Too many B2B marketers underestimate the importance of branding to their success — relying instead on product-based differentiation to win. But in the age of the customer, features and functions take a back seat to experience and emotion, which explains why branding is a top-three business priority and marketing initiative for 2017. We interviewed more than 20 brand experts and practitioners to analyze the trends behind this mandate for change, explain the core elements of effective branding today, and highlight the most important challenges to B2B branding orthodoxy.