How CMOs Evaluate Impact and What It Means for PR

If you’re a B2B tech CMO, you already know the role has never been more challenging to define or easier to misinterpret. You’re expected to be strategic, creative, analytical and deeply tied to revenue. You’re also expected to prove your impact in ways that satisfy every stakeholder, even when attribution runs through a maze of teams, systems and buying committees. 

Touchdown PR’s recent survey with 64 B2B technology marketing leaders confirms what many CMOs feel daily: visibility is high, expectations are rising and the measurement bar keeps moving. This environment isn’t slowing down. If anything, the pressure to evaluate impact clearly and confidently is only intensifying. 

Below is what your peers shared, why it matters and how PR can become one of the most dependable levers for demonstrating real value. 

The Modern CMO Is Managing More Complexity Than Ever 

The findings makes one thing unmissable. B2B tech CMOs carry broader and more interconnected responsibilities than almost any other marketing leader. The survey shows the role spans brand, pipeline, MarTech, sales enablement, analyst relations, partner ecosystems and even product input. Many are also responsible for customer experience and internal communications. 

This isn’t scope creep. It reflects how B2B tech buying works. Long sales cycles, technical products and multi-stakeholder approval paths demand CMOs who can bridge gaps between GTM, product, sales and the market. 

But with a broader remit comes a broader need to justify choices. And that’s where things get complicated. 

ROI Measurement Is Still a Major Challenge 

Only 7 percent of organizations reported having no issues measuring marketing ROI. The rest reported varying levels of struggle due to limited bandwidth, system constraints or difficulty connecting data across functions. 

CMOs are tracking what they can, and the basics are consistent: MQLs, SQLs, website engagement and pipeline contribution. But deeper metrics like content engagement quality, brand perception or campaign-level ROI are used inconsistently, often because the data is fragmented or the process is too time-consuming. 

This creates a scenario CMOs know too well. They understand what good measurement looks like, but they rarely have the time, tools or clean data required to execute it at the level the board expects. 

So when half of CMOs say demonstrating ROI is front of mind, it’s not about insecurity. It’s about wrestling with imperfect systems while being held to perfect expectations. 

Resource Pressure Is Real, and It’s Shaping What CMOs Choose to Measure 

Many leaders noted that their biggest obstacle isn’t skill; it’s capacity and resource strain. Limited time and effort ranked as the top constraint for monitoring performance. Right behind it were system and data limitations. 

This reality forces trade-offs. 

CMOs measure what they must, ignore what doesn’t apply and deprioritize the metrics that fall into the “nice to have but not needed right now” bucket. In many cases, that middle category includes brand measurement and PR outcomes, not because they’re unimportant, but because tracking them is more complex than tracking clicks or pipeline. 

But this is also where opportunity sits. When measurement gaps line up with areas that actually influence long-term growth, CMOs have room to demonstrate value in a way that peers aren’t yet capitalizing on. 

PR belongs squarely in that space. 

What CMOs Value: Strategic Activities That Build Credibility and Acceleration 

The survey data shows that CMOs consistently rate targeted events, analyst coverage and industry press as high-value activities that move the needle with buying groups. Video, research, thought leadership and highly contextual assets also scored strongly as worthwhile investments. 

These activities all share something important. They build trust and visibility with the audiences who shape the earliest and the latest stages of the buying journey. 

This is where PR becomes more than amplification. It becomes a performance accelerator for the rest of the marketing engine. 

The Constant Tension: Pipeline vs Brand 

More than half of CMOs said they’re actively balancing lead generation with brand building. They’re also being asked to show pipeline contribution while maintaining a differentiated position in a noisy market. The findings clearly shows this tension, paired with the added pressure to speak fluently about AI, manage MarTech and keep teams skilled and aligned. 

The CMOs who thrive in this environment aren’t trying to prove every activity generates a direct pipeline. They’re choosing the right mix of strategic and tactical programs, then communicating the value in language that resonates with sales, product and finance. 

PR becomes a connector in this mix, helping tie broader market credibility to downstream commercial outcomes. 

What This Means for PR Teams Supporting CMOs 

PR can be one of the strongest tools a CMO has for demonstrating value when it’s handled with intention. Based on the survey data and years of watching CMOs navigate these tensions, here’s how PR should support the impact narrative: 

Help CMOs communicate impact in the language of the board: CMOs are constantly trying to speak a language the board understands, and PR partners should translate their successes by tying earned coverage and thought leadership to strategic outcomes such as buyer confidence, message control, analyst influence and competitive differentiation. These are leading indicators that support pipeline, not distant brand metrics. 

Turn qualitative proof into clear, usable evidence: Not everything is measured through a dashboard. Strong PR teams gather results that matter to executives, such as share-of-voice movements, analyst feedback, narrative alignment wins or early brand momentum in new product spaces. 

Act as a bandwidth multiplier: CMOs are spread thin. PR should reduce workload, not add to it. That means bringing proactive opportunities, drafting with minimal input and closing loops with sales, product and execs so the CMO can stay focused on the decisions only they can make. A PR team should act as an extension of the CMO’s team.  

Give CMOs the confidence to prioritize: The survey shows that prioritization is one of the biggest survival tips from peers. PR can help CMOs identify focus areas by showing where the company’s voice is strongest and where it can create the most market impact without chasing every trend. 

Connect PR outputs directly to the CMO’s evolving responsibilities: Today’s CMO owns more than brand awareness. Strong PR should support sales enablement, investor narratives, partner ecosystem growth, competitive positioning and thought leadership development. That alignment builds trust and long-term value. 

How Touchdown PR Helps CMOs Succeed in This Environment

Touchdown PR has spent years supporting B2B tech CMOs who function in this exact reality, and we understand how demanding the role has become. 

We help CMOs: 

• Tell a differentiated story in markets shaped by analyst categories and dominant narratives 

• Build credibility across technical buyers, CXOs, partners and investors 

• Support pipeline through PR activities that influence early and late-stage deal cycles 

• Strengthen internal relationships by providing clear, defensible evidence of marketing’s impact 

• Navigate constrained bandwidth with a team that can operate confidently, quickly and independently 

• Align PR activity with metrics that matter to the business without creating extra reporting burden 

You’re expected to show results with limited time and rising expectations. Our job is to make that load lighter while helping you stand out as the strategic leader you are. 

If you’d like support turning this complexity into clarity and impact, Touchdown PR is ready to partner with you.