SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–10Fold, a leading B2B tech communications and content agency, today announced the findings of its 2026 B2B Marketing Budget Blueprint, revealing a sharp rise in budget optimism as B2B marketers head into the new year with more to spend and a renewed focus on brand visibility.
Marketers are changing the way they spend money after a few years of changing priorities and spending patterns. Brand awareness is becoming the most important thing for marketers to spend money on in 2026. This is because they are putting more effort into developing trust, recognition, and distinctiveness in a world where AI is having a bigger impact on how people find things. Brand recognition and content marketing together make up the biggest percentage of planned investment at 16%. This is a change for teams that have always put lead generation first. Lead generation is now at 13.7%, and product marketing is close behind at 13.3%. Companies are trying to make their value clear and stand out in crowded markets.
10Fold hired a company to poll 400 senior marketing professionals in the U.S. and Europe about their spending habits, goals, and hopes for 2026. A solid 69% think their budgets will go up, which shows that they are more confident and that marketing spending is more in line with business growth goals.
The results show a clear trend toward growth: 57% of those who answered said their yearly budgets were between $1 million and $10 million, with the largest group (29%) in the $1 million to $5 million category. Almost half (42%) expect their budgets to grow by 5% to 10%, while another 10% expect them to grow by 11% or more.
Susan Thomas, CEO of 10Fold, said, “Marketing teams are entering 2026 with more money, but they also have to spend it where it matters.” “Brand awareness is the new battleground.” In a world where AI filters everything, the companies who invest in being credible, recognizable, and consistently producing good content will be the ones that get the most attention and expand the fastest.
Marketing leaders are spending money again for a reason:
As budgets grow, marketers are focusing on the programs that most directly help people learn about their brands. Companies are putting more money into advertising (10.3%), PR and PR agencies (14.4%), and corporate, executive, and social influencers (20.7%) to raise awareness and increase the performance of their content. Very few people who answered the survey plan to keep spending the same or less on brand-building or content marketing activities. This shows that everyone is committed to maintaining visibility and authority.
What B2B Tech CMOs Will Look at in 2026
This new discipline in investing is reflected in changing performance metrics. More than half of marketing leaders (56%) have KPIs for brand awareness and content marketing. Close behind are lead generation and performance marketing metrics (55%) and customer marketing and retention KPIs (50%).
AI-powered personalization and predictive targeting (33%), website conversion rate optimization (25%), and SDR outreach (25%) are some of the most important things to do to get leads. This shows a big shift from pipelines that are based on volume to more intelligent, precise conversion strategies.
Budget Confidence and C-Suite Alignment Reach New Highs
Marketers say they have never been more in sync with executive teams. A surprising 89% of marketing leaders think their budgets will help them reach their revenue and growth goals for 2026. Also, 70% say the C-suite fully understands their goals, which is a big improvement from past years. Only 4% feel misunderstood, and this is mostly because lead-generation systems are hard to understand and expensive.
How to do research
10Fold hired Sapio Research to send out an online survey to marketing executives in B2B IT businesses in the US, France, Germany, and the UK who have the power to make decisions and spend money. A total of 400 marketing executives filled out the survey. The results are correct to within 4.9% at a 95% confidence level, assuming a result of 0.05%.
About 10Fold Communications:
10Fold is one of the best integrated communications agencies in North America. It helps B2B “Deep Tech” firms generate brand value and become thought leaders. Our main office is in the Bay Area in Northern California, and we also have offices in Austin, Texas; San Diego, California; and Boston, Massachusetts. Our award-winning, highly specialized account teams are made up of public relations veterans, broadcasters, and former journalists who have won national awards for their work in media and analyst relations, written and video content, messaging, social media, and paid digital services.