The B2B Playbook #191: Why MQLs Are Broken (And What to Measure Instead) - Fixing GTM with Steve Patti
Why MQLs Are Broken (And What to Measure Instead)
B2B marketers are under pressure to generate pipeline. But the truth is, most of us are stuck operating inside a broken GTM system that was never built for how buyers actually buy.
In this episode, we’re joined by Steve Patti — 7x CMO, 3x sales leader, and creator of the Brand Demand Expand framework — alongside Adem Manderovic, co-founder of CRO School and architect of Closed Circuit Selling.
Together, we unpack why the MQL became marketing’s biggest mistake, how misaligned incentives broke sales and marketing, and how to rebuild your go-to-market so it’s actually commercially viable.
Steve shares real stories — including how he used account intelligence to guide $200M in CapEx — and outlines the system he used to align sales, marketing, and product around real buyer needs.
Tune in and learn:
+ Why MQLs are based on “fantasy intent” — and what to track instead
+ How to replace lead gen with real account intelligence
+ What sales, marketing, and CS need to align on to win deals (and renew them)
If you’re a B2B marketer frustrated with misaligned GTM motions, noisy Martech promises, and the pressure to deliver pipeline from people not ready to buy — this episode is a must-watch.
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00:00 Why MQLs Are a Lie We Keep Telling Ourselves
02:10 Sales and Marketing Broke Each Other
04:00 How Martech Incentivised the Wrong Behaviours
06:00 The Rise of GTM Engineers (and Why It’s Dangerous)
07:30 What Sales Used to Measure vs. Today’s Mess
09:00 From Carrying the Bag to Calling the Bluff
12:00 Brand Still Matters More Than Martech Tells You
15:00 Why “Create Demand” is the Wrong Idea
17:00 The Real GTM Fix: Start With Account Intelligence
19:30 Cataloguing the Market: The Mid-Market Hosting Playbook
23:00 A Real Example of ABM Done Right
26:00 The Problem With ABM Without ABS
28:00 Make Marketing the Wingman, Not the Hero
30:00 Stop Guessing: Why Marketing Shouldn’t Chase Intent
33:00 Micro-Events That Actually Move Pipeline
36:00 IVP Fit: Ideal Vendor Profile vs Ideal Customer Profile
39:00 Don’t Waste Sales Time on Unwinnable Deals
41:00 Sales Looks Right to Left, Marketing Left to Right
44:00 Closed Lost Isn’t the End—It’s an Opportunity
47:00 When CS Is Set Up to Fail From the Start
50:00 Reactivating Lost Deals With Class
54:00 The Real Reason So Many GTM Systems Fail
57:00 How PE and VC Killed Long-Term Thinking
1:00:00 The Problem With Building to Sell, Not to Last
1:03:00 Want Behaviour Change? Fix Beliefs, Not Just KPIs
1:06:00 The Pyramid of Beliefs, Values, and Actions
1:09:00 How to Convince the C-Suite to Change GTM
1:12:00 Final Thoughts: This Isn’t Just a Sales Problem
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S07 E191 - The B2B Playbook
#b2b #b2bmarketing #digitalmarketing #demandgeneration #outboundsales