitor intent.
Visitors who take an action that signifies interest, such as downloading a resource. Leads represent the pool of prospects that marketing can nurture into higher-intent buyers.
Leads deemed ready for more targeted marketing efforts based on their engagement, demographics or fit criteria. MQLs are the bridge between marketing and sales, ensuring resources are focused on higher-potential prospects.
Leads evaluated by the sales team as ready for direct outreach. Typically, SQLs are vetted against specific criteria like budget, authority, need and timing (BANT). SQLs reflect alignment between marketing and sales, ensuring only high-potential leads are pursued by the sales team.
SQLs that have moved into active sales discussions or proposals. These are tangible opportunities to close deals. Opportunities are critical for pipeline forecasting and prioritization.
Opportunities that result in a finalized sale and revenue generation. The ultimate goal of your funnel, Closed- Won deals signify success and drive ROI.
Opportunities that didn’t convert, often due to factors like pricing, competition or misalignment of needs. Analyzing Closed- Lost deals provides valuable insights for improving future opportunities.
Existing customers who show interest in purchasing additional products or services. Upsell opportunities maximize customer lifetime value (CLV) and often have a higher win rate compared to new customer acquisition.
Upsell deals that are successfully converted (Closed Won) or not (Closed Lost). Tracking upsell outcomes helps refine cross-selling strategies and uncovers new opportunities within your existing customer base.
But what contributes to B2B funnel success? And how are B2B businesses allocating budget and setting benchmarks?
In the next segment, we’ll cover common ROI benchmarks for various digital marketing efforts.
Awareness is the foundation of any successful B2B marketing strategy. Building brand visibility ensures your business stays top of mind for decision makers and influencers throughout the buyer’s journey. While awareness doesn’t always yield immediate revenue, it drives long-term ROI by increasing trust, engagement and the likelihood of conversions down the line.
According to LinkedIn’s Benchmark Report, Lead Generation (36%) receives the highest share of B2B budget allocation. B2B leaders are also allocating budget to Brand Building (30%) and Demand Generation (20%).
In B2B, where buying cycles are longer and more complex, establishing credibility and visibility is essential for gaining a competitive edge.
The number of guest posts, thought leadership articles or PR placements in industry publications. Articles help position your brand as a trusted authority while increasing visibility among your target audience.
How many times your content (e.g., press releases, articles) has been picked up or shared by other outlets. Pickups amplify your message and increase brand reach.
The number of times your brand or key stakeholders are mentioned in articles, blogs or social media. Mentions indicate growing recognition and credibility in your industry.
The number of new followers gained across social platforms during a specific timeframe. Growing your audience reflects increasing interest in your brand and provides opportunities to engage.
The estimated number of times third-party content that mentions your brand (e.g., articles) has been viewed by your target audience. High visibility often correlates with stronger brand recall.
Leverage platforms like Google Analytics, Meltwater or social media analytics tools to gather data on metrics like views, mentions and pickups. These tools provide a clear baseline for understanding your current performance.
Set benchmarks based on average monthly performance over the past 6-12 months. For instance, if your press releases are typically picked up by five outlets per quarter, aim for a 20% increase in the next quarter.
Research average metrics for your industry to establish reasonable goals. Use reports or tools like Sprout Social, HubSpot or Semrush to find benchmarks for engagement, mentions or media placements specific to B2B marketing.
If your industry averages three mentions per month and a 1% follower growth rate, tailor your benchmarks to slightly exceed these figures to stay competitive.
Ensure your benchmarks align with larger business goals, such as revenue growth. For example, track how a 10% increase in article placements correlates with an uptick in referral traffic that then leads to more conversions, and adjust your goals accordingly.
Paid media campaigns are a vital component of many B2B marketing strategies, offering precise targeting and measurable ROI. To maximize their impact, it’s essential to set benchmarks for key performance metrics. These benchmarks help you evaluate the efficiency and profitability of your campaigns, ensuring every dollar spent drives meaningful results.
The percentage of users who click on your ad after seeing it. A strong CTR indicates that your messaging and targeting are resonating with your audience.
The average cost of acquiring a new lead through paid campaigns. Lower CPLs demonstrate efficient lead generation, while high CPLs may indicate targeting issues or high competition.
The revenue generated for every dollar spent on advertising. A high ROAS confirms that your campaigns are driving significant revenue compared to their cost.
The total cost of acquiring a new customer, including ad spend and related expenses. CAC is crucial for understanding the profitability of your campaigns and aligning with overall revenue goals.
Platforms like Google Ads and LinkedIn provide industry benchmarks for key metrics like CTR (Click-Through Rate) and CPL (Cost per Lead). Use these as a baseline when launching new campaigns or testing uncharted channels.
Rely on platform averages for untested campaigns, but don’t treat them as fixed goals — consider them a jumping-off point for refining performance.
Once you’ve run campaigns, prioritize data from your own performance history. This information reflects your audience, creative and budget dynamics, making it more relevant than generic benchmarks.
If your historical CPL is $175, but platform averages suggest $150, focus on maintaining or lowering your existing CPL rather than targeting the industry standard.
Use historical data as your primary benchmark after running campaigns for a few months, as it provides a clearer picture of what’s achievable for your business.
Combine platform averages with your own performance data for a hybrid approach. Use platform data to validate initial benchmarks and adjust them based on your unique results.
If the platform average CTR is 2%, but your campaigns consistently achieve 3%, set a new benchmark of 3.5% to push for continuous improvement.
This method works especially well for scaling campaigns or evaluating performance in new audience segments.
Regularly compare your results against both platform benchmarks and your historical performance to identify trends and opportunities for optimization.
Organic social media remains a powerful channel for B2B marketers to build brand awareness, engage audiences, and nurture leads. However, because platform algorithms vary greatly from platform to platform, setting realistic benchmarks for your unique brand is essential to seeing ROI from your organic social investment.
95% of B2B businesses utilize social media in some form for business growth. Here are some of the benchmarks you can use to measure the success of your social programs:
The percentage of your audience that interacts with your content (likes, comments, shares, clicks). Engagement rate is a strong indicator of content resonance and audience interest.
According to Beehiiv:
The number of new followers gained over a specific time period. Growing your audience organically ensures a larger pool of prospects for future campaigns and content distribution.
The number of times your content is displayed to users, regardless of engagement. Impressions reflect your overall visibility and the reach of your organic social efforts.
Social platforms differ in audience behavior and reach. For example, LinkedIn is a prime platform for B2B marketers, where professional content tends to see higher engagement rates. Use native analytics tools to identify baseline metrics for each platform.
A few high-performing posts can often yield better results than frequent, low-quality content. Test different formats like carousels, videos and polls to see what resonates most with your audience.
Use tools like Sprout Social or Hootsuite to access industry-specific social media benchmarks. For B2B, compare your engagement rates and follower growth against those of competitors or brands in your niche.
Don’t aim for massive spikes overnight. Instead, focus on incremental improvements, like a 0.5% increase in engagement rate per quarter or 100 new followers per month.
Email marketing remains one of the most effective channels for B2B marketers, offering direct access to engaged audiences for lead nurturing and upselling. Setting benchmarks for key email metrics ensures you’re optimizing campaigns for performance and ROI.
If you really want to dive into B2B email benchmarks, check out this report by Mailchimp.
The percentage of recipients who open your email. Open rates reflect the effectiveness of your subject lines and the relevance of your emails to your audience.
The percentage of email recipients who click on a link within your email. CTR indicates the quality of your content and the strength of your call-to-action (CTA).
The percentage of recipients who complete a desired action, such as filling out a form, scheduling a demo or making a purchase. Conversion rates show how well your email drives tangible results and aligns with campaign goals.
The percentage of recipients who opt out of your emails after receiving a campaign. A low unsubscribe rate (typically below 0.5%) indicates that your content remains relevant and valuable to your audience.
Break your audience into smaller groups based on criteria like purchase history, engagement level or industry. Personalized emails often outperform general campaigns by increasing relevance.
Test variations of subject lines and calls-to-action to optimize open rates and click-through rates. Look for patterns in what drives higher engagement.
Experiment with different send times to find when your audience is most likely to open and engage with your emails. Mid-morning on weekdays often performs well for B2B audiences – but test your own audience! We have also seen unexpected success in random windows like Friday mornings.
Ensure your emails provide clear value, whether through educational content, exclusive offers or actionable insights. Emails that are too sales-heavy often see lower engagement.
Setting the right ROI benchmarks is more than just crunching numbers — it’s about creating a clear roadmap to success.
By leveraging the framework outlined in this article, you can confidently track your performance across funnel metrics, awareness goals and key channels like paid media, organic social and email.
At Conveyor Marketing Group, we specialize in helping B2B businesses like yours navigate the complexities of modern marketing.
In fact, our motto is: No BS. Just ROI.
With deep expertise in data-driven strategies, technology integration and industry insights, we partner with you to set benchmarks that matter and build campaigns that perform.
Whether you're looking to optimize your current efforts or scale for future growth, Conveyor is here to help you achieve measurable results in 2025 and beyond.
Let’s start the conversation and build a plan tailored to your business goals.