The New Rules of B2B Marketing: How to Win with Differentiation and Value, Not Volume

“Deeper ICP understanding solves 99% of your marketing problems—including differentiation. Most B2B teams just scratch the surface with outdated personas and miss the real insights that drive action. When you truly understand your audience—their pain points, their priorities, and what keeps them up at night, you unlock messaging that resonates, content that converts, and positioning your competitors can’t copy.” That’s a quote from Tom Shapiro and a sneak peek at today’s episode.

Hi there, I’m Kerry Curran, Revenue Strategist and host of Revenue Boost: A Marketing Podcast. Each week, I bring you sharp insights and expert strategies to turn marketing into a true growth engine. If you’re focused on results, follow the show and leave a quick rating or review to help more marketers discover the boost they need.

B2B buyers have changed, but too many marketing strategies haven’t. In The New Rules of B2B Marketing: How to Win with Differentiation and Value, Not Volume, I sat down with Tom Shapiro—CEO of Stratabeat and author of Rethink Lead Generation.

Tom and I unpack why the traditional playbook of high-volume tactics no longer works, and what top-performing brands are doing instead.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why meaningful differentiation is your most underused growth lever
  
   
• How deeper ICP research can solve 99% of your marketing challenges
  
   
• The real role of SEO today—and how to align your content, website, and outreach to deliver value, not noise

Be sure to stay tuned until the end, where Tom shares how to improve your B2B marketing today—without spending a dollar more.

So if you’re ready to stand out in a sea of sameness and drive smarter growth, this episode is for you. Let’s go!

Kerry Curran, RBMA (00:01.539)
So, welcome, Tom. Please introduce yourself and share your background and expertise.

Tom Shapiro, Stratabeat (00:07.512)
Sure—thanks, Kerry. Great to be here. I’m Tom Shapiro, CEO and founder of Stratabeat, an organic-growth agency for B2B technology and SaaS companies. We provide SEO, content strategy, content development, content marketing, web design, and conversion-optimization services. I’ve been in marketing since 1994—several years before Google existed—and I’ve written several books along the way. My latest is Rethink Lead Generation, which covers the most effective ways to generate leads for maximum results.

Kerry Curran, RBMA (00:52.195)
Excellent—thanks, Tom. This is your second time on, and you always share great, actionable recommendations, so I’m excited to dive in. In your role you speak with many B2B and SaaS CMOs. What themes or challenges are you hearing from them today?

Tom Shapiro, Stratabeat (01:20.854)
A common theme is that what worked years ago no longer does—the old B2B marketing playbook isn’t as effective. They’re asking how to pivot for success. We see highly effective tactics many companies aren’t leaning into—and one underlying factor that changes everything but is often overlooked.

For example, original research—not as a one-off, but as a series you own quarterly or annually—delivers unique value your competitors can’t touch. Another overlooked tactic is website-visitor identification combined with timely outreach. If you can see your ICP on your site, understand what topics and products they viewed, and reach out within 24 hours, that hyper-personalized approach is incredibly powerful.

Ultimately, success comes from deeply understanding your audience and delivering overwhelming value, not gamin