Adobe is investing significantly in the B2B marketing space this year. A key focus: the roadmap for Marketo + Real-Time Customer Data Platform (CDP) + Adobe Journey Optimizer B2B, which will offer seamless integration, revolutionary buying group capabilities, and what Adobe is positioning as the first true Revenue Marketing Platform.
For those newer to Adobe's roadmap: Adobe Journey Optimizer – B2B Edition (AJO B2B) is a platform for orchestrating buying group and account-level marketing journeys. It’s built on Adobe Experience Platform and enables real-time, omnichannel engagement across complex B2B sales cycles.
It’s tempting to jump in and take advantage of these new solutions early. However, many businesses lack the foundation to maximize their return on investment. The most successful implementations will come from organizations that time their adoption strategically, not those who rush in before they're ready.
Why Strategic Timing Matters
Adobe's vision for AJO B2B is forward-thinking, but the platform won’t be fully featured for some time. They’re building the solution methodically, which means both Adobe and its customers will benefit most when implementations happen at the right stage of product maturity and organizational readiness.
In B2B, success with advanced martech stacks requires more than just great technology. It requires mature account-based marketing (ABM) strategies, solid data foundations, and organizational alignment. Rushing into implementation before these elements are in place can create challenges for your organization and your customers.
A Phased Approach for Success
Below is a recommended implementation path for existing Marketo customers:
First, Maximize Your Marketo Investment
Adobe is expanding Marketo’s capabilities to meet evolving challenges in the B2B space. The platform built for marketing automation and ABM already offers lead lifecycle management, behavioral tracking, scoring, real-time personalization, attribution modeling, dynamic chat, and webinar integrations, all out of the box. The new enhancements include:
- CRM Sync Dashboards for better visibility into data flow
- Interactive Webinars with Engagement Dashboards that sync directly to CRM and Sales Insight
- AI Assistant for Content Generation to accelerate campaign creation
- Refreshed Advanced BI Analytics for deeper program performance insights
- Data Streams (available for Prime and Ultimate packages) for real-time data activation
And the future roadmap is even more exciting, with an AI agent for product knowledge, a rebuilt Salesforce connector handling larger volumes, a reimagined visual journey builder, and Journey Agents to automate complex B2B workflows.
Use 2026 to optimize your existing platform, leverage new features, and mature your ABM strategies. This preparation ensures you'll be ready to extract maximum value when you expand your Adobe footprint.
Next, Consider Real-Time CDP (RTCDP)
When you've maximized Marketo and have a clear business case, Real-Time CDP becomes the logical next step to establish your data foundation, intent data infrastructure, and buying group framework. This is important, foundational work that deserves dedicated focus and proper implementation.
Finally, Embrace AJO B2B
By the time you're ready for AJO B2B, the platform will have matured with its planned features rolled out. You'll have a solid ABM strategy, a robust data foundation, and an organization prepared to leverage advanced journey orchestration capabilities. This is when you'll see the full power of Adobe's integrated vision come to life.
Questions to Guide Your Timing
As you think about your Adobe journey, ask yourself:
- Do we have a mature ABM strategy ready to leverage advanced capabilities?
- Are we fully utilizing what Marketo can already do?
- Is our organization ready for the change management required?
- Will waiting 12-18 months actually position us for greater success?
For most B2B organizations, the answer to that last question is yes. The smartest move in 2026 is to maximize Marketo, embrace its new capabilities, and build the strategic foundation that will allow you to extract maximum value from the full ecosystem when the timing is right.
The Path to Successful Implementation
The full Marketo + RTCDP + AJO B2B stack has the potential to transform how organizations approach revenue marketing. But successful adoption depends on smart timing, not speed.
By taking a phased approach, you’ll have time to:
- Build the strategic foundation needed for advanced capabilities
- Allow Adobe time to continue refining and completing their product roadmap
- Ensure your team can fully leverage each platform before adding the next
- Demonstrate clear ROI at each stage to justify continued investment
This approach delivers better outcomes, prevents team overwhelm, and creates truly successful Adobe customers—leading to longer partnerships, happier customers, and internal organizational buy-in.
What’s next in connected experiences?
Connected experiences are set to evolve fast. Our research highlights rising interest in visual search, dynamic loyalty rewards, and immersive technologies, such as 3D web environments.
Brands need to look ahead to not just what customers want now, but what they will expect next. That includes:
- Predictive experiences that anticipate needs
- Personalized rewards based on behavior
- Frictionless journeys across all channels
- Greater integration between loyalty, product information, and digital content
The most successful brands will be those that take action today to design connected experiences with people at the center.
