3. Preempt CFO concerns with finance-ready narratives.
Even with the numbers to back you up, there are bound to be some skeptics who still need convincing.
via GIPHY
When presenting your reports to your CFO, anticipate objections and have data-driven answers ready. Here’s how you can respond to some of the most common concerns and questions:
CFO Concern
Marketing Response
“You can't prove ROI.”
“Here’s our sourced pipeline over 3 quarters via HubSpot attribution.”
“What about long sales cycles?”
“We track touchpoints across the entire lifecycle using multi-touch attribution.”
“Channel conflicts?”
“We report both first and W-shaped influence to show shared impact.”
“Offline events?”
“We log event attendance and sales follow-up in CRM for attribution.”
“Dark funnel?”
“We’re tracking anonymous activity via intent tools and matching CRM entries.”
This kind of preparation makes marketing a strategic partner in growth conversations.
How to Handle Long Sales Cycles and Multi-year Deals in Pipeline Value Reporting
B2B deals can sometimes stretch over 12, 18, or even 24 months. That doesn’t mean marketing’s influence disappears, of course — but it does require some even more thoughtful modeling.
Multi-touch attribution is my personal favorite as it acknowledges every touchpoint that went into a deal while drawing attention to the most impactful.
For instance, the New Breed marketing team used HubSpot's multi-touch attribution reporting tools to prove a 79.8% increase in attribution to their blog posts and 88.4% increase in attribution to marketing emails.
With this proof of ROI thanks to HubSpot, they were able to increase their marketing headcount by 33.3% and their budget by 71.2% the following year.
Time-decay attribution is another good option. This model can highlight sustained influence and late-stage nudges. You can pair this with CRM data, including:
Segment attribution by product tier, vertical, or persona can also be used to create granular stories. Whichever you choose, these breakdowns help CFOs see where marketing investments are working overtime, even if they don’t convert immediately.
Addressing Dark Funnel and Offline Attribution
The modern funnel includes touchpoints you can’t always track in a standard analytics suite. Marketers are getting less access to browsing and private data, and heck, some interactions happen without ever knowing (i.e., word of mouth).
You’re basically in the dark — hence the name “dark funnel.” CFOs want to see that you’re still acknowledging and accounting for these. So, what can you do?
Log offline events manually within your CRM.
Use UTM parameters and call tracking to bridge gaps between online and offline.
Document ABM outreach, dinner invites, podcast appearances—anything that impacts buying behavior.
When CRM and attribution tools can’t cover everything, build custom fields and reporting views that combine qualitative input (from sales) with quantifiable data (from campaigns).
Secure your marketing budget with buy-in.
The smartest marketing teams don’t just generate leads — they generate revenue and can prove it. By implementing automated attribution reporting, visualizing impact through board-ready dashboards, and aligning narratives with finance language, you reposition marketing as a revenue engine.
HubSpot makes this transition seamless, with attribution tools, CRM integration, and transparent reporting that CFOs trust.