ABM, Pipeline Growth & Customer Retention: Emre Onat on Marketing as a Revenue Enabler

Emre Onat, Senior Marketing Manager at Forcepoint, has 16+ years of experience in cybersecurity and IT, specializing in ABM, lead management, and campaign execution. He shares insights on aligning marketing with sales, optimizing budget allocation, driving pipeline growth, and enhancing customer retention, transforming marketing into a revenue enabler through data-driven, strategic execution. It’s a pleasure to have you in this interview, Emre. Could you begin by telling us more about yourself and your marketing journey? Thank you for having me! My marketing journey has been an exciting one, spanning over 16 years in B2B marketing, primarily in the cybersecurity and IT sectors. I spent all this time with 4 major IT companies in 3 different countries, where I developed a passion for aligning marketing with sales to drive real business outcomes. Over the years, I’ve led go-to-market strategies across different regions, mainly in the Middle East, Turkey, and Africa, balancing both the creative, strategic, and analytical parts of marketing. What elements contribute to a compelling brand message, and how do you ensure consistency across all marketing channels? A compelling brand message is built on three key pillars: clarity, relevance, and emotional connection. It needs to be simple yet powerful, addressing real customer pain points while differentiating the brand from competitors. Ensuring consistency comes down to having a strong brand narrative, clear messaging frameworks, and tight collaboration across teams. At the end of the day, every touchpoint—from a LinkedIn advertorial to a sales deck—should reinforce the same core story in a way that feels natural, not forced.