Session Highlights: From Marketing Automation to AI Transformation

If anyone’s earned the right to call out the cracks in the B2B marketing foundation, it’s Jon Miller. As Co-Founder and former CMO of Marketo—and now CEO of a stealth AI martech startup—he hasn’t just seen the evolution of marketing automation—he helped build it.

In his Demand XChange session, “From Marketing Automation to AI Transformation,” Jon sets the tone early. The modern marketing playbook is broken. SDR productivity is plummeting, tactics that once worked are failing, and CMOs are reconsidering their career paths altogether. But this isn’t just a therapy session for exhausted marketers—it’s a call to action.

His main points:

• Why the old MQL machine mindset no longer works (and how he helped create it)
• What true revenue marketing looks like in a post-automation world
• It’s essential to build brand trust in an era flooded with AI-generated content
• Why relationships, craftsmanship, and emotional connection will separate signal from noise

In short: the future of marketing isn’t more automation. It’s transformation. And this session lays the groundwork for what that actually looks like.

The B2B marketing crisis no one wants to talk about

Jon Miller doesn’t mince words: B2B marketing is at an inflection point. What once felt like a well-oiled machine is now showing signs of strain. SDR productivity is slipping. Tactics that used to deliver predictable results aren’t landing like they used to. And many CMOs are quietly questioning the sustainability of their roles—some even advising the next generation to look elsewhere. It’s a clear sign that the old playbook isn’t cutting it anymore.

The playbook that once earned marketing credibility is now working against us. We chased measurable results, built entire systems around MQLs and quarterly pipeline goals, and automated everything that could be automated. For a while, it worked. But now those same systems feel mechanical, rigid, and impersonal. What used to drive performance now drives disconnection. What once paved the way to credibility is now pulling marketing backward.

We’ve optimized ourselves into a corner

One reason the current system is failing is that it was never built to handle today’s complexity. We’ve treated marketing like a gumball machine—insert budget, expect pipeline. But buying journeys aren’t linear anymore (if they ever really were). Multiple stakeholders influence decisions. Touch points happen off the radar. Attribution is fuzzy at best and fiction at worst. Yet many marketing organizations are still relying on spreadsheet logic to justify results and shape strategy.

This is misaligned with how buyers actually behave. The old playbook taught us to optimize every step of the funnel. In doing so, we forgot the bigger picture—relationships, trust, and emotional connection—the exact things today’s buyers are demanding most.

Marketing is not a gumball machine

For years, B2B marketing operated under a deceptively simple formula: more leads in, more revenue out. Budget goes in, pipeline comes out. 

Easy, right? Jon calls this the “MQL gumball machine” mindset—and admits he helped build it during his Marketo days. But what worked in the past isn’t built for today’s complexity.

The playbook that relied on linear logic—X dollars = Y leads = Z pipeline—is breaking down because buying behavior isn’t linear. Buyers do their research off your radar. Buying committees grow and shift, and most of what influences a deal isn’t easily trackable in a spreadsheet. Marketing has evolved into something far less mechanical and far more complex—and that demands a different way of thinking.

Goodbye, linear logic. Hello, real-world complexity.

The challenge now is less about optimizing every lever and more about understanding the ecosystem we’re operating in. Jon compares modern marketing to complex systems like weather or the stock market: full of variables, feedback loops, and nonlinear dynamics. A butterfly effect, but with buyer behavior.

That means attributing a win to a single touch point isn’t just oversimplified—it’s misleading. And it’s why relying on traditional funnel math can actually steer teams in the wrong direction. To succeed now, marketers need a mindset shift away from rigid formulas and toward systems thinking, adaptability, and long-term relationship-building.

True revenue marketing starts before the funnel

The path to revenue starts long before buyers fill out a form. According to Jon, true revenue marketing lives in the power of positioning, brand perception, and emotional connection. If you’re only showing up when someone is ready to buy, you’re too late.

True revenue marketing flips the script. It’s about becoming the obvious choice before the buying cycle begins. When your message is clear, your differentiation is strong, and your presence is consistent, buyers don’t need convincing—they’re already convinced. They reach out to you, not the other way around. In other words, you shouldn’t be chasing pipeline—you should be focusing on earning trust and preference.

Brand isn’t just for B2C anymore

For years, B2B marketers have treated brand as a nice-to-have—something fluffy that lives in a slide deck. But brand is the foundational asset in the age of AI and anonymous research. It’s not your color palette or your tagline, it’s the gut feeling your market has about you. It’s what people say when you’re not in the room—and it’s what gets you on the short list without a single form fill.

Brand done right drives demand, increases renewal rates, and positions you as the market leader. And perhaps most importantly, it creates emotional stickiness that AI-generated content or cold outreach can’t replicate.

It’s time to turn to trust

We’re in a new era of content—where creation is faster, easier, and more scalable than ever. But with that abundance comes a shift: buyers are becoming more selective about who they listen to. When content is everywhere, credibility becomes everything. In this landscape, trust is the filter that guides decisions.

That’s why trust has become the new distribution strategy. Buyers are tuning out the blast emails and ignoring the download gates. Instead, they’re turning to the voices and communities they trust: peers, influencers, colleagues, partners. In this environment, relationships are essential, and for marketers, that means building authentic connections is no longer a soft skill. It’s a competitive advantage.

The rise of the human brand

If you’ve noticed more founders and executives showing up consistently on LinkedIn, you’re not imagining it. Jon himself is leaning into this approach—sharing perspectives, building a personal voice, and becoming a trusted source within his niche. It’s not about going viral. It’s about showing up with consistency, clarity, and a point of view.

This shift isn’t just for founders. Marketers, product leaders, sales execs—anyone can become a recognizable signal in the noise by sharing what they know with honesty and intent. When the market is flooded with “content,” a real human voice stands out. And as AI continues to scale quantity, it’s quality—and trust—that will carry real influence. 

The future of marketing is smarter

The old playbook got us here, but it won’t take us where we need to go next. It’s time to shift how we think. It’s time to let go of rigid funnel math, re-center brand and positioning, and build trust in ways that AI can’t replicate.

True revenue marketing means showing up before buyers are ready and earning their trust through relevance, emotion, and credibility—not just automation. With the right blend of human creativity and AI-powered efficiency, marketers have a real chance to do more than just hit KPIs. We can build something that lasts.

The age of AI doesn’t signal the end of marketing—it’s the opportunity to reinvent it.

Ready to rethink your marketing playbook for the AI era? 

Catch Jon Miller’s full Demand XChange session, From Marketing Automation to AI Transformation, and start building marketing that truly matters.