Proof Of Engagement Stands At The Center Of How B2B Marketing Is Evaluated

B2B marketing leaders face mounting pressures, including a need to demonstrate business impact. How organizations evaluate marketing matters. When Forrester’s Marketing Survey, 2025 asked B2B marketing leaders about the primary ways that their organization judges marketing, eight of the 12 most cited methods require marketing to prove direct buyer engagement. Yet influencing buying networks and feeding AI search with its zero-click answers to support buyer preferences challenges whether tying marketing value to engagement is appropriate, productive, or sustainable. This is a snapshot of Forrester’s data on B2B marketing leaders’ perceptions of how their function is evaluated.