No matter which goods or what services you offer, an online marketing strategy is key to developing a strong customer base. Even the search for local brick-and-mortar shops has gone digital, as people research businesses online before ever taking step in the store.

At the CEB Sales and Marketing Summit many dimensions and directions of growing revenues were discussed, as was roadblocks to seller success. Brent Adamson, co-author of The Challenger Sale and also of The Challenger Customer spoke about a term that CEB has coined called “seller burden”.

The alignment of an organization’s sales and marketing efforts is a crucial strategic imperative for companies that desire sustainable growth. Despite the evidence of improved business performance, it’s still a rarity to find an organization that has and maintains full alignment. The good news is that the issue is getting far more attention than ever before, and more organizations are making progress.

Marketers have much to think about when it comes to their strategies as we approach the New Year. For B2B professionals, Forrester identified three key areas to focus on: account-based marketing, vendor consolidation and organization and talent decisions that are focus on customers.

Account-based marketing (ABM) is having its moment in the spotlight. Ninety-two percent of B2B marketers say it's "extremely" or "very" important to their strategies. And almost as many - 84 percent - believe it delivers stronger ROI than other approaches.

The year of 2016 was a year of hyper personalization in email. This will probably be even bigger in 2017. If you run email marketing campaigns, you MUST communicate with your audience in a way that is truly relevant and personal - allowing your company to build strong customer relationships that drive sales. Be there for your customers and be the relevant and helpful brand.

It’s no secret that selling to other businesses is tricky. You simply won’t succeed if you don’t take B2B selling for what it is: A high-stakes selling game that requires an entirely unique approach from direct-to-consumer selling.