This article was compiled with the help of generative AI based on data and analysis that is original to EMARKETER.

Performance marketing still rules, but brand marketing is breaking through.

While performance marketing satisfies short-term goals, brand marketing supports long-term growth by building trust, credibility, and lasting differentiation in crowded markets. A new report from EMARKETER and StackAdapt shows a clear shift in how brands are approaching their marketing mix in 2025.

Here are four stats that reveal the future of B2B marketing.

1. 40.0% of B2B marketers plan to increase brand-building budgets

Marketers are rebalancing their spend to include more upper-funnel activity, according to the report.

• The short-term hit of performance is still essential, but long-term growth depends on trust, awareness, and differentiation—especially in increasingly crowded B2B categories. That 40% planning to boost brand spend signals a strategic shift.
• B2B marketers are not abandoning performance, but rather reinforcing that brand marketing fuels it. Strong brands convert more efficiently, earn trust faster, and make performance spend go further.

2. 45.5% would allocate over half their marketing budget to brand—if budgets weren’t a barrier

Marketers know the value of brand, as nearly half say they’d prioritize it even more if financial constraints didn’t get in the way, per the survey.

• It's a sign that brand is no longer seen as a “nice-to-have,” but as an essential part of a resilient growth strategy.
• In fact, one in four marketers say that if their budget grew by 20%, they’d invest the extra directly into brand awareness within existing channels, according to the report.

3. 58.2% of B2B marketers still dedicate at least half their budget to lead generation

Despite an increase in brand-building efforts, the emphasis on lead generation isn’t going anywhere.

• Marketers currently dedicate 30.3% of their budgets to search (paid and organic) and 28.5% to social (paid and organic), according to the survey.
• But smart marketers are realizing it’s not either/or. The best strategies combine both—capturing demand and creating it.

4. 62.7% say brand is critical to long-term success—but proving ROI is a challenge

While nearly two-thirds of B2B marketers agree that brand matters, ROI remains the single biggest barrier to investment.

• Proving ROI is ranked above budget flexibility, economic uncertainty, and even short-term pipeline pressure, according to the survey.
• Traditional measurement frameworks still struggle to quantify the impact of brand. And when something can’t be measured, it often doesn’t get funded.

The bottom line: B2B marketers are rethinking the role of brand. The mindset shift is happening—but measurement needs to catch up. For brands willing to invest, build, and prove value across the funnel, the advantage is clear: stronger pipeline, better efficiency, and real differentiation in a noisy market.

Read the full report.

This was originally featured in the EMARKETER Daily newsletter. For more marketing insights, statistics, and trends, subscribe here.