The technology's robust lead nurturing capabilities make it an attractive sell to marketers. However, many companies struggle to take advantage of 100% of their marketing automation investment. If you implemented marketing automation technology six or more months ago and are still only using the technology for batch email sends, you're not alone.

Here are a few steps you can take now to jump start lead nurturing and get more out of your marketing automation investment.For today's sales force, B2B buyers are increasingly difficult to reach and engage, and cold calling response rates decrease every year.

Cold calling is no longer an effective method to reach B2B executives today, but it is still all too common. Why? Because many sales organizations are stuck practicing the "proven" methodologies of the past instead of developing a sales strategy for today's digital world. Here's what we recommend to replace your ineffective cold call routine.