Most B2B businesses I work with focus on the same handful of channels. LinkedIn ads, paid Google search, content marketing, sometimes outbound email. Those work fine. They are also crowded.
The channels I see consistently underrated:
Customer referrals as a structured programme
Most B2B businesses get referrals occasionally. Few have a system for asking for them. A polite quarterly conversation with each existing customer asking “who else should I be talking to” produces more qualified leads than a month of LinkedIn ads, for free. The reason most teams do not do this is awkwardness, not lack of effectiveness.
Specific industry communities
Trade associations. Slack groups. Subreddits. Niche conferences. Most B2B prospects have somewhere they hang out professionally. Showing up there as a useful contributor (not a salesperson) builds a pipeline that compounds. Slow to start. Sticky once it works.
Detailed comparison content
“Your product vs competitor X” is content most teams avoid because it feels uncomfortable. Buyers actively search for it. The team that publishes honest comparison pages, including the cases where the competitor wins, gets disproportionate traffic from late-stage prospects.
A weekly newsletter to past prospects
Not a marketing newsletter. A short, useful email from the founder or sales lead with one thing they have learned this week. Build the list from people who took a meeting but did not buy. Some of them will buy in 18 months. The newsletter keeps you in their head.
Live demos at industry events
The CEO of the prospect is at the event. The decision-maker is two seats away. The conversation lasts six minutes. This still works in 2026. It just takes courage and a clear elevator pitch.
The pattern: these channels require either confidence (asking for things) or patience (building reputation slowly). Most marketing teams optimise for things that give a number this week. The undervalued channels give numbers next quarter or next year. Both kinds of channel matter. Most teams have too much of the first and not enough of the second.
If you want help thinking about your channel mix honestly, get in touch.