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In today’s episode of the Marketer’s Journey, I interview Jessica Gilmartin, CMO of Calendly. You’ve probably used Calendly to book meetings, appointments and organize your busy schedule- but how does Jessica juggle their astounding 20 million users? We dive into that today while tracing Jessica’s nontraditional route to CMO from investment banking, and explore her two decades' worth of B2B and B2C experience. We also discuss how Jessica is redefining what Calendly can be for an organization, how she segments users, and why marketers need to understand the people, the story, and the data.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Spotify

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Effective CMOs are well-rounded. Jessica stresses that effective CMOs need to understand every aspect of marketing, because every decision they make will impact the brand's image and messaging. She also says that having a well-rounded understanding of marketing allows her to be a more empathic and effective leader.
• Team communication is key. Jessica says she spends a lot of time focusing on how she can create an effective communication process with her team. Marketing teams work best when everyone understands what they are doing, why they are doing it, and how it ladders back into company goals.
• Find the right level of engagement. When deciding what path to send leads down, Calendly focuses on key personas when sending leads to a salesperson. Most leads don’t need to speak with a customer service person, so sales shouldn't be flooded with leads who don’t need them. Jessica and Calendly are constantly tweaking their lead scoring to make sure the level of engagement each lead receives is right for them.

Learn more about Calendly here: https://calendly.com/

Learn more about Jessica here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicagilmartin

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In this episode of the Marketer’s Journey, host Randy Frisch sits down with Jennifer Ravalli, CMO of Harri. Jennifer is an award-winning executive who is passionate about HR tech. During her year at Harri, the company has been rapidly growing, which has meant that Jennifer has had to create clear frameworks for determining their best-fit market and expand their ideal customer profile. In this episode, Randi and Jennifer discuss her time at Harri, where content lives in the funnel, and how she is leveraging ABM as Harri grows.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Saying no is just as important as saying yes. Jennifer and her team are very clear on what they will and won’t do. She says that making sure the team is on the same page about strategy and expectations means there is room to pivot and adapt, while staying on track.
• Be a leader, not just a marketer. Jennifer emphasizes that at the beginning of your career, you’re paid for what you do, and later on, you’re paid for what you know. To be an effective leader, you need to share that knowledge with your team and allow them to execute ideas.
• Account executives need to be part of the funnel. Jennifer believes that as a buyer approaches the middle of the funnel, an account executive should step in, and help build the case for why the buyer needs to make a change and continue down the funnel.

Learn more about Harri here: https://harri.com/

Learn more about Jennifer here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferravalli

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Welcome back to The Marketer's Journey! In this episode, Randy sits down with Susan Beermann, CMO at Contentstack. As a three-time CMO and former salesperson, Susan brings years of expertise to the table and has worked to build Contentstack’s marketing team from the ground up. Today the team has over 50 people, and Susan is a leader who wants to keep her team empowered to do their jobs. Susan shares how she does just that, along with what she sees as the role of BDRs in the marketing team, the role of automation, and her predictions for the future.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Look for leads who are qualified and ready. Contentstack is a technology that is disrupting the traditional CMS space, and Susan emphasizes that in addition to being qualified, leads also need to be ready to embrace new technology.
• Enable your managers to manage. As a CMO, Susan doesn’t have the time to review every single budget and decision. That's why she ensures her managers have the tools and oversight they need to run their teams successfully without having to constantly come to her.
• You need a system. When Susan first started at Contentstack, there weren’t systems in place to ensure that everyone was on the same page. One of the first things Susan did was create a process of checks and balances to ensure that the right decisions were being made and that the right people were aware of what was going on.

Learn more about Contentstack here: https://explore.contentstack.com/

Learn more about Susan here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/susancbeermann

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In this episode of the Marketer's Journey, I had the pleasure of interviewing Peter Mullen, CMO of Interactions. With a background in communications and tech, including his time at Netflix during their CD-mailing era, Peter's expertise has been shaped by his journalism roots. Today's episode revolves around the central theme of communication, a vital aspect that Peter emphasizes as a CMO. Interactions specializes in developing intelligent virtual assistants that offer personalized service at every stage of the buyer's journey, so Peter has navigated balancing AI's capabilities to enhance communication, foster trust, and instill confidence, all while maintaining authentic human connections. Our conversation delves into empowering teams, finding the equilibrium between technology and human interaction, and "yelling at robots."

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Spotify

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Communicate the value you bring. Peter emphasizes that it is crucial that you effectively communicate with everyone inside and outside your organization the value you bring to the marketplace. Effective messaging will ladder back into your value proposition.
• Don’t lose the human connection. Peter believes that there must always be a human engaged in communication to deliver an outstanding experience. While AI is important and here to stay, there should always be a human guiding the process.
• The perfect formula is trust and confidence. Peter’s North Star is nurturing trust and connection on the buyer's journey. Using tools like those developed by Interactions is one of the ways in which organizations can foster trust and decrease frustration.

Learn more about Interactions here: https://www.interactions.com/

Learn more about Peter here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phmullen

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Welcome back to The Marketer’s Journey. In this episode, I interview Caroline Goles, CMO of Pax8. With an impressive reach, Pax8 collaborates with a staggering 30,000 partners, all the while catering to the needs of a customer base totalling 500,000. Caroline manages a team of 65 marketers serving 17 markets, and uses her background in sales strategy to propel growth and manage her team efficiently. We have a great conversation about getting the right content in front of the right audience, working as a single team, and why marketing is the perfect combination of science and art.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Spotify

Key takeaways from this episode:

• You have to be a learner. Caroline stresses that the best salespeople and marketers are learners who don’t pretend to know everything. This is especially important when working across 80 product lines as they do at Pax8. A willingness to learn is what creates great marketers and salespeople.
• Make content that educates. Caroline believes that part of the reason a lot of content goes unread is because it doesn’t educate. At Pax8 they make content that helps prospects understand why their solutions are good for their business, and what pain points they will help them solve.
• Don't be afraid of failure. As a former science major, Caroline likes to think about experimentation in marketing as a scientific experiment. Even if your hypothesis fails, you’ve gained data that you can use to innovate and create better solutions and products.

Learn more about Pax8 here: https://www.pax8.com/en-us/

Learn more about Caroline here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolinegoles

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In this episode of the Marketer’s Journey, I interview Alyssa Hall, CMO of CDI. Alyssa has never worked in the same industry twice and pivoted from roofing and manufacturing when she joined CDI. CDI is an I.T. integration company that has experienced tremendous growth, expanding from $250 million to $1 billion in revenue in the past couple years. Alyssa has navigated and managed that growth while simultaneously building a cohesive brand as CDI went through multiple acquisitions. We discuss how her career led her to become a CMO, bringing teams together after acquisitions, and pushing yourself out of your comfort zone.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Spotify

Key takeaways from this episode:

• It’s ok to be a little uncomfortable. Alyssa loves the work she does, but she also stresses that she had to step outside her comfort zone to get where she is today. As a brand marketer, she learned how to be a data-driven as she stepped into her role as CMO.
• Do the job you want before you have it. Alyssa knew that her goal was to become a CMO. As CDI grewm she continually stepped up to the plate and demonstrated her ability to do the job…and it paid off.
• Content needs to solve problems. Whether it's inbound or outbound, Alyssa stresses that what gets people to click on content is relevance. Content that promises to solve a pain point is what earns a click.

Learn more about CDI here: https://www.cdillc.com/

Learn more about Alyssa here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alyssajhall

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I’m joined by Rob Gonzalez, CMO and co-founder of Salsify. Rob is an ‘accidental CMO,’ with a background in engineering and product management and design. He took on the role of salesperson when he and his co-founder started Salsify and from there, eventually scaled the marketing plan to keep up with Salsify’s rapid growth. As a founder, he’s stayed focused on where he can add the most value to the organization and ensuring they stay true to the tactics that drive awareness and growth. In this episode, we discuss a founder's role as a super-generalist, Rob’s path to CMO, and why running too many experiments at once can be a bad thing.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Spotify

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Less is more. Rob believes that many young marketers fall into the trap of trying too many things at once. This can lead to attribution problems on top of being exhausting for marketing teams. Give yourself and your team the chance to discover what strategy is working before jumping onto the next marketing trend.
• Stick to the tactics that work for you. Rob and his team were aware from the start that advertising was not going to be effective in awareness building for their category. Instead, they focused on strategic outreach and invested in that tactic once it delivered results.
• CMOs need to be comfortable with numbers. Rob believes that CMOs must be good with quantitative revenue marketing, which means being able to analyze the numbers in front of you and understand how they inform your strategies.

Learn more about Salsify here: https://www.salsify.com/

Learn more about Rob here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robgonzalez

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I sit down with Bryan Law, CMO of ZoomInfo. As the CMO of an organization that does over a billion dollars in revenue, Bryan brings unique insight into how to continue to achieve a high level of growth and lead a large team of marketers to success. We discuss consistently looking for new opportunities for growth and how to identify areas for improvement through leveraging both data and content. We also dive into his twelve years as a consultant and his time at other public companies including Salesforce, Google and Rackspace, and how he translates those experiences into his role as CMO.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Spotify

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Create messaging pillars. Bryan stresses the importance of creating high-level messaging pillars that ensure consistent content across channels. Once these have been established, sales and marketing messaging can both ladder into the pillars for consistency and connectivity.
• B2B customers want to unlock data. After surveying customers and prospects in Q4, Bryan and ZoomInfo discovered that B2B respondents want to leverage data to engage with customers in an integrated way, and improve conversion rates through automation and scaling.
• Sales and marketing teams need to be aligned. Bryan believes that in the current economic climate, sales and marketing teams need to be aligned on overall goals and the metrics that will be used to measure success. He thinks that there is waste between those two departments and that increased connectivity is where the market is going.

Learn more about ZoomInfo here: https://www.zoominfo.com/

Learn more about Bryan here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryanbasdenlaw?

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Shay Howe, CMO of ActiveCampaign. He lets the audience in on his unique career journey so far, including how he’s had multiple diverse roles that have all touched go-to-market strategy, but often from more of the design or product perspective. Shay also shares how he landed his current role as CMO by sticking to what he loves, and the benefits of a product-led growth strategy.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• There’s wisdom in letting go. When he transitioned in his current role as CMO, Shay inevitably had to let go of control when it came to some of the elements he had worked so closely on for so long, including design. Shay reminded us that letting go doesn’t happen overnight—it’s all part of evolving into a leadership role.
• Stay engaged. With the marketing world continuing to change a mile a minute, CMOs need to constantly stay on their toes to roll with the punches. Shay says part of his strategy as CMO is to constantly be re-evaluating your plans to see if they make the most sense in the current climate.
• Embrace automation while retaining humanity. Shay believes there’s a sweet spot to be found between leveraging AI to be more efficient and adding a human touch to every customer interaction. Every touchpoint within the customer journey is crucial, so it needs to feel personalized every step of the way.

Learn more about ActiveCampaign here: https://www.activecampaign.com/

Learn more about Shay here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shayhowe/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview John Solomon, CMO of Therabody, the well-known brand behind Theragun. John discusses how he’s helped to take the brand to the next level since joining in 2021, and how a big part of his strategy has included positioning the product as an essential component of a specific lifestyle. By making this connection, he believes that customers will be empowered to view the product as an integrated lifestyle solution that they can benefit from on an everyday basis.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Think holistically. John’s experience working with brands like Beats by Dre taught him to integrate digital touchpoints from the beginning to create a holistic experience from start to finish. That way, he was able to act as the voice of the consumer while merging this knowledge with the expertise of his team.
• Ensure your influencer strategy is relatable. John mentioned that when developing the company’s influencer strategy, it was important to consider that it featured a mix of aspirational and relatable figures. For example, in addition to working with athletes like Cristiano Ronaldo and LeBron James, they also made a point of educating consumers and demonstrating how the product fits into the lifestyle of an everyday person.
• Build the brand through the products. With Therabody, the team’s focus is to continue building the brand through products like Theragun. By placing the emphasis on the product’s benefits, John and the team have been effectively positioning the company within the health and wellness market while continuing to build relationships with customers.

Learn more about Therabody here: https://www.therabody.com

Learn more about John here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnsolo/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Bill Talbot, CMO of OpsRamp. This is an interesting episode because just before the interview, OpsRamp was acquired by the well-known brand Hewlett Packard Enterprise. We take advantage of this timing to discuss what this acquisition will mean for OpsRamp, what it means for Bill as CMO, and how he’s planning on navigating the change.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Avoid getting hung up on titles. Throughout his career, Bill has held several various roles, responsibilities, and titles. Rather than getting hung up on titles, he’s always been focused on the kind of impact he can make, the company culture, and the team he’s working with—which has ultimately led him toward the right path for his own career development.
• Demonstrate success to sellers. Bill talks about why, as the team begins to navigate the post-aquisition shift, it will be crucial to grab the attention of sellers and win them over. Part of his strategy to do this is pointing to some of the joint successes OpsRamp and HP have seen in recent years in order to demonstrate their proven track record.
• Prioritize the customer. Bill also notes that when it comes to building relationships, it’s important to show the customer that you genuinely care about their concerns on a regular basis—not just when it’s getting close to renewal time. Authenticity is key, so learning to build real relationships with customers is pivotal.

Learn more about Redwood OpsRamp here: https://www.opsramp.com/

Learn more about Bill here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/btalbotjr/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Wendy Steinle, CMO at Domo, a cloud software company. Wendy has worked across a variety of sectors prior to her time at Domo, including positions at Adobe, Novell, and Degreed. Throughout her career, she’s tied her love of words with data to become a well-rounded marketer and storyteller. Wendy believes strongly in needing a robust content marketing strategy that connects with people throughout the buyer's journey—and that positioning yourself in a place of trust is key to conversion. In today’s episode, we discuss the importance of having a variety of experiences to be a great CMO, the human element of marketing, and the importance of consistent messaging.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Spotify

Key takeaways from this episode:

• People buy from people they trust. Wendy stresses the importance of trust in the buyer's journey. Humanizing your marketing and anchoring your strategy in a human approach fosters trust and connection, which can ultimately lead to conversions.
• Connect your content. Your content strategy should connect a consistent message and compelling story to resonate with different buyers.
• Be a full-journey marketer. Wendy and her team look at every step of the buyer’s journey in depth, developing personas and pain points for each, and then creating strategies for reaching each persona and addressing their questions.

Learn more about Domo here: https://www.domo.com/

Learn more about Wendy here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendysteinle

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Bryan Urioste, CMO of Redwood Software. Bryan has spent his career in the tech world, becoming an expert at building revenue acquisition strategies for long-term growth. We discussed his path to becoming a CMO and the opportunities marketers have to invest in customer marketing. Bryan shares his insights into announcing acquisitions, the role of newsletters, and finding work-life balance.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Talk to your customers. Bryan believes that too many marketers don’t take advantage of the amazing resource that is their customers. By talking with customers, you can discover their pain points and solve them, and also uncover opportunities for growth you would otherwise be unaware of.
• Invest in customer marketing. Bryan emphasizes the value of investing in tools that will help your team understand what your customers are thinking. He emphasizes the huge growth opportunity in leveraging customer marketing and giving current customers additional value.
• Raise your hand. Bryan was able to develop a wide array of skills and advance in his career by raising his hand and taking on new projects, even when they seemed difficult. He’s a believer that every job gives you new skills and helps you grow, even if you eventually realize the role isn’t the right fit.



Learn more about Redwood Software here: https://www.redwood.com

Learn more about Bryan here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/b2bonlinemarketing

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Stephen Gold, CMO at SparkCognition. Stephen brings a holistic view to his role, having served as CEO and President at his previous companies, Azerty and Aberdeen Group. Trained as an engineer, he later became passionate about marketing and made it his career focus. We discuss the importance of knowing what makes your product relevant, the role of AI in marketing, and why marketers need to tell relatable stories.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• The CMO role is about more than being a great marketer. Stephen has learned that being a great CMO comes down to much more than being an expert marketer. CMOs need to understand their product and the industry inside and out, which means learning how to effectively communicate with leaders across their company and following what's going on in the world that will keep their product relevant.
• Segment your stories and sell solutions. Stephen emphasizes the importance of segmenting the story you tell prospective clients to fit their pain points. The value you bring each buyer will inherently be different, so aim to package the story to be relatable to them and their needs. To manage these different stories, he recommends finding a basic common thread that applies to all of them.
• Sell solutions. Stephen knows that no one is going to raise their hand and ask to be sold to. People lean into stories they find value in and relate to, so marketers need to ensure that the top of the funnel knows what the company can do for them and what challenges they will help them solve.
• AI will be a marketer's best friend. Stephen wants marketers to embrace AI. AI used to be about what it could do for your customers, but now it's about what it can do for you and your communications strategy.

Learn more about SparkCognition here: https://www.sparkcognition.com/

Learn more about Stephen here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephengold

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Joe Sawyer, CMO at Mirakl. Joe began his career as one of the first e-commerce analysts and witnessed the dot-com boom, then became a CMO of an e-commerce company, bringing his journey full circle. I was eager to hear how his experience as an analyst has informed his current approach, and what he thinks most CMOs misunderstand about the role of analysts. We discuss when to use an analyst and when to use your company’s own internal knowledge, and the importance of focus for a robust marketing strategy.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Don’t see your relationship with analysts as transactional. Joe believes that CMOs and MarTech executives fundamentally misunderstand the role of analysts. Analysts like to engage and ask big questions about the ‘whys’ of your company, and you need to prove to them that your company or tech is the next big disruptor in the market. If you understand they are your partners, they can help you shape your organization’s story.
• Externalize the internal. Joe believes vendors need to remember that they have a lot of value internally, which they can ultimately transform into external assets. Creating assets that are independently valuable is a key lead-generating tool, and empowering internal thought leaders with the tools they need to create these assets is something that Joe believes is often overlooked. Sometimes you don’t need an analyst paper—you have all the tools you need already.
• Don’t create a category, redefine one. Joe believes that instead of creating a new category, organizations need to redefine a static, existing one. The way forward for many vendors is to disrupt how a category is perceived, while redefining the needs and expectations of the space.

Learn more about Mirakl here: https://www.mirakl.com

Learn more about Joe here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joe-sawyer-a4255

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Latané Conant, CMO at 6sense, who I previously interviewed more than three years ago at the tail-end of 2019. Of course, a lot has changed since we last spoke, so I was eager to hear her exciting updates about how much her team has grown over the years. We discuss how buyer expectations have shifted, how she’s managing those changes alongside her colleagues, and how she encourages everyone on her team to help move the needle.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Don’t fall too far behind the wave. Latané uses an imaginative analogy to explain the importance of keeping up the momentum during stages of high-growth. When wake-surfing, it’s important that you avoid falling too far back behind the wave—otherwise, no amount of movement will help you stay afloat. The same goes for companies that are growing fast: hiring should be a top priority if you hope to keep pace.
• Understand your employee value proposition. Latané believes that learning to hire well is one of the most important aspects of the CMO role. Part of this includes communicating your company’s value proposition clearly to candidates. For example, she mentioned that at 6sense, work/life balance isn’t a major draw for the organization, but since it offers such a high-growth experience, they can guarantee that employees will learn a lot on the job—and fast.
• Take the time to communicate effectively. Latané also reminds us of the importance of clear communication, especially as we scale. Regardless of the size of your marketing team, we live in a world that’s changing rapidly. It’s essential that leaders take the time to sit down with their teams and explain the things that people may not see on the surface.

Learn more about 6sense here: https://6sense.com/

Learn more about Latané here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/latane-conant/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Kelly Buchanan Spillers, CMO at Infor, a large organization with over $3 billion in revenue and 7,000 customers in 70 countries. The company was acquired by Koch Industries a number of years ago for a massive sum of $13 billion. Kelly came to Infor after leading digital marketing at L’Oreal, so she has a lot of insights to share about bringing B2C strategies into a B2B organization.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Always put the consumer first. Coming from a B2C background, Kelly started her role at Infor with the mindset that marketing teams should always be prioritizing the consumer’s needs. Despite not having a set B2B playbook to work from, Kelly used her B2C background from L’Oreal to communicate with Infor’s customers in a way that would resonate.
• Position your brand as a market expert. When it comes to carving out an authoritative position in the market, Kelly says she and the team at Infor have been focused on establishing the brand as high-level experts for specific industries. By communicating their expertise in certain niche areas, Infor has been able to set themselves apart from the competition and earn customers’ trust.
• Go back to basics. Recently, Kelly and the team at Infor have been taking a more holistic approach to the brand, ensuring that their online presence is clean and consistent across the board. When she first started as CMO, one of the first tasks she and the team undertook was to clean up anything that could be diluting their brand equity, and create streamlined brand guidelines to protect the brand’s image.

Learn more about Infor here: https://www.infor.com/

Learn more about Kelly here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellybuchanan/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Sandeep Singh Kohli, CMO at Venafi. Coming from a product marketing background, Sandeep has a strong passion for the technology space, and his impressive career reflects that. During our conversation, we discuss concepts like embracing the voice of the customer, as well as realizing the responsibility we have as marketers at every stage of the buyer journey.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Do your homework. Venafi is a company that’s growing exponentially because so many brands are in need of their solution, so I was curious to know how Sandeep and the team strategized to achieve this. He mentioned that a part of the company’s success was just honest luck, but they also committed to doing their homework by really understanding the market, talking to the right people and researching the different buyer personas within the landscape.
• Keep messaging consistent. Sandeep mentioned that there are two aspects of customer marketing: marketing to customers, which relies on demand gen and growth marketing, and leveraging the customer's voice and advocacy for marketing, which tends to rely on content strategy. As an organization matures and there’s a steady flow of opportunities, Sandeep says it’s essential that the team remains consistent with its messaging to maintain momentum.
• The responsibilities of a CMO have shifted. Sandeep noted that over the years, we’ve witnessed several different generations of marketing, and as the industry has evolved, so have the expectations surrounding the CMO role. Now, CMOs are considered responsible for driving revenue throughout the various stages of the funnel like closing, retention and cross-selling.

Learn more about Venafi here: https://venafi.com/

Learn more about Sandeep here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/skohli1/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Ashley Kramer, CMO and CSO at GitLab—a company that’s a true force in the DevOps space. Having previously held roles as Chief Product Officer at Sisense and GM at Tableau Software, Ashley has plenty of wisdom to share about taking an unconventional route to the CMO role. She also offers her perspective on how to make all customers feel welcome and connect with them through a smart content strategy.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Create a consistent experience. During her time at Tableau Software, Ashley learned the importance of creating a consistent experience for customers despite any major differences among the company’s various business units. In Ashley’s words, “no matter what you're talking about, no matter what you're promoting, no matter what you're trying to get customers to understand about the company, it has to feel like the same company.”
• Passion comes in threes. For Ashley, when it comes to choosing a company for her next position, she needs to feel strongly passionate about three things: the product, the space, and the people on the team. She emphasized the importance of finding a position that feels like a fit culture-wise since it very often sets the tone for your entire role and tenure with the company.
• Empower your team to think outside the box. When it comes to content, Ashley is always thinking of new ways to encourage her team to think creatively and find fresh ideas to keep audiences engaged. For example, she’s keen on keeping a finger on the pulse of the community to seek inspiration and gain new insights daily.

Learn more about GitLab here: https://about.gitlab.com/

Learn more about Ashley here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleyekramer/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Tom Butta, CMO and Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) at Airship. As someone who’s held almost 10 different CMO roles throughout his career, Tom’s learned a thing or two about positioning a brand in the market along the way. Tom shares his tricks of the trade from a leadership perspective and explains what it takes to be an effective CSO.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Being a great CSO means taking a strategic approach to marketing. For Tom, the CSO role begins with positioning the company effectively within the market and clearly articulating its vision. The role of the CSO and the CMO, then, is to find alignment behind the company strategy, bringing it to life through each interaction within the ecosystem.
• Work with challenger brands. Since the beginning of his career, Tom has been drawn to working with what he calls “challenger brands,” companies that are shaking up the status quo and disrupting a space by thinking outside of the box. By doing this, he’s been able to carve his own unique career path and gain experience that sets him apart from the crowd.
• Walk your talk. Tom argues that excellent marketing really begins within the organization. Companies need to first ensure they’re truly delivering on their value proposition before they focus on marketing efforts because, otherwise, it’s just “fake news,” as Tom says. This is one reason why he spends so much time with the product team at Airship—so he can develop a solid understanding of the product and the value it brings to customers.

Learn more about Airship here: https://www.airship.com/

Learn more about Tom here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tombutta/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Carin Van Vuuren, CMO at Greenhouse Software, a high-growth organization operating in the recruitment space. Carin describes how when she first joined the team at Greenhouse, she was challenged with going upmarket, entering into an entirely different segment. She explains why marketers need to take a different approach depending on if they’re targeting SMBs or enterprises, and she shares the simple segmentation strategy that works for her team.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• C-level executives should prioritize hiring. Carin believes that hiring is the most important job for every business leader, so strong partnerships between a recruiter and a c-level executive is crucial. She recommends that CEOs and CMOs stay involved in the hiring process from beginning to end because building the right team is so essential.
• For any rebrand, team buy-in is essential. Carin notes that one of her first challenges as Greenhouse’s CMO was to elevate the brand to ensure it reflected the sort of company that large enterprises would feel comfortable partnering with. From the beginning, she knew that uniting the entire organization through one aligned vision and getting clear on their brand promise would be critical.
• Take leadership notes from the bees. As a former beekeeper, Carin says that many of the best lessons she’s learned about leadership have come from observing the behavior of bees. For example, the queen bee is first and foremost a servant leader, which means she always puts the hive first rather than prioritizing her own interests.

Learn more about Greenhouse Software here: https://www.greenhouse.com/

Learn more about Carin here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carinvanvuuren/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Ran Avrahamy, CMO at AppsFlyer. Our discussion reminded me that as long as you're consistently learning and challenging yourself, then being comfortable in your role isn’t always such a bad thing. One of the main themes from this episode is the need to reinvent yourself and your strategy as a marketer, and specifically, how marketers can do this with events in a post-COVID world.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Strike a balance between growth and comfort. Ran points out that the term “comfort zone” tends to come along with some negative connotations, but it’s not necessarily a terrible thing to be comfortable in your role. It’s best to find the balance between feeling comfortable and consistently learning new things so you can continue progressing throughout your career.
• Reinvent yourself at least once a year. As we head into 2023, there’s no better time to take stock of your life and determine what you need to change in order to improve as a marketer. Ran says he commits to reinventing himself every year, which can mean pushing yourself professionally—or seeking fresh inspiration in your personal life.
• When it comes to events, it’s all about impact. Ran mentions that a core pillar of AppFlyer’s strategy in 2023 will be events, and they’re likely to make a big comeback in the new year. That said, he cautions listeners that it’s not always about the size or scale of an event. The quality of your impact and the connections you make with your audience is often more important.

Learn more about AppsFlyer here: https://www.appsflyer.com/

Learn more about Ran here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ranavrahamy/?originalSubdomain=il

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Megan McDonagh, CMO at Amperity, a customer data platform (CDP). Having spent more than 20 years at Intel Corporation, Megan had some wise words to share about the different opportunities she’s encountered throughout her career that have led her to her role as CMO today. Megan also unpacks the need for marketers to unify and understand our buyers and their diverse channel interactions to deliver a more personalized experience.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Consider your impact. When Megan was looking to make the jump into her next CMO role, she prioritized choosing a company solving big problems on a big scale. It was important to take a glimpse into the future to understand the company’s growth trajectory and just how she could make a powerful impact as CMO.
• Unify customer data. At Amperity, Megan works with lots of B2C companies that tend to be owned by a single parent company. In cases like these, there’s a strong need to unify their customer data from multiple sources, so they can market to different customers across various brands. That’s where a CDP like Amperity comes in as a clutch tool for helping them understand their customers inside and out.
• Prioritize personalization. One of the major themes that emerged from my conversation with Megan was personalization. Customers today expect a personalized experience that demonstrates a brand’s commitment to understanding them and their needs. Marketers should be focused on creating a tailored experience with every piece of content they share.

Learn more about Amperity here: https://amperity.com/

Learn more about Megan here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meganmcdonagh/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Kevin Marasco, CMO of Tebra, a company specializing in healthcare marketing. One of the running themes of this episode is fun—why marketing should be fun and why so many brands tend to forget this. Kevin has years of experience working for several amazing brands, so he has plenty of marketing wisdom to share throughout the episode.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• The ceiling is getting higher. In recent years, the tech landscape has grown so much that the expectations for companies in the healthcare space have skyrocketed. This has opened up a whole new world of possibilities, which is why Kevin is constantly looking towards the company’s vision or north star to stay focused.
• Step outside your comfort zone. If he could give his younger self one piece of advice, Kevin says it would be to learn as much as possible in as many different areas of the marketing world as possible. By remaining constantly curious and eager to learn, you’ll become a more well-rounded marketer with the ability to bring much more value to your team.
• Build an approachable brand. Finally, Kevin shares his tips for building a brand that feels approachable and authentic to your customers. Avoid using too much jargon and instead opt for plain language to ensure you’re connecting with customers in a way that feels human. Trust is everything today, so it’s essential that your brand is relatable at every touchpoint.

Learn more about Tebra here: https://www.tebra.com/

Learn more about Kevin here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kmarasco/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Amanda Bird Malko, CMO at G2, a software marketplace that reaches more than 60 million software buyers each year. Amanda discusses the importance of bringing teams and various stakeholders together to work towards one shared vision. She offers tangible and tactical tips for breaking down the silos among various teams like marketing, engineering and product so everyone can work together more symbiotically.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Marketing is a blend of sales and creativity. Amanda mentioned that she was initially drawn to the marketing world because it lies at the intersection of creative selling and achieving tangible business results. In particular, she’s passionate about the art of creative persuasion combined with generating revenue in a way that provides maximum value to the customer.
• Building a brand that benefits all stakeholders within an ecosystem is challenging but worth it. Amanda said that one of the main aspects that attracted her to her role at G2 was the complexity of the ecosystem and the many stakeholders that were involved in the process. To truly benefit all parties within the ecosystem, Amanda and her team work on creating “flywheels” or “growth loops” that leverage one another to build connections and keep the momentum going across the business.
• Build trust. Whether you’re buying something on Amazon or investing in expensive software, Amanda believes that buyers are becoming increasingly empowered by leveraging the voices of peers and people they trust—all through a frictionless customer experience. In other words, there’s never been a better time to build a trusted brand and offer a credible source of information in a competitive marketplace.

Learn more about G2 here: https://www.g2.com/

Learn more about Amanda here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-hart-campbell/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Lisa Campbell, CMO at OneTrust. Lisa shares her perspective on making the jump from Autodesk, a massive company where she was also CMO, to a smaller-scale operation, including tips for managing your own expectations. She also reveals her perspective on content, data, building customer trust, and much more.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Get in the right mindset. Lisa notes that when making the move to a smaller one, it’s important to be prepared to do more with less. Larger companies tend to have more infrastructure and resources in place, so preparing your mindset to make the best use of what’s available in a smaller company is key. Lisa shares a few ways you can do this by preparing your mindset in advance.
• Balance paved roads with dirt roads. Lisa provides a great analogy about learning to strike a balance between paved and dirt roads, knowing when to rely on more structure and rigor versus going with the flow. For some marketing activities, such as brand positioning, a more structured approach is required, whereas for others, an experimental approach makes more sense.
• Be curious. Whether you’re an expert in your field or you’ve just launched a career in a new sector, it’s important to keep a curious attitude and remember that we can all be lifelong learners if we choose to be. Lisa recommends spending time with the experts and asking plenty of questions to learn the ropes, especially “what have I not asked you about that I should know?” Because you don’t know what you don’t know.

Learn more about OneTrust here: https://www.onetrust.com/

Learn more about Lisa here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-hart-campbell/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Quinn O'Brien, the CMO at Carnegie Learning, an ed-tech leader that is shaping the future of learning through AI. Letting us in on his unique career background so far, Quinn shares the story of his humble beginnings working as a receptionist at a marketing agency, and how that role piqued his interest in the brand side. He also shares stories from his past role at Lenovo, where he spent a large part of his career, and what he learned from launching his own company.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Follow your passion. It sounds cliché (and maybe it is) but that doesn’t mean it’s untrue: following your passion will take you far in your career and in life. In Quinn’s case, this meant looking for opportunities in the world of education, where he felt he could truly make a difference.
• Understand each market segment’s pain points—inside and out. Once he had made the leap into the education industry, Quinn quickly realized just how complicated the system was in North America. By taking the time to gain a deeper understanding of each market segment, he was better able to identify their pain points and therefore, provide solutions.
• Get clear on your definition of success. In a fast-moving industry like education, Quinn and his team need to ensure they have a crystal clear vision of what success means to them so they can stay consistently focused on their goal. With the concrete benchmark of helping teachers overcome daily challenges in mind, the company is in a better position to hit the ground running when it counts.

Learn more about Carnegie Learning here: https://www.carnegielearning.com/

Learn more about Quinn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/quinnobrien/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Jennifer Griffin Smith, CMO of Brightcove. Jennifer is in her sixth CMO role so far, so she has plenty of words of wisdom to share about what it takes to be a great marketing leader. She also shares her perspective on the realities of virtual engagement today, including advice for adapting to this digital-first landscape and ever-shrinking attention spans.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Jennifer truly takes a holistic approach to internal collaboration. Work closely with engineering and product leads within your organization to develop a solid understanding of what the market needs, what the customers want, and how the team can develop a value proposition that sets you apart from the competition.
• The traditional buyer's journey has evolved dramatically in recent years. Now, the funnel has flipped, which means marketers are tasked with targeting their audience using unique messages and creating advocates. Accomplishing this requires a different technology stack, different resources, and a different mindset overall.
• The average attention span has changed. Jennifer reminds us that over the past few years, the typical buyer’s behavior, daily routines and expectations have shifted dramatically. For this reason, the entire buyer journey needs to be easily accessible, quick, and to-the-point.

Learn more about Brightcove here: https://www.brightcove.com/en/

Learn more about Jennifer here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifergriffinsmith/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Udi Ledergor, CMO at Gong. Udi gets vulnerable about the challenges he's faced helping to scale the organization to over $7 billion in value and over 1,200 employees—60 of whom are marketers—as marketer number one. He discusses some of the obstacles and realities of each growth stage, including self-doubt, marketing in a downturn, and more.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Get inside your buyer’s head. As someone who has been a marketing leader at five different companies throughout his career, Udi has learned that he always does his best work when he can truly get into the shoes of the company’s buyer persona. From that perspective, he says, it’s much easier to understand what the buyer’s day looks like, why they might care about the product, and how the company can add value to their life.
• Know when to delegate. As a leader, Udi is wise enough to know that he’s not going to be the right fit for every single project, campaign, or function within the company’s marketing team. He’s big on recognizing his own weaknesses, and he delegates work when he feels someone else will be more skilled or passionate in the role.
• Be well-rounded. Udi believes a good CMO should balance an analytical mindset with creativity and out-of-the-box thinking. Maintaining a strategic perspective is another key to success: marketers need to be able to see the big picture and take a long-term view of the journey—beyond the current quarter or year.

Learn more about Gong here: https://www.gong.io/

Learn more about Udi here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/udiledergor/

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In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Venkat Nagaswamy, EVP and CMO at telecommunications company Mitel. As someone who's held roles as a CEO, an analyst, a sales executive, and currently as a CMO throughout his 30-year career, Venkat has plenty of perspective, experience and wisdom to impart.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Focus your efforts. According to Venkat’s philosophy, one of the greatest risks most companies face is trying to compete with too many different players at once. In his role at Mitel, Venkat has made it his mission to focus their marketing efforts in just one market (in their case, the U.S.) in order to optimize outcomes and avoid spreading themselves too thin.
• Tell customer stories. Another big focus of Venkat’s when it comes to his role as CMO includes identifying and sharing Mitel’s most inspiring customer stories. By weaving great storytelling into the majority of their marketing plans, the team is better positioned to connect with new prospects and communicate the value of their products succinctly.
• Market the way you’d like to be marketed to. Venkat mentioned that part of his mission as CMO is to do away with negative stigmas surrounding marketing, and instead create the kind of marketing campaigns that truly add value to audiences. By making use of the abundance of data we have at our fingertips today, Venkat believes we can become more targeted in our efforts and therefore, reach people in a way that resonates.

Learn more about Mitel here: https://www.mitel.com/en-ca

Learn more about Venkat here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/venkatnagaswamy/

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In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Randi Barshack, CMO of RollWorks, a division of NextRoll, an account-based marketing platform for B2B marketing and sales, and one of Uberflip’s partners. Randi runs a team that is all about meeting the buyers where they are, prioritizing authenticity, and understanding what you need to continue progressing along your own career trajectory.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Optimize for personal happiness. When it comes to choosing your next gig as a marketing professional, it’s important to take a strategic approach that considers the role from a variety of diverse perspectives. For Randi, prioritizing her own personal happiness is a must when making career moves, because it can be next to impossible to predict what the market will do next or how the financial situation will look in a few years’ time.
• Believe in your product. For any marketer, it’s an essential part of the role to have a solid understanding of the product you’re selling, and truly believe in its value. To really get on board with the product you’ll be marketing, Randi recommends taking the time to understand it inside and out so you can ignite your own passion and ultimately influence others to do the same.
• Meet the buyer where they are. When it comes to relating to your buyer, their needs and their unique perspective on your product, Randi believes it’s important to learn how to meet the buyer where they are so they can visualize exactly where it will fit into their lives and add value. By taking this approach, marketers will have a better chance at forming an authentic relationship with the buyer and therefore, influencing their decisions.

Learn more about RollWorks here: https://www.rollworks.com/

Learn more about Randi here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/randi-barshack-431a72/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Nicole Milstead, CMO at FinancialForce—a company that’s a true force in the world of B2B marketing. During our conversation, Nicole explains why she prefers to make her decisions both with a purposeful yet open intent, tending to stick to a carefully designed plan while remaining flexible and adaptable to change. She also explains her unique approach to understanding data across the entire buyer journey, and how to create content that resonates with consumers.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• A varied background will take you far. Throughout her career, Nicole has carved her own unique path, veering away from the traditional stepping stones along the way to the coveted CMO role. By using all of her varied experiences—from social work to sales—as learning opportunities on the way to her next role, Nicole has been able to offer a nuanced perspective while creating alignment among teams.
• Prioritize relationships and culture. When making the decision to make the leap to FinancialForce from Oracle, Nicole used her positive working relationships and the company culture as her guiding light. By using these elements as guideposts, she was better able to determine whether the company would be a good fit for her particular skills, working style and personality.
• Be disciplined when it comes to data. For Nicole, analyzing data to determine the best course of action is an everyday pursuit. By using quantifiable metrics to track their progress, Nicole and the team at FinancialForce have a better sense of where they need to focus their efforts, while also having a chance to find better alignment with the sales team.

Learn more about FinancialForce here: https://www.financialforce.com/

Learn more about Nicole here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nmilstead/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Deena Bahri, the CMO of StockX, an online destination where you can buy and sell trendy sneakers, streetwear, trading cards, collectibles, designer handbags and other luxury items. We chat about the concept of disruption including why content plays such a key role in the process, how to build a culture around your brand and the importance of being intentional every step of the way.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Listen and learn. For any leaders who hope to cause disruption in their industry, it’s essential that they keep their finger on the pulse of what’s happening around them. As a CMO, Deena believes that one of the qualities that serves her best is having a willingness to learn, and a keen awareness of upcoming trends before they hit the mainstream market.
• Balance emotion with data. Marketing as a discipline requires us to keep both the left and right sides of our brain active. Deena’s approach to marketing integrates creative, emotive and brand-forward ideas with facts, figures and data to keep things grounded.
• Get clear on your content DNA. From the beginning, StockX has placed a high value on storytelling and great content that paints a picture about the brand. Deena believes brands should be creating content across all channels that can meet the customer where they are along their own journey, and help them make shopping decisions that fit their personal style.

Learn more about StockX here: https://stockx.com/

Learn more about Deena here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deenabahri/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Janet Matsuda, CMO of Sysdig. We discuss the benefits of adopting a messaging-first mindset for product marketers, why cross-collaboration is essential, and how to develop a messaging framework that will spread throughout your organization.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Start a dialogue. Janet believes that as marketing teams develop key messaging documents, they need to be talking to customers, salespeople, and engineers to ensure they fully understand the product and its impact. If you’re looking for information that will help you develop the perfect messaging framework, it only makes sense to go straight to the source—the people who were part of the creation process.
• Go back to basics. When building out a messaging framework, Janet suggests that product marketers drill down on the company’s overall vision, mission and the pain points it’s addressing. From there, you’ll be in a better position to communicate the product’s benefits to customers in a way that’s clear, precise and succinct.
• Understand the market. According to Janet’s product marketing playbook, another key component of great messaging is industry context. In other words, product marketers need to have a solid understanding of the current status of the market they’re operating in, where their product fits into the landscape, and how it can provide immediate value to customers.

Learn more about Sysdig here: ​​https://sysdig.com/

Learn more about Janet here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetmatsuda/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Shawn Ahmed, the CMO of CloudBees, a platform which provides the leading DevOps solutions for large and compliance-first organizations. We discuss how Shawn has helped to scale the company from 18 to 60 employees, the concept of using a “pod” when organizing your go-to market strategy, and the need for segmentation at different parts of the sales funnel.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Take risks. Shawn mentioned that throughout his career, he’s learned the most by taking big risks, such as moving from a CEO role to come on as CloudBees CMO. He believes that to really understand a business, you need to experience all elements of it rather than pigeonholing yourself to one area or specialty.
• Focus on segmentation. As a marketer, Shawn understands the value of really knowing your audience and what motivates them. This is why he places a strong emphasis on segmentation and identifying different strategies for different parts of the sales funnel.
• Personalization is key. Any good marketing strategy should be tailored to its audience, but Shawn reminds us that this is especially important at the top of the funnel because capturing initial interest is the most difficult aspect of the journey. As you move further down the funnel, personalization is not always as vital.

Learn more about CloudBees here: https://www.cloudbees.com/

Learn more about Shawn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shawnahmed/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Jon Miller, CMO of Demandbase. Jon has had an incredible career so far, having held some impressive roles including as the Co-Founder and CMO of Marketo, which was later acquired by Adobe. During our discussion, Jon shares his perspective on account-based marketing, including why it’s not just about finding the right accounts and sending them the right message, but understanding exactly where they are in their journey.Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts! Key takeaways from this episode:

• Every customer journey is completely unique. Jon made some interesting points about the customer journey, including the idea that so much of it is invisible when it comes to traditional tracking methods. This is why it’s important to meet every customer exactly where they are in their journey and tailor each step of the process to their specific position along the path.
• Know your ABX. According to Jon, it’s important to approach your go-to-market strategy in terms of the ABX, or “account-based experience.” Part of this strategy includes placing different people in different “tiers” so you can allocate resources effectively.
• Learn to be a T-shaped marketer. When it comes to specialties, Jon believes in becoming a T-shaped marketer, which means choosing one area to specialize in while dabbling in a few others to ensure you have a well-rounded skill set. Think of it as choosing a major and a minor like you might have in school, but for the big leagues.

Learn more about Demandbase here: https://www.demandbase.com/ Learn more about Jon here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonmiller2/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Fred Studer, CMO at TIBCO. As a four-time CMO who has been at the helm of marketing teams at companies like Microsoft and Oracle, Fred had plenty of fascinating experiences to share during this episode. We chatted about everything from mindset to storytelling, including key strategies for elevating your brand and customer voice.Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts! Key takeaways from this episode:

• Focus on demand gen. As Fred mentioned, every CMO has at least one area of their role that they tend to favor—in his case, that’s branding. However, he believes all CMOs should build demand generation skills into their repertoire because you’ll rarely come across a sales team that’s asking for fewer leads.
• Use large companies as a training ground. Fred mentioned that his roles at tech giants like Microsoft and Oracle served as massive opportunities for growth, development and education. Before you make the switch from a large company to a small startup, make sure you’re taking full advantage of the opportunity to act as an entrepreneur within the organization and learn as much as you can through your role.
• Engage the entire company in telling customer stories. During the pandemic, it became even more important for brands to amplify the voice of their customers. This is why Fred and the marketing team at TIBCO have pivoted to engage the entire company in customer storytelling, encouraging everyone to make it their responsibility, no matter their role or department.

Learn more about TIBCO here: https://www.tibco.com/ Learn more about Fred here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fred-studer-87036/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview John Zissimos, the CMO at Okta, an identity management service that connects any person with any application on any device. Having held previous roles at Salesforce and Google, John shares his experience of finding the right marketing role, how to be a great people leader and how your customer’s stories can strategically position your brand.Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts!Key takeaways from this episode:

• Know your weaknesses to be a great people leader. As CMO, John has expertise in the marketing side of the role but there are new responsibilities that he identified as knowledge gaps like overseeing PR and Communications. By identifying his weaknesses and hiring the right people to help him, he knows when to step back and when he can step in to help his team. By capitalizing on his strengths and not micromanaging his team, John is becoming a better leader of people, not just a marketer.
• Tell the story of how your product is used. Talking to customers is the most important thing that John does. He wants to learn how his customers are successfully using a product especially in new and innovative ways. John believes a great customer story is the best selling tool you’ve got. Whether you produce a multi-camera video with high production value or a zoom interview recording, sharing great stories can elevate your market position.
• Prioritize what matters most in life. The most important goal in John’s life is to be a good father. He wants his team to follow his example and make sure that they’re prioritizing their life outside of work so that they can enjoy work more. Work will always have challenges but you’ll be better able to overcome them if the needs of your family, health, and life outside the office are met.

Learn more about Okta here: https://www.okta.com/Learn more about John here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnzissimos/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Armen Najarian, CMO and Chief Identity Officer at Outseer, a shared, global network of fraud and transaction data. As a spin-off company of RSA, a major network security company, Outseer has presented Armen with a unique opportunity to rebrand a company with already well-established roots. During our conversation, we discuss Armen’s extensive career background, leadership advice, strategies for taking a business to the next level and more.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• A great leadership team is like a symphony. As CMO, Armen believes that everyone on the team has their own unique melody to play, and even a slight shift within one person’s role can shift the dynamic dramatically. This is why gaining a clearer understanding of everyone’s specific role within the team can help everyone create better music together.
• Everyone is a consumer. In Armen’s view, all consumers share the same fundamental human qualities, even when it comes to B2B marketing. At the end of the day, we’re all motivated by emotions, fears, hopes and dreams, and as marketers, it’s our job to tap into this understanding to develop an emotional connection with our audience.
• Get involved with the product. In addition to his role as CMO, Armen holds the title of Chief Identity Officer at Outseer, which means he holds responsibilities for one of the company’s three products. He noted that the strategic decision to stake his claim on the product side has enabled him to gain a deeper appreciation for the business and a unique edge as CMO.

Learn more about Outseer here: https://www.outseer.com/

Learn more about Armen here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/najarian/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Allison Lowrie, CMO at Vacasa, an international vacation rental management company based in Portland, Oregon. Having also previously held roles at Angi, HomeAdvisor and Cars.com, Allison shares her perspective on navigating marketing leadership, building a solid team and the challenges of two-sided marketplaces.Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Make it personal. In the home and car industry, every purchase is an inherently emotional one, so marketers are tasked with tapping into that emotional element to connect with buyers. This lesson can be applied to marketing in any industry because at the end of the day, every purchase involves an emotional element that can be leveraged to make a positive impact.
• Get in the right mindset. Another of Allison’s tips involves diving deep into the mindset of the marketplace you’re tapping into. She and the team at Vacasa engage in plenty of research and outreach to understand their customers’ core thoughts, needs and desires, while remaining nimble and flexible so they can switch gears as needed.
• Focus on your NPS. At Vacasa, a key metric the team uses to track success is the NPS or net promoter score. The company tracks NPS across guests, owners and internal employees to get a sense of overall satisfaction of both customers and employees.

Learn more about Vacasa here: https://www.vacasa.ca/

Learn more about Allison here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/allison-lowrie-51b0a21/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Stacey Epstein, CMO at Freshworks. As someone who has held roles as both CMO and CEO, Stacey understands the importance of choosing your own adventure along your career path. She explains how Freshworks approaches content strategy as a company with over 5,000 employees and over 400 million in recurring revenue, and why the skills you learn as a CMO often translate well into a role as CEO.Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Let go of ego. When it came time for her to jump into a new role, Stacey was wise enough to remove her ego from the equation. Although she held the coveted CEO title in her previous role, she didn’t hesitate to move back into the CMO role when she was presented with a position that checked all the most important boxes: great people, a product she was passionate about and a huge market opportunity.
• It’s all about the people. Whether she’s working at a company of 500 or 5,000 people, Stacey’s commitment to prioritizing her team remains. She believes that no matter what title you hold, your most important job is to ensure everyone on the team, from managers to frontline employees, is thriving.
• CMOs make great CEOs. Since they typically have experience working with the organization’s head of sales, HR and finance, CMOs are tasked with the same type of coordination work that’s required in the CEO role. In the future, we’ll likely continue to see more marketers making the jump into executive leadership roles.

Learn more about Freshworks here: https://www.freshworks.com/ Learn more about Stacey here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/staceyepstein/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Cate Lochead, CMO at JumpCloud. As a marketing executive who is on their third CMO role to date, Cate has plenty of wisdom to share about juggling product growth and the marketing machine, balancing a channel investment with your direct investment, and much more. Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Strike the right balance. Cate mentioned that as a software marketer, she fell in love with the challenge of striking a balance between the voice of the engineer and crafting messaging that will resonate with the consumer. With early-stage companies, marketers are challenged to transition the overall marketing narrative from the early positioning that’s geared towards how the product was built, into a story that will convey exactly how it’s going to change the world.
• Build a team you can trust. For Cate, one of her strengths as a marketer is being able to intuitively hire the strongest people for each role and delegate effectively so she can focus on her top priorities as CMO. Even though she’s passionate about communications, she knew she had to let go of this particular role and instead hire a leader she trusted to take ownership over it.
• Put things into context. Cate commented that one of the most important skills she looks for in potential CMOs is the ability to contextualize the business. In other words, it’s important to be able to understand the interconnectedness of the business overall by taking a birds-eye-view approach of all the operations.

Learn more about JumpCloud here: https://jumpcloud.com/Learn more about Cate here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clochead/

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In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Peter Finter, CMO at CyberGRX. During our conversation, we discuss several interesting topics, including the importance of finding alignment with your finance department, and strategies for creating a predictable revenue engine.Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Bigger isn’t always better. During his career, Peter has led marketing teams at large companies with upwards of 10,000 employees as well as smaller scale operations. He believes that one of the upsides of being part of a small team is that it can foster a strong sense of connectedness and collaboration. It’s also given him more opportunities to experiment with new tactics, which consistently keeps him stimulated and engaged in his role.
• Make friends with the finance function. As marketers, we often hear how important it is to find alignment with the sales team to optimize outcomes. However, Peter reminds us that it’s equally important to connect with your company’s finance team and CFO. Not only will this potentially help you to secure more budget for upcoming projects, but it’s also essential in terms of finding alignment on a shared vision for the company’s future.
• Tell the right story. Peter also emphasized the importance of identifying your customer’s pain points and crafting a narrative from there. For all marketers, the key challenge to tackle is bringing something new to the table that will help the buyer solve a problem in a way they may not have considered, while activating the channels that are most relevant to them.

Learn more about CyberGRX here: https://www.cybergrx.com/

Learn more about Peter here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peterfinter/

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In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Dr. Patti Fletcher, a best-selling author, international speaker, award-winning business strategist, and CMO at Limeade. Patti shares her perspective on the employee experience, industry disruptions, content strategy, and much more.Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Disrupt the status quo. Throughout the various roles she’s held during her career, Patti has consistently maintained an attitude of continuous improvement, growth, and evolution. In her words, if she’s comfortable, then she’s uncomfortable, which is a great maxim to live by if you’re hoping to make your mark as an industry disruptor and innovator.
• Diversity begets disruption. As a leader, Patti understands the importance of diversity in the workplace, and it’s a core principle of the topics she discusses in her speaking engagements, content and her latest book, Disrupters. She reminds us that bringing together a wide variety of perspectives, cultural backgrounds and identities helps to lay the groundwork for impactful disruptions and a thriving business.
• Be a thought provoker, not a thought leader. Now more than ever, the customer journey is about building trust, and in Patti’s view, the average buyer today is looking for more than just a transactional relationship. Marketers need to focus on helping their customers solve the problems of today, in addition to looking ahead to the potential challenges and opportunities of the future.

Learn more about Limeade here: https://www.limeade.com/Learn more about Patti here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drpattifletcher/

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In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Julie Knight, CMO of Unit4. Julie shares the story of how she landed her position at the software company, which has over 2,000 employees and has been around for more than 40 years now. She also explains the playbook she and her team used to modernize the company’s content strategy and weave a consistent narrative across channels.Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Lead by example. As CMO of Unit4, Julie sets the tone for hundreds of people each day, so she’s conscious of the habits, behaviors and overall attitude she brings to the table. With employees working on a remote basis from various locations around the world, Julie aims to focus on keeping her team engaged through ongoing communication, team events and a welcoming open door policy.
• Reflect your values to the world. When Julie first came on as CMO of Unit4, she noticed a disconnect between the company’s incredible culture, strong values and clear mission, and the way these qualities were being conveyed to the world. To bridge this gap, she mobilized her team to help rewrite the company’s narrative in a way that would clearly communicate its strengths.
• Be a ruthless editor. As Julie and the team at Unit4 strategized to craft a new story for the company, it became clear that they would need to do away with much of the content that had been built in the past. In other words, Julie wasn’t afraid to clean house if a piece of content didn’t align with the simple, streamlined tone they were hoping to capture.

Learn more about Unit4 here: https://www.unit4.com/Learn more about Julie here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/julieknightludvigson/

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In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Daniel Incandela, the CMO of Reachdesk. We discuss the importance of creating a human connection in marketing, building relationships through gifting, and the entire buyer journey as a whole.Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!Key takeaways from this episode:

• Focus on relationship building. One of Daniel’s main strengths in his role as CMO is building relationships and helping others succeed. Throughout his career, Daniel has learned that all functions within the executive team play an essential role in the company, so building relationships founded in trust with all team members is critical.
• Gifting brings a human element to B2B marketing. As Daniel mentioned, gifting is something that’s present in all cultures around the world, which he learned while studying anthropology. Today, gifting has become a critical channel for marketers to rely on because it strengthens relationships and incorporates a human connection to tap into the emotional side of your customer.
• Marketing begins with words. No matter the campaign, channel or medium you’re relying on as a marketer, content is always at the core of all marketing activities. Daniel believes the best B2B marketing content comes from a place of authenticity and a strong connection to the company’s true voice and message.

Learn more about Reachdesk here: https://reachdesk.com/ Learn more about Daniel here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielincandela/

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In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Jeff Boehm, the CMO of Formlabs. We discuss the 3D printing space and some of its practical applications in areas like dentistry, the medical field and more. Jeff shares his perspective on the importance of understanding your market, especially when you’re still learning the various applications of your offering.Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!Key takeaways from this episode:

• Keep it simple. Although working in the 3D printing space added an element of complexity to the marketing journey for Formlabs, Jeff reminds us that at the end of the day, all marketers share similar goals. No matter the product or service you’re marketing, it’s always a question of identifying pain points and connecting your customers with an easy and effective way of solving them.
• Focus on the people. Throughout his career as a marketing leader, Jeff has learned a few critical lessons when it comes to choosing the right fit for your next role. He now believes that the most important factor overall is aligning with an organization where the people share similar values, goals and philosophies on problem solving.
• Use content to connect with your customer. From a content marketing perspective, Jeff’s strategy involves tailoring content directly to the customers Formlabs serves. By connecting to a customer’s “why” before beginning to address the “what” or the “how,” marketers will have better luck capturing the buyer’s attention through their content strategy.

Learn more about Formlabs here: https://formlabs.com/ Learn more about Jeff here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffboehm/

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In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Carly Brantz, CMO at DigitalOcean. We discuss strategies for keeping marketers engaged and continuously evolving in their roles. Carly also shares her perspective on the changing nature of the content strategy, and why it’s an essential component of the customer journey today.Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!Key takeaways from this episode:

• Keep it fresh. When it comes to keeping CMOs engaged and growing within their roles, Carly recommends experimenting with as many different areas of the marketing practice as possible. By keeping it fresh year after year and venturing into unknown territory, Carly has been able to gain exposure to new areas of the business and become a continuous learner.
• Prioritize people. For Carly, making the jump to the C level was all about prioritizing her personal connections with people across the organization. Since marketing has become even more metrics-driven in recent years, Carly highlighted the importance of forging strong relationships within the finance department and maintaining those relationships through your career.
• Provide value first. In terms of the customer journey, Carly emphasized the importance of building trust by providing value from the get go. DigitalOcean does this through its hefty catalog of free learning resources including a repository of over 5,000 video tutorials as well as plenty of guides and research briefs geared towards developers.

Learn more about DigitalOcean here: https://www.digitalocean.com/ Learn more about Carly here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlybrantz/

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In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Kim Caldbeck, the CMO of Coursera. We discuss how Kim approached learning the business when she first came on as a director, and how she ultimately worked her way up to the role of CMO. Kim also shares her top tips for customer acquisition and her philosophy on leading a team of marketers amidst a changing landscape.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Join the mission. By the time she was on track to become CMO at Coursera, Kim had already made herself an indispensable member of the team by helping to build the company’s vision from the ground up. As a key player in the company’s strategy-shaping phase, Kim had earned respect and credibility, which ultimately allowed her to position herself as the best (and only) candidate for the CMO role.
• Follow your passion. Here on The Marketer’s Journey, many of our guests have highlighted the importance of following your passion in your career, and Kim is no exception. She believes we’re all at our best when we’re doing what we love, which is why taking action based on what excites you most will bring you luck and longevity along your career path.
• Be a lifelong learner. Kim mentioned that her time at Facebook helped her expand her knowledge of different areas of the business, which ultimately helped her become a more well-rounded marketer. Continuous learning is something we can all apply to our daily lives to become more engaged, knowledgeable and effective at what we do each day.

Learn more about Coursera here: https://www.coursera.org/ Learn more about Kim here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kim-caldbeck-58b7273/

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In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Kevin Sellers, CMO of Ping Identity. Kevin believes strongly in using the psychology of marketing to connect with customers, and during our conversation, he shares his tips for adopting this mentality. He also explains some of the key lessons he learned during his 13 years at Intel, and how he knew Ping Identity was the right fit for him as a company.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Build credibility early on. Coming off the heels of a long stint at Intel, Kevin had to shift gears and earn the trust of a new team when he first came on as CMO of Ping Identity. To do this, he secured a few short-term wins early on in his role, established trust with his team and made his intentions as CMO clear to really hit the ground running as a leader.
• Learn the immutable laws of growth. Kevin mentioned that during his time at Intel, he learned from the company’s former CEO Andy Grove that success requires two key ingredients: a unique product or service, and the ability to communicate its value to your audience. Without innovative marketing and branding tactics, a company will find it difficult to move the needle or grow as an enterprise.
• Tap into human psychology. Kevin is a big believer in tapping into human psychology and emotion through marketing tactics. By crafting a compelling narrative around a universal human truth, marketers will have a better chance of getting through to their audience in a way that feels unique, emotive and personal.

Learn more about Ping Identity here: https://www.pingidentity.com/en.html Learn more about Kevin here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinsellers116/

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In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Andy Jolls, CMO at FastSpring. During the episode, we discuss selecting the right CMO role for your career journey, how to know if the company you’ve joined has potential, and why it’s important to expand your view of the competition.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Consider the growth stage of the company. When on the hunt for a new company to join, Andy emphasized the importance of identifying the company’s growth stage and determining which stage is right for you and your career goals. He recommended finding the sweet spot by experimenting with companies at various growth stages and identifying where your strengths lie.
• Don’t forget about the “C” in CMO. Andy mentioned that he’s had some great mentors throughout his career who have reminded him that anyone at the CMO level needs to take a holistic view of the company to consider the full picture of the business. Instead of focusing solely on marketing, CMOs should always be thinking about what’s best for the entire company overall.
• Identify the right persona. One of the biggest challenges for marketers today is understanding and targeting the right customers in their category. Andy said it’s important for marketers to dig down deep into the information that’s available and invest in analytics in order to make the most educated decisions possible. It’s also important to broaden your view of the competition to keep the bigger picture in mind.

Learn more about FastSpring here: https://fastspring.com/ Learn more about Andy here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ajolls/

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In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Steve Pacinelli, Chief Marketing Officer at BombBomb and The Wall Street Journal best-selling author of Rehumanize Your Business and Human-Centered Communication. During the episode, we discuss Steve’s journey to CMO, the importance of great communication and how to be a better advocate for your brand.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Believe in your product. Steve mentioned that the best way to sell your product is to truly believe in it and the benefits it can bring to your life. By getting to know BombBomb’s product and the power it had to impact his own life, Steve was ultimately led to join the company as CMO and ulatimately infuse his role with passion.
• Events are a microcosm of the marketing space. Steve made an insightful point about events being a microcosm for the entire marketing space because convincing customers to attend the event is a big ask in itself. Once the guests have made the commitment to show up to an event, the job of the marketer becomes building trust and rapport through face-to-face contact.
• Humanize your interaction with customers. As the author of Rehumanize Your Business and Human-Centered Communication, Steve knows all about the importance of bringing the human element back into the marketing conversation. When it comes to communication, Steve suggests asking tough questions like “why would someone be drawn to engage with this video, email or campaign?” so you can gain a better understanding of connecting with your customer on a human-to-human level.

Learn more about BombBomb here: https://bombbomb.com/ Learn more about Steve here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephenpacinelli/

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In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Lisa Horner, SVP of Marketing at AppFolio. During our discussion, Lisa shares her approach to leadership, her perspective on the customer experience, and how to connect with customers in more meaningful ways. She also offers her thoughts on some of the core elements of great content, how to engage in valuable brand storytelling and much more.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Strategy alignment is critical. Lisa mentioned that ensuring leadership teams are aligned on the company’s annual or multi-year game plan can help to set the entire organization up for success. From a place of internal alignment, it can be much easier to determine priority areas of focus and crystallize the company’s overall goals.
• Understand your customer. Once you’ve done the legwork needed to truly understand your customer and get inside their head, you can gain enough traction to bring more value to the marketplace. According to Lisa, the magic resides in the ability to think ahead and execute well from a place of knowledge and empowerment.
• Believe in the mission. Lisa credits her success in the marketing world to her genuine passion and belief in the mission of the companies she’s worked for in the past. As an individual, feeling an authentic passion for the work you’re doing can help you maximize your impact and bring value to your customers over time.

Learn more about AppFolio here: https://www.appfolio.com/Learn more about Lisa here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisahorner/

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Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!Key takeaways from this episode:* Be customer-obsessed. As a current CMO and a former CEO, Bala understands the value of taking a customer-centric approach by listening to their needs first. While many entrepreneurs may think of finding solutions first and identifying the problems second, Bala suggests taking the inverse approach to ensure your product is addressing a real pain point for customers. * Appeal to psychology. Bala explained that there are two major personality types: one that will be more drawn to emotive storytelling, and one that is more swayed by facts, statistics and analysis. When creating content, it’s important to understand how to appeal to these two distinct psychological profiles by crafting a compelling story that includes elements of both. * Don’t forget about product channel fit. One of the main points Bala helped to drive home during the episode was the importance of finding the right product channel fit instead of jumping straight from product market fit to product growth. Although it can be tempting to hit the ground running, it’s essential to take the extra step of considering the message you’re trying to convey, the offer and audience segmentation.

Learn more about CoreStack here: https://www.corestack.io/Learn more about Bala here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/balavishwanath/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview James Whitemore, EVP and CMO at NetApp. During the episode, we discuss sales and marketing alignment, the benefits of maintaining a startup mentality even as a 30-year-old company, and the importance of staying authentic.Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!Key takeaways from this episode:

• Embrace a startup mentality. During his career, James has spent over a decade running startups. He says these experiences have imbued him with several applicable skills, teaching him the importance of taking a data-driven approach, staying agile and understanding the test-learn-iterate cycle. Even if you’re not working in a startup environment, this mentality can be applied in any role to ensure continuous improvement.
• Pick your battles. James emphasized the importance of compartmentalizing to focus on your top priorities, especially in a leadership role. In other words, pick your battles, and don’t disrupt something that’s working just for the sake of disruption.
• Manage expectations. As someone who has bounced around various sales and marketing roles throughout his career, James has learned the value of an upfront communication style and setting expectations within a team setting from the get-go. This philosophy has ultimately served him well at the leadership level as he builds a team founded on trust and inclusivity.

Learn more about NetApp here: https://www.netapp.com/Learn more about James here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jwhitemore/

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Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!Key takeaways from this episode:

• Pound the pavement. When you’re in the market for a new role, it’s important to do your due diligence through plenty of research, networking and informational interviews. Rebecca mentioned that she had checked out about 100 companies prior to being contacted by Loom, which shows just how committed she was to finding the right fit.
• Be a cross-functional leader. Rebecca is a self-proclaimed cross-functional leader, which means she has the ability to wear multiple hats and fulfill several different roles within the company. By taking on an attitude of continuous learning, Rebecca has shaped herself into an outstanding leader and fallen in love with the journey in the process.
• Timing is everything. When it comes to product-led growth, Rebecca stressed the importance of keeping an awareness of market readiness and taking advantage of new opportunities as the world evolves. Using the example of Instagram following the emergence of the iPhone, she noted that a large component of a successful product involves being in the right place at the right time.

Learn more about Loom here: https://www.loom.com/Learn more about Rebecca here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-kline-ba5b796/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Raj Sarkar, CMO at 1Password. During the episode, we discuss bringing brands to market in an efficient way, how to optimize opportunities based on audience segments, and some of the pillars he’s put in place for the marketing team as CMO at 1Password.Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!Key takeaways from this episode:

• Get smart to market on a budget. During our discussion, Raj mentioned that he has a few tricks up his sleeve when it comes to marketing on a lean budget from past experiences. Smart marketing doesn’t always necessarily come down to having a healthy budget—creative thinking will get you far when money is tight.
• The gap between B2B and B2C marketing is closing. Although there is still a clear distinction to be made between B2B and B2C marketing, the gap is closing and brands are now moving closer to H2H (Human to Human marketing). Raj used the example of Dropbox, noting that the company broke into the B2B segment by first connecting with people on a B2C level, who ended up liking the product so much that they brought it to work with them.
• Surprise and delight. By Raj’s standards, if a piece of content doesn’t delight the reader, then it has failed. Although considering things like SEO is important, it’s essential that content adds value and emotion to the customer at the end of the day.

Learn more about 1Password here: https://1password.com/Learn more about Raj here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajsarkar/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Atri Chatterjee, CMO of ForgeRock. During the episode, we discuss his path to CMO, the convergence of product and content, and the similarities between being a product manager and a product marketer. Atri also shares his perspective on the role of content in the future of marketing.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Content is key. Throughout his career, Atri has learned that content plays a key role in the customer experience. When creating content, brands need to consider the kind of experience they’re creating for customers and how they’re adding value to their lives. This will ultimately help them connect with customers in their own language and continue building their brand narrative.
• Consider the end goal. Throughout his career, Atri has held various product-based roles that have helped him learn valuable skills and lessons. He noted that whether in product management or marketing, it’s important to always have the end goal in mind, whether it’s connecting with customers or solving a common problem.
• Content, but make it interactive. Atri also mentioned that today, customers are expecting interactive content that speaks to them in a way they can connect with and easily understand. Marketers need to be creative with their content strategy and think outside the box to go the extra mile with customers.

Learn more about ForgeRock here: https://www.forgerock.com/

Learn more about Atri here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/atri-chatterjee-b6212/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Ashley Stepien, Vice President of Marketing at Ramp, the corporate card and spend management platform designed to help you spend less. During the episode, Ashley shares her thoughts on the importance of understanding the voice of the customer, getting “weird” creatively to stand out, and creating an amazing customer experience along the way.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Identify the common threads. Ashley noted that while working as a consultant, she noticed that almost every marketing organization faced the same common pain points. Throughout her career, she’s recognized the need to stay focused on three core issues: engaging with customers, supporting sales organizations, and building a strong organization with the ability to scale and grow over time.
• Hold one another accountable. When working in a team setting, holding one another accountable to your overarching goals is essential. Ashley mentioned that with every new campaign or program they launch, she and her team always ensure that they are keeping the customer’s voice top of mind, and holding each other accountable to this mission is critical.
• The customer experience has changed. In recent years, customers have become more savvy and educated than they ever have been before in history. This has presented a new challenge for marketers and an opportunity to lean into the organic side of creating the customer experience through excellent content. As Ashley mentioned, not everyone has cracked the code just yet, but things are moving in the right direction.

Learn more about Ramp here: https://ramp.com/

Learn more about Ashley here: 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleybrucker/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Jason McClelland, CMO at Algolia, a startup that enables developers to build next generation apps with composable APIs. During the episode, we discuss Jason’s non-traditional path to CMO, how brands can make the most of their tech, and the key processes that ensure success.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Keep an eye out for potential. Jason took a non-linear path to the role of CMO. Part of the reason for his success was his ability to recognize potential and follow through on his interests throughout his career. When looking for a new company to join, it’s important to look at the bigger picture and visualize the highest potential of an organization from the beginning.
• Be intentional. As a tech advisor for major corporations like Coca-Cola and Nike, Jason noticed that it was common for CMOs to become enamored with flashy new technology without stopping to think about the real function and purpose they were looking to fulfill. This is why he recommends getting crystal clear on the goal in mind and the systems that will help to achieve it before hitting go on a digital transformation.
• Pick a specialty. For anyone who’s on a path to CMO, Jason recommends ensuring you have adequate knowledge of all areas of the marketing function, while also specializing in one key area. He notes that most companies hire people based on the need to solve a specific problem, so aligning on one key area that you can become a true expert in will ultimately serve you well on your career trajectory.

Learn more about Algolia here: https://www.algolia.com/

Learn more about Jason here: 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonmcclelland/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Genefa Murphy, the CMO of cloud contact center, Five9. During the episode, we discuss her path to CMO, creative marketing that challenges societal norms, and the customer experience overall.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• It’s all about the customer experience. At the end of the day, the technology and products a company provides to their customers are important, but the most crucial element of forming lasting relationships is creating an exceptional journey from beginning to end. Genefa recognized this early on in her career, which led her to develop skills that would help to engage with customers on a deeper level.
• Thought leadership is key. Genefa noted that it’s not enough for companies to set goals around creating demand—customers are looking for opinions, advice and best practices, so positioning the company alongside a provocative point of view is essential. By doing this, companies can expand the scope of how they define success, impact awareness and start a conversation around their area of expertise.
• Embrace subject matter experts. While marketing teams of the past may have been siloed into separate functions, Genefa mentioned that it’s much more effective to create an integrated team with knowledgeable subject matter experts in each area. This way, the team can better serve all stakeholders including current customers and new prospects.

Learn more about Five9 here: https://www.five9.com/

Learn more about Genefa here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/genefamurphy/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Jamie Gilpin, CMO at Sprout Social, a company that helps brands unlock the power of social media. During the episode, we discuss the value of social media, Jamie’s career trajectory so far, and how to connect with buyers in a meaningful way.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Seek data-driven solutions. During our conversation, Jamie emphasized the value and importance of being a data-driven company first, while striking the right balance between creative, right-brain thinking and a more analytical mindset. She noted that Sprout Social has used data to inform their decisions from the beginning, leveraging key metrics to help boost their overall growth strategy.
• Focus on storytelling. Along with using data to their advantage, Sprout Social relies heavily on great storytelling to further their brand mission and connect with customers. Jamie noted that regardless of your goal or mission as a company, storytelling is a crucial piece of the puzzle in terms of bringing your vision to life for audiences and sparking engagement.
• Zig-zag your way to the top. Jamie’s career trajectory so far has been anything but linear—over the years, she’s zigged and zagged in multiple directions, sometimes even taking salary decreases in order to find the perfect fit for her skills and expertise. Ultimately, this “snakes and ladders” style approach served her well as she’s been able to land in a role that’s brought her true success, happiness and fulfillment.

Learn more about Sprout Social here: www.sproutsocial.com

Learn more about Jamie here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamiegilpin/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Chris Koehler, the CMO of Box, a cloud content management company that helps companies securely connect their people, information and applications. During the episode, we discuss how Box has evolved over the years, Chris’s career trajectory so far, and how to scale the customer relationship by taking a holistic marketing approach.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Don’t be afraid to raise your hand. During our chat, Chris explained how he ended up in his current role as CMO at Box simply by recognizing the opportunity and advocating for himself. Given his past experiences and the expertise he had acquired during his career, he was confident he’d be the perfect fit for the role, and he didn’t hesitate to speak up and put himself forward to the leadership team as the ideal candidate.
• Alignment is key. Chris mentioned that in his role as CMO, he takes a cross-functional approach to ensure that all marketing tactics are aligned with the customer experience journey. By viewing the customer journey from a holistic perspective, Chris champions a comprehensive digital strategy team combining sales, CSS product and marketing to create an aligned customer experience.
• Focus on customer engagement. One challenge the team at Box has encountered is ensuring that their latest and greatest innovations are communicated effectively to their customers. Chris noted that as a result, one of the team’s main objectives today is ensuring their customers are aware of the product’s full capabilities so they remain engaged and up-to-date when it comes to recent upgrades and improvements.

Learn more about Box here: https://www.box.com/home

Learn more about Chris here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ckoehler/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Noreen Allen, CMO at Bandwidth, a global cloud platform for cloud-ready voice, messaging, and emergency services. During the episode, we discuss how Noreen guided the company through an IPO and the role of a CMO throughout that process, as well as how she’s reshaped the marketing organization to address specific buyer segments.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Identify the differentiating factor. Noreen says that when looking for a new team to join, she made sure to prioritize companies with products that would stand out in a crowded market. When she found Bandwidth, she immediately recognized the potential behind the product, which she knew would be attractive to investors.
• Lay the groundwork upfront. Without buy-in from the market, Noreen and the team at Bandwidth knew they wouldn’t get very far, which is why a big component of their strategy is education. They spent time early on researching, educating and positioning the company within the market to ensure their stakeholders would validate their mission when crunch time came.
• Shift the structure. Noreen explained how earlier this year, Bandwidth shifted from a traditional marketing structure to instead create teams devoted to each buyer segment. This way, each unit is able to hone in on a specific buyer and gain a better understanding of what motivates them, who their competitors are, and the broader dynamics at play within the segment.

Learn more about Bandwidth here: https://www.bandwidth.com/

Learn more about Noreen here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/noreena/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Jake Athey, VP of Marketing at Widen, a cloud-native provider of digital asset management (DAM) and product information management (PIM) software. During the episode, we discuss Acquia’s recent acquisition of Widen, taking a balanced approach to marketing, and Jake’s 17-year journey with the company.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Never underestimate the power of adaptability. Over the course of his 17-year stint at Widen, and especially over the course of the past 18 months, Jake has learned a thing or two about adapting to change. He believes staying adaptable to change is one of the most essential skills anyone can develop as they move forward and transform along their career path.
• Alignment is key. According to Jake, part of Widen’s strategy for strengthening customer retention includes ensuring there’s clear alignment between the promises that are made during the marketing stage and the actual delivery of the services. To accomplish this, teams need to have solid support from leadership and a strong relationship to the company’s core values.
• Care greatly. Jake mentioned that one of his mantras is “care greatly,” which serves as a reminder that excellent marketers need to be empathetic towards others. This is why placing a strong emphasis on desired customer outcomes and excellent service throughout the buyer journey has been crucial for Widen.

Learn more about Widen here: https://www.widen.com/

Learn more about Jake here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakeathey/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Scott Holden, CMO at ThoughtSpot, a tech company that produces business intelligence analytics search software. Previously, Scott served as VP of Marketing at Salesforce. During the episode, we discuss Scott’s disruptive approach to marketing, modern day analytics, and what made him the CMO he is today.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Great marketers are also great storytellers. As Scott noted, feeling genuinely passionate about the story you’re telling helps others get invested in the vision, too. During his seven-year stint at Salesforce, one of the key lessons he learned was that a great story has the power to inspire the market and the entire internal organization.
• Dashboards are dead. When it comes to analytics, Scott takes the bold stance that static dashboards have become a relic of the past. Instead, he believes that analytics should be an interactive experience which business leaders can immerse themselves in on the fly, in real time.
• Think big. When it comes to marketing and PR, there’s always room to think bigger and expand your vision for the company. Scott believes through sheer force of will and great storytelling, you can achieve anything you set your mind to and motivate others to do the same.

Learn more about ThoughtSpot here: https://www.thoughtspot.com/

Learn more about Scott here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottiholden/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Chandar Pattabhiram, CMO at Coupa, a global technology platform for business spend management. In the past, Chandar also held CMO roles at Marketo and Badgeville. During the episode, we discuss his career path so far, how to turn an educational brand into a global phenomenon and the key characteristics of a great CMO. 

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• When in doubt, remember: E=mc2. When searching for a new company to join, Chandar took notes from Einstein and came up with a simple pneumonic formula: the “M” in the equation refers to monetary, the first “C” stands for competitive advantage, and the second “C” stands for culture as he was looking for a company that was dedicated to supporting rather than managing its employees.
• Seek harmony. Chandar mentioned that the role of a CMO is to create harmony across the organization by supporting team members and understanding the nuances of the company’s strategic goals. He recommends taking advantage of the skills and experience you’ve gained from prior roles while keeping a flexible approach.
• Embody the characteristics of a great CMO. Chandar believes there are three components of a great CMO: excellent storytelling skills, an understanding of the science of marketing, and the ability to harness all the moving parts of a marketing engine to form connections. Once you’ve mastered all these elements, Chandar says, you’ll be well on your way as an effective marketing leader.

Learn more about Coupa here: https://www.coupa.com/

Learn more about Chandar here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chandarp/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Cristy Garcia, the Vice President of Marketing at Impact, a partnership management platform. Specializing in content creating, lead generation programs and team building, Cristy is a B2B marketer who is equally hungry, humble and smart. During the episode, we discuss the qualities Cristy looks for when hiring new marketers, tips for marketing teams to create sales pipeline, and the role of content and events in customer engagement.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• The best marketers are both hungry and humble. Cristy noted that when hiring new talent for the team, she looks for these two qualities because they signal a desire to be the best they can be while remaining kind and willing to learn new things.
• All teams are ultimately responsible for creating sales pipeline. Cristy mentioned that when it comes to sales, she considers all teams including marketing and business development responsible for creating pipeline and driving high-quality conversions. This is why collaboration and communication is key at every stage of the journey.
• Cristy takes a 360-degree approach to campaigns. She believes that every level of the funnel is equally important, and all touchpoints like email, events and content marketing should ultimately come together to create a comprehensive journey for the customer.

Learn more about Impact here: https://impact.com/

Learn more about Cristy here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cristinaebert/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Bill Kramer, VP of Marketing at Karat, a company that conducts live technical interviews for leading tech talent acquisition programs. We discuss his career trajectory so far, content creation and how to market to people who don’t want to be marketed to.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• When attempting to reach a target audience that’s resistant to most marketing efforts like engineers, a different approach may be necessary. From the beginning, Bill recognized that engineering leaders and software engineers despise marketing, which is why the team at Karat uses quality content and thought leadership to entice prospects while leaving the decisions in their hands.
• Go where the buyers are. When developing creative content and out-of-the-box solutions to reach people who are marketing-averse, Bill emphasized the importance of staying on top of trends in their space and always being one step ahead of the pack. Part of this strategy includes regularly attending and speaking at events in the technology space to position your brand as a thought leader and authoritative voice on the subject.
• Draw attention to the pain points you’re solving with your business. Bill mentioned that part of their strategy at Karat is increasing overall awareness of the pain points in the traditional interviewing process to show companies that there’s a better way of doing things they may not have considered previously. Once they know they’re on fire, so to speak, it’s your chance to step up and help put it out.

Learn more about Karat here: https://karat.com/

Learn more about Bill here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/realbillkramer/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Carol Carpenter, CMO of VMware, a cloud computing and virtualization technology company. Carol shares some of the lessons she’s learned during her roles at several different startups, including stints as CEO of ElasticBox and as GM at Trend Micro. During the episode, we discuss strategy, customer segmentation and the learning experiences that have helped her build confidence along the way.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Sometimes, a new role can mean a major shift in perspective. For Carol, shifting gears from Global VP of Marketing to General Manager at Trend Micro was a massive wake-up call and as she describes it, like “business school on steroids.” In her new role, Carol was responsible for multiple, cross-functional teams, profits and loss, revenue and customer acquisition.
• Ask, and you shall receive. After working under several different CEOs throughout her career, Carol realized she just might have the chops to do it herself. Once she had been struck by the idea, she began spreading the word that she was in the market for a CEO role and lo and behold, the calls started flooding in, which is how she landed the coveted title at ElasticBox.
• Follow the pain. Carol mentioned that an important lesson she learned while working at Google Cloud was that customers aren’t necessarily interested in what you can do, but how you can help them solve their personal pain points. When in doubt, identify the pain points customers are struggling with and help them come up with a “painkiller,” which will ultimately help to drive urgency and immediacy.

Learn more about VMware here: https://www.airtable.com/

Learn more about Carol here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolwcarpenter/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Archana Agrawal, CMO at Airtable, a San Francisco-based cloud service. With a background in data science and analytics, Archana applies her experience to her new role to leverage data and gain a deeper understanding of the marketing team’s needs. During the episode, we discuss tips for how marketing teams can stay nimble, agile and organized for success.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Play to your strengths. Archana mentioned that one lesson she took away from the transition from her role at IBM to the Ladders was to recognize where your strengths and weaknesses lie, and double down on your strong points to leverage them as much as possible. Ultimately, this will help you build resilience so you can overcome your weaknesses.
• Focus on operational excellence. Bringing together people, processes, systems and tactics into one place has been a gamechanger for Archana and her team, especially during big launches. She mentioned that with such a high volume of campaigns, content and requests happening at once, a strong focus on operational efficiency is the key to developing the kind of agility marketers need today.
• Building a positive team culture is a must. Archana shared that the marketing team at Airtable often engages in interactive, team-building activities like contributing to a crowdsourced newsletter or even a virtual Airbnb tour through the streets of Paris. Creating a strong team culture increases collaboration and communication, which in turn, makes the chaos a little more manageable.

Learn more about Airtable here: https://www.airtable.com/

Learn more about Archana here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/archana-agrawal/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Leela Srinivasan, CMO of Momentive, the company previously known as SurveyMonkey. We discuss the reasoning behind the company’s rebrand and how the process unfolded from ideation to execution. Leela shares the wisdom she’s gained through roles at Lever, Bravado and Stage 2 Capital, and as a board member at Upwork. She also offers her tips for building relationships, understanding the sales pipeline and collaborating effectively across teams.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Growth is always tapping talented people on the shoulder. Employers need to stay cognizant of this fact and provide their employees with continuous growth opportunities every step of the way. Otherwise, they may begin to stagnate in their career and as a result, seek other opportunities.
• Wearing multiple hats throughout your career gives you the opportunity to empathize with others and learn valuable skills. Leela mentioned that having experience on both ends of the sales pipeline enabled her to put herself in the shoes of others and gain a better understanding of the entire process from the perspective of both the customer and the sales executive.
• A company rebrand involves much more than just a fresh coat of paint. For Momentive, the process of rebranding (or relaunching, if you will) involved telling a new story around the solutions the company offers, and keeping their vision of raising the bar for human experiences by amplifying individual voices at the forefront of it all.

Learn more about Momentive here: https://www.momentive.ai/

Learn more about Leela here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leelasrinivasan/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Joe Chernov, CMO at Pendo, a company that’s on a mission to elevate the world’s experience with software. We discuss his career path so far, and how it’s evolved over the years from leading with content to leading with product. Now, he’s focused on finding a way to bring the two areas together seamlessly.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• According to Joe, there are essentially two ways to build a brand in B2B: the path of the dragonslayer or the patron saint. In the former, you’re fighting against something and existing in opposition to it, like ads, for example. With the patron saint approach, you’re standing to give rise to a new role or to strengthen a new role within a company, which is where Pendo has always operated in terms of product.
• Joe mentioned he once read a study that tracked every visitor to a grocery store in an attempt to find a pattern in the way people walk through aisles, and the answer was that there was no pattern. Applying this to the buyer experience at Pendo, Joe mentioned he tries to create a portfolio of different avenues people can use to discover the company such as free content about becoming a better product manager, or requesting a demo of the product. This way, there’s something for every style of grocery store perusing.
• Joe’s parting advice for marketers was to take the spirit of advice from marketing thought leaders, instead of taking it so literally. He believes we could all benefit from learning from the problem somebody is trying to solve and how they're approaching the solution rather than rushing to learn the specific tools that were used in finding the solution.

Learn more about Pendo here: https://www.pendo.io/

Learn more about Joe here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jchernov/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Tarah Neujahr Bryan, CMO at Health Catalyst, a leading provider of data and analytics to healthcare organizations. Tarah shares her perspective on humility, learning from mistakes and her approach on everything from content strategy to hiring.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• When hiring new marketers, engage in a free-flowing conversation rather than a traditional interview. This way, you can get a better sense of who the candidate is as a person, where their true passion lies, and whether they’ll be the right fit for your team.
• Don’t underestimate the power of marketing from an internal perspective. Tarah believes a great mentorship network within a company can go a long way in terms of maintaining resiliency and consistency among the team.
• Content creators and digital marketers need to come together to create the most effective strategy. Catalyst Health is big on breaking down the barriers between departments to ensure strong collaboration and a versatile approach.

Learn more about Health Catalyst here: https://www.healthcatalyst.com/

Learn more about Tarah here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tarahn/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Dan Lowden, CMO at HUMAN, a cybersecurity company formerly known as White Ops. Dan is a passionate marketer and storyteller, and he’s held several positions throughout his career including CMO, founder and even head chef. During the episode, we discuss the path to becoming a CMO, meeting customers in a human way, brand storytelling and much more.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Passion rules at the end of the day. When it comes to hiring processes, building a brand narrative and carrying forward your company’s key messaging, the passion behind it all is the secret ingredient for success. If you can’t have passion, then intrigue that has the potential to turn into passion is the next runner up.
• Case studies are more crucial now than ever before. With the rise of digital and virtual video conferencing due to the pandemic, impactful case studies demonstrating tangible examples of your company’s work are key for connecting and engaging with your customers.
• Demonstrate your wins. Dan mentioned that so much of the news today is about losing, so it’s important to show off your wins in a compelling way. Paint a picture of your success like you’re crafting a scene from a movie, and trust that your buyers will connect with your narrative on an emotional level.

Learn more about HUMAN here: https://www.humansecurity.com/

Learn more about Dan here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danlowden/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Leslie Alore, Global Vice President of Growth Marketing at Ivanti. In her role, Leslie focuses on growth and offering a fresh perspective to the executive table. Not only is Leslie an experienced marketing expert, but she also understands the nuances of the business world and the importance of strategic decision making tools. Previously known as Landesk, Ivanti is an IT software company offering enterprise service, management solutions, security solutions and unified endpoint management. Ivanti has seen tremendous growth in recent years, acquiring at least one new company each quarter. Leslie works synergistically with the leadership team to evaluate every facet of the business as a whole, and ultimately ensure the marketing strategy is aligned with the company’s overall strategic priorities.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• While the remote work revolution has its downsides, it’s also made it easier for companies to embrace inclusivity by expanding the talent pool beyond a physical location. Leslie says hiring and onboarding new employees remotely has allowed for a more equitable integration of diverse backgrounds and perspectives overall.
• From a B2B marketing perspective, businesses need to be strategic about the companies they’re targeting to maximize their chances at success and adding value to the organization. Marketers would be wise to spend more time listening, researching and synthesizing information gleaned from buyer interactions to offer personalized and precise experiences.
• Marketing teams are responsible for the entire continuum of a customer’s experience from the first interaction to the close. To create a personalized experience for customers, the marketing and sales teams need to be aligned on their approach so that each aspect of the funnel feels streamlined and consistent. Collaboration is key, and providing value at every stage helps to create a memorable experience for the customer.

Learn more about Ivanti here: https://www.ivanti.com/

Learn more about Leslie here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lesliecocco/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Kirsten Newbold-Knipp, Chief Marketing Officer at FullStory, a digital experience intelligence (DXI) platform that helps companies drive digital growth based on user experience data. Kirsten is also an investor and advisor, and during the episode she reveals her secrets for juggling multiple roles and maintaining balance throughout it all. We also discuss the importance of striking a balance between making full use of customer data while maintaining trust in the relationship.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• A flexible organization structure is crucial for marketing teams. In order for companies to retain valued employees, it’s important to recognize their personal career aspirations and provide them with opportunities to expand their skill set and learn new things. Losing a marketer to another company can create a gap in the structure, and filling this gap isn’t always easy.
• In order to create a personalized customer journey, companies need to track each step along their path to making a purchase. However, trust and transparency is more important than ever. It’s essential to strike a balance between taking advantage of behavioral data and maintaining an open, honest relationship with the customer.
• The marketing operations team is the primary champion in terms of customer data ownership. This team serves as the central holder of data points crossing from the buyer stages to the customer journey. As marketers invest in more technology, the role of the marketing operations team is becoming more crucial as a bridge to a greater understanding of the buyer overall.

Learn more about FullStory here: https://www.fullstory.com/

Learn more about Kirsten here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kirstenpetra/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Melissa Sargeant, Chief Marketing Officer at Litmus, a company that empowers brands to build, test and analyze email marketing campaigns. We discuss Melissa’s career path through corporate communications, public affairs and tech, and the experiences that have shaped her into the CMO she is today. As a founding member of CMO Huddles, Melissa shares some of the topics and issues the group discusses each month. The current state of email marketing and where it’s headed in the future is also a topic of discussion, and Melissa offers her perspective on the benefits of the channel from a brand perspective.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• The path to becoming a CMO isn’t necessarily straightforward. By continually following her passions and interests throughout her career, Melissa carved out a niche for herself in the tech world and first landed the coveted title at ChannelAdvisor back in 2016. Her experiences ultimately paved the way for her current role at Litmus.
• Email marketing is one of the best ways to nurture relationships with customers. One of the most popular trends happening in email marketing right now is personalization and tailored communications strategies based on analytics and subscriber interests.
• Ultimately, the role of the marketer is to help drive the growth of the company. Your job shouldn’t end with your skills—it should extend beyond everyday functions to continue building the pipeline forward.

Learn more about Litmus here: https://www.litmus.com/

Learn more about Melissa here:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissa-sargeant-a133142/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Katherine Calvert, CMO at Khoros. Katherine began her career in communications and by her admission “didn’t even know what marketing was” but was always interested in tech and the idea of helping connect businesses to their customers. Her background has led her to take a conscious holistic approach to marketing: she understands the value of comms but also knows that data is hard to argue with when you’re trying to prove ROI. This holistic view of marketing and ability to adapt was integral to her success as CMO as her team merged and rebranded two $100M companies to form Khoros.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Data is the one thing in marketing you can truly measure and it’s important that as leaders we understand the advantage of this to earn a seat at the table.
• Rebranding is difficult, expensive and messy, especially when you are merging two defined identities. In Katherine’s case, it was a perfect opportunity to fuse data into the decision making process. Doing market research became critical to going about the rebrand properly.
• As a B2B marketer, your job is to create and accelerate revenue opportunities. When you are clear about this North star and impart this to your team the next steps become natural and it allows more collaboration with your sales team.

Learn more about Khoros here: https://khoros.com/

Learn more about Katherine here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katherinecalvert/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Monica Ho, CMO at SOCi Inc. Monica has a wealth of experience scaling companies and when she moved to SOCi, she was looking to get back to building again. She wanted to be an integral part of their growth as they started fundraising for their Series B; now they have just closed their Series D and are close to 200 hundred employees. Today we discuss Monica’s approach to her career and finding new opportunities. We also dig into how to leverage data on social for consumer insights to better connect with your target audiences.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Monica’s mantra is “F*** average, be legendary”. She says that in your career, you have to always push yourself forward even if you feel like you don’t have it in you.
• At every stage in a company’s growth cycle, different marketing skills and strategies are required. To be a successful marketer with a growing company, you need to be comfortable with trying new things and reinventing yourself.
• Tap into social! It’s where conversations and communications are happening. As marketers, we used to put a lot of money and resources to solicit info, now it’s all online for us to tap into. These conversations will be happening with or without your brand, so you need to find a way to engage with your target on social, and take ownership of your message.

Learn more about SOCi here: https://www.meetsoci.com/

Learn more about Monica here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/monicamho/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Blake Adams, VP of Marketing at Florence Healthcare. Florence is solving workflow issues in clinical trial execution, allowing companies like Pfizer more efficient operations to run trials through tech. Blake joined the company years ago as a marketing manager and has been a part of their growth from 8 to 100 employees. He is now VP of Marketing at the company, a position that he loves because it allows him to advocate for marketing as a tool to drive business. As a marketer, Blake understands the importance of metrics, especially because data allows you to take risks and still instill your board with confidence, even in a high growth company like Florence.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• The hardest challenge moving into a higher level marketing role can be moving from a place of subject matter expertise to a place of connecting the dots and facilitating the experts. Blake had to learn how to move away from leading with technical skills and focus on setting his team up for success.
• Marketing is a tool to drive business value. As marketers we need to bring marketing into the conversation at the executive table and talk about how it can drive business strategy. How does it fit into the overall business structure? How does it drive revenue growth?
• Measure everything-- even if you don’t report on it outside your team you may eventually be able to put that data to use somehow-- a culture of measurement and metrics also evokes trust in your board to allow you to take risks as you grow.

Learn more about Florence Healthcare here: https://florencehc.com/

Learn more about Blake here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blakegadams/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Seema Kumar, CMO at New Relic. Seema is an accomplished CMO who walks me through her journey to joining New Relic and how her approach differed the second time she stepped into a CMO role. For Seema, education is key, all around. After a long tenure at Salesforce, she only moved on when she felt that she was no longer learning there and believes in educating her team about their role in their organization’s big picture. She also understands the importance of educating your customers through your content marketing and other marketing efforts. As a content marketing expert, Seema breaks down how to approach content marketing for top of funnel customers vs. bottom funnel customers. The difference? Focus on pure product education for top of funnel customers-- but be straightforward in doing so, and you’ll build more trust.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Focus on content that truly educates your buyer-- if it’s informative and based in fact it will be much more successful
• Remember to think about the fact that adults learn in different ways. Too often marketers don’t think about different form factors and alienate a large part of their audience.
• As a CMO, you need to focus both on your team and your executive peers. Tight relationships are imperative to scaling your impact in the business.
• You don’t always design your career. Often it’s about walking through doors when they’re open and a fair bit of luck. But Seema noted, “the harder she worked, the luckier she got”.

Learn more about New Relic here: https://newrelic.com/

Learn more about Seema here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seemaxkumar/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Pascal Ehrsam, SVP of Marketing at Rokt. Pascal has held multiple CMO and fractional CMO positions but actually came to his latest post after losing his job in the pandemic. He chose to view it as an opportunity to build his next chapter and follow his passion. As a marketer, Pascal’s north star is to follow products he believes in and when he was presented with the opportunity at Rokt, he knew it was something he was excited to help build. On today’s episode we discuss Pascal’s career journey, his jump from B2C to B2B marketing, as well as what he learned working agency side. We also reflect on the importance of balance in marketing and how to personalize with the customer experience in mind.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Setbacks and losing opportunities can hurt but the key in these moments is how we respond, how we adapt, and what we do next.
• Marketing is all about balance. Balance between science and art, data and customization; balance in your messaging. Striking a balance can be tricky and is a skill marketers hone over years and years in the industry.
• Timing is also such an important factor. It’s not just about serving your customers with what they need, it’s also about serving it at the right time.

Learn more about Rokt here: https://rokt.com/

Learn more about Pascal here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thefractionalcmo/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Jessica Hoffman, VP of Marketing and Communications, and also an operating partner at Craft Ventures. Jessica learned the value and definition of a story from her background in traditional news, eventually moving into a career in PR, agency side. She moved away from agency because she wasn’t able to develop a depth of understanding of any one company and wanted to work in a role more rooted in strategy over tactical execution. In fact, she measures  a lot of the leaders and CEOs she has worked with by their ability to think of comms and media strategically, as a proactive tool, as opposed to reactively. On today’s episode, we discuss the role communication plays in defining your strategy and creating your movement.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Once you’ve established who you are and how you speak about your company, there are so many other factors like customers, community, and social media that all come into play. Yet the only way to do comms well is to be aligned on what the overall goal is.
• Understanding your customers and having a feedback loop is so important in communications, it will influence how you speak to them and how you develop your strategy.
• Movement marketing is based on a deep understanding of your mission and marketing in a way that holds this in focus and ensures your message is heard and understood by your customers.

Learn more about here: https://www.craftventures.com/

Learn more about Jessica here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-hoffman-a65224/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Megan Lueders, CMO at Silicon Labs. Silicon Labs is a transformative company in the semiconductor space, and focused on building a smarter more connected world. As a tech company, their marketing has always been product focused but today we explore how the buyer journey is transitioning and the acceleration of digital has driven a need for content marketing and other touchpoints for product driven businesses. We also discuss Megan’s career journey and how she used a six month sabbatical to focus on her family, but also refocus on herself and understand what she needed in her career. Any buyer journey starts with a customer saying “give me something that will be of use to me” and Megan took a similar approach to her career, assessing opportunities for value, fit and holding out for the right opportunity.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• You can balance being a career driven leader and a family person. For Megan, she needed this time to refine her needs and approach and be strategic about her next move.
• Your career is like a marriage-- it needs to be right because it has implications on every aspect of your life. It needs to be a good match and a good partnership.
• Even when your company is product driven, it can’t be as simple as “these are our products, buy them from us”, especially during these turbulent times when things are less certain, you need to connect with customers and potential customers in increasingly different and digital ways.

Learn more about Silicon Labs here: https://www.silabs.com/

Learn more about Megan here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meganlueders/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Amy Holtzman, SVP of Marketing at AlphaSense. On today’s episode we chat about the important role of demand generation and how it builds an earned platform for other forms of marketing. We also discuss Amy’s career journey and hiring strategies to build out her team at AlphaSense; and how you know both when you need to bring subject matter experts onto your team and when you need to reinvent yourself as a marketer.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Your demand performance is what gives you the right and the budget to do other, cooler things like invest in brand and do cooler executions. Amy says she always spoke in terms of metrics and demand and this earned her a seat at the table.
• Good content always prevails-- find out what content works for you and prioritize making it great.
• There is always a debate of who should “own” things in marketing. When we have projects where there isn’t a specific owner, this actually builds opportunities for partnerships and teamwork.

Learn more about Alphasense here: https://www.alpha-sense.com/

Learn more about Amy here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aholtzman/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Brian Kardon, CMO at InVision. A big part of Brian’s strategy is building an enterprise sales channel, and this remains top of mind as he leads his team. Brian is an accomplished marketer who has held senior marketing roles at companies such as Fuze and Forrester. At InVision, he leads sales and marketing, with an understanding that they need to be integrated to be successful. On today’s episode, we discuss how to leverage product led growth to build a successful enterprise strategy, lining up customers who are ready to advocate for you.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Take calls with recruiters. Even if you’re not looking, you may know someone who is a great fit, and it’s good to stay informed about what’s out there. It always benefits to stay connected and continue relationship building even if you’re not in the market for a job.
• So few companies consolidate sales and marketing under the same leader, and most C Suite teams talk about aligning sales and marketing when they should be talking about integrating them.
• At InVision, Brian has had great success with converting PQLs or product qualified leads into enterprise clients--as he says, seeds become trees. People do certain things in the app that trigger a signal to try to convert them to enterprise customers. But Brian recognizes the skills needed to nurture an enterprise account are very different than those needed to nurture other customers, so it’s important to have a diverse team to manage this.

Learn more about InVision here: https://www.invisionapp.com/

Learn more about Brian here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-kardon-446b4

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Heidi Bullock, CMO at Tealium. Throughout her career, Heidi has garnered extensive experience building and scaling high-performance marketing teams. She knows the immense importance of understanding your customer data and taking advantage of it, and on today’s episode we discuss: how to utilize this data to create better experiences for our customers, embracing change (whether in our business or in our careers), and how to be a marketing leader that provides vision, excitement and a point of view.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Change is scary but it’s so important- it’s the only constant in life and in marketing, and learning to embrace it is so beneficial.
• Acquisition is great but ABM is all about “land and expand”. Especially in SaaS marketing, acquisition is only half the battle. It’s all about landing enterprise clients and expanding to other parts of their business.
• You have to know who you’re targeting to deliver the experience they expect. The more we know, the better we can deliver.

Learn more about Tealium here: https://tealium.com/

Learn more about Heidi here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hbullock/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Anna Griffin, CMO at Smartsheet. Anna says that she has never thought about her career path in a traditional sense, but instead has always looked for companies doing something new or disrupting existing business models-- just like MarTech startup Smartsheet. On today’s episode, Anna and Randy discuss the importance of consumer curation in creating new business models, how to set your team up for success as a CMO, and where you should focus to build a successful MarTech business.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• In marketing, we often think we need to “stay in our lane” but the most creativity can happen when we take these lanes down, try new things and collaborate.
• Demand and brand do not need to be mutually exclusive-- as a CMO, you have to have both and you have to be focused on both.
• It can be advantageous to move into tech/startup marketing from a large company. Working at enterprise companies can help you identify pain points in business models and with using MarTech.

Learn more about Smartsheet here: https://www.smartsheet.com/

Learn more about Anna here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anna-griffin-1969843/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Gil Rosen. Gil started his marketing career in pharmaceuticals which he cites as a great training ground that helped him understand what marketing is all about including distribution, targeting different demographics, adhering to regulations and more. He is now CMO of Amdocs, a massive company with over 27,000 employees and over 4 billion in revenue. To lead an organization like this requires perspective to tell the right stories. Gil knows that storytelling is key to bridging the gap between the creator and end user, and also key in rallying everyone around an idea. On today’s episode, Gil and Randy discuss the different aspects of storytelling, escaping a legacy to expand your offering, and the importance of the communication industry in a post COVID world.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• In tech and startup marketing, finding the sweet spot between “too early” and “too late” is key in a go to market strategy. Imagine trying to explain TikTok to someone five years ago!
• One of Amdoc’s greatest challenges has been escaping its legacy, however positive it may be. They are the “Michael Jordan of billing” but this can make it difficult for them to escape this box and make a name for themselves in another domain
• A new segment has been born-- enterprise consumers. Businesspeople are working from home, requiring security and broadband previously only available from the office. Identifying new customer segments like this is key to thriving in a changing world.

Learn more about Amdocs here: https://www.amdocs.com/

Listen to their podcast, The Great Indoors here: https://www.amdocs.com/TheGreatIndoors

Learn more about Gil here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gilrosen/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Anthony Kennada, CMO at Hopin. Hopin has exploded into the market, revolutionizing the digital events space. Not even two years after launching in only June of 2019, they raised 400 million dollars and are evaluated at an apparent 5.65 billion dollars. Anthony has always had a passion for events, dating back to prom committee in high school and planning concerts in college. He even left a role at Gainsight to build out an event tech startup but ultimately ended up joining Hopin as their CMO. On today’s episode, Randy and Anthony discuss how to frame your digital events as entertaining experiences and what our post-COVID world holds for the events industry.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Relationships are the most important currency in building your career. Value and nurture the people that are going to champion you and build you up throughout your career
• You can fight Zoom fatigue by considering what would make your event a unique experience. What will differentiate you and get people talking about it?
• Perfecting the formula for digital events is about packaging things specifically for digital first, not adding in digital as an afterthought, much like the sports industry does--digital viewers may not be as connected with their in-person community but they have a one of a kind viewing experience.

Learn more about Hopin here: https://hopin.com/

Learn more about Anthony here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/akennada/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Melissa Hanson, VP of Marketing for Trimble Transportation. Trimble is a massive organization with a lot of employees. It has many different products spanning many different industries but they all focus on connecting the physical and digital world. Marketing for an organization of this size requires a very specific strategy and an understanding of when it makes sense to operate in silos and when it makes sense to operate autonomously, always keeping your customers in mind. On today’s episode, Melissa and I discuss her take on revenue marketing, and what it truly means for marketing and sales to work hand in hand.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Melissa has been intentional about pursuing opportunities where she has questioned if she was ready because it’s important to recognize the opportunity and need to be constantly expanding your tool belt as a marketer.
• Working at large companies that touch many different industries present opportunities for growth in your career.
• First, it’s important to have the right people, then you can define the right processes. After this you can think about how to better leverage technology to support these people and processes.
• Marketing is part art and part science but revenue marketing focuses on the science portion and looks at marketing in a more value based way, questioning how you are driving value for the business.

Learn more about Trimble here: https://www.trimble.com/

Learn more about Melissa here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissahanson1/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Meagen Eisenberg, CMO at TripActions. Meagen is a sought after marketing leader who any company would be lucky to have, and interestingly she chose to become CMO at a company centred in the travel industry. Meagen and Randy discuss how Meagen finds time to balance her wide range of advisory roles with her day job and home life, steps her team has taken to find success throughout the pandemic, and the role of the marketing team when developing new products.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Business advising, or any new challenge can seem daunting but Meagen is able to advise more efficiently after doing it for so long. Companies at various stages in their growth cycle face similar problems and pattern recognition allows her to build models and give faster advice.
• To choose her roles, Meagen assesses five things: the addressable market, the investors, the team, the ability to execute, and whether she can add value.
• Marketing and product might seem like very different things but one important thing they have in common is that they’re key for connecting with your customers.

Learn more about TripActions here: https://tripactions.com/

Learn more about Meagen here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meageneisenberg/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Lynne Capozzi, CMO of Acquia. Lynne did what she calls a “boomerang” by leaving her job at Acquia to pursue other passions and opportunities and ending up eventually returning as their CMO years later. According to Lynne, the company was at such a different stage in the growth cycle that it was like starting fresh, and she viewed it as such. She treated it as though she was brand new and erased what she knew from her past life at Acquia. Sometimes, in cases such as Lynne’s, the opportunity to come back is far from a step back, it’s an opportunity to bring your new skills and knowledge to a workplace you know and love. On today’s episode we discuss Lynne’s role as a CMO across different company growth cycles and the importance of both product marketing and customer marketing in our changing economic climate.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• As marketers we need to get rid of the jargon in our content. There is more content than ever before which makes it even more important to be genuine. If you’re not genuine, people will notice-- and they will leave.
• Sales is the front line to the customer but product marketing and product management are right behind them so they should have a direct line to your customers as well.
• There should be absolutely no shame in “boomeranging” back to a company. In many cases it can be seen and treated as a totally new opportunity, especially in cases like Lynne’s where she returned to a company at a completely different stage in their growth cycle.

Learn more about Acquia here: https://www.acquia.com/

Learn more about Lynne here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lynnecapozzi/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Prachi Gore. Marketing for a company with a strong mission that aligns with her values has always been very important to Prachi. But who is responsible for communicating a company’s mission? And how do you use your company mission to develop tangible messaging and brand voice? On today’s episode, Prachi and I discuss her career journey, in which she focused on driving outcomes for the business, even when it meant stepping outside of her lane. We also discuss the Checkr buyer journey and how to evolve your company mission and differentiators into simple messaging that resonates with your audience.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• It’s important to understand why your company exists before you can build out what you do and how you do it. This framework will allow both your company and your customers to buy into your mission.
• It’s not always sufficient to stay high level with your messaging. If you have something to say, customers want you to go deeper and establish thought leadership.
• Audiences don’t want to be sold to, they want to be educated. This is what’s most important for top of funnel stages of the buyer journey.

Learn more about Checkr here: https://checkr.com/

Learn more about Prachi here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prachigore/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Sydney Sloan, CMO of SalesLoft. After a long tenure at Adobe, Sydney worked hard to ensure her next role was a great fit and that she would be working with a product she was passionate about. In her current role, she leads marketing for a SaaS company that has taken off, not just because of what they do, but also because of their emphasis on one-to-one selling and marketing. On today’s episode we chat about the need for alignment between sales and marketing and the importance of proper customer onboarding for good retention and customer experience.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• The buyer journey is “the most important and most forgotten”-- once customers buy in, they’re often disregarded. In reality, the customer onboarding process is very important and creating a good customer experience right off the bat will ensure greater retention.
• Often the people you sell to are not the people that own the application in the long term. Be aware of who will be using your product regularly and align your communication strategies with them.
• Marketing is in a unique position to lead the customer experience across the board-- and a great customer experience turns your customers into advocates.

Learn more about SalesLoft here: https://salesloft.com/

Learn more about Sydney here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sydsloan/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Michelle Huff, CMO at UserTesting. UserTesting has seen amazing growth, moving from 50 million to 100 million in revenue over the course of Michelle’s time there and as the CMO Michelle has kept laser focused on this growth but been mindful of building a cohesive team that feels embraced by her as a leader. UserTesting has created a double-sided marketplace that is redefining the market research industry. What Michelle has learned marketing for this rapidly growing company in this developing industry is that listening to your buyers is king. Many marketers champion the importance of their buyers without ever speaking directly to them; outsourcing market research and feedback collection. CMOs need to make sure their entire organization is committed to listening to their customers no matter what.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Working within an existing category comes with budget because the need has been proven. With new categories, you’re constantly justifying why you and why now. You’re convincing people to do things in a different way and this always comes with challenges.
• One of the most interesting things about the COVID-19 pandemic is that literally every industry has been impacted. Consumer buying behaviour in every industry has changed and companies are thriving based on their adaptability.
• Who you are working for is important. Culture is important. Consider these factors as much as you consider the role and the company itself.

Learn more about UserTesting here: https://www.usertesting.com/.

Learn more about Michelle here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michellehuff/.

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Karen Peterson, CMO of Lendio. As the largest marketplace for small business loans in the USA, Lendio experienced rapid growth and acceleration due to the COVID-19 pandemic and Karen describes taking on this new role and being at Lendio for these changes as the most exhilarating, challenging and rewarding time. Throughout her career she has always been open to opportunities and employed a willingness to be agile and adaptable. This attitude has led to her doing things like accepting an interim CMO role, moving to a new city to pursue new opportunities, and more. Today we discuss how to build the right modern day marketing team for your business and the key pillars that will be relevant to your specific strategy.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Wherever you sit you should have a certain hierarchy: customer is number one, then the company, then your team, then an individual. If you keep this in mind, you really can’t go wrong.
• We often think as marketing leaders that our team is made up of the marketers that report into us. We need to also realize that there is “the rest of our team”. This could be the executive team, the board of directors, or other team members at the company. It’s important to give appropriate time to our wider team as well.
• As a CMO, it’s important to come into a new role with framework, pillars and ideas but then you need to apply and customize these ideas to the specific company.

Learn more about Lendio here: https://www.lendio.com/

Learn more about Karen here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karen-peterson-marketing/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Kristin Treat, VP of Corporate Marketing at Nintex. Kristin took an unusual path to becoming a senior marketing leader. She comes to the table with a PR background having worked over 25 years in PR, and though it’s an unconventional path, the foundations Kristin takes from her background are critically valuable to her as a marketing leader. Messaging and the way we communicate are key pillars of public relations that Kristin focuses on and that have helped her and Nintex find success, especially during the challenging times of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key Takeaways

• Success does not have to be complicated: focus on the basics, collaborate and do good work.
• Have a learning mindset: don’t be an executive who just delegates and attends meetings. Employ a collaborative, learning approach to the day to day in order to never lose touch with the work.
• Real world examples are so valuable in marketing and just to companies in general. It’s one thing to say “our product can solve your problem” but you need to be able to prove it.
• It’s often argued that it’s hard to measure ROI with PR (which is true) but PR is really invaluable. PR creates opportunities to advance your brand, your product, your reputation and your messaging.

Learn more about Kristin here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ktreat73/

Learn more about here: https://www.nintex.com/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Chuck Johnston, CMO at FINEOS. Chuck interestingly did not originally know that he was going to be a marketer. He moved into marketing by being an insurance industry expert, and on today’s episode we discuss the different pathways to becoming a marketer--by being an expert that learns marketing or a marketer that learns industry-- and when it makes sense to hire people that fit these profiles. We also discuss in depth the rise of ABM marketing, something FINEOS uses as a cornerstone of their marketing strategy as a way to ensure they are maintaining client relationships and delivering personalized content strategies.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• There is more than one entry point into the world of marketing. Many people enter this world by being industry experts wanting to explore new realms of business. Sometimes these people can be even more valuable than seasoned marketers.
• Content by itself isn’t enough; it’s about understanding the journey your customers are on and meeting them there. The right content to the right buyer at the right time is a core pillar of any ABM strategy.
• Good ABM is about relationships and personalization: knowing your customers, understanding them and maintaining a personal touch.

Learn more about FINEOS here: https://www.fineos.com/

Learn more about Chuck here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuck-johnston-66136/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Bethany Walsh, VP of Marketing at Alloy. Bethany identifies as an early stage marketer and has a lot of experience being the “first, second, or third” marketer at early stage companies. She likes to build, problem solve and scale companies. This is something that sounds appealing to a lot of people but Bethany knows it can be scary in practice marketing without much support, data or establishment. Alloy had raised 40 million in Series B funding before even bringing in any marketing support, so she had challenges in front of her when she took on the role. Today we discuss these challenges, along with the excitement and the opportunities of growing an early stage company. We also discuss brand tone and how you ensure it remains consistent throughout your organization.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• When you’re marketing through a private equity roll out, it’s important to bring confidence to investors. Make yourself visible, and ensure you have a voice.
• Bethany brings a builder mentally to her roles and she knows she is best suited for early stage marketing but you can bring a builder attitude to later stage organizations too. Consider how to employ this mindset and remain agile and adaptable in your marketing.
• When thinking of your brand tone, consider the concept of relationship building. If you’re meeting someone for the first time you don’t start out telling jokes or puns, you introduce yourself with your name and once you know them better you loosen up. If you don’t know your audience, be straightforward, give the facts and share what they’re looking for, until they know you a bit better.
• It’s important that at every single stage in the buyer journey brand tone is considered and you take steps within your communication to make sure it remains consistent.

Learn more about Alloy here: https://alloy.co/

Learn more about Bethany here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/babarker/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Robin Daniels, CMO of Matterport. Robin has enjoyed an impressive career and earned the right to work with brands such as Salesforce, WeWork and Linkedin. The core threads that have tied his career together have been the pursuit of bringing people together through technology and working with tech and products that are taking off to shape their journey. As a marketing leader, he finds it easier to tell a human story around tech and products that are bringing people together and have a human element and knows that storytelling and messaging are key to product marketing.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• It all comes down to the story you’re trying to tell in the market. Storytelling should be focused around making your product more human and more customer-centric. It should make you come across like you care about your customer’s story.
• You don’t have to stay in one industry, you just have to find something you’re passionate about and that you want to pursue-- for Robin this was bringing people together and creating connectivity.
• Product marketing “should be a circle”. It’s about making things consistent at their core. Your story at the top of your funnel should be the same at the bottom of your funnel.

Learn more about Matterport here: https://matterport.com/

Learn more about Robin here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robingdaniels/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Allison MacLeod, EVP of Global Marketing at Flywire. Allison rose to her current role by constantly pursuing education and ensuring she was advocating for herself and putting her hand up for new opportunities. On this episode, we discuss her career journey and philosophies before diving into the true meaning of marketing globally and the perks and challenges of leading and marketing on a global scale. Flywire goes to market in verticals and takes a “squad based” approach that allows them to ensure they aren’t working in silos and ultimately, that everyone stays connected with Flywire’s overall goals and objectives.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• It’s important to always raise your hand to try things- learn more, be open more. Value growth in learning and being challenged.
• Flywire’s approach to product and marketing comes down to one core sentiment: you can’t work in silos. Everyone at a company must work in pursuit of a shared vision even if you’re performing different tasks.
• As a global company, it’s important to understand your customers everywhere. Many companies have marketers in North America working to understand markets all over the world but it helps infinitely to have people on the ground in each market with a deep understanding of the demographic.

Learn more about Flywire here: https://www.flywire.com/

Learn more about Allison here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/allisonbmacleod/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Deborah Singer, CMO of Girls Who Code, a unique and groundbreaking non-profit organization focused on getting more girls into STEM-focused education and career paths. Though Deborah started her career in the tech/startup world before joining Girls Who Code, she said one of the things that attracted her to the company was how it is run a lot more like a startup than a non-profit: it’s fast-paced, fast-growing, agile and ambitious. She also understands the importance of working with great people and says that she has landed in most of her roles from a desire to work with passionate individuals who challenge and empower her.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Girls Who Code is an organization marketing to both corporate sponsors and young girls-- they know they have to do this very differently, using different channels. It’s important to understand where you’ll reach your audience segments and what you need to say to each of them rather than blasting your message across every channel.
• No matter what you’re doing, passion is key. It’s important to be passionate about what we’re doing, or at least passionate about the influence we can drive and understanding of how we can give back.
• We carve career paths for ourselves based on unexpected parallels. To many, it seemed like an unprecedented move for Deborah to move from a tech startup Lulu to nonprofit, Girls Who Code, but to her it made perfect sense. Lulu was disrupting the dating game for women, while Girls Who Code was looking to disrupt the tech industry for women.

Learn more about how Girls Who Code is creating opportunities for girls and women in tech here: https://girlswhocode.com/

Learn more about Deborah here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborahjsinger/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Rebecca Grimes, CMO at Ruby. Ruby is another company that had to quickly adapt their strategy and product offerings in order to find their footing and thrive through COVID-- and thrive, they did. Not only did Ruby’s team continue throughout the pandemic without laying anyone off, they actually brought on 200 new employees. Rebecca, who oversees both marketing and sales, said that they were able to do this by digging into data and creating customer profiles and products to align with the business segments that were still thriving. Adapting their business and understanding their buyer experience was integral to Ruby thriving in the “new abnormal”.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Marketing and sales should work hand and hand-- they should not be at odds. There should be no success you can celebrate that would not be a team success.
• Staying in touch with your network throughout your career is important-- even if it doesn’t get you a job, the insights you can take from the learnings of your colleagues are invaluable, even if it’s just understanding why someone else took an opportunity.
• There is value in customers even if they’re not ready to buy right now-- it’s important to find ways to provide value and content to these people so that they’ll be more likely to convert in the future.

Learn more about how Ruby can help your business here: https://www.ruby.com/

Learn more about Rebecca here:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebeccalgrimes/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Duri Alajrami, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer at Moneris. Duri immigrated from Dubai to Canada and built an impressive career and wonderful family life that align with each other and make him proud. Though he started his career agency side, he recognizes that the shift to digital means brands are building out their own digital teams, sectors and in-house digital agencies, in many ways, slowly rendering digital agencies more and more obsolete. On today’s episode, we discuss the prominence of digital, his career and personal life, and most importantly, the way he thinks of the buyer journey and sales funnel at Moneris, when the lines between B2B and B2C solutions for the company have become so heavily blurred.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• 90% of Canadians start their buyer journey online (and one of the things they’re often looking for is what kind of payments you accept) so we need to take a “digital dating” approach to marketing. Pull them into the funnel with strong digital first.
• Historically, payment solutions companies' buyers are the merchants-- but these lines have become increasingly blurred, not only as payments solutions cater to small business owners but also they acknowledge they need to be creating a great experience for their end consumer, as well as their merchants. Balancing this is key.
• In many ways, COVID-19 has humanized work and brought work and life together-although it can be a struggle for work life balance, it can also be positive. We are all in each other’s homes and working together to maintain balance.

Learn more about Moneris’s payment solutions here: https://www.moneris.com/

Learn more about Duri at https://www.linkedin.com/in/duriajrami/?originalSubdomain=ca

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Soraya Alexander, SVP of Marketing and Customer Growth at Classy. Soraya has not had a traditional path to a senior marketing role. In her own words, her career has been a little “random” and all over the place, spanning PR, media, big business and marketing, and she says she still doesn't know what she wants to be when she grows up. But she is hungry to learn and ensures whatever role she is in, she is constantly learning so she takes something to her next role. In her current role at Classy, she is focused not just on customer acquisition but on customer retention and growth. Soraya knows that customer marketing is an undervalued tool that often allows for faster growth than customer acquisition.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• For 80% of your working days your job is to accumulate enough knowledge and experience as you can, and eventually it will all make sense. Focus on what’s fun, what’s interesting, do your best and the next step will materialize.
• When you’re an established company, customer acquisition is easy. True growth comes from a deep understanding about your customers. There is a lot of opportunity post-sale to grow with your customers by continually deepening your relationship with your them.
• It takes 3x more dollars to acquire a new customer than to retain a current one. Nurturing the customers you have turns them into advocates and can be a good customer acquisition tool in itself.

Learn more about Classy’s fundraising software at https://www.classy.org/

Learn more about Soraya at https://www.linkedin.com/in/sorayagalexander/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Samantha Goldman, VP of Marketing at breather. breather is a company that provides spaces for people to work, so during the pandemic, it’s been more important than ever for them to have a truly strategic marketing leader who knows her team has to be mobilized and able to work collaboratively--wherever they all may be. Before her time at breather, Samantha held senior marketing roles at Lyft and Castlight Health. In her current role she is working through the pandemic as breather iterates on their product offerings to keep people everywhere connected.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Giving people access is the trait that all tech companies share. Whether it’s access to credit, transportation, healthcare or office space, technology exists to provide people with access.
• “When there’s a rocket ship you get on the rocket ship” even if it’s not the perfect role, when grand opportunity knocks, you get on and find a place for yourself.
• Throughout the pandemic, we have gotten great at working remotely but the next phase of things will find people trying to figure out how to work in a “hybrid” approach with some people fully remote and some people coming into the office.

Learn more about breather here: https://breather.com/

Learn more about Samantha here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-goldman/

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Susanne Gurman, SVP of Marketing at SecurityScorecard. Susanne spent ten years working as a marketer at an established company, but eventually, despite what she had learned and the opportunities she had been afforded, she felt that she had taken the position to its ceiling and made the leap to leave the company. She did not have a job lined up when she left but took the time to rebrand herself and understand her goals before eventually joining the team at SecurityScorecard. On today’s episode we talk about the importance of being unafraid of failure, how to build your personal brand, and marketing tactics field marketers are exploring throughout the pandemic, with buyers becoming too “Zoom fatigued” to bother with virtual events.  

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play! 

Key takeaways from this episode: 

• Field marketing has a reputation about being all about events, but there is more to it than that, and especially during COVID, we have had to fill in the gaps with supplementary tactics that drive leads.
• Since we don’t have physical events to fall back on, it’s important to consider how we create like-minded experiences with our buyers with similar touchpoints and opportunities to get them into the funnel. One of the key ways to take buyers on this journey is with content.
• As a marketer, your personal brand is extremely important. The first thing you are marketing should be yourself.

Learn more about SecurityScorecard here: https://securityscorecard.com/ 

Learn more about Susanne here: 

https://securityscorecard.com/company/leadership/susanne-gurman 

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On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview Rishi Dave, CMO at MongoDB. Rishi credits his time at Dell with shaping his journey to becoming a CMO. It’s where he worked his first marketing job, with a higher up eventually taking a chance on him and providing him with a platform to become the marketer he is today. In his current role, Rishi knows that the success of his company is built on two things: a great product and a great go-to-market strategy. On today’s episode, we chat through the particulars of the different types of go-to-market strategies, what it’s like working at a high growth company, and relying on your wife to help you take time off.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Answering to a board can seem scary but your board just wants you to succeed in driving growth for the company. Focus on working with your team to drive growth and communicating effectively with the board. That’s all you need to do.
• It’s important to keep in mind that users should be able to choose how they want to interact with your company, and it’s the job of a good marketing team to ensure that you’re not stepping on each other’s toes and duplicating efforts.
• As a CMO and a marketer in general, it’s important to try new things but you will likely gravitate towards companies at a certain stage because this will define your roles and responsibilities.

Learn more about MongoDB here: https://www.mongodb.com/.

Learn more about Rishi here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rdave/.

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Because there are so many important roles and departments in marketing, it can be a bit too easy to think of things in silos. But today’s guest, Caleb Rubin understands that to be successful in our marketing, we need to ensure departments are working together, and think of things like brand story and data science synergistically, rather than in silos. Caleb Rubin is Head and VP of Marketing at EQ Bank, a digital first bank working to change banking to enrich customer lives by shifting financial and lifestyle value to them. Today we discuss Caleb’s career journey, the buyer journey at EQ Bank, and the importance of collaboration and synergy in marketing. 

Key takeaways from this episode: 

• Your product is what you do or what you make but your brand is how people feel about what you do or make-- they are both equally important.
• In many ways, marketing for startups is about how you get people through the funnel with technology and tools rather than large scale  budgets.
• Good marketing teams are always focused on how we learn and the great ones instill systematic ways of learning and gathering new insights.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play! 

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To many, it might seem like a bad move to hire someone good enough to replace us for fear of losing our jobs. But a true A Player knows that this just makes team members strive for excellence and that strong, dedicated employees should be hiring others just as good. Looking to the future is something today’s guest is more than familiar with. Not only has Mauricio Barberi acted as a fractional CMO and a consultant in a number of roles, he’s spent his career working with tech; originally as an engineer and eventually as a marketer. Just like the right team is important, so is the right tech-- though it’s important to focus on how the tech is serving us and what the tech can help us achieve, rather than just the tech itself. 

Key takeaways from this episode: 

• We often think of fractional CMOs as “fixers” when really we should be thinking of them as people setting companies up for future success.
• The fear of hiring people as good as us is a broken system in business. It starts at the top: a true A player will hire A players underneath them and this is how you build a world class team.
• Heads of Sales and CMOs are different jobs but increasingly have overlapping responsibilities. Above all else, Heads of Sales should be collecting data and CMOs should be leveraging the data to measure outcomes your company is driving.
• Companies that buy tech don’t have one decision maker. Map your selling team to your client’s  “buying team” and ensure you have an understanding of the intricacies of their decision making.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play! 

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Tangerine may have made strides in making banking “cool” by aligning themselves with brands like the Toronto Raptors, but is building a cool lifestyle brand enough? It may be for some, but not for everyone and a key part of every marketing strategy is understanding where to find your different customer segments and meeting them where they are. Some customers buy because a brand stands for something while others buy because a product fills their need. Brands that can achieve both can build even stronger bonds with their customers. On this episode of the Marketer’s Journey, Tangerine CMO Martin Fecko chats about how he got his start in the finance world, bringing banking and tech together, and achieving product market fit for Tangerine’s wide customer base. 

Key takeaways from this episode: 

• When you’re starting your career, it’s important to leverage opportunities as they present themselves. Even if you don’t have a roadmap for where you want to land, utilize the chances you’re presented with and shape them into something.
• As a CMO, ultimately what you’re doing is taking various components and figuring out how your brand is represented when you consider all the moving parts.
• The ability to understand both business and technology is important because technology is the future for so many industries and businesses.
• Building a good brand is less about building something “cool” and more about adapting to the changing needs of your customers. This is how Tangerine has reimagined banking.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play! 

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Content encompasses more than just pretty videos and social posts-- it can be technical copy, sell-sheets, product manuals and more. Now more than ever, how we understand and consume content is undergoing significant changes-- it’s relevant to much more than top funnel and we need to make sure there’s consistency across all channels. Dayna Rothman is CMO at OneLogin, and a seasoned content marketer by trade. She knows that the role of a content marketer is not just to create content, it’s to think of the impact and role of that content and how it aligns to different stages of the buyer journey. 

Key takeaways from this episode: 

• Don’t discount your passion and your drive. It’s a key motivating factor on why people would hire you, even if you don’t necessarily have the right experience.
• Content marketing is definitely not the most direct route to becoming a CMO but content marketing skills are so unique and valuable. Focus on understanding demand generation and how your content drives results and you can be on the C-suite path if that is your goal.
• We’re no longer creating content that is top funnel. The desire to consume content has increased exponentially and buyers want to engage with custom content throughout the decision making process.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play! 

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Today’s guest Andrea Kayal asks an important question—is pipeline dead? Another way to put this is, what’s the benefit of tracking pipeline? Where does this data get us? And if we don’t track pipeline, how do we understand marketing’s contribution to the business? To Andrea, it’s important to keep metrics simple and tangible. Influence is important, but it’s even more important to understand what is driving sales. While multi-touch attribution is important, we can’t over justify every touch point because ultimately, every touchpoint extends your sales cycle.  

• Multi-touch attribution is great but ensuring as few touches as we can have is going to create a more efficient sales cycle and a more efficient company overall.
• Rather than tracking everything and pulling the numbers that make us look the best it’s important to look at the data behind successful sales cycles and figure out what led to the successes.
• There are benefits to marketing both “painkillers” and “vitamins.” With vitamins, you need to convince a market of the viability of your product and with painkillers, the need is already established but the market may be over saturated.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play! 

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Like many of the other 90s kids that taught themselves how to build websites before building websites was cool, Alex Schmelkin eventually grew up to run a web agency. This gave him a great perspective on what customers need in order to launch their digital initiatives and bring them to market. After decades in agency, Alex eventually went on to become CMO of Unqork. The important role of product in B2B marketing has never been lost on Alex. As CMO, though he is focused on his customer, refinement and excellence of his product is what helps him reach those customers. To him, they go hand in hand. He uses understanding of the commonalities in all of his customers to refine his product roadmap and drive solutions for his clients.

Key takeaways from this episode:

• B2B marketing doesn’t have to be self-promotional and amidst a pandemic, it really should not be. It’s about communicating how your product can help your clients find solutions to their problems.
• When you’re creating a software and marketing to CIOs, it’s important to focus on how your product could drive efficiencies for their team-- and do so in a way that does not seem competitive.
• It can always seem daunting moving from agency to brand or vice versa but each builds important skill sets that can be relevant in the other, just remember to highlight them and be open to learning.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

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Throughout her career, this week’s guest Melanie Marcus learned to pursue roles that gave her a bit more of what she liked and a bit less of what she didn’t. This philosophy eventually led her to become CMO at Surescripts where they’ve had to change their marketing mix from “very in person” to “very digital”. Retooling her events team to develop new skills and execute on a wholly different strategy was a key reminder of something Melanie has known throughout her career -- it’s important to be constantly reinventing yourself.

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Pivoting is a great opportunity to bring ideas to the floor-- but sometimes you don’t have the time. It’s important to ensure your team has the time and permission to bring more ideas to the table even amidst something like a pandemic.
• Marketers are typically the ones selling the company message, and as such, they need to believe in their company message to succeed. It’s important to love marketing, but believing in your company’s value proposition is essential.
• We think of “incubators” as specific to the tech and startup world but Melanie says she was involved in many incubators early in her career. To her, these were larger projects she was given permission to do, even in very junior roles. It allowed her to learn at a rapid pace and develop key business skills.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

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Leadership is something we talk about a lot, but according to Rossa, something that doesn’t get enough focus is followership. He knows that much of success can be about ensuring your boss looks good and is empowered to do the tough work. As a marketer, he understands the importance of marketing himself to ensure he is nurturing his professional connections, and categorizes people into two groups: radiators and drains. The people he seeks out for his team are radiators -- they are eager to learn, promote a positive atmosphere and remain nimble and adaptive through challenges. Rossa attributes some of his success to ensuring he makes a good impression with everyone he works with, whether it’s his boss, a peer or even a report. The world is small, the industry is smaller and he knows it’s not just about who you know, but also about who cares about you. While it’s clear that emotion and creativity are important in marketing, Rossa is also focused on ensuring that marketing is driving value and is solidified as a core business pillar driving success for sales and operations.

Key takeaways from this episode:

• “Followership” can be just as important as leadership -- we need to go above and beyond for our managers and our peers to promote a great environment and drive success.
• In business, you never know when a connection is going to matter. It’s important to always put your best foot forward and make a good impression with everyone.
• Personalization is about adding value. Without relevance to your market any personalization is really just for the sake of itself.
• It’s important to think of marketing as a core pillar of your business but emotion also plays a huge role in decision making so creativity and relationship building can be just as important.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

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Big business and startups may seem like two things that are mutually exclusive, but they don’t have to be, and according to this week’s guest, they shouldn’t be. Growing up, Jennifer Anaya, Ingram Micro’s Senior Vice President of Marketing, learned about the many facets of business over dinner with her entrepreneurial parents. It helped her learn about everything that went into running a business -- and ultimately where she wanted to fit. She’s carried this entrepreneurial mindset with her throughout her career because, from Jennifer’s perspective, entrepreneurship is defined by the ability to drive change. Jennifer describes herself as a “change agent” and she knows better than anyone that innovation can be just as important at large corporations as it is at growing startups.

Key Takeaways:

• People are attracted to startups because they can shape where the organization goes but you can also do this with larger organizations and it’s equally important to drive change to stay relevant.
• There have been significant changes to who is buying technology--it used to be CTOs and tech teams. Now business leaders are buying tech to give them a competitive advantage, so it’s important to communicate the business advantages technology can drive rather than simply explaining the tech itself.
• It’s important to be resilient and adaptable. Things change quickly and the best marketers are eager to learn and excited to make things work.
• The best managers embrace opportunities to educate the people they work with. It helps with retention when you’re giving your team the chance to learn and grow.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

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When it comes to content, we used to believe that if we built it, they would come, but with the amount of content our buyers need to sift through, we need to begin taking the approach of guiding our buyers to water before we can expect them to drink. On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, we discuss building content with context for our buyers, providing value to our shareholders and the importance of sales and marketing teams working hand in hand. Our guest Paul French is EVP & CMO at Axway, where he worked for several years before pursuing other opportunities at companies ranging from startups to larger organizations, eventually returning to Axway as CMO and having the unique opportunity to, in his words, fix problems that he may have even been the cause of, years ago. Paul is an advocate for marketing with authenticity and ensuring your buyer perspective is top of mind with everything you do.

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Marketing starts with one thing: the customer perspective. This is why good marketers aren’t order takers. They understand cross referencing customer expectations with outcomes you’re trying to accomplish and building a way to get there.
• Content is queen but context is king. You can build content that aligns with your business but you need to ensure you’re also building content that aligns with your buyers’ perspectives and needs.
• Every company is different but they all share a need for growth and progress. Your shareholders are all different but they all want to know you’re moving forward.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

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Working with a brand like Twitter is like a box of chocolates-- you never know what you’re going to get! To a marketer, this can be terrifying. Yet on the other side of that, it keeps you on your toes, creates an exciting atmosphere and teaches you how to get comfortable with fluid conversations and continue moving forward. On this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I chat with Laura Pearce, Head of Marketing in Canada at Twitter about her exciting career journey, the many different paths of Twitter’s customer journeys and how to embrace a culture of change.  Key takeaways from this episode: * If a channel like Twitter is used for multiple purposes (generating acquisition, generating pipeline, marketing, customer service, etc.), we need to think not just about how we define the channel, but more importantly, how we define who is responsible for the channel. * As marketers, we always need to make sure we’re joining the conversation rather than just trying to make the conversation about us. * Communication strategies, whether with your staff, your customers or even your kids, are so important for setting reasonable expectations and empowering people to make their most informed decisions.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play! 

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It has never been more important to ensure our customers have a thorough understanding of our message. We need to amplify our message with more clarity and more colourful storytelling. In this episode, I interview Sean B. Pasternak, AVP of Global External Communications at Manulife about telling a brand story for a company focused on regulatory products, in a post-COVID society. 

Key takeaways from this episode: * It's okay to cross over “to the dark side” from working as a media professional, to working on an internal brand communications team. * Telling brand stories is crucial in today’s landscape. * There is still a role for traditional PR in our evolving society.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play! 

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It may be the oldest cliché in the book, but if you do something you love, you’ll never work a day in your life. In this episode I learn about Victor Lee’s career journey which, in his words, was based on passion and character. Dreaming, tinkering, dabbling and thinking of innovative new ways to do things created the launchpad that guided his career. Victor was most notably SVP at Hasbro and in this episode we discuss the skills he developed as an agency marketer, his work leading pivots to digital marketing for a wide range of companies and the importance of having the conviction to fight the fights worth fighting for, not just the ones you know you can win. Key takeaways from this episode:

• Clichés are overused for a reason and many of the cheesiest have merit when considering your career: do what you love, find passion in what you do, don’t be afraid to fail and know that there is always a bit of luck involved.
• Marketers are often tasked with coming up with big ideas, to the point where we’re almost scared to get the “yes” and having to follow through. These big ideas are great but they’re not everything. There is beauty in pragmatism, in small pivots, and small wins.
• Digital isn’t black and white. There are many different ways digital can work in tandem with other facets of business, such as retailers. It doesn’t need to be competitive, and it doesn’t need to be complicated.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

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Product and marketing have always gone hand in hand. In most cases, product exists to address pain points that your customers are feeling, and marketing helps you communicate these solutions to your market. In this episode, I interview Paul Cowan, CMO at Freshbooks about understanding your addressable market and using your marketing toolkit to refine your product strategy. 

Key takeaways from this episode: * Growth is a mindset. You need to focus on scale, find new avenues for your business and be constantly figuring out new revenue streams in order to remain relevant. * Stick to what you know and love but look for waves! If your roots are in tech, don’t be afraid to explore a wide range of tech companies in your career from startups to tech giants. * Face-to-face interaction with your customers can transform the way you understand your product.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play! 

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The journey may be important, but when you manage a team, it’s just as key to make sure that even when they’re taking different paths, your team members arrive at the same destination. As we navigate new waters, diverse perspectives and different approaches are more important than ever in marketing. In this episode, I interview Danielle Brown, CMO at Points about how to make space for your team to do their best work, and the value of both objective and subjective approaches to marketing. 

Key takeaways from this episode: * Marketing generalists are immensely undervalued. We need subject matter experts but adaptability and the ability to see the world broadly are imperative marketing skills. * As a manager, you don’t need to have all the answers. You just need to ask the right questions and set your team up for success, driving towards a common goal. * There is a time and a place for both subjective, “go with your gut” marketing and objective, data-driven marketing. Analytics and scientific approaches are key, but many successful marketers like Danielle, began their careers simply by knowing their customers and understanding how to communicate with them.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play! 

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It’s incredibly important to meet face-to-face with customers—except that right now, we can’t. We have to rely on messaging more than ever before. In this episode, I interview Christophe Coutelle, VP of Marketing at Element AI, about the two strategies he’s using for messaging right now.

What we talked about:

• Global sales in a world without international travel
• How to be timely and relevant (without exhausting your clients)
• The relaxation benefits of spending 5-6 hours a day in the water

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

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Product message equals product strategy.

It’s worth repeating: The message is the strategy. But how do you get there?

In this episode, I interview Des Cahill, CMO at Oracle, about the importance of storytelling in product marketing. What we talked about:* Why product messaging is so integral to strategy * Three pillars of the experience economy and how to tell a customer-focused story * Making time for frequent breaks between hours of Zoom calls

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

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Today, work is cross-functional.

So it’s that much more important for all departments to come onto one Project Management Solution. 

Getting them onto one platform, though? That’s the tough part.

In this episode, I interview Saranya Babu, SVP of Marketing at Wrike, about her journey from engineer to VP of Marketing and why today’s organizational structure almost requires all departments to use the same PMS. What we talked about:* How Saranya became SVP of Marketing at a 1,000-person company * Why she made the unusual switch from engineering to marketing * How to continuously advance your career * How to rally a whole company around one PMS

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

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Could CMO and CPO—Chief Product Officer—ever be filled by the same person?

As it turns out, yes.

In this episode, I interview Chris McLaughlin, Chief Product & Marketing Officer at Nuxeo, about the importance of product marketing and how a focus on product shaped his career. What we talked about:* How a background in product marketing gave him insight into customer needs * The full circle of the product-based buyer journey * Benefits of getting completely off the grid at least once a year

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

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How’d you like to be the CMO that takes your org from 30M to 100M in less than a decade?To do that, you’ll have to drill down into content marketing.

In this episode, I interview Joshua Leatherman, CMO at Service Express, about his content marketing wins. What we talked about:* Hire the will, teach the skill * How to bring the buyer in to your content marketing approach * Going all in on content * Not waiting for a big vacation but making the weekends meaningful

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

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Fun is the key to engagement on social media.

Fun doesn’t mean irresponsible or irreverent—but it’s a quality that takes our responses from mediocre “like” to up to “love.”

Fun is a personality trait that also marks an effective brand. At least, that’s the mantra of one of the most successful brand builders who focuses on telling compelling stories.

In this episode, I interview Henk Campher, VP of Corporate Marketing at Hootsuite:

What we talked about:

• How to work for Nelson Mandela, Marc Benioff, Starbucks, and Salesforce
• Work should be fun, and so should brands
• Marketers sell their brains, so pouring back into your mind is essential

Check out this resource we mentioned during the podcast:

• Creating a Sustainable Brand by Henk Campher

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

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Strategic selling starts with trust.

And when someone chooses to work with a marketer at an agency, they’re pretty much putting their job into your hands.

In this episode, I interview Andrea Lechner-Becker, CMO at LeadMD, about selling strategically vs. functionally. What we talked about:* Selling strategically versus selling functionally * What it’s like selling people’s brains and problem-solving abilities * If you write a novel about only having 60 days to live, you gain a new outlook on life * How Andrea stepped away from her job to work on a passion project for a year

Check out this resource we mentioned during the podcast:* Andrea’s debut novel, Sixty Days Left

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

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In an ideal world, when a marketer leads with the value their product or service provides, then follows up with a price that’s surprisingly good for that value, closing a deal would be easy. 

But in reality, it isn’t always that simple. 

In this episode, I interview Patrick Moorhead, Chief Marketing Officer at Price f(x): What we talked about:* When to introduce the pricing conversation into the buyer journey * Formally asking someone to be your mentor (despite the awkwardness) * The most overlooked component of the price discussion: feelings * Finding little quality moments with family can equal an entire vacation

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play!

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In a mobile-first world, how do we capture engagement?

Creating a buyer’s journey that feels real, authentic, and engaging is pretty much the only way to get a B2C or even a B2B consumer not to tune out. 

In this episode, I interview Tara Ryan, CMO at Swrve, about consumer engagement and overseeing two IPOs:

What we talked about:* Being demand-minded is even more important than being marketing-minded * Consumer attention is all about value * How small startups can show authenticity at every stage in the buyer’s journey

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

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The decision to cancel a 1,000+ person event isn’t an easy one, but it ultimately comes down to the health and safety of your attendees. 

And unfortunately, many businesses are in the same boat right now. 

In this episode, I interview Peter Isaacson, CMO at Demandbase, about his team’s decision to postpone the ABM Innovation Summit, and how important it is for marketers to be flexible.  What we talked about:* The two essential traits in marketing team members early on * Practical strategies for being flexible after a postponement * Why an annual vacation should be two weeks, not one

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on  Apple Podcasts,  Spotify,  Stitcher, and  Google Play!

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Which part of the buyer’s journey is arguably most important and often the least integrated into your team? Content.

I had a stellar conversation about marketing ownership over the entire customer journey with Steven Shapiro, VP of Marketing at CleverTap.

What we talked about:* The 4 Ds of taking a hiring chance * Integrating content is just one example of how marketing has ownership over the whole customer journey * Exercise makes 80 hour work weeks doable

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

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The next wave of B2B marketing has arrived.  Marketing and revenue executives are re-thinking their infrastructure, process, and approach to meet changing customer and executive expectations. What worked in the first era of modern marketing, will not deliver in the next era. In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I check in with Scott Vaughan, Chief Growth Officer at Integrate, Inc. In addition to the new era of B2B marketing, we discuss: * Mapping out a career from VP level to C level * Encouraging internal change management * Bringing real innovation back to the B2B space

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play.

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Success isn’t having a lot of money from VCs or investors.

It’s signing on customers.

In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I catch up with the former CMO at Tableau Software turned advisor, Elissa Fink. She shares her journey through the marketing world and how she found value by helping customers get smarter.

We also discuss:* What the true sign of success is for startups * Working and thriving within budget constraints * The value of taking risks with startups who don’t have the brand recognition yet

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

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The sales process is broken. Nobody actually enjoys buying anymore—especially not software. And when it comes to most sales processes, the human touch has just disappeared.

I recently talked with Ryan Bonnici, CMO at G2, about his approach to this problem.

What we talked about:* How being a mini CMO prepared him to wear all the CMO hats * His take on how the sales process is broken (& how to streamline it) * Why marketers should think like consumers * Four weeks off a year is the bare minimum

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey on  Apple Podcasts,  Spotify,  Stitcher, and  Google Play!

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Content and thought leadership are both king. But if they had a fight, content would win. First off, content doesn’t just have to be a thought leadership exercise. Secondly, it isn’t something that just the content marketer owns. On this episode, I interview Natalie Lambert, Chief Marketing Officer at Instart, about creating content and culture: What we talked about:* Natalie is highly self-taught and has a voracious passion for learning * What the exact relationships between content and thought leadership should be * Why culture and team dynamics are everything * Go on safari to truly disconnect from work (and see big cats)

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

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Does the term “growth hacking” make you cringe?

What if we called it “analytically measuring ROI conversion rates at each point of the funnel and applying ingenuitive methods to the customer journey”?

On this episode, I interview Patrick Edmonds, CMO at Proposify, about explosive growth:

What we talked about:

• Is the quick path to CMO a good or bad thing?
• How to balance two execs who each focus on demand and content communications
• Don’t let vacation days pile up. Take a staycation instead.

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

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What do you think of having a “smarketing” department? It’s one team, essentially, with two interior sets: marketing and inside sales. In this episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I interview  Edwin Abl, CMO at Modulr, about heading up the smarketing department. What we talked about:* The entrepreneurial mindset inspires marketing leadership in so many ways * Where should SDRs sit, marketing or sales? (Marketing, actually) * Why you should put your laptop and phone in the cupboard after 7:30 PM

Check out this resource we mentioned during the podcast:* Edwin’s site: www.edwinabl.com

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

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At DW’s company, there are 60 in sales and 8 in marketing. Yet he counts the marketers as part of sales (and the SDRs as part of marketing). This exemplifies the extent to which marketing IS sales—in other words, smarketing.

In this episode, I interview Dailius Wilson, VP of Sales and Growth at Get Accept, about how he positions sales and marketing.

What we talked about:

• Why he has 60 salespeople and 8 marketers
• How he’s excited to use tech to influence the buyer experience
• Learning languages, writing plays, DJing, and Hollywood life

Check out these resources we mentioned during the podcast:

• DW and his brother were on the Ellen Show

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

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It’s not really a buyer’s funnel anymore. It’s a buyer’s circle — with 9+ on a buying committee at any given time. Which makes things seem pretty impossible to personalize.

On this episode, I interview Meredyth Jensen, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Brand Communications at RGP:

What we talked about:

• How taking a wandering career path can be highly advantageous
• Communicating with buyers using the methodology they prefer
• You can’t be fully present for your team if you’re burned out

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

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It can be a huge struggle to get started in a new role when you don’t have good records. Or any records. And building a content marketing strategy from scratch is a challenging feat for anyone! 

On this episode, I interview Patrick Spencer, Senior Director of Content Marketing at Fortinet:

What we talked about:

• What it was like for Patrick to start his career mid-30s with a Ph.D.
• The questions Patrick asked to form the journey stages for customers
• Where to start when you’re starting a content strategy
• Why we love Iceland

Check out these resources we mentioned during the podcast:

• The CISO Collective, where you can read Patrick’s articles

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

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Every step of the marketer’s journey takes trust: from implicitly trusting your team to creating innate trust in your company’s brand. 

On this episode, I interview Jeanne Hopkins, CMO at Lola.com:

What we talked about:

• Trusting your team, 3 buyer personas, and the impossibility of using the same messaging
• Creating content for individual personas and the Voice of the Customer meeting
• Where you vacation when you work for a travel company (New Hampshire, actually)

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

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Don’t choose an opportunity based on the role. Look for a cause, not a job (something you’re so excited about that you’ll do pretty much anything to be a part of that story).On this episode, I interview Latane Conant, CMO at 6sense.

What we talked about:

• Why she chooses her job based on a cause she believes in
• All about the details of implementing V2MOM
• Keeping your inner kid and being an unofficial waterski instructor

Check out these resources we mentioned:

• Trailhead on Writing a V2MOM
• Marc Benioff’s book Behind the Cloud

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

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What’s it like in your first year of your first job as head of marketing? For one thing, you have to build your team.

On this episode, I interview James Winter, VP of Marketing at Brandfolder, about his first year in his first VP marketing role.

What we talked about:* From job hopper to explosive growth at his first VP role * Sell to the buyers, not to the analysts * If you’re looking for the trip of a lifetime, go to Colombia

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

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82% of the buying cycle is spent doing research, but not research that includes talking to salespeople. It’s in front of their computers or phones.

On this episode, I interview Christina Bottis, CMO at Coyote Logistics

What we talked about:* Career Journey: Mentors who encourage you to leave the comfort zone are everything * Customer Journey: Creating the buyer journey starts with empathy with the buyer * Personal Journey: How to love your work travel and keep yourself balanced

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

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To create trust in the buyer’s journey, you have to be consistent. Just as employees have to buy into the brand of their organizations, buyers have to buy into the brand and the product.On this episode, I interview Julie Springer, CMO at TransUnion, about how to build a consistent brand — and therefore build trust.

What we talked about:

• Career Journey: your team will fail without a sense of mutual trust
• Buyer’s Journey: brand consistency is everything
• Personal Journey: work/life balance often means ditching your phone

Check out this and other episodes of The Marketer’s Journey at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.

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Marketing is a discipline with a lot of functionally specific excellence—and a good CMO will let them get on with their expertise. CMOs have to be able to explain the executive team’s needs to the marketing team and vice versa.

On this first episode of The Marketer’s Journey, I got to talk with Maria Pergolino, Chief Marketing Officer at Forbes Communications Council.

What we talked about:* Why you should let the email marketer get on with sending email * How Maria’s high points were also her low points * The 2 pieces of advice for a senior marketer to jump into the executive team * Mentorship vs. Sponsorship * Balancing over 80,000 customers

Find The Marketer’s Journey on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and  on our website.

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I love speaking to marketing leaders…learning about how they got where they are, what worked and what backfired. I also love having them challenge my ideas. It gives me a fresh perspective that I can take back and share with my team.

So many times when I’ve been having these conversations I’ve wished we’d been recording them — there’s just so much value in what these leaders have to say. Well, get ready. Because from now on, that’s exactly what we’re doing. 

This is Episode 0, our introductory episode, of The Marketer’s Journey. In this episode you’ll get to know our host,  Randy Frisch, CMO at Uberflip. We’ll also talk about what you can expect this show to look like going forward.

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Closing out the final episode of the Content Experience Show Podcast is Jay Baer, Founder of Convince & Convert, with a look at the evolution of podcasts.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Origin stories from the early days of Content Pros, the Content Experience Show's predecessor.
• Why podcasts have succeeded as a content form, according to Jay.
• Stand-out guests and moments from the show's history.
• The four major trends emerging in podcasting right now.
• Why the "TV season" approach to content creation is taking off at this point in the evolution of podcasts.
• What's next for Randy, Anna, and Jay, including details on upcoming Convince & Convert programming.

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Get caught up on The Talk Triggers Show, hosted by Jay Baer.
• Check out the Social Pros Podcast for more insights from marketing pros, hosted by Jay and Salesforce's Adam Brown.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Tyler Lessard, VP Marketing at Vidyard, joins the Content Experience Show Podcast to share insights on the right way to approach marketing personalization.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why over-digitization can be an obstacle to authentic relationship building.
• The most common pitfalls Tyler sees in marketing personalization.
• Why common surface-level personalization strategies no longer cut it for today's savvy customers.
• Examples of how Vidyard gets personal in their marketing.
• When to buckle down and educate versus when to showcase your brand's human side.
• Secrets to successful one-to-one video marketing.

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Learn more about customer relationship building in Vidyard's series Creating Connections.
• Get more video marketing insights from the experts at Vidyard in the Video in Focus series.
• Catch us at Conex, August 20th to 22nd in Toronto!

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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April Dunford (author, speaker, and CEO of Ambient Strategy) joins the Content Experience Show Podcast with expert advice on product positioning.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Sure-fire signs your positioning needs clarification.
• Why marketing cannot own positioning by itself.
• How to identify your "competitive comparable."
• Why your customers—not your C-suite—are often the best at articulating what your brand does best.
• A case study in positioning done right.
• What larger companies can do that startups cannot when changing positioning.

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Get your copy of April's latest release on nailing product positioning, Obviously Awesome.
• Learn more about April's work as a speaker, consultant, and author.
• See April at Conex, coming to Toronto August 20th to 22nd!

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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In the final “Pardon the Marketing” episode of the Content Experience Show, podcasting pros Randy Frisch and Anna Hrach trade takes on podcasting trends.

Special thanks to our sponsors:* Uberflip * Emma * Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode* The merits of both short- and long-form podcasts. * Why some podcast listeners subscribe and commit, while others browse for one-off episodes every time they tune in. * When, where, and how Randy and Anna listen to podcasts. * Why some listeners prefer guest-centric podcasts versus podcasts focused on recurring hosts. * Why advertising in podcasting might not feel as annoying to your listeners as you might think. * A peek at what's next for Randy and Anna.

Resources* Get the free Content Experience Report here. * Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Mathew Sweezey, Principal of Marketing Insights at Salesforce, joins the Content Experience Show Podcast to discuss optimizing experience for your audience.

Special thanks to our sponsors:* Uberflip * Emma * Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode* The three questions you should be asking your audience after they engage with your content. * Shocking research about how most marketers are approaching experiences. * Why surveys alone won't cut it when it comes to gathering experience data. * Where to start when revamping your experiences. * The case for a Chief Experience Officer. * Who should own the customer journey map. * A preview of Mat's upcoming keynote at Conex 2019!

Resources* Get the free Content Experience Report here. * Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma. * Learn more from Salesforce Research.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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John McAlpin, SEO Director at Cardinal Digital Marketing, joins the Content Experience Show Podcast to discuss key ingredients of a successful SEO strategy.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode:

• What Google values most right now when it comes to search ranking.
• How to tailor your content for the best shot at becoming a featured snippet.
• Why your best-performing pages need a "hook," not just a solid place in the rankings.
• Tips for crafting search-friendly copy.
• When domain authority matters, and when it doesn't.
• How creating custom skills for smart home devices impacts your visibility in voice search.

Resources:

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Learn more about John's work at Cardinal Digital Marketing.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Jon Miller, CEO and Co-Founder of Engagio, joins the Content Experience Show Podcast to discuss staying relevant in the era of account-based marketing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode:

• The most meaningful ways lead generation has changed in the last 15 years.
• The difference between being a lead-focused marketing team and an accounts-focused team.
• Why your post-sale marketing strategy is more important than ever.
• Insight on crafting personas for account-based marketing.
• How Alexa and Google Home could eventually change B2B content marketing.
• Real-world examples of well-executed account-based marketing.

Resources:

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Download Engagio's The Clear and Complete Guide to Account Based Marketing.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Qualcomm's Jessica Jensen and Synchrony's Tuck Ross join the Content Experience Show Podcast to share tips for creating meaningful organizational change.

Special thanks to our sponsors:* Uberflip * Emma * Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode:* The importance of "soft skills" in building healthy, effective teams. * How to hire a balanced team. * Why word of mouth is still so powerful in hiring. * Case studies from organizations who resisted organizational change or fumbled when adopting a new strategy. * Tips for introducing change to an organization that isn't fully ready for it. * Advice for staying open to change on a personal level.

Resources* Get the free Content Experience Report here. * Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma. * Hear more from Jessica and Tuck on their podcast, Social Currency.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Madeline Caldwell, Marketing Director at DuClaw Brewing Co., joins the Content Experience Show Podcast to discuss brand building at a craft brewery.

Special thanks to our sponsors:* Uberflip * Emma * Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode:* How to build a brand in a crowded niche. * What a craft brewery's product development timeline looks like. * The key to navigating a highly regulated industry. * Why craft beer brands function as "local" businesses in more ways than one. * Why DuClaw listens to marketing ideas from all levels of its business. * Madeline's favorite marketing moments from her time with DuClaw.

Resources* Get the free Content Experience Report here. * Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma. * Explore DuClaw Brewing Co. on Instagram.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Jenny Magic, Analyst at Convince & Convert, joins the Content Experience Show Podcast with a seven-step guide to building your content marketing strategy.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode:

• Why the "crash diet" approach to building a marketing strategy is hurting your business.
• The long-term benefits of documenting your goals.
• Tips for identifying the one thing your business does better than your competitors.
• Why defining your metrics should be one of the first steps in your marketing strategy.
• The pitfall of personas when defining your audience.
• An audience research strategy that brings your marketing and sales teams into better alignment.
• How a content calendar can help you create more content with less.

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Accelerate your content marketing efforts and crush your sales goals with a new on-demand course.
• Stay connected with Jenny on Twitter.
• Explore our seven-step guide to creating a content marketing strategy.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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In this "Pardon the Marketing" edition of the Content Experience Show, co-hosts Randy Frisch and Anna Hrach debate the most annoying marketing tactics.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode:

• The worst things about full-page takeover ads.
• What makes some LinkedIn spam messages worse than others.
• Thoughts on Google Home, privacy, and where smart speakers should and shouldn't be.
• Theories on what makes Instagram ads more tolerable than other social ads.
• Components of a strong CTA.
• How marketing personalization changed the game (and upped the difficulty) for salespeople.
• The pros and cons of other controversial marketing tactics like direct mail, unskippable YouTube ads, and movie previews.

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Explore Airtable and empower your team with the most flexible, robust project management tool possible.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Mark Schaefer, keynote speaker and author of Marketing Rebellion, joins the Content Experience Show Podcast to discuss the consumer revolt against marketing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode:

• The seismic shift in consumer behavior that marketers around the world are feeling.
• How technology has warped our ability to meet customers' needs.
• Why "personalization" isn't always "personal."
• A case study from a brand that's succeeded by centering the customer as marketer.
• Insights on where to focus your efforts as ownership of your own marketing slips further and further out of your control.
• Why the consumer rebellion against advertising is destined to succeed.

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Explore Airtable and empower your team with the most flexible, robust project management tool possible.
• Learn more about Mark's work as a keynote speaker, executive branding coach, marketing strategist, podcaster, and author.
• Read Mark's latest book, Marketing Rebellion.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Laura Hnatow, Sea Bags' VP of E-Commerce & Marketing, joins the Content Experience Show Podcast to discuss building a brand through mission-based marketing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:* Uberflip * Emma * Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode:* What mission-based marketing looks like for a retail brand. * How sustainability shapes Sea Bags' marketing messaging. * What makes Sea Bags' brand story video so moving. * How the Sea Bags team collaborates effectively across departments. * Strategies for activating your audience on social media in service of your brand's mission.

Resources* Get the free Content Experience Report here. * Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma. * Learn more about the Sea Bags mission.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Kathy Klotz-Guest, CEO of Keeping it Human, joins the Content Experience Show Podcast to discuss what businesses get wrong about building their brand story.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode:

• Why it's okay if your brand story changes over time—and why it's a cause for concern if it doesn't.
• The red flags that indicate you're telling the wrong brand story.
• Why businesses should share more stories about failure.
• How to identify and fix "story gaps."
• The overlooked skills that will help your team start telling better stories.
• Why Kathy left corporate marketing to become a storytelling strategist.

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Accelerate your content marketing efforts and crush your sales goals with a new on-demand course.
• Learn more about Kathy's work as a storytelling strategist through Keeping it Human.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode:

• How experiential content differs from traditional content marketing.
• Why successful brands are already shifting their focus from generating static content to crafting experiences.
• How consumer expectations for brand content have evolved since the early days of the content marketing boom.
• Three in-depth examples of experiential content in action.
• Ideas to jumpstart your marketing team's experiential content brainstorming.

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Accelerate your content marketing efforts and crush your sales goals with a new on-demand course.
• Browse Ceros Inspire for more examples of extraordinary experiential content.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode:

• Why friction is the enemy of business success.
• Case studies of businesses that identified high-friction customer experiences and innovated to make them effortless.
• The surprising reasons why businesses sometimes fight change and refuse to innovate.
• How friction manifests inside your organization (and loses you money).
• Tips for calling out organizational friction on the job.

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Accelerate your content marketing efforts and crush your sales goals with a new on-demand course.
• Read Roger's latest book, FRICTION.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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In this special episode of the Content Experience Show, co-hosts Randy Frisch and Anna Hrach trade opinions on event marketing and conference programming.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode:

• The benefits and drawbacks of multitrack conference programming.
• What industry strategists versus practitioners offer conference attendees.
• The most effective and enjoyable post-conference networking and social events, from two pros who've seen it all.
• Things to consider when selecting the "voice" of your event (whether an onstage emcee or over-the-air announcer).
• What small, intimate conferences provide attendees that major, big-budget conferences cannot.
• Randy and Anna get one minute each to hype their hometowns in a Phoenix versus Toronto showdown.

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Learn more about Conex: The Content Experience 2019, coming to Toronto August 20th through 22nd.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Allie LeFevere and Lyndsay Rush, Founders of Obedient, join the Content Experience Podcast to discuss strategies for using humor in content marketing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode:

• Common pitfalls for brands attempting to bring humor or relevance to their messaging.
• The fascinating tool Allie and Lyndsay use when shaping a client's brand voice.
• Two case studies showcasing how Obedient brought levity to two surprising product spaces.
• The problem with using irreverent brand messaging before you've earned it.
• The importance of consistency and through-lines when developing a brand personality.
• Allie and Lyndsay's advice for maintaining a fresh, authentic brand voice.

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Learn more about Obedient's work bringing humor and levity to brand voices.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Mat Zucker, Partner at Prophet, joins the Content Experience Podcast to discuss what a stellar About Us page can do for your brand.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode:

• The five archetypes of About Us pages (and how to identify which archetype your page most resembles).
• What your About Us page offers your audience that your other pages, profiles, and digital properties cannot.
• What Mat learned from analyzing About Us pages from the world's top companies.
• Where to start when honing your brand identity and voice.
• How your homepage and About Us page serve different functions in your business's web presence.

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Read more about uncovering a meaningful brand identity in Start with Why by Simon Sinek.
• Learn more about Prophet's consulting work.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Jonathan Crossfield, Editor of CCO Magazine, joins the Content Experience Podcast to discuss what marketers must embrace (and avoid) in content writing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode:

• The biggest mistakes writing teams make today. (Hint: They're the same mistakes writing teams were making a decade ago.)
• The danger of chasing "silver bullets" in content writing.
• The crucial (and overlooked) differences between editor and writer, and editor and proofreader.
• Why and how CCO Magazine transitioned from being a print to a digital publication.
• Why undervaluing editors and editing undermines the value of your content—and how your audience can tell.

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Learn more about Convince & Convert here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Explore the all-digital April 2019 issue of CCO Magazine.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Kieran Flanagan, VP of Marketing and Growth at HubSpot, joins the Content Experience Podcast to discuss the need for alternatives to "hacking" content.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Emma
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why HubSpot split its content teams into "mind" and "heart."
• How HubSpot's historical optimization program keeps older content as current and relevant as possible.
• Strategies for creating an emotional response to your brand.
• Hard truths about the short-sightedness of "growth hacks."
• How HubSpot optimizes its "freemium" offerings to attract more and better leads.
• The two most common things teams overlook when running experiments on their marketing strategies.

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Learn more about Convince & Convert here.
• Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma.
• Hear more from Kieran on the Growth TLDR Marketing Podcast.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Bryan Phelps, CEO of Big Leap, joins the Content Experience Podcast to discuss what marketers get wrong about integrating content strategy and SEO.

Special thanks to our sponsors:* Uberflip * Emma * Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode* The decline of keyword stuffing and its impact on content creation. * Why you probably don't need to panic about duplicate content. * How SEO's role in marketing is evolving. * The truth about Google's approach to penalizing content. * Why SEO should play a vital role in content creation from the beginning.

Resources* Get the free Content Experience Report here. * Learn more about Convince & Convert here. * Stay connected with your email subscribers using Emma. * Find out more about what Big Leap does for marketers.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Blake Snow, author of Log Off, joins the Content Experience Podcast to discuss how logging off and offline rest foster creativity in digital marketers.

Special thanks to our sponsors:* Vidyard * Uberflip * Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode* The experience that awakened Blake to the life-changing effects of logging off. * How periods of boredom help us process ideas and nurture our creativity. * Five truths for building successful, memorable content. * Advice for creating meaningful work in the most crowded media market in recorded history.

Resources Get the free Content Experience Report here. * Learn more about Convince & Convert here. * Read Blake Snow's book, Log Off: How to Stay Connected after Disconnecting*.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Tom Webster, VP of Strategy and Marketing at Edison Research, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss the rising popularity of smart speakers and how to succeed as a brand in voice search.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How smart speakers have changed behavior and media consumption
• How smart speakers became one of the fastest growing trends in consumer technology
• How the marketing landscape has changed with the rise of voice search capabilities
• Why a strong brand off device means a strong brand on device with smart speakers

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Learn more about Convince & Convert here.
• Downlowad the free Smart Audio Report from NPR here.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Robert Rose, self-described Chief Troublemaker at The Content Advisory, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss the importance of a documented content strategy and why you must invest in the long term.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why a documented content strategy is crucial
• Why content marketing is a long term investment
• Why the content experience should come before format in the content strategy
• How to determine whether or not various marketing efforts should continue
• How Netflix and YouTube have affected the world of video content

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Learn more about Convince & Convert here.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Randy Frisch (Co-Founder, CMO, and President of Uberflip) becomes the guest in this special Content Experience Show, to discuss his new book F#ck Content Marketing and why personalized experiences should be the goal.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How Randy and his team decided to title his new book
• Why the experience of interacting with your content matters
• How to develop a content experience framework
• How to personalize your experience
• How to systematically organize your content

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Learn more about Convince & Convert here.
• Preorder Randy’s new book here.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Emma Pearce, Head of Event Content, Global Portfolio at SaaStock, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss the importance of being a curator, not a creator, when organizing content for events.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why event content is uniquely different from content marketing
• Why being the head of content for events is not being a content creator
• How to balance known experts with up-and-comers when putting together content for events
• How to get more out of the content once the event is over

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Learn more about Convince & Convert here.
• Download Convince & Convert’s new guide Instagram for Tours for free here.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Chris Lynch, Chief Marketing Officer at Cision, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss the evolution of earned media in the social media landscape.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How Cision manages content during acquisitions
• Why the lines are blurring between earned media and paid media
• Who should be responsible for maintaining a consistent voice with earned media
• Why Cision is hiring a VP of Earned Media Management
• When you should launch a press release

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Learn more about Convince & Convert here.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Neil Crist, Head of Product and Engineering at Moz, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss the ins and outs of local search and why just showing as a result is not enough.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How local search is evolving in the greater scheme of search optimization
• Why your business needs a detailed Google profile
• How to ensure that your business is visible in local search results
• Why there is more to local search optimization than simply showing up

Resources

• Get the free Content Experience Report here.
• Learn more about Convince & Convert here.
• Get the free ebook Instagram for Tourism Marketing from Convince & Convert here.
• Learn more about how Moz can help you improve your local search here.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Jaycen Thorgeirson, Founder and CEO of UviaUs, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss building emotional connections through experiential marketing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to define “experiential marketing”
• Why moods are contagious
• Why B2B interactions can be fun
• Why people connect with emotion over production quality

Resources

• Get the free Conex Show Report from Uberflip here.
• Find out more about Convince & Convert here.
• Learn more about Jaycen and UviaUs here.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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In this special episode of the Content Experience Show, co-hosts Randy Frisch and Anna Hrach discuss ten of the top marketing trends and where they are heading in the new year. Special thanks to our sponsors:* Vidyard * Uberflip * Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode* Personalization * Artificial Intelligence and intent data * Video * Chat bots * Account based marketing * Customer intelligence * Direct marketing * Experience driven content * Voice search * Influencer marketing

Resources* Get the 2019 Content Experience Report for free here. * Find out more about how Convince & Convert can help your business increase your marketing effectiveness here. * Get Convince & Convert’s new guide Instagram for Tourism Marketing for free here.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers. 

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Lauren Teague, Strategist at Convince & Convert, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss strategies for engaging through real-time content.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why social marketing for sports requires a much more nimble approach than traditional marketing
• How Lauren and her team strategize real-time content
• How to use real-time content to become part of the customer experience
• How to prepare for real-time without being manufactured

Resources

• Get The Content Experience Report for free here.
• Find out more about Convince & Convert here.
• Find out more about Lauren and keep up with her speaking dates here.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Christopher Singlemann, Videographer at Loyola University Maryland, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss personalized video content and keeping authenticity first.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How Loyola University’s video team functions as an “in house agency”
• Why authenticity is the key regardless of production value
• How Chris and his team handle captioning
• How Chris developed a personalized video campaign for prospective students

Resources

• Get The Content Experience Report for free here.
• Find out more about Convince & Convert here.
• Check out video and written content from Loyola here.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Bogdan Zlatkov, Content Marketing Manager of LinkedIn Learning Solutions at LinkedIn, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss using data to create useful content tied to your products.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How Bogdan’s team at AdRoll responsibly used proprietary data to find trends in the Holiday Horror campaign
• Why ebook downloads can be a deceptive metric
• How LinkedIn keeps their content and products tied together in a way that benefits the customer

Resources

• Get The Content Experience Report for free here.
• Find out more about Convince & Convert here.

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Jessica Cross, Manager of Demand Generation at RollWorks, a division of AdRoll Group, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss taking content beyond top of funnel to direct the entire customer journey.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How lead times differ between B2B and B2C
• Why content is much more than just top of funnel marketing
• How to address your customer’s major questions through your content
• Who should be in charge of content ideation

Resources

• Uberflip
• Instagram for Tourism Marketing
• AdRoll Group

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Jason Chicola, Founder and CEO of Rev.com, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss how transcribing, captioning, and translating your audio can greatly enhance your content strategy.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why transcribing your audio and video content can have a major impact on your discoverability
• How to use transcriptions to enhance the reusability of your content
• Why captioning your videos can greatly expand your audience
• Why captioning is a critical part of the video experience on most social platforms
• When you should consider translating your video and audio content
• How recording yourself and transcribing your audio can increase your productivity over typing notes

Resources

• Rev.com
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Noah Brier, Co-Founder of Percolate, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss bottlenecks and enhancing creativity through better processes.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Where many businesses are experiencing bottlenecks
• How to define the three types of bottlenecks
• How to identify a bottleneck within your business
• How to solve bottlenecks by becoming more efficient
• Why better processes and systems will enhance creativity

Resources

• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert
• TechSmith

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Todd Earwood, Founder and CEO of MoneyPath, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss the union of sales and marketing along with some surprising findings on webinars.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How MoneyPath went deep on email analysis
• How email has shifted from being standalone content to a delivery system for other content
• How to use webinars to bring sales and marketing together
• How to set up webinars to be long term content

Resources

• Convince & Convert
• ICUC
• Webinar Works
• MoneyPath

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Chris Sietsema, Digital Marketing Consultant at Teach to Fish Digital, and Chris Book, Managing Partner at Metrics Agency, join the Content Experience Show to discuss solutions to measuring content and why creators should hold the responsibility.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why effectively measuring content is a persistent problem
• Why content should be analyzed based on the stage of the funnel in which it is intended
• How to approach content from a leadership position
• Who should be in charge of measuring content
• What main factors to consider when measuring content
• Why content creators should be responsible for measuring their own content

Resources

• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert
• Teach to Fish Digital
• Metrics Agency

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Susan Baier, Head Honcho at Audience Audit, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss better audience segmentation through attitudinal personas.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to find meaningful information for segmentation
• How to conduct research to build attitudinal personas
• How to balance “deep dives” with archetypal personas
• Why typical demographic information is ineffective for segmentation

Resources

• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert
• Audience Audit
• Satan: His Psychotherapy and Cure by the Unfortunate Dr. Kassler

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Ahava Leibtag, President of Aha Media Group, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss the intersection of content strategy with content marketing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why content strategy is separate but complementary to content marketing
• Why Aha Media started the November Writing Challenge
• Why you should read your writing out loud
• Why content is the most critical component of the user experience
• Why your content should use “plain language”

Resources

• Convince & Convert
• Aha Media Group

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Randy Frisch, Co-Founder, CMO, and President at Uberflip, and Anna Hrach, Strategist at Convince & Convert, discuss some of the big questions plaguing marketers today in this special episode of the Content Experience Show.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Will IGTV change the way video is viewed online forever?
• Should you gate your content?
• What is better: a blog, content hub, or a resource center?
• Is there a real value in Instagram influencers?
• Should companies have an experience manager position?
• How do you approach marketing to millennials?
• Are Super Bowl commercials valuable?
• Should marketers focus more on inbound or account-based marketing?
• How is storytelling evolving?
• Is voice search the next big thing?

Resources

• ICUC
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Bumper Carroll, VP of Creative at Second City Works, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss comedy in marketing and creating a risk-friendly environment.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to develop an environment that fosters creativity
• Why comedy must be truthful to be funny
• How to connect with your audience through comedy in marketing
• How to propose a culture change to your team

Resources

• TechSmith
• Second City Works
• Bumper Carroll

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Charlie Lynch, Global Director of Digital Engagement at Franklin Covey, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss project planning and choosing the right business technology.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How Franklin Covey adds value to their online presence
• Why you should invest in people before business technology
• How to develop a project plan
• How to avoid being oversold on features you don’t need

Resources

• ICUC
• Franklin Covey

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Chris Savage, Co-Founder and CEO of Wistia, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss Wistia’s “1, 10, 100” project and how they’ve embraced risk.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How Wistia approached the 1, 10, 100 project
• How to evaluate when to sell a business
• How Wistia chose to buy out angel investors

Resources

• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert
• CoSchedule

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Corinne Sklar, CMO at Bluewolf, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss team alignment and how to foster innovation within your teams.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Three principles for successful team alignment
• Why you have to look past the data to understand your customers
• Why it is important to have a central strategy for customer experience
• What major trends have been shown through the annual State of Salesforce report

Resources

• The Content Experience Report
• Convince & Convert
• CoSchedule
• The Complete Guide to Creating Customers With Word of Mouth

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Jay Acunzo, Founder of Unthinkable Media and author of Break the Wheel, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss best practices and when to buck the trend.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why “best practices” are not always the way to go
• How to choose what’s best for your business rather than just following the trend
• Why “Break the Wheel” is not about simply bucking the trend
• Why best practices should be viewed as more of a starting point rather than a rule

Resources

• Uberflip
• CoSchedule
• Talk Triggers
• Break the Wheel

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Jay Baer, Founder of Convince & Convert, and Daniel Lemin, Co-Founder of Selectivor, join the Content Experience Show as co-authors to discuss their new book Talk Triggers and giving customers something they don’t expect.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why word of mouth is so important
• How to create an effective talk trigger
• Why you should strategize your talk triggers
• How to avoid being gimmicky

Resources

• Talk Triggers
• CoSchedule

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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In this bonus episode of the Content Experience Show, Jay Baer presents a special preview of the audiobook for Talk Triggers.

Buy Talk Triggers here!

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Joseph DiDomizio, Director of Digital Communications in University Advancement at University at Buffalo, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss customer advocacy built on emotional connections.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How emotional connections encourage customer retention
• How to build a sense of belonging with your customers
• How to conduct effective surveys to understand your audience better
• Why there isn’t as much competition in higher education

Resources

• Talk Triggers
• University at Buffalo

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Nate Skinner, Vice President of Product Marketing at Pardot, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss creating memories as the foundation for customer loyalty.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to keep many teams with individual goals aligned within a large company
• How to turn current trends and data into experiences for your customers
• Why artificial intelligence has become crucial for analytics
• Why customer loyalty is built on memories

Resources

• Content Experience Report
• Talk Triggers
• Pardot

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Andrew Davis, keynote speaker and best-selling author, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss holding attention and inspiring audiences with curiosity gaps.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How effective content brings value beyond the initial ROI
• How to capture and hold people’s attention
• How curiosity gaps keep your audience coming back for more
• How to create an “implied call to action”

Resources

• TechSmith
• Andrew Davis

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Amy Rushia, Digital Experience Manager at Isagenix, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss creating meaningful content for a global audience.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How content creation works for a global food brand
• How to coordinate multiple teams in a complex content system
• How to effectively connect with a global audience
• How to develop governance over multiple regional teams

Resources

• Conex 2018
• Isagenix

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Paige Gerber, Director of Content Experience at Uberflip, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss measuring ROI on the content experience.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why content experience is far more than a buzzword
• How to measure ROI on the content experience
• Why good content should be utilized in multiple areas
• How to use a call to action to enhance the customer journey
• How AI can help personalize the customer journey

Resources

• TechSmith
• Conex 2018
• The Content Experience Report

Visit contentexperienceshow.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Andi Robbins, Integration Director at Riester, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss account managers and ways to collaborate effectively on content.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to lead by being a part of the conversation
• How to work collaboratively between content strategists and account managers
• Tips for effectively selling content
• How to approach strategy change with a client
• How to create better content

Resources

• Conex 2018
• Riester

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Michelle Cirocco, Head of Global Marketing at Televerde, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss ABM strategy and transitioning to account-based selling.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why everyone is ultimately responsible for sales
• Why sales and marketing have to work collaboratively
• How content plays a crucial role in a successful account based marketing strategy
• How to create “snackable content”
• How to transition from account based marketing to account based selling

Resources

• ICUC
• Conex 2018
• Televerde

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Zontee Hou, Sr. Strategist at Convince & Convert, and Daniel Sendecki, Director of Brand & Creative at Uberflip, join the Content Experience Show to discuss a holistic content experience and the upcoming Conex 2018 conference.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How the Uberflip Experience became Conex
• How to balance value for the audience with value for the customer when presenting a conference
• Why content is no longer standalone, but is the backbone of marketing
• What speakers to watch for at Conex 2018
• Why there is no distinction between a B2B and a B2C content experience

Resources

• ICUC
• Conex 2018
• Convince & Convert
• Uberflip

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Chris Moody, Head of Global Content Marketing at Cheetah Digital, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss balancing lead gen with brand building in the content department.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to set up a content department in an already established business
• How to balance brand building and lead gen within the content department
• Why branding and demand gen must work hand in hand

Resources

• ICUC
• Conex 2018
• Cheetah Digital

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Andrew Warner, Founder & Startup CEO at Mixergy, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss chatbots and why your customers don’t want another email.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why chat is a better way to reach your customers
• Why chatbots are not ready to replace humans for many interactions
• How to implement effective chatbots
• How to approach sales within a chat

Resources

• TechSmith
• Conex 2018
• Try Andrew’s Chatbot!
• Bot Academy
• Mixergy

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Jodi Lebow from CollabNet Version One joins the Content Experience Show to discuss all things ABM and giving customers a more personal experience.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why content is relevant to all branches of an organization
• Why account based marketing is more than a marketing approach
• How account based marketing helps to create a more personalized experience for your customers
• How to implement re-targeted ads
• How to get started with ABM

Resources

• Conex 2018
• CollabNet VersionOne

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Jeff Gangemi, Director of Marketing Communications at Aquent, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss creating content to engage other marketers and the business of being a freelance agency.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How businesses are balancing in house teams with freelancers
• How to utilize content when marketing to marketers
• How to move beyond content about staffing when marketing freelancers
• Why quality is key with content geared towards marketers

Resources

• Digital Marketing Buzzword Alert: What is Attribution Marketing?
• Aquent
• Conex 2018

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Amy Landino, Video Marketing Coach, Author, and Co-Founder/Owner of Vlog Boss Studios and Aftermarq, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss personal re-branding and why video marketing is a long term investment.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to approach a personal re-branding
• Why video is such a powerful tool for relationship building with your audience
• Why creating video content is a long term investment
• How to strategize for video based on the format/platform
• How to improve the overall video experience for your audience

Resources

• Conex 2018
• Vlog Boss University
• Aftermarq
• Vlog Like a Boss

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Adam Rossow and Jonathan Futa, Co-Founders at Threadline Digital, join the Content Experience Show to discuss ways to measure the attitudes and emotional responses of your audience and move past behavioral and vanity metrics.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to find meaningful metrics
• How to set effective goals for your top-of-funnel content
• How to move past vanity metrics
• How to measure the feeling your content causes rather than behavior
• Why “likes” do not equal engagement

Resources

• ICUC
• Conex 2018
• Threadline Digital

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Jeff Pedowitz, President and CEO of The Pedowitz Group, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss the reason many businesses deliver inconsistent experiences and how to move past customer service to being customer-focused.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• ICUC
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to define “marketing operations” and who should be involved
• How to shift the focus of marketing to being customer focused
• The difference between “multi-channel” and “omni-channel” experiences
• How to help the product team and the content team work together to ensure a wholly consistent experience

Resources

• The Pedowitz Group

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Allen Gannett, Author and Founder/CEO of TrackMaven, joins the Content Experience to discuss the meaning of creativity, and how you can spark your creative genius to reach your ROI goals and take your marketing to the next level.

In This Episode

• Why creativity is something you can learn
• Why consuming is so important for creativity
• How to balance familiarity with novelty
• How to learn creativity through imitation
• How to incorporate data into the creative process

Resources

• TechSmith
• Conex 2018
• The Creative Curve
• TrackMaven

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Joel Comm, Co-host of the Bad Crypto Podcast, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss creating a podcast that earned over 3.5 million downloads in less than one year and how to approach starting one of your own.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to approach starting a podcast
• What things are essential for starting a podcast
• How to approach sponsorship as the podcast grows
• Ways to promote a podcast

Resources

• Lightboard
• Bad Crypto Podcast
• Libsyn
• Pat Flynn’s Step by Step Podcasting Tutorial
• John Lee Dumas’ Free Podcasting Course

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John Collins, Director of Content at Intercom, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss taking the focus off of marketing and putting content first.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why Intercom is done with “content marketing”
• How to develop content straight from the experts
• How to set up an effective editorial calendar
• How to approach repurposing content

Resources

• Intercom

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Andy Crestodina, Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer at Orbit Media Studios, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss the importance of promotion and creating visible content.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How company websites have changed from previous decades
• What mistake many businesses are making with embedded YouTube videos
• Why content brings long lasting benefits and ads are short term
• Why promotion is just as important as the quality of your content

Resources

• Content Chemistry
• Intercom

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Joe Griffin, CEO/Co-Founder of ClearVoice, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss strategies for consistently creating good content and the importance of a single editor.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why a good managing editor is so important for creating good content in today’s market
• Why there should be one editor or editing department rather than editors spread throughout multiple departments
• How to set up a practical content creation plan

Resources

• Intercom
• ClearVoice
• Uberflip Brand Guidelines

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Tony Holbrook, Executive Director - Global Marketing & Commerce Development at Ingram Micro Commerce & Lifecycle Services, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss effective methods of outreach and strategies for converting prospective customers.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why cold calling is not the most effective method of outreach
• How to effectively connect with prospective clients
• How to strategically use customer stories and industry data
• How to focus on relationship building rather than lead source

Resources

• Intercom

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Alexis Teichmiller, Affiliate Manager at ConvertKit, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss the power of partnering with your customers over traditional influencers.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How ConvertKit built a successful affiliate marketing program
• How to balance branding with personal testimony with your affiliates
• Why affiliates are different from influencers
• How your business can start building an affiliate program

Resources

• Techsmith
• ConvertKit
• Alexis’ Blog and Podcast

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David Priemer, Founder and Chief Sales Scientist at Cerebral Selling, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss ways to keep your brand’s message compelling and consistent.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why every member of your business contributes to sales
• How to empathize with your audience
• How to simplify your brand’s message to “go down smoothly”
• How to quickly create relevance through polarization
• Why the product you’re selling includes the customer’s experience

Resources

• Techsmith
• Cerebral Selling

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Rob Mills, Content Strategist at GatherContent, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss organizing teams for greater efficiency.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to approach multiple types of content
• How to keep content creation efficient when working with a team
• How to set up a great workflow
• What roles are a must for a content creation team

Resources

• Techsmith
• Content Delivery E-Book

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Chris Dayley, VP of Testing & Site Optimization at Disruptive Advertising, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss testing for the right data to know what your audience really wants.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why focusing on traffic and “top of funnel” metrics is not the most beneficial
• How to find more meaningful data when your audience visits your website
• How to test your audience’s response to different types of content
• How to more effectively approach persona creation

Resources

• Fabl
• Disruptive Advertising
• Social Media Examiner

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Mike Corak, Vice President and General Manager at DAC Group, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss parts of the customer journey that are often overlooked.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Rev.com
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to stay involved as a leader without micromanaging
• How to think from the client’s perspective
• How to plan out and justify a content strategy budget with a client
• Why localized content is a vital part of the content strategy

Resources

• Rev.com
• DAC Group

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Garrett Moon, CEO & Co Founder of CoSchedule, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss competition free content and how to choose the right projects.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How content marketing has become competitive
• How to create competition free content
• How to find your core content
• How to choose the right projects to work on

Resources

• CoSchedule
• 10x Marketing Formula
• Lightboard
• Gartner’s Hype Cycle
• Blue Ocean Strategy

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Christine Otsuka, Content Marketer at Uberflip, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss her new ebook and who should own the content experience. Special thanks to our sponsors:* Vidyard * Uberflip * Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode* How to define the content experience * Why your business already has a content experience * How to determine who should own the content experience * Why having a content experience manager is important

Resources* Who Owns the Content Experience?

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Michael Barber, SVP and Chief Creative Officer at Godfrey, joins the Content Experience Show to dig deeper into the customer journey.

Special thanks to our sponsors:* Vidyard * Uberflip * Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode* How to help your ideas resonate more clearly whether in content or speaking * Why some companies should have a customer experience team * How to better understand what your customer is experiencing when interacting with your business

Resources* Godfrey Website

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Phil Renaud, VP of Engineering at Affinio, joins the Content Experience Show to help us find the most meaningful data through unlikely audience insights.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to find relevant audience insights
• Why data can teach you more about your customers than the customers themselves
• How the film industry uses data to determine who will should star in a particular movie or show
• Why demographics no longer matter for audience segmentation

Resources

• Affinio

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Kelley O’Brien, Director - Interactive, Digital, Social at Krispy Kreme, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss bringing personal experiences to a worldwide audience.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How social can be used to engage your audience in product creation
• Why being a B2C brand with a fun persona still requires strategy and planning
• How to balance a personal experience with a global experience with a multinational audience

Resources

• NUVI
• Lightboard

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Jenna Rutschman, Director of Marketing and Communications, College of Social and Behavioral Sciences at University of Arizona, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss audience segmentation in higher education.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why audience segmentation is important when marketing to a wide range of demographics
• How the University of Arizona optimizes email for communicating with students
• How marketing with higher education can differ from other “worlds” of marketing

Resources

• Jenna on Twitter.
• University of Arizona

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Jess Ostroff, Director of Calm at Don’t Panic Management, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss finding your specialization and her new book, Panic Proof.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why it’s better to find your specialization rather than trying to be a “Jack or Jill of all trades”
• How to find someone’s specialization
• How to structure your or your employee’s time to utilize specializations while preventing burnout
• How to strategically plan out and prioritize your ideas

Resources

• Panic Proof
• Don’t Panic Management
• Agile Sherpas

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Shane Snow, Founder at Large, and Joe Lazauskas, Editor in Chief and Director of Content Strategy at Contently, join the Content Experience Show to discuss how storytelling can build powerful human connections.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to tell good stories that get your message across
• Why stories are good for more than just marketing
• How stories help you connect with your audience

Resources

• The Storytelling Edge
• Joe on Twitter
• Shane on Twitter

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Jay Baer, Founder of Convince & Convert, joins the Content Experience Show to discuss Talk Triggers and word of mouth marketing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why all content should be an experience
• What it means to have a content experience
• How to build a strategy for word of mouth marketing
• How a talk trigger gives your customers a story

Resources

• Jay Baer Website, Twitter, Linkedin
• ConEx 2018

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Anna Hrach, Strategist at Convince & Convert, and Randy Frisch, Co-Founder, CMO, and President of Uberflip, discuss the upcoming changes in the Content Pros Podcast and the importance of the Content Experience.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why it’s time to take content creation to the next level
• Why just having a popular piece of content is not enough

Resources

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Lisa Kenney, Sr. Demand Generation Marketing Manager at Blackbaud, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss audience analysis and segmentation.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to implement deeper segmentation
• How to better use data to improve segmentation
• How to balance creating content for a specific audience and being flexible enough to repurpose it
• Ways to more efficiently organize content data

Resources

• Blackbaud All Access Pass
• Lisa’s Tech Stack: Uberflip, Brightfunnel, Salesforce, Marketo
• SnapApp

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Anna Hrach, Strategist at Convince & Convert, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss culture and consistency.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why websites should be treated as content hubs
• Why there should be consistency of content between various channels
• Why hiring someone who fits the business culture is more important than immediate skills
• How to pick the right content creators

Resources

• Anna’s Website and  Twitter
• Uberflip Culture

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Tyler Lessard, Vice President of Marketing at Vidyard, joins the Content Pros Podcast as a guest this time to discuss content diversity and his time as co-host of the show.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to figure out what kind of content is right for a particular audience
• How to balance long-term campaigns versus campaigns build for a specific moment
• The importance of simplifying the process for creating and sharing video

Resources

• Tyler on Twitter
• Vidyard
• Vidyard Go Video

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Susan Hartman, Partner at Susan Hartman Consulting, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss team coordination and how giving away knowledge can lead to tremendous growth.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why team cooperation is one of the most critical aspects, and often most significant problems, of marketing for many companies
• How to coordinate teams to put out exceptional content in effective ways
• How giving away knowledge can lead to tremendous growth in brand awareness and sales

Resources

• Susan on Twitter
• Susan Hartman Consulting
• Energy University

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Cara McCarron, President of The Content Company, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss why quality is king when it comes to content creation.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• What it means to have quality content
• How to balance authenticity with polish
• How to find the right writer
• Why clear communication is so crucial to hitting the mark with content
• Why more than just the writing contributes to the overall experience

Resources

• The Content Company
• Cara on Twitter

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Stephanie Totty, Director of Marketing at Examsoft, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how ExamSoft works with customers to create content through its ambassador program.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to create content to engage with multiple audiences with different personas
• How to work with brand ambassadors to generate content
• Why webinars are great pieces of content and how to style them for your audience
• How to repurpose and find multiple uses for your content
• Why compensating your brand ambassadors can strengthen your community

Resources

• Stephanie on Twitter.
• ExamSoft
• VidYard

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Jason Schemmel, Social Media Manager at HarperCollins Christian Publishing, joins the Content Pros Podcast to talk about building and engaging with a healthy, active community.

In This Episode* How identifying your target audience can guide which social media your business should focus on * Why you should use social media as a funnel to catch a wider audience that leads back to your product * How repeatable campaigns can help your brand stand out and keep your audience engaged * The importance of empathizing with your audience when creating targeted ads

Resources* Jason Schemmel on Twitter * HarperCollins Christian Publishing on Facebook, Twitter. * GSD Chat

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Ilana Rabinowitz, Vice President of Marketing and Product Development at Lion Brand Yarn Company, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how Lion Brand works with influencers to create and promote new products and engage with customers.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How to create opportunities for your customers to engage and advocate for your company
• How direct communication with your customers can help grow your business
• Why free content can be incredibly valuable
• How to reach out to influencers and even allow them to influence your business
• How to build and manage an effective influencer program

Resources

• Ilana Rabinowitz on Twitter - @Ilana221
• The Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing - bit.ly/brokencontent

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Salma Jafri, Video Content Strategist and Owner of Salma Jafri Media, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss why and how she starts her entire content strategy with video first.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why a video first content strategy means building your entire content strategy out from and around video
• How focusing on help, hero, and hub content leads to a stellar content strategy model
• Why upcycling content means starting with the richest format and letting content spin-off from there
• The false content myth of "One Video to Rule Them All"

Resources

• Salma Jafri on Twitter: @salmajafri
• Salma Jafri Media on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn
• Be The Media

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Andrea Fryrear, President and Lead Trainer at AgileSherpas, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the three rules of agile marketing and steps to take to become more flexible and responsive to your customers.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why a faster, more responsive, and successful campaign means putting it out there before you think it's ready
• How limiting your work leads to greater progress and success in the long run
• Why a well-made content strategy calendar means looking ahead while also looking back
• How internal silos lead to trouble in sales funnel handoffs

Resources

• Andrea Fryrear on Twitter: @AndreaFryrear
• AgileSherpas on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn
• Agile Manifesto
• The Lean Startup
• Why Robert Rose Wants to Kill Marketing

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Andy Crestodina, Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer of Orbit Media, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share a first-look at the insights gleaned from his annual survey of 1,000+ bloggers and how you can build your lifetime body of work.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why embracing fun, free content promotion means getting involved in influencer outreach
• How updating old stuff leads to conversions and even a possible book deal down the road
• Why creating evergreen blog content means leaving off the posting date
• How planning your lifetime body of work leads to content that stands the tests of time

Resources

• Andy Crestodina on Twitter: @crestodina
• Orbit Media Studios
• They’re Geeky and They’re Kooky: The Vidyard Family

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Robert Rose, Chief Strategy Officer for the Content Marketing Institute, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss why he thinks it's time to kill marketing and start fresh with content that stands apart from sales.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why being a leader in your field means creating content that stands apart from sales as its own business asset
• How the campaign approach to content leads to diluted and unoriginal material
• Why content marketing doesn't mean the same thing as advertising
• How a well-thought out strategic plan for content marketing leads to the content team being pro-active partners instead of reactive machines

Resources

• Robert Rose on Twitter: @Robert_Rose
• Content Marketing Institute
• Killing Marketing: How Innovative Businesses Are Turning Marketing Cost into Profit
• BabyCenter
• Everybody Writes
• Content Inc.
• Growth Hacker Marketing

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Melanie Deziel, Branded Content Consultant and Speaker for Mdeziel Media, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share how native advertising is the most underrated form of content marketing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How outbound content leads to new customers in unlikely places
• Why becoming a customer's natural choice means answering questions about your role and the emotions associated with it
• How approaching placement without a story pre-written leads to better, more engaging content
• Why finding the best placement means looking at your alignment, sources, and format

Resources

• Melanie Deziel on Twitter: @mdeziel
• The Overlap League
• Women Inmates: Why the Male Model Doesn't Work
• The Rise of Native Ads in Digital News Publications

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Michele Linn, VP of Content for the Content Marketing Institute, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share her three pillars to a successful content strategy.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why having a content marketing strategy means having more than just content
• How a lot of noise in the content marketplace leads to the perfect opportunity for a talented marketer
• Why creating better content means doing less of it
• How stepping back leads to stepping forward in content strat

Resources

• Michele Linn on Twitter: @michelelinn
• Content Marketing Institute
• Content Marketing World
• Content Marketing Master Class
• New Research Reveals Habits of Top Content Marketers
• Your Editorial Calendar is Not Your Content Marketing Strategy

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Delaney Turner, Director of Content Strategy for Demand Spring, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss why long-form documentary videos are the type of content that keeps on giving when it comes to qualified leads and long-range content planning.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode* How short-form documentary-style video content leads to new revelations about your customers * Why top-of-funnel content doesn’t mean sticking to only short clips or still images * How humanizing your brand through long-form videos leads to highly qualified leads and a positive reframing of your brand in the eyes of potential customers * Why planning a year’s worth of content means shooting one documentary

Resources

• Delaney Turner on Twitter: @DTurnerBlogs
• Demand Spring
• The Most Awesome Game
• Revolutionaries: Voices from the OTT Frontine

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Nate Skinner, VP of Product Marketing for Salesforce Pardot, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the power of AI's place in all of the marketing puzzle, from the administrative operations to sales.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How using AI in your marketing strategy leads to streamlined business operations and effective sales teams
• Why successfully incorporating AI means keeping some of your old tools to complement the new ones
• How mining for prospects with the help of AI leads to customers you didn’t even know existed
• Why AI integration means alignment between sales and marketing

Resources

• Nate Skinner on Twitter: @renniksn
• Salesforce Pardot
• Salesforce Einstein
• How Lenovo Delivers Intentional Content Through Predictive Insights
• Marketing Technology Landscape Supergraphic (2017): Martech 5000
• Bombora
• Why B2B Sales Success Requires a Holistic Account-Based Strategy

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Melissa Hodai, Digital Content Team Manager for Allstate, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how a content strategy that focuses on long-term cultivation instead of immediate viral success has lead to conversions and industry awards.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why cultivating a good content strategy means looking to Google and data first
• How chasing unicorn viral content leads to uninspiring and failing content over the long term
• Why reviewing metrics successfully means understanding that not all metrics are equally important
• How understanding and embracing your workhorse content leads to a focused strategy with strong conversion points

Resources

• Melissa Hodai on Twitter: @melissahodai
• Allstate on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, and Google+
• The Allstate Blog
• Allstate Tools & Resources
• Will A Backyard Chicken Or Goat Affect My Home Insurance?
• What Is 'Full Coverage'?

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Nathan Ellering, Head of Marketing Demand Generation at CoSchedule, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share how they maintain organic reach by actually having the best content on the internet.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why cultivating organic reach means being committed to being the best of the best on the internet
• How researching your own content leads to an increase of quality and leads over time
• Why a winning content strategy means a thorough writing plan that schedules months into the future
• How a workflow that includes a workback leads to better execution and less stress

Resources

• Nathan Ellering on Twitter: @njellering
• CoSchedule on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Google+
• CoSchedule Blog

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Brandon Redlinger, Director of Growth at Engagio, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share how they have found a winning strategy by embracing the classic content vehicle of email.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• Why a successful email campaign means keeping sales and marketing on the same page
• How over-automation leads to a disconnect between brands and their customers
• Why respecting tiered personas means cutting out the HTML messages beyond a certain level
• How fewer links to content in emails leads to more engagement

Resources

• Brandon Redlinger on Twitter: @brandon_lee_09
• Engagio: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Blog
• John Miller on Twitter and Scribewise
• Hacking Growth

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Jess Ostroff, Managing Editor at Convince & Convert, takes listeners on the road to überflip's Content Experience to hear from content pros such as Ann Handley, Andy Crestodina, and Jay Baer on what's broken with content marketing today and how to fix it.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Vidyard
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

In This Episode

• How collaborating and networking leads to more successful content and a flourishing career
• Why getting your audience to read your content means speaking to them as a peer instead of a brand
• How relevant content leads to a busy audience finding the time to listen and read it
• Why execution of good ideas is more important than generation of great ideas

Resources

• Lee Odden on Twitter: @leeodden
• Ann Handley on Twitter: @annhandley
• DJ Waldow on Twitter: @djwaldow
• Andy Crestodina on Twitter: @crestodina
• Matt Heinz on Twitter: @HeinzMarketing
• Jay Baer on Twitter: @jaybaer
• Uberflip
• The Content Experience: 2018 Registration (Super Early Bird)
• Convince & Convert: Four Ways to Fix Your Broken Content Marketing

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Sangram Vajre, Co-Founder and CMO of Terminus, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how a focus on engagement paired with collaboration between sales and marketing can drive business forward.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why successful content marketing means more than lead generation
• How accurately measuring engagement leads to more efficient sales team
• How a close and cooperative relationship between sales and marketing leads to better results for both teams
• Why a lack of synchronization means an opportunity to become a leader from within

Resources

• Sangram Vajre on Twitter: @sangramvajre
• Terminus on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• FlipMyFunnel

• EverString
• Bombora
• Pardot

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Mike Ballard, Senior Manager of Digital Marketing at Lenovo, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share how he is using predictive insights to create content with intent that engages, motivates, and closes sales.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why understanding your prospects means going beyond your own digital properties
• How reinforcement of your core messaging can lead to prospective buyer tune-out
• Why getting the most out of your data means using it to trigger campaigns and craft your message
• How being helpful instead of pitchy leads to successfully capturing leads and moving them through the funnel

Resources

• Mike Ballard on Twitter: @mballard5574
• Lenovo on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google+, Pinterest, and flickr
• SiriusDecisions Demand Waterfall
• Scott Brinker's Marketing Technology Landscape Supergraphic (2017): Martech 5000
• MeritDirect
• Adobe Audience Manager
• Bambora

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Travis Bickham, VP of Marketing at Concord, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how a focus on quality and providing the Netflix experience is turning heads in a crowded marketplace.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why standing out in a crowded market means asking yourself two questions: how are you presenting yourself on your website and how you are presenting yourself through the content funnel
• How speaking to the silo leads to breaking down the wall for new customers
• Why successfully walking your customer through the content funnel means incorporating some Netflix ideas
• How actual customer testimonials lead to a better profile and better sales

Resources

• Travis Bickham on Twitter: @travisbickham
• Concord: Blog, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn

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Anna Hrach, Content Strategist at Convince and Convert, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share her three tips for carving a place for yourself in the still-growing field of content marketing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert

In This Episode

• How the evolution of content marketing leads to a focus of strategy above all else
• Why increasing appreciation for content marketing means changing leadership's perception of the work involved
• How strategizing, treating yo' self, and trying leads to a better career as a content marketer

Resources

• Anna Hrach on Twitter: @annabananahrach
• Convince and Convert
• Content Marketing Master Class
• The Lean Startup

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Co-Founders of Abacus Agency Peter Reitano, CEO, and Jeff Goldenberg, CSO, join the Content Pros Podcast to share how they squeeze every dollar out of Facebook using dynamo content.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why creating a successful Facebook advertising campaign means spending less money on boosting and more time on content
• How smart use of Facebook tools leads to conversion rates and data that can magnify the impact of your content marketing strategy
• Why being a successful content marketer today means marrying new data to new creativity
• How succeeding at one point of the Facebook Ads Triangle leads to amazing click-through rates

Resources

• Peter Reitano on Twitter: @digidharma
• Jeff Goldenberg on Twitter: @jeff_goldenberg
• Abacus Agency
• The Facebook Pixel
• Technopoly: The Surrender of Culture to Technology

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Kris Rudeegraap, CEO of Sendoso, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how snail mail is making a roaring comeback as a vehicle for impactful content.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why getting noticed today means embracing an old, previously ridiculed mode of communication
• How snail mail leads to perfectly timed and impactful customer engagement opportunities
• Why meaningful, personalized content means creating a physical presence from afar
• How timely mailers lead to content that stands apart from the rest

Resources

• Kris Rudeegraap on Twitter: @rudeegraap
• Sendoso

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Matt Wesson, Director of Content and Creative at SalesLoft, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss leveraging content throughout the buyer's journey to engage customers, convert leads, and grow to scale.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why great content means letting customers learn about your product without a salesperson involved
• How the evolution of content is leading to content that exists beyond the top of the funnel
• Why pooling together a diverse set of marketing ideas means breaking down internal silos
• How personalization and personas lead to customers that trust you and come back for more content

Resources

• Matt Wesson on Twitter: @mattbwesson
• SalesLoft
• Content Marketing 2.0
• Vidyard's Home for the Holidays

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James Kotecki, Principal of The Kotecki Group, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share how case studies can energize your marketing with multiple pieces of impactful, motivating content.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How one case study leads to a multitude of pieces of content
• Why cultivating content for case-studies doesn’t have to mean a huge financial investment or risk
• How fine tuning the art of interviewing leads to inspirational and motivational content
• Why a compelling interview means setting up a good tennis match

Resources

• James Kotecki on Twitter: @JamesKotecki
• The Kotecki Group
• James on Politico, Facebook, and Instagram

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Sourabh Kothari, Director of Advocacy, Brand, and Content at Signifyd, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the power of storytelling and why the most important story doesn't have your product in it.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How the ultimate end-user of a B2B purchase leads to a more emotional buying process than B2C
• Why successful marketing storytelling means a focus on characters instead of story
• How changes in audience expectations leads to dynamic and collaborative presentations
• Why winning content means first thinking of how your audience would succeed without your product

Resources

• Sourabh Kothari on Twitter: @sokothari
• Signifyd
• Content Marketing Class

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Mathew Sweezey, Principal of Marketing Insights at Salesforce, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the evolution of permission in content and how it is changing the very definition of marketing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How one tiny change in media process can lead to a global and cultural paradigm shift
• Why more media means fewer autonomous decisions made by consumers
• How the increase in media creators has led to a fundamental change in the definition of marketing
• Why successful content engagement means your business giving a simple like or @ mention in the comments of user-generated content

Resources

• Mathew Sweezey on Twitter: @msweezey
• Salesforce
• Marketing Automation for Dummies
• Cluetrain Manifesto
• B2B Social Media Case Study: How I made $47 million from my B2B blog
• First Tweet

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Fatima Zaidi, VP of Business Development at Eighty-Eight Agency, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how successful PR in the modern content marketing world keeps your content alive and pushes it viral.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why creating content is only a small part of content marketing
• How a focus on creating value with new concepts leads to online virality
• Why the right amount of content means calculating how much you can take and adding one
• How supplementing your existing workforce with an agency leads to new opportunities and resources

Resources

• Fatima Zaidi on Twitter: @zaidiafatima
• Eighty-Eight Agency on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and the blog
• Foodora Campaign: One Wheel for a Better Planet
• What's Now, What's NEXT
• Foodora and Durex and Partnering Up This Valentine's Day
• Agency or Porn

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Doug Landis, Growth Partner at Emergence Capital, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share his journey to becoming a bonafide storyteller and what that means for content marketing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why a CEO's successful pitch doesn't mean a slam dunk for the sales team
• How a sales and storyteller hat across an organization leads to a fundamental shift in both external and internal communications
• Why talking about your company and the market to your customers means you're doing it wrong
• How bringing your weekend self to work leads to memorable presentations... in a good way

Resources

• Doug Landis on Twitter: @douglandis
• Emergence Capital
• The Greatest Sales Deck I've Ever Seen
• Emergence Playbook
• Thoughts

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Todd Berkowitz, Research Vice President at Gartner, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss using ABM and buyer-driven content to boost conversions, close deals, and make marketing shine.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why measuring success of ABM means revisiting your marketing metrics and your definition of success
• How understanding the buyer’s journey means understanding that you can’t dictate the process
• The customer doesn’t care about your sales funnel
• Why the effectiveness of marketing automation and ABM means a close look at the when/why/where of content personalization
• How the right ABM and content marketing leads to an empowered and enabled sales team

Resources

• Todd Berkowitz on Twitter: @toddberkowitz
• Gartner

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Jay Acunzo, Keynote Speaker and Show Host of Unthinkable, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the importance of finding and trusting your intuition when it comes to creating standout content.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why reliably creating great content means realistically wielding intuition
• How stopping asking questions leads to finding the right answers for content
• Why getting the best advice means pushing back and asking questions of the experts
• How the Cinderella story arc sets up a successful podcast series

Resources

• Jay Acunzo on Twitter: @jayacunzo
• Sorry for Marketing
• Unthinkable
• Monumental Shift
• Science Vs
• The Science of Social Media

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Oli Gardner, Co-Founder of Unbounce, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how data, design, and content work together to convert leads and close deals.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How a lack of cohesion and data leads to tension on the marketing team
• Why a winning design means validating the data first
• How focusing on conversion rate optimization leads to irrelevant content and decreasing conversions
• Why motivating content means including your product, even if you don't want it to be too sales-y

Resources

• Oli Gardner on Twitter: @oligardner
• Unbounce
• Fuck Data
• The Landing Page Sessions with Oli Gardner

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Matt Heinz, President of Heinz Marketing, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the increasingly intertwined relationship between marketing, content, and sales.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why the reality of marketing today means that even one-to-one conversations count as content
• How content marketing has become the new sales department
• Why cutting through the clutter means making your customer feel human again
• How not properly arming your sales team leads to an email bruise

Resources

• Matt Heinz on Twitter: @HeinzMarketing
• Heinz Marketing
• Viewedit

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Hana Abaza, Head of Marketing at Shopify Plus, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how business success changes the approach to content marketing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why better quality means less content
• How business growth leads directly to a complete revamp of your content
• Why well-organized content means making it easy to navigate for external and internal audiences
• How a successful content marketing plan leads to spending more time with sales than marketing

Resources

• Hana Abaza on Twitter: @HanaAbaza
• Shopify Plus' Twitter and Blog
• Shopify Blog

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Authors Barry Feldman and Seth Price, copywriter and marketing/branding speaker respectively, join the Content Pros Podcast to discuss their debut book "The Road to Recognition" and the intersection of content and branding to achieve marketing success.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How the power of personal branding leads to getting your name out of spam folder and in front of a reader
• Why building a brand means starting with the foundational platforms that many take for granted
• How passion and zeal lead to tenacity and perseverance through the hard times of content
• Why successful content means an equal amount of time spent on both writing and visual design

Resources

• Barry Feldman on Twitter: @FeldmanCreative
• Seth Price on Twitter: @sethprice
• The Road to Recognition: The A-To-Z Guide to Personal Branding to Accelerate Your Professional Success in the Age of Digital Media
• The Point
• The Brand Called You by Tom Peters
• Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World
• SEO Simplified for Short Attention Spans

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Anthony Kennada, VP of Marketing at Gainsight, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share how he prioritized branding with content to create a start-up positioned for success.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why launching a brand new category means pitching it without mentioning it
• How meeting with specialists but following your intuition leads to informed and inspired innovation
• Why starting a new technology platform means focusing on the human, instead of technical, element
• How putting the brand first when starting out leads to better retention, recruiting, and investment

Resources

• Anthony Kennada on Twitter: @akennada
• Gainsight
• An Unapologetic Defense of Brand Marketing for B2B Growth
• Pulse 2017
• CategoryDev
• Pulse Conference 2015 Speakers Sing "Blank Space" (A Cappella)

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René Lego, Video Content Marketing Strategist at SolarWinds, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss finding viral content gold by pushing the limits on the role of video in a modern B2B landscape.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How believing in your idea enough to push back leads to viral marketing success
• Why producing impactful B2B content means marketing like a B2C
• How failing at video quickly and often ultimately leads to video prowess and content gold
• Why ingraining video into your corporate culture means turning its power inwards as much as outward

Resources

• René Lego on Twitter: @ReneLego
• SolarWinds on Twitter, Facebook, Thwack, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube
• ThwackCamp
• Email in Real Life
• A Conference Call in Real Life
• Stranger IT Teaser
• Stranger IT: Follow the Lights
• Stranger IT: Imposter Computer
• Stranger IT: The Upside Down

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Beth Taylor, Marketing Director at the Airline Tariff Publishing Company, joins the Content Pros Podcast to dig in to what it's like to go from owning content in a large organization to building the marketing department of a small organization from the ground up.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How internally answering tough questions about your campaign before implementation leads to more successful executive buy-in
• Why marketing for an intangible product means bringing it in to the physical realm
• How starting from scratch in an established industry leads to a thrilling and rewarding career
• Why successfully relaunching a marketing campaign sometimes means not waiting for permission

Resources

• Beth Taylor on Twitter: @BethATaylor20
• Airline Tariff Publishing Company (ATPCO)
• IBM RemixIT
• Viral Clippers Beat
• Lenovo: Users Happen

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Clair Byrd, Director of Competitive Marketing at Twilio, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the importance of design and audience lifestyle in crafting the perfect content vehicle.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why having a blog that people want to contribute to means making it beautiful and open
• How the life and communication style of your audience feeds into your content design
• Why launching a successful contributed-content program means a concentrated effort on submission recruitment
• How a collaborative, cross-functional, in-house design team leads to intuitive, readable, engageable content
• Why staffing a team of content pros means looking for customer service pros

Resources

• Clair Byrd on Twitter: @theclairbyrd
• Twilio
• InVision Blog
• Design Disruptors
• Helvetica

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Tyler Lessard, Chief Marketing Officer at Vidyard, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the growing importance of video as a content marketing vehicle and what it means for the industry as a whole.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why the constant bombardment of content means a shift in marketing focus from tactics to relationships
• How the change in opportunity and real cost of video leads to a restructuring of marketing staffing
• Why engaging a production agency means analyzing the purpose of a video before you begin filming
• How hosting your own videos leads to more insightful and accurate engagement data

Resources

• Tyler Lessard on Twitter: @tylerlessard
• Vidyard
• StudioNow
• Notch Video
• Arc Media
• Media One Creative
• RockBridge Media

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Sam Melnick, VP of Marketing at Allocadia, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss and define the maturity model and how it has revolutionized their approach to content marketing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How adhering to the maturity model leads to consistent progress towards accomplishing all your goals, both big and small
• Why getting the maturity model into your process means starting at the C-suite
• How building a foundation with the maturity model leads to a successful house of content
• Why successful implementation means dividing to conquer

Resources

• Sam Melnick on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram
• Allocadia
• Kathleen Schaub at IDC
• Sirius Decisions

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Chris Moody, former host of Content Pros and current Content Marketing Lead at GE Digital, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss content marketing in a billion dollar industry that focuses more on sales than leads.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why creating a great piece of content isn't always about trying to create a great piece of content
• How A/B testing in the right market can lead to billions of dollars in optimized savings
• Why 'winning content' doesn't mean the same thing across the marketing industry
• How multi-million and billion dollar industries lead to a rise in dark content marketing

Resources

• Chris Moody on Twitter: @cnmoody
• GE Digital on Twitter and YouTube
• The State of Industry
• GE Reports
• Predix

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Andrew Davis, bestselling author and internationally acclaimed keynote speaker, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how marketers can break the addiction cycle when it comes to content distribution peaks and reach viral status in no time.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why spikes in content distribution success doesn't mean the content itself was successful
• How building social proof leads to more convincing and engaging content over time
• Why successful content distribution means producing less content and distributing it more slowly
• How mastering the marketing momentum curve leads to exponential content growth
• The importance of taking care of your inner circle of advocates

Resources

• Andrew Davis on Twitter: @DrewDavisHere
• Fold Factory
• Super Cool Fold of the Week
• The Uberflip Experience 2017
• Prezi

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David Lewis, CEO of DemandGen, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how to meet your customers at the right time, with the right content, on the right platform, and what that means when it comes to shopping for MarTech.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why a client that is considering switching demand generation platforms is an opportunity, not a threat
• How broadening what you consider resources leads to identifying content everywhere
• Why mapping the buyer's journey means structuring conversations
• How the getting excited about shiny things leads to precarious footing for your job
• Why incorporating new technology into the workplace means conversationally touring your company first

Resources

• David Lewis on Twitter: @demandgendave
• DemandGen
• Sales Brain
• The 7 Food Groups of MarTech
• Part 1: Choosing the Right MarTech Tools For Your Demand Factory
• Part 2: Who's on First? What's on Second? — Setting Technology Priorities
• Part 3: Help Me, Obi-Wan — Choosing Your Marketing Technology Vendors

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Paul Roetzer, Founder and CEO of PR 20/20, joins the content pros podcast to discuss how artificial intelligence is revolutionizing content by utilizing data to efficiently create content, cutting down production time and freeing marketers up to focus on successfully executing strategy.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why enhancing your marketer’s knowledge and capabilities means using artificial intelligence
• How smartly utilizing AI leads to rapid and granular data processing, content personalization, and customer behavior predictions
• How training machines natural language generation can transform your content and shorten your production time from hours down to seconds
• Why incorporating AI doesn’t mean replacing humans with computers

Resources

• Paul Roetzer on Twitter: @paulroetzer
• PR 20/20
• The Marketing Artificial Intelligence Institute
• Content Marketing World
• First Tweet

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Brandon Andersen, Chief Strategy Officer at Ceralytics, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share how he has developed and applied content intelligence to take the guess work out of creating successful content.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why taking the guess work out of content success means using content intelligence
• How trusting your customer advocates with content intelligence leads to more intuitive and accurate content
• Why ensuring relevant content means reframing the entire company culture to be customer-centric
• How an in-depth understanding and awareness of your customer's journey leads to content creation aligned with the funnel

Resources

• Brandon Andersen on Twitter: @Andersenology
• Ceralytics
• What Is Content Intelligence?
• Uberflip Experience

• FirstTweet

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Amy Schmittauer, Author and Video Marketing Consultant at Vlog Boss Studios, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how video is making content more relevant, shareable, and engaging on all platforms.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why vlogging doesn't mean keeping content to one social platform
• How understanding the party of the platform leads to achieving shareability
• Why B2C vlogging means jumping in feet first with your phone
• Why optimizing your vlogging means knowing where the platform lies along the funnel
• How letting go of creative control leads to successful influencer placement and marketing

Resources

• Amy Schmittauer on Twitter: @Schmittastic
• Savvy Sexy Social on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube
• Vlog like a Boss: How to Kill It Online with Video Blogging
• Gary Vaynerchuck on YouTube
• Mercedes Benz Instagram Stories
• Lowes' Facebook Videos

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Travis Wright, CMO and Chief Marketing Technologist for CCP.Digital, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how content plays a major role in the three major digital trends of today.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why successful social selling means the entire organization needs to be socially savvy
• How focusing on technology last leads to creating an integrated and impactful social business strategy for your organization
• Why creating content for stages of the funnel means focusing on buyers and customers separately
• How flexible content marketing means being ready to react to everything at any time
• Why combining technology with excellent service means developing account-based content advertising

Resources

• Travis Wright on Twitter: @teedubya
• CCP.Digital
• VentureBeat
• Digital Sense: The Common Sense Approach to Effectively Blending Social Business Strategy, Marketing Technology, and Customer Experience
• The Kansas City Chiefs Twitter Study
• The 7 Success Factors of Social Business Strategy
• Marketing Truth or Marketing Hype?
• Hug Your Haters

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Nick Steeves, Chief Product Officer at Wishpond, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share his success with pop-ups, microsites, and contextual call-to-actions.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How effective, targeted pop-up management leads customers beyond annoyance to conversion
• Why marketing to marketers means taking off the black hat and providing straight value
• How creating a microsite can lead to keyword dominance
• Why a convincing call-to-action means moving the C2A from the bottom to the top

Resources

• Nick Steeves on Twitter: @nicksteeves
• Wishpond
• Learn Lead Generation
• The Problem With Content's Squiggly Line to the Yes

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Claire Suellentrop, Director of Marketing at Calendly, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how infusing content marketing throughout an organization plays a vital role in the success of startups.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why content marketing for a startup means a blending marketing with sales and infusing it throughout the organization
• How understanding the right positioning for your product leads to natural story-based content that sells
• Why developing impactful content around customer success means rolling up your sleeves and diving into data
• How understanding and adapting to the current stage of growth for your company leads to more successful content

Resources

• Claire Suellen on Twitter: @ClaireSuellen
• Calendly

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Jess Ostroff, Managing Editor and Executive Producer for Convince & Convert, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share her secret to building long-term brand recognition and credibility through content.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How the evolving world of marketing leads to learning on the fly
• Why producing in the modern media realm means doubling as IT support
• How podcasting leads to a more unique and personal connection with an audience that builds your credibility and brand
• Why maintaining credibility means keeping a healthy amount of skepticism for new developments
• How content atomization leads to wider reach and greater insight into what your audience wants
• Why building your brand up means drilling down in content

Resources

• Jess Ostroff on Twitter: @jessostroff
• Convince & Convert
• Social Pros Podcast
• Don't Panic Management
• Zencastr

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Pamela Muldoon, Revenue Marketing Coach for The Pedowitz Group, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share her approach to keeping content relevant, impactful, and manageable beyond the campaign.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why being a subject matter expert means putting content updates into your workflow
• How reframing content for individual personas leads to a fresh, impactful look at old ideas
• Why an endless supply of content means revisiting what you already have
• How an internal content champion leads to successful campaigns in even the most regulated of industries

Resources

• Pamela Muldoon on Twitter: @pamelajmuldoon
• The Pedowitz Group

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Robyn Itule, Senior Manager of Brand, Content, and Communications at Insight, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the unlikely source for your best content and the dangers of being too present.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How learning leads to conversations and sales
• Why meaningful content means connecting your readers to meaning that you define
• How the industry you're working with leads to different approaches to content
• Why measuring successful content means looking as far into the funnel as possible
• How focusing on the now of content leads to complicated contradictions down the line

Resources

• Robyn Itule on Twitter: @RCItule
• Insight
• Technomics Podcast

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Dan Hanrahan, Founder and CEO of Sigstr, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the huge conversion potential in employee email signatures.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How thoughtfully leveraging the most common of daily interactions can lead to a conversion
• Why marrying your best content with people who are communicating with people means looking to your email
• How enabling your sales team to easily access applicable content leads to campaign proliferation and conversions
• Why setting your content up for success means creating easy personalization for your employees
• How employee signature marketing leads to open rates that can match or beat the best email marketing campaign

Resources

• Dan Hanrahan on Twitter: @danhanrahan8
• Sigstr

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Jennifer Goforth Gregory, Freelance B2B Content Marketing Writer and Strategist, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share her insight into how freelance marketers can add value to your content strategy.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How employing a freelance content writer leads to valuable external insight into your product
• Why quickly curating well-rounded, varied content means tapping into the wide-ranging expertise of a veteran freelancer
• How marketing’s seasonal workflow leads to a staffing puzzle that freelancers can solve
• Why goals are more important than deliverables when it comes to bringing on a freelancer for strategy work

Resources

• Jennifer Goforth Gregory on Twitter: @ByJenGregory
• The Content Marketing Writer Blog

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Marcus Sheridan, Owner and Practitioner of The Sales Lion, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share the five questions that creates impactful content that will immediately energize your sales.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How in-person questions lead to massive content curation
• Why competitive content means addressing the flaws of your product
• How to use five subjects to immediately move the needle in your industry
• Why content shock doesn’t mean you should stop or slow down content production
• How a play on words leads to thinking of the world from a digital content perspective

Resources

• Marcus Sheridan on Twitter: @TheSalesLion
• The Sales Lion on Facebook and YouTube
• River Pools and Spas
• They Ask, You Answer
• Mad Marketing
• Youtility

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Joanna Wiebe, Founder of Copy Hackers, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the value of long-form, high quality content that focuses on getting a yes.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How the push for high-quality content leads to a de-emphasis on conversions
• Why measuring the success of content doesn’t mean looking at shares or clicks
• How lengthy, in-depth content leads to holding customer attention better in a crowded marketplace
• Why paying for content means pop-ups, whether you like it or not.
• How blank pages lead to writer’s block and what to do about it

Resources

• Joanna Wiebe on Twitter: @copyhackers
• Copy Hackers
• The Ultimate Guide to No-Pain Copywriting (or, Every Copywriting Formula Ever)
• Airstory

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Mark Masters, Managing Director of the ID Group, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how to keep content relevant through confident momentum, disruptive learning, and asking why.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why developing actionable content means taking a step back and asking why first
• How cutting down on content leads to valuable, relevant, and consistent messaging
• Why being trusted means having a responsibility to create content that entertains, challenges, or teaches
• How being ok with being bad at something leads to confident momentum
• Why a noticeably absent email means your audience is ready to come on board

Resources

• Mark Masters on Twitter: @markiemasters
• The ID Group
• Marketing Homebrew Podcast
• The Content Revolution

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Ruth Carter, writer and Attorney/Owner at Carter Law Firm, joins the Content Pros Podcast with legal information on the tricky areas of content creation and curation and how scheduling content can literally pay off.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How a strict content schedule pays for itself over time
• Why building a client base means creating content instead of networking
• How using the tools of content curation can lead to shaky copyright ground
• Why determining legal ownership of content means examining the who and what of it first
• How the incorrect order of words when it comes to FTC disclosures can lead to a possible five-figure fine

Resources

• Ruth Carter on Twitter: @rbcarter
• Carter Law Firm's Blog, Facebook, and YouTube
• The Undeniable Ruth
• FTC Compliance Friendly Reminders

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Amanda Nelson, Senior Manager of AppExchange Content & Community at Salesforce, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss her approach to customer retention through content and community building.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How content does and does not change after a sale
• Why curating the best content means interviewing customers
• How regular internal check-ins lead to efficient and relevant content across platforms
• Why a meaningful response means preparing applicable content in advance

Resources

• Amanda Nelson on Twitter: @amandanelson
• Salesforce Blog, SlideShare, YouTube, and Live
• The Demo Jam
• AppExchange
• MarketingProfs

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Matthew Grant, Director of Content Strategy at Aberdeen Group, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the power of third party content to engage, convert, and keep customers.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why convincing content means sourcing it from outside your company
• The power of surveys in curating relevant content
• How content more often leads to identifying where a buyer is in their journey instead of pushing them along the funnel
• Why finding out what your customers consider valuable is easy yet rarely done

Resources

• Matthew Grant on Twitter: @MattTGrant
• Aberdeen Group
• MarketingProfs B2B Forum 2016

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David Fortino, Senior VP of Audience and Product at the Netline Corporation, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share his approach to achieving lead gen success with content distribution and personalization.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why the quality of lead gen no longer means aquiring appropriate contact information
• How aiming for personalization leads to gathering data that drives content that converts
• Why taking your content to the next level of personalization means moving beyond personas
• How relevant content shaped by data and client insights leads to moving your brand ahead of the competition

Resources

• David Fortino on Twitter: @David_Fortino
• NetLine Corporation
• Case Study: Self-Service Solution Accelerates Agency's Lead Generation Services with Content Syndication

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Rick Wion, Senior Director of Consumer Engagement at The Kellogg Company, joins the Content Pros Podcast from CMWorld to discuss how creating conversations with consumers inspires content, and the variety of approaches he takes to share a story. Special thanks to our sponsors:-Oracle Marketing Cloud

-Uberflip: Flip the Switch

-ClearVoice Convince & Convert:The Business of Story  

In This Episode* How to manage your brand's reputation based on the quantitative research of what your audience wants * The variety of approaches you can take to tell amazing stories * How building brand reputation increases revenue What the key differences are in audience reach between a microsite and social media platforms

Resources* Rick Wion on Twitter: @rdublife Kellogg’s Open for Breakfast McDonalds * Our Food, Your Questions * 5 Things I Learned Visiting a Farm

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Dan Levy, Content Director at Unbounce, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how Agile methodology can transform and re-energize content marketing teams into conversion machines.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How the traditional marketing channel structure leads to bumping against each other and wasted resources
• Why agility means being able to accomplish objectives without needing to go outside the squad
• How cross-functional teams lead to a deeper dive into understanding the buyer's journey
• The importance of super-groups in cross-team communication

Resources

• Dan Levy on Twitter: @danjl
• Unbounce
• Call to Action Podcast
• Walk Before You Sprint

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Justin Levy, Director of Social Marketing at Citrix, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share how Citrix cultivates content to fill 80 blog posts per month while pushing free SEO real estate through Wikipedia.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How an open publishing system for internal content leads to a decrease in employee advocacy and engagement
• Why a consistent voice for a corporate blog means maintaining consistent voices for different personas
• The dangers and advantages of tagging
• How incorporating Wikipedia management into marketing leads to a deep SEO strategy

Resources

• Justin Levy on Twitter: @justinlevy
• Citrix's Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Wikipedia, and Blogs

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Mike Stiles, Global Content Strategy Manager for IHG, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the fine art of overseeing and managing content for multiple brands.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How juggling multiple brands can lead to content chaos
• Why empowering your enterprise means stepping back and acting more as a consultant than a manager
• How your brands can lead your content to success
• Why developing a solid marketing plan means investing in content

Resources

• Mike Stiles on Twitter: @mikestiles
• IHG
• The Color of Discovery for Hotel Indigo
• Content Marketing Quickie
• Hug Your Haters

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Allen Gannett, CEO of TrackMaven, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss navigating and avoiding the terrifying reality of an explosion in content quantity that is leading to decreased engagement.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why the explosion in content quantity does not mean a similar increase in engagement
• How relevance leads to content that is powerful and impactful
• How evergreen content leads to long-tail reports that draw customers back every year
• Why focusing on essential channels means being ok with a smaller quantity of content that has bigger impact
• How the nonstop stream of innovation in marketing can make or break your career

Resources

• Allen Gannett on Twitter: @Allen
• TrackMaven
• The Content Marketing Paradox Report

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David B. Thomas, Senior Director of Inbound Marketing at Leadspace, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share his approach to mining data for effective and motivating content that generates leads and closes sales.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why effective content marketing means taking the information you already have and customizing it for your audience
• How careless and shallow personalization leads to a decrease in content efficiency
• Why successful account-based marketing means having a vigorous content marketing plan
• How up-to-date customer data leads to more accurate content

Resources

• Stat of the Week: The average corporate database is 50-70% out of date.
• David B. Thomas on Twitter: @DavidBThomas
• Leadspace

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Jay Baer, President of Convince & Convert, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss converting haters into advocates, mining complaints for impactful and effective content, and the profitable power of a focused customer retention plan.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why thinking through to customer retention means creating content that embraces feedback
• How creating content solely for customer acquisition leads to a decrease in revenue
• Why cultivating current customers means built-in advocacy between sales and marketing
• The power and relevance of customer service to content creation
• Why the public forum of social media griping means a huge opportunity for businesses

Resources

• Stat of the Week: 40% of B2B revenue comes from existing customers, yet they're only spending about 2% of their budget on customer service.
• Jay Baer on Twitter: @jaybaer
• Hug Your Haters
• Growth Hacker Marketing
• KLM Lost & Found Service
• Social Pros Podcast

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Brian Miske, Chief Marketing Officer at KPMG MSLP, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the power of content to influence strategy, shape and extend consumer conversations, and ultimately drive market changes.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Flip the Switch
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why success means strategically thinking of content as a filter
• How conversational content leads to shaping the market
• Why understanding your consumer's values means keeping in mind a large number of personas
• How understanding strategy behind the conversations leads to winning content
• Why marketing today means creating and extending two-way dialogue via multiple channels
• The communication concept of 30/3/30

Resources

• Stat of the Week: Despite new challenges, CEOs confident in growth through transformation
• Brian Miske on Twitter: @BGMiske
• KPMG MSLP

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Victor Yocco, Research Director at EY-Intuitive, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how user-experience can make or break your brand's success.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip Experience
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode* How usability testing leads to more engaging and effective content * Why communicating with your audience means taking a break from the jargon * How personas lead to a more refined, sometimes recalibrated, message and customer journey * The three different customer values and how they work in content creation

Resources* Stat of the Week: The State of Content: Expectations on the Rise * Victor Yocco on Twitter and LinkedIn * EY-Intuitive * Crazy Egg * Hotjar * Content first. And last.

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Dana Fugate, Director of Content at Brightcove, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how video content marketing is transforming the customer experience, from conversion to retention.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip Experience
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How well placed video content leads to a better connection with buyers
• Why utilizing video doesn't mean investing in expensive equipment or training
• How video can lead customers all the way through the funnel, from conversion to retention
• Why a smart marketing plan means incorporating video content on your homepage
• How integrating your platform with marketing automation and CRM leads to a deep understanding of your customers through video metrics

Resources

• Stat of the Week: Analyzing the ROI of Video Marketing
• Dana Fugate on Twitter: @DanaFugate1
• Brightcove

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Yoav Schwartz, co-founder of Uberflip, joins the Content Pros Podcast to shine a light on the complexities of content marketing and unravel the misconceptions surrounding the 3 Pillars: creation, distribution, & measurement.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip Experience
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why content experience must be driven by desired marketing outcomes
• Why marketers need to focus on search-optimized experiences that push the consumer through the buyer journey
• How to take control of your destiny when it comes to displaying great content online
• How to use content experiences for sales enablement
• The biggest problem with today's perception of content marketing
• How to identify gaps in your content creation and distribution process

Resources

• Stat of the Week: 79% of B2B Marketers Are Unsuccessful at Tracking ROI
• The Ultimate Guide to Content Experience
• Grade My Stack
• Yoav Schwartz on Twitter: @yostar
• The Uberflip Experience

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Michael Brenner, CEO of Marketing Insider Group, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how paid promotion can energize your brand's content marketing campaign and grow your audience.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip Experience
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How the rise of ad-blockers leads to reframing the conversation around content
• Why a campaign mentality means focusing on short-term and hindering your content growth
• How effective paid advertising leads to a more efficient use of your advertising budget
• Why measuring the ROI of paid activity means looking more closely at your subscribers

Resources

• Stat of the Week: SEM is most effective paid advertising method
• Michael Brenner on Twitter: @BrennerMichael
• Marketing Insider Group
• The Content Formula
• How Intel doubled its blog traffic in less than a year
• Outbrain
• Taboola
• Sharethrough
• Zemanta

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Katrina Munsell, Group Manager, Content Marketing at Microsoft, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share how she channels the power of email to increase open and click rates up to 11 times over last year.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip Experience
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why email can be the best vehicle for your content
• How focusing on the design of an email leads to better click through rates
• Why B2B marketing should really mean person-to-person marketing
• The successful way to organize your content marketing team to execute the perfect email campaign
• How multiple clicks can lead higher conversions than single clicks

Resources

• Stat of the Week: Why Email Marketing
• Katrina Munsell on Twitter: @WildKatM
• Microsoft

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Lauren Goldstein, VP of Strategy & Partnerships at Babcock Jenkins, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss content marketing designed around moving businesses forward through storytelling and teamwork.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip Experience
• ClearVoice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• How visuals lead to fulfilling content
• Why great content and storytelling means keeping the business outcome front and center in your mind
• How marketing that is based on buyer insights and focuses on the bigger picture leads to positive ROI
• Why bringing content to life means having a diverse set of viewpoints on your team

Resources

• Stat of the Week: The Role of Visual Media in Impactful Brand Storytelling
• Lauren Goldstein on Twitter: @LaurenOnDemand
• Babcock & Jenkins
• Chief Optimist Magazine
• The New Generation of Hybrid Creatives Is Here. Is Your Agency Ready for Them?

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Jesse Noyes, Senior Marketing Leader, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the evolution of content marketing, the makeup of the modern CMO, and content velocity versus volume.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip Experience
• Clear Voice
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why the diversifying abilities of marketing professionals means a shift in the background and focus of CMOs
• How good organizational structure leads to high velocity content
• Why strategy means ruthless prioritization in a multi-functional environment
• The rise and fall of brand journalism
• How collaboration between marketing operations, analytics, and sales leads to a decrease in departmental contention

Resources

• Jesse Noyes on Twitter: @noyesjesse

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Dave Rigotti, Head of Marketing at Bizible, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss how B2B's can successfully measure and obtain positive ROI on their content through multi-touch attribution.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip: Experience 2016
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why making every marketing dollar count means measuring content
• How educational content leads customers down the funnel
• Why proving ROI means content attribution
• How mapping your content leads to a profitable content team
• Why compounding returns on your marketing means owning your community

Resources

• Stat of the Week: There's No ROI If You Can't Count the Money
• Dave Rigotti on Twitter: @drigotti
• Bizible
• Why Your Sales Funnel Is Probably Upside Down

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Brian Fanzo, CEO of iSocialFanz LLC, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share his successful approach to building community, engaging fans, and closing sales with live video.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: The Business of Story Podcast

In This Episode

• Why an evolving culture means a more casual, humanistic approach to content
• How a growing variety of social video platforms leads to social marketing segmentation
• Why a successful social engagement strategy means thinking like a fan
• How building a community doesn't mean building a following
• Why live video needs its own strategy

Resources

• Stat of the Week: Cisco VNI: Video Will Account for 85% of North American Internet Traffic in 2020
• Brian Fanzo on Twitter: @iSocialFanz
• iSocialFanz LLC
• Ustream.tv
• Livestream.com
• Twitch
• YouNow

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Mike Templeman, Founder and CEO of Foxtail Marketing, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the advantage of experience optimization and tailoring content to fit the reality of your customer's behavior.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert: Business of Story

In This Episode

• Why a perfectly optimized keyword doesn't automatically mean a huge increase in sales
• How a close review of your lead sources can lead to a complete reframining of your website focus
• The necessary disappearance of your marketing secret sauce
• Why quantifying experience means following the actions of your customers
• How looking at bounce rate and pages per session leads to vital data for optimizing experience

Resources

• Stat of the Week: Google's “Mobile-Friendly” Update Could Impact Over 40% Of Fortune 500 Websites
• Mike Templeman on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+
• Foxtail Marketing on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, YouTube
• The Fox Den
• SEO is now 'Search Experience Optimization'

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Dave Gerhardt, Marketing Lead at Drift.com, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss his revolutionary approach to marketing: killing gated content, removing lead forms, and nurturing sales outside of the traditional funnel method.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• The Uberflip Experience
• Convince & Convert: Business of Story Podcast

In This Episode

• How gated content leads to lost sales from the modern consumer
• Why succeeding in marketing means remembering what it's like to be a consumer
• How simplifying metrics leads to clearer and more obtainable marketing goals
• Why using product qualified leads (as opposed to the standard MQLs) means more organic growth
• How a change in email tone and appearance can lead to more appealing content on a human level

Resources

• Dave Gerhardt on Twitter: @davegerhardt
• Drift.com
• Content, Shares, and Links: Insights from Analyzing 1 Million Articles
• OKDork.com
• The Huge Mistake We Had Been Making With Our Emails

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Jeff Cohen, Director of Content Strategy at Oracle Marketing Cloud, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share his approach to strategizing content for an ever-evolving deck of marketing products while looking ahead and planning new and better ways to engage his audience.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert

In This Episode

• Why good content strategy means higher-level focus
• How repurposing old successful content leads to increased customer engagement
• Why planning for next year means working in a state of constant analysis and evaluation
• How MQLs indicate content plan effectiveness
• Why gated content isn't the only way to capture a prospect's information

Resources

• Jeff Cohen on Twitter: @jeffreylcohen
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Oracle Eloqua

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Nick Stein, Senior VP of Marketing at Vision Critical, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the power of journalism experience in building your brand, engaging consumers, and closing sales.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert

In This Episode

• How having a former journalist with narrative expertise on staff leads to thought-provoking and actionable content
• Why being thoughtful with content means more than just getting a good story
• How connection marketing and sales through high-level storytelling leads to a unified voice throughout the sales funnel
• Why landing larger accounts doesn't require tens of thousands of leads

Resources

• Nick Stein on Twitter and LinkedIn
• Vision Critical
• Business of Story Podcast

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Jim D'Arcangelo, Senior VP of Marketing at Booker.com, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share how a smartly structured blog and organized content strategy can triple sales.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert

In This Episode

• How two focused personas can lead to 70% target market reach
• How the sales funnel leads to smarter blog structure
• Why an effective content team means a well-structured marketing department
• How a basic blog structure leads to easy adaptation and expansion to new verticals

Resources

• Jim D'Arcangelo on Twitter: @JimDArcangelo2
• Booker.com
• The Booker Blog
• HireFrederick.com
• SheBOOM
• NextWave SMB

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Nick Westergaard, Chief Brand Strategist of Brand Driven Digital, joins the Content Pros Podcast to give guidance and business hacks on creating an effective, realistic, and engaging brand strategy.

Special thanks to our sponsors: * Oracle Marketing Cloud * Uberflip * Convince & Convert

In This Episode * How a well documented content strategy plan leads to effective content, brand buy-in, and advocate recruitment * Why a strategy plan does not mean a big, awful, multiple tabbed binder that collects dust * How combing through non-digital archives can lead to easy content that fascinates * Why a successful strategy can result in having a literal paper map in your pocket

Resources * Nick Westergaard on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and SlideShare * Brand Driven Digital * Get Scrappy: Smarter Digital Marketing for Businesses Big and Small * The Business of Story Podcast * The Growth Show Podcast * Start With Why

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Sangram Vajre, Co-Founder and CMO of Terminus, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share his revolutionary approach to flipping the sales funnel on its head, embracing the competition, and the importance of converting ex-prospects into advocates.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert

In This Episode

• How the most popular approach to sales is leading to a decrease in customers
• Why challenging the status quo means embracing the competition
• How losing prospects leads to gaining advocates
• Why building a community means proactively adding value to you customer's day

Resources

• Sangram Vajre on Twitter: @sangramvajre

• FlipMyFunnel on Facebook, Twitter, and Slack

• Creating the First Ever MarTech "Customer Experience" Stack
• Terminus
• Vidyard
• Jill Rowley

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Aaron Dun, Senior VP of Marketing at SnapApp, joins the Content Pros Podcast to chat interactive content, experience disruption, marketing's paradigm shift, and how you can use all of this to your advantage.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert

In This Episode

• Why interactive content should be on every marketer's radar
• How a new era of content is leading to a major paradigm shift around customer engagement
• The importance of prospect empathy in curating stellar interactive content
• Why three-dimensional intersectional thinking around personas, content, and campaigns leads to an effective marketing strategy
• Why sales doesn't really want more leads and what that means for interactive content

Resources

• Aaron Dun on Twitter and LinkedIn
• SnapApp on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Content Blog
• SnapApp's Binge Watching TV Bracket
• HCSS's Most Interesting Project Bracket Challenge
• IBuildAmerica.com

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Scott Brinker, Co-Founder and CTO of ion interactive inc., joins the Content Pros Podcast to share his take on the rapidly expanding arsenal of marketing technology and its effect on customer experience.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert

In This Episode

• Why the existence of 3,500 different marketing tech solutions is not as terrifying as you might think
• How to approach finding the right tech solution for your customer experience
• The evolution of the multi-hub marketing approach
• Why the future of marketing technology doesn't affect you today
• How to incorporate technology into building participatory content for your customer

Resources

• Scott on Twitter: @chiefmartec
• Chief MarTec
• MarTech Conference
• ion interactive inc.
• Marketing Technology Landscape Supergraphic (2016)
• 41 Marketing Technology Stacks from the 2016 Stackies Awards
• GradeMyStack.com
• Everybody Writes: Your Go-To Guide to Creating Ridiculously Good Content by Ann Handley
• Hug Your Haters by Jay Baer
• Youtility by Jay Baer

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Park Howell, Founder of Park & Co. and Host of the Business of Story Podcast, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss why storytelling is essential for the survival of business (and our species) and how to do it well.

In This Episode: * Why stories are important from a Darwinian perspective * Park Howell's 10-step story cycle process for great storytelling * What is the right length of story for today's attention span * What to say to cynics who don't believe in the power of storytelling * How to get executives on board to create a bold story for your brand to lean into * How REI did it right * Why you're already a great storyteller * How to re-structure your pitch to gain power and attention

Resources: * The Business of Story Podcast * Park Howell's Ad Agency, Park & Co. * Joseph Campbell's, "The Hero's Journey" * REI's "Opt Outside" Black Friday Campaign * "Amadeus"

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Eric Enge, Founder and CEO of Stone Temple Consulting, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss all things SEO: debunking common myths, how to create great SEO without a blog, and the inside scoop on how it all works.

In This Episode: * How important is modern day SEO? * Debunking common SEO myths * Revisiting the quality vs quantity debate from an SEO perspective * How strategic linking has evolved and what you need to do about it * Why social media shares can be misleading * Why you should stop trying to produce good content * Why you don't necessarily need to write a blog to have great SEO * How storytelling affects your SEO

Resources: * Stone Temple Consulting * Stone Temple 'Here's Why' Video Series * Chartbeat Engagement Studies * Moz and Buzzsumo Joint Content Sharing Study * Best Made, American Axe Instagram

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Tom Webster, Vice President at Edison Research, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share his unique perspective on political polling, our so-called shortening attention spans, friction, and his criteria for great content.

In This Episode:

• How changing news cycles have affected political exit polls in recent years
• How our own political voting process is the biggest content marketing project in America
• Why evaluating your own "cost of failure" is crucial when conducting internal studies
• Why you should think about context before recording your new podcast
• Why the "fail fast" mentality is perhaps inadvisable
• "Friction" and how it applies to your content
• Why our attention spans are not actually getting shorter
• How third party polling makes your business better

Resources:

• Tom's Blog, "The Brand Savant"
• The Infinite Dial, Longest Running Research on Digital Media Series
• Edison Research
• Oreo Superbowl 2013 Real-Time Marketing Campaign

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Adam New-Waterson, CMO at LeanData, joins the Content Pros Podcast to comment on educational content, ABM strategy, and drawing content inspiration from data with one particular success story involving synonyms and a dress. 

In This Episode: * Why marketers are still struggling to get ROI right * How synonyms and a fancy dress had a tremendous ROI * How to harness the power of visual content * How using data points can fuel creative content strategies * Why creating content that educates is important * What a successful ABM strategy looks like * What makes a piece of content effective at the top and bottom of the funnel

Resources: * Adam's Twitter * LeanData, Inc. * BloomReach's Describe the Dress Campaign * Flip the Switch Podcast

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Matt Tobey, Head Social Media Writer at Comedy Central brings the funny to the Content Pros Podcast as he discusses how he curates some of the wittiest, bite-sized content around for both Twitter and Vine.

In This Episode: * Should Twitter expand beyond 140 characters? * Balancing an edgy brand voice with serving a wide audience * What kind of content works best on Vine * Creating a stand-alone Twitter feed that also serves your brand * Finding the key to entertaining sponsored content * How to measure social media success with less tangible goals * Creating a cohesive brand voice that represents a diverse company with diverse content

Resources * Comedy Central Twitter * Comedy Central Vine * Matt Tobey Twitter * Comedy Central Official Site

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Our fearless hosts, Chris Moody of Oracle Marketing Cloud and Randy Frisch of Uberflip, take over the mics this week on the Content Pros Podcast to talk about how to improve upon one of the top predicted trends of 2016: sales enablement. 

In This Episode: * Why “micro-marketing” is a new requirement for the job * How marketers can help your sales reps * How to create and use an asset catalog to your advantage * How to increase communication and transparency between your sales and marketing teams * Creating and using best tools to help your sales reps * How to effectively use multi-purpose content hubs

Resources: * Oracle's The Future of Modern Marketing: 2016 * Jive Collaboration Solutions * Box Collaboration Tool * Uberflip's Email Embedding Tool: Shout * Enterprise Sales Tool: Outreach

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Jeffrey K. Rohrs from Yext and Raj Nijjer from GeoMarketing.com join the Content Pros Podcast this week to share a stunning breakthrough in the industry of location data, how Google is giving more control to business, and why this matters to you.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert

In This Episode:

• Why location data should matter to you
• How Yext's recent Google integration has changed the game for your company
• How to align two separate teams to achieve the same vision
• How Google has let you down and you may not even know it
• The importance of a passionate CMO
• How to balance serving your audience and serving your parent company

Resources:

• GeoMarketing.com
• Yext
• Yext Power Listings
• Raj Nijjer's Twitter
• Jeffrey K. Rohrs' Twitter

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Clinton Bonner joins the Content Pros Podcast from Topcoder, where he serves as Director of Marketing and Crowdsourcing Strategy, to discuss the power of community, transparency, and finding your innovation rockstar.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip
• Convince & Convert

In This Episode:

• How to serve two audiences at once
• Identifying and nurturing your "innovation rockstars"
• How to use your content as "growth indicators"
• Why FAQs can be your most effective piece of content
• Streamlining the content creation process
• The value of transparency and the tactics to achieve it
• Why listening skills are crucial to effective communication with your audience
• How to effectively build and nurture a community

Resources

• Clinton Bonner's Twitter
• Topcoder
• Appirio
• AppXpress
• Uberflip

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Judson Laipply, motivational speaker and author of "Might As Well Dance," joins the Content Pros to reflect on the evolution and sharing power of YouTube as well as how to best leverage your time in the spotlight.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode:

• What makes YouTube so powerful
• What makes a "successful" 15 minutes of fame
• Identifying the keys to being an influential presence on YouTube today
• Finding the balance between preparation and spontaneity in content
• The differences between live and digital performance
• The behind-the-scenes prep for success that the world never sees

Resources:

• The Evolution of Dance
• Judson's Twitter
• Judson's Website
• Judson's book, "Might As Well Dance"

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Hassan Ali, copywriter for The Onion, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss finding the right voice for your brand, speaking to the “fence-sitters” in your audience, and the powerful effect of humor. 

Special thanks to our sponsors:* Oracle Marketing Cloud * Uberflip

In This Episode:* Identifying when to take a risk with your branding voice * Exploring your brand's boundaries * Staying on voice with your brand * How incorporating humor can boost your brand * Identifying the right partners for your voice * How to speak to your audience of "fence-sitters" * A superior measurement of content success

Resources:* The Onion * Onion Labs * Dr. Jimm, PC Campaign * Hassan's Twitter * Hassan's LinkedIn

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David Spark, VP of Marketing and Founder of branded journalism and media consulting firm Spark Media Solutions, joins the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the power of using personal stories and everything you need to know about successful trade shows.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode:* The power of sharing personal experience * The best employees to send to trade shows * How to make trade shows worth the investment * How your behavior reads to others at trade shows * Trade show tricks to get your audience interested and create content for your brand * The value of influencer relationships

Resources:* David's Book * David's Blog * David's Podcast * David's Twitter * Spark Media Solutions * David's Successful Blog Post: What My Wife and I Lost and Gained Running a Business Together

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In this week's Content Pros episode, our hosts Chris Moody of Oracle Marketing Cloud and Randy Frisch of Uberflip touch on reflections from their myriad interviews with experts: crafting a nuanced experience, managing assets, and constantly innovating.

Special Thanks to Our Sponsors:

• Sigstr
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode:

• How to provide the right experience for each channel
• The most important factors when determining whether to promote gated or non-gated content
• Identifying when you're innovating vs. following the "format"
• Why creating more nuanced content matters
• How globalization affects your content strategy
• Best practice marketing tools
• Why you should have a "librarian" on staff

Resources:

• Chris Moody's Website
• Chris Moody's Twitter
• Randy Frisch's Twitter
• Uberflip Blog
• Oracle Marketing Cloud Blog
• B2B Marketing Tool, Oracle Eloqua
• Video Marketing Tool, Vidyard
• Social Media Management Tool, Hootsuite
• File Sharing Tool, Slideshare

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Mike McGrail joins the Content Pros podcast from Administrate, where he serves as their new Marketing Director, to discuss onboarding, teaching, and training a team in ways that cause them to be more efficient, current, and satisfied.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Sigstr
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode

• How to encourage a corporate learning environment
• How to invest in on-trend learning sources
• The significance of keeping your team current
• Developing a T-shaped marketer
• How to instill confidence in your team members and grow their potential
• How to resist content shock

Resources

• Mike's Velocity Blog
• Mike's Velocity Podcast
• Administrate
• Mike's LinkedIn
• Mike's Twitter
• Mike's Website

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Jeffrey L. Cohen joins the podcast from Oracle Marketing Cloud, where he serves as Director of Content Strategy, to share his insights into the gated content debate, blogging, and predictions from the top marketers about the kinds of changes 2016 will bring.

Special Thanks to Our Sponsors:

• Sigstr
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode:

• Exploration of the controversial “Content Gate”
• How to format blog posts most effectively
• How to use channel and asset as indicators of gating preference
• Why the funnel isn’t really dead
• Why lead generation shouldn’t actually be our total focus
• Why data is so crucial and too oft forgotten
• Where to find the best data backed predictions for 2016

Resources:

• Eloqua
• Jeff's Social Media Blog
• Oracle Marketing Cloud Blog
• Jeff’s Book
• Jeff’s Twitter

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Ron Tite joins Content Pros to share the sage wisdom he's gleaned from "worrying about tomorrow" as CEO of the Tite Group, including necessary mental shifts in content marketing, simplicity, authenticity, and just making things better one day at a time. Special thanks to our sponsors:

• InboundWriter
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode:

• How to use "OTT" or "over-the-top content"
• How the content spectrum has changed and why that's important
• How the decrease in editorial integrity affects you and your content
• "Why it's better to own than to rent" applied to content marketing
• How to deal with the hecklers
• Why most people don't know their clients' true competitors
• What you can learn from Donald Trump

Resources:

• Ron's Website
• The Tite Group
• Ron's Twitter
• Ron's Award-Winning Show, "Monkey Toast"
• Article About Ron's Children's Book for Volvo
• "Everyone's An Artist (Or At Least They Should Be)"
• Ron Tite Discussing the "Expression Economy" on Speaker's Spotlight Showcase

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Mathew Sweezey, Principal of Marketing Insights at Salesforce, joins Content Pros to discuss predictive marketing insights: how to lead consumers down your funnel and adjust best practices while staying current in the changing landscape of marketing technology.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• InboundWriter
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode:

• Forecasting the marketing trends of 2016
• How to adjust best practices to keep up with evolution of marketing automation
• The importance of moving your content creation from waterfall planning and execution to agile
• How to keep 70% of your content from going unused
• The future of distributing content responsibility across departments, influencing every stage of the buying cycle
• Why IT is crucially important to your marketing department

Resources:

• Mathew Sweezey's Twitter
• Mathew's LinkedIn
• Mathew's Website
• Taulia's Video Marketing Campaigns

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Joe Chernov, VP of Marketing at InsightSquared, joins the podcast to discuss horizontal content integration, measuring the value of enablement content, and helping companies find their balance between pure inbound marketing and ABM.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• InboundWriter
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode:

• How to flip content marketing from vertical function to horizontal function
• How to provide quality content for all stages of the funnel and convince your superiors to support it
• Working with sales reps for better use of enablement content
• Finding balance between pure ABM and pure inbound marketing for mid-sized companies
• Finding balance between quantity and quality in content marketing
• Redefining content success with the rise of the ABM model

Resources:

• Joe Chernov's Twitter
• InsightSquared
• Datafox
• Infer

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​Pat Spenner, Strategic Initiatives Leader at CEB, a best-practice insight and technology company, joins the podcast with some hard-hitting research that challenges conventional sales wisdom by rejecting personalization and focusing on one persona: the mobilizer.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• InboundWriter
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode:

• Five sales rep profiles and the highest performing approach for sales reps
• The most important numbers to crack the code of sales
• The seven profiles of stakeholders
• The problem with personalization
• Creating the most valuable content
• How to sell to stakeholders successfully
• The profound importance of mobilizers and how to market to them

Resources

• Pat Spenner's LinkedIn
• Marketo's Definitive Guide to Marketing Automation
• Challenger Book
• CEB Challenger Customer Website

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Tommy Walker, Editor-in-Chief of the Shopify Plus blog, joins Content Pros to discuss his secrets to marketing to different audiences, how he helped triple Shopify Plus’s traffic, and what his all-important publishing code has to do with it.

Special Thanks to Our Sponsors:

• Inbound Writer
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode:

• The differences between marketing to small businesses and large enterprise companies
• The purpose of the all-important publishing code
• The importance of creating organic feedback loops
• How a publishing code can ease onboarding processes
• What we can all learn from Buzzfeed

Resources:

• Trello
• Slack
• Shopify Plus Blog
• Tommy's LinkedIn

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Matt Stephenson, Community Manager for Global Symantec, shares nuggets of wisdom about finding your way into a new client base by being an authentic version of yourself, learning the language, and establishing trust. 

Special thanks to our sponsors:* InboundWriter * Oracle Marketing Cloud * Uberflip

In This Episode:* Establishing credibility in a community * Assimilating into a new community culture * Appeasing higher-ups while speaking to your audience * Taking risks to build community * Trusting a focused viewpoint

Resources:* SpiceWorld Conference * Global Symantec * Matt's Twitter * Matt's Linkedin

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Erik Deckers, owner of Pro Blog Service, joins Content Pros this week to discuss the importance of investing in creativity, how to produce better content by improving writing skills, and how your mom can boost your marketing success.

Special thanks to our sponsors:* InboundWriter * Oracle Marketing Cloud * Uberflip

In This Episode:* The difference between a good writer and creative artist * Tips on becoming a better writer * The importance of being relatable * The mom exercise for writers * Where to find great content ideas * Becoming an authority by asking questions

Resources:* Erik Deckers' Pro Blog Service * "Everybody" Writes by Ann Handley * Erik Deckers' Twitter * Erik Deckers' Weekly Newspaper Humor Column

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Scott Monty, internationally recognized marketing consultant, joins the Content Pros Podcast this week. Scott's accolades include turning a little known company like Ford around using social media and consulting for some of the best and brightest brands around.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• InboundWriter
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode:* How to curate the best content * Achieving success on a smaller budget * Crafting a content strategy * Creating your own path amongst so many platforms * The importance of zeitgeist to a marketer

Resources:* Scott Monty's Website and Business * Tech Meme * Flipboard * The Monty Minute on Convince and Convert * Ford Social

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Andy Crestodina, Chief Marketing Officer of Orbit Media, a web design company in Chicago, talks everything from the do's and don'ts of web design to tips for quality content creation to the value of that "missing stat."

Special Thanks to Our Sponsors:* InboundWriter * Oracle Marketing Cloud * Uberflip

In This Episode:* Why you should do your own research * How to keep visitors on your site * The flow of a well-designed site * Why conferences are so important * Building the 'Wikipedia of your industry' * The value of the missing stat

Resources:* Content Jam * Wine and Web * Inbound Writer * Optimizely * Orbit Media * Alexa * Orbit Media Blogger Study

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The marketing whiz kids from Spiceworks, Jen Slaski and Todd Darroca, join us at Spiceworld, the IT network's huge user conference in Austin, TX to talk about the benefits of building a genuine community that delivers content right to your doorstep.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• InboundWriter
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode

• The different between an event and an experience
• How to give your audience exactly what they want
• Getting back to the important basics
• Using data to draw out the best content from sponsors
• The power of a tight-knit community
• What to do with all of your content once it's all over

Resources

• Rob Zaleski's Twitter
• MarketingProfs
• Spiceworks
• SpiceWorld Conference
• Spiceworks Webinars

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Jeff Slutz, Senior Content Writer at Emma Inc, joins Randy Frisch from Content Pros to discuss the ins and outs of email marketing content, including how to engage the whole company in content creation, maintaining a healthy perspective on that hard data, and the important ingredients necessary for killer email marketing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• ProofHQ
• Inbound Writer
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode

• How to ensure you never run out of content ideas
• How to engage the best (and most accessible) brand advocates
• What makes a great webinar
• The most important aspects of email marketing
• How to build good karma with your clients

Resources

• Marketo
• The Unpodcast
• Emma
• The Modern Marketer's Field Guide
• Emma Content Hub
• Emma's Marketing United Marketing Conference

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Merrie Beth Salazar, Director of Marketing Communication at Cox Media, joins the Content Pros Podcast this week to discuss how to direct efforts internally by enabling and communicating with salespeople to improve the impact of your content marketing.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• ProofHQ
• InboundWriter
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In this episode

• How to use editorial calendars to your advantage
• How content supports the sales process
• The demand generation waterfall
• WIIFM? What's In It For Me?
• The importance of visual content: G-Books (comic books of the marketing world)
• How to get content and lead generation departments to work together

Resources

• Merrie Beth's Twitter
• Cox Media, Where Merrie Beth is Director of Marketing Communication
• More Thought Pieces from Merrie Beth at Cox Blue
• Hootsuite
• Uberflip
• Cox Media Holiday Ad Countdown
• Cox Media Instagram

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Kyle Lacy, Head of Marketing Strategy at OpenView Partners, joins the Content Pros Podcast this week to discuss how venture capitalists learn content marketing processes and pick up on unique trends through working with so many different companies.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• ProofHQ
• InboundWriter
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode

• What kind of content venture capitalists are writing
• How important content marketing is to the success of the businesses VCs invest in
• The goals and model of the OpenView Lab content platform
• Top trends in content marketing today
• The importance of buyer personas and actually using them to target content
• Keys to becoming a thought leader outside the blog (speaking and presenting)

Resources

• Kyle's website
• OpenView Partners, where Kyle is the Head of Marketing Strategy
• OpenView Labs, OpenView's content platform
• Kyle's books
• Growth.in, location-specific content site for the tech scene
• "Gettysburg," the movie Kyle was obsessed with as a kid

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Ritika Puri, CEO & Co-Founder of Storyhackers, joins the Content Pros Podcast this week to discuss how the Lean Startup methodology applies to content marketing. Special thanks to our sponsors:

• ProofHQ
• InboundWriter
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode * How to measure content success at all levels of the funnel * Why Storyhackers has adopted content marketing throughout the organization * The value of structured, specific feedback in the content creation process * How to distribute content on macro and micro-levels * Why each touch point of a new piece of content needs to add value to the process * How to apply the Lean Startup methodology to content marketing

Resources * Ritika's Twitter * Ritika's content * Storyhackers, where Ritika is CEO * Lean Startup Conference * The Lean Startup methodology * Google's platform to study customer micro-moments * Clarity, matchmaker between advice-seekers and subject matter experts

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Hadassa Haack, Owner of HadassaHack.com, joins the Content Pros Podcast this week to discuss the importance of building video into your content marketing strategy and creating compelling stories around your brand. Special thanks to our sponsors:* ProofHQ * InboundWriter * Oracle Marketing Cloud * Uberflip

In This Episode  * The differences between amazing and mediocre videos * Why building video content into your content strategy is essential * How to utilize short videos and visuals on social media platforms * A comparison of Vimeo and YouTube * Video content ROI that isn't tied directly to products

Resources  * HadassaHack.com * Hadassa's Vimeo staff picks & other films referenced in the episode * Mercedes-Benz Vimeo * Mercedes-Benz YouTube

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Nick Cicero, CEO & Founder of Delmondo, joins the Content Pros Podcast this week to discuss the impact of co-creation between brands and influencers, specifically on Snapchat.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• ProofHQ
• InboundWriter
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

In This Episode * How to find the right influencers for your brand * Why engaging an influencer genuinely will go further than spoon-feeding them content * Why Snapchat is such a valuable platform for individuals and businesses * How to reach massive audiences via Snapchat * The evolution of TV

Resources * Nick Cicero's website * Delmondo, where Nick is CEO and Founder * BRaVe Ventures, where Nick is a strategist * Nick's "Snapchat Is a Burrito" post * Nick's "How Brand Can Reach Mass Audiences on Snapchat" post * Companies mentioned in the different marketing initiatives Nick lists in the episode: + Dude Perfect + Hitman: Agent 47 + JBL + Priceline.com

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Jon Miller, CEO & Co-Founder of Engagio, joins the Content Pros Podcast this week to discuss the necessity of personalization in content marketing as the bar is raised in the field by an influx of content marketers across industries.Special thanks to our sponsors: * ProofHQ * InboundWriter * Oracle Marketing Cloud * Uberflip

In This Episode 

* Building a new brand by starting with content * Why big rock content is more valuable than many smaller pieces of content * Why personalized content is the key to raising the bar in content marketing * How to successfully personalize the distribution of content * How to work with your sales team on account-based marketing

Resources 

* Jon Miller's website * Engagio, Jon's company * Marketo, another company Jon co-founded

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Todd Wheatland, Global Head of Strategy at King Content, joins the Content Pros Podcast this week to discuss the opportunities and pitfalls of creating content on a global scale.Special thanks to our sponsors:* ProofHQ * InboundWriter * Oracle Marketing Cloud * Uberflip

In This Episode* The challenges (and opportunities) of creating content on a global scale * Distributing resources abroad to find the same kind of success as in the U.S. * Localizing content for local audiences around the world * Building a truly helpful and insightful set of personas * LinkedIn's value as a social media platform * Micro-targeting as the norm

Resources* Todd Wheatland's Twitter * King Content, where Todd is Global Head of Strategy * King Content's 2015 CMI awards and past awards

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Arnie Kuenn, CEO of Vertical Measures, joins the Content Pros Podcast this week to discuss the big meaty pieces of hub content that are central to a successful content marketing strategy, as well as the social media spokes that send your hub content out to your audience.Special thanks to our sponsors:

• ProofHQ
• InboundWriter
• Oracle Marketing Cloud
• Uberflip

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Joe Pulizzi, Founder of Content Marketing Institute, joins the Content Pros Podcast this week to discuss his top six strategies to revitalize your company's marketing strategy.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

-ProofHQ

-InboundWriter

-Oracle Marketing Cloud

-Uberflip

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Randy Frisch, COO of Uberflip, joins the Content Pros Podcast as the new co-host! This week, he teams up with Chris to discuss customer advocacy, best content marketing practices, and the importance of relevance above quantity and even quality.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

-ProofHQ

-InboundWriter

-Oracle Marketing Cloud

-Uberflip

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Shannon Paul, VP of Social Media at Fifth Third Bank, stops by the Content Pros Podcast today to discuss the challenges of digital marketing in a regulated environment and the best ways to collaborate with legal and compliance staff to create great content.Special thanks to our sponsors:· ProofHQ· InboundWriter· Oracle Marketing Cloud· Sysomos Visit ContentProsPodcast.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

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Daniel J. Lewis, Host of The Audicity to Podcast, drops by the Content Pros Podcast today to discuss key steps to starting a podcast, the relevancy of podcasts in today's content sphere, and the way actionable plans help you reach your goals.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

-ProofHQ

• InboundWriter

-Oracle Marketing Cloud

-Sysomos

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Todd Darroca, Marketing Communications Specialist at Spiceworks, drops by the Content Pros Podcast today to discuss how to stay on the cutting edge of content creation and why it's important to get your whole team excited about creating content and adding value for your audience. Special thanks to our sponsors:

-ProofHQ

-InboundWriter

-Oracle Marketing Cloud

-Sysomos

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This BONUS episode of the Content Pros Podcast is brought to you by the Convince & Convert Podcast. Enjoy! Can you create a content marketing super brand that is trusted enough to get people to share your content automatically? Jay Baer says yes, if you apply your it factor appropriately. Read the full post: http://www.convinceandconvert.com/content-marketing/can-you-build-a-content-marketing-super-brand/

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Nick Westergaard, Chief Brand Strategist of Brand Driven Digital, drops by the Content Pros Podcast today to discuss the importance of building your brand from the bottom up and how it will help improve your content. Special thanks to our sponsors:

-ProofHQ

-InboundWriter

• Oracle Marketing Cloud

-Sysomos

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Jason Keath, Founder & CEO of Social Fresh, drops by the Content Pros Podcast today to discuss content via conference presentations and the advantages of keeping things simple.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

-ProofHQ

-InboundWriter

-Oracle Marketing Cloud

-Sysomos

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Mark Schaefer, Executive Director and Founder of Schaefer Marketing Solutions, stops by the Content Pros Podcast today to discuss the rise of the lazy marketer and the education and qualifications needed to avoid being one in today's information-dense digital marketing environment.Special thanks to our sponsors:

-ProofHQ

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Scott Stratten, President of UnMarketing, stops by the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the advantages of sarcasm, the value of quality over quantity, and the dangers of shiny-object syndrome.

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-ProofHQ-InboundWriter-Oracle Marketing Cloud-Sysomos

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Rachel Truair, Chief of Staff at PetRelocation.com, stops by the Content Pros Podcast today with PetRelocation's Content Marketing Specialist, Caitlin Moore, to discuss the vital role of marketing automation in a small content marketing team, the power of user-generated content to connect emotionally with potential customers, and the ability to leverage your sales and customer care teams' pool of knowledge.

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ProofHQInboundWriter

Oracle Marketing Cloud

Sysomos

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Erik Qualman, founder of Equalman Studios, stops by the Content Pros Podcast to discuss the huge increase in video content consumption, the importance of utilizing customer and employee content, and the how to be flawesome.

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Tom Webster, Vice President of Strategy and Marketing at Edison Research, stops by the Content Pros Podcast today to discuss strengthening content with trusted research as well as remembering to be curious, and create content you are proud of to resonate with your audience.

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Carlos Abler was given the opportunity to jump in as the "content czar" at 3M after he had been working for the company as a contractor in 2010. From a cross-vertical customer-focused perspective, the opportunity to work in that capacity for a multibillion-dollar company with tens of thousands of products in every vertical there is was hugely attractive.

He has been working hard to evolve the culture of content marketing ever since.

One of his major initiatives includes a program called Content to Customer, a toolkit that helps various areas within 3M achieve content excellence while focusing on technology, process, and strategy. And for the past few years, Carlos has been taking this content acceleration framework and applying it across all levels of the organization. Through workshops, visual storytelling, and information design, he helps everyone from marketing to sales to customer care anchor themselves around strategically managing the customer experience.

"Content is an interface at all those touch-points and across all those things."

It isn't always easy to introduce content marketing to those who haven't bought into it yet. As with anything new, there is an adoption curve. Carlos recognizes that being up front about the challenges that transitioning into content marketing presents goes a long way. Once it's out in the open that not everyone will "get it" right away (which is okay), it's much easier to create a positive atmosphere. And, as will happen with early-adopters in any realm, it's important to reward those who are ready to pilot content marketing programs and bring others along for the ride.

Another key to adopting content marketing lies in the hands of the top-level management at the organization. The organization needs to manage expectations, and say, "As leadership in a company who's expecting our culture to adapt to these new imperatives in marketing and customer relations, we also understand that we have a responsibility, as organizational leaders, to give people some time to get it right."

The organization must invest in training, resources, and outside assistance to support those who are left to implement the new initiative. Introducing something new and then leaving employees to fight their way through it without the proper resources is a recipe for disaster.

What did you want to be when you grew up?

Carlos wanted to be a lot of things, but one of the big ones was an Egyptologist or an archeologist, "discovering buried miracles of past civilizations and that type of thing." Perhaps he was influenced by the Indiana Jones "sexy guy with a bullwhip" version of an archeologist, but there you have it.

Carlos has two different backgrounds that have culminated to where he is today. The first was his studies in human experience and behavior – how humans works, and how they make sense of the world. The second was in creating artistic and narrative experiences for people through theatre, animation, and multimedia installations. In the late 90s, he was heading on the path to produce large-scale multimedia theater spectacles and feature-length films. He started picking up digital skills to be able to create movie trailers on his own and get by that way, but discovered that he loved working in the digital sphere. The rest is history.

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Jason Miller is the Senior Content Marketing Manager at LinkedIn, where he leads the global content marketing and social efforts for LinkedIn Marketing Solutions. He is also the author of the Amazon #1 Best Selling Book, Welcome to the Funnel.

In Welcome to the Funnel, and in life, Jason advocates for content marketing teams to be put together like rock bands, specifically KISS...

1. Paul Stanley (guitar) = Social Media. Entertaining, out there in front.2. Gene Simmons (bass) = Content. Writing the bulk of the songs/content.3. Peter Criss (drums) = SEO. Laying the beat/foundation for everything. He's a part of the band, as an SEO person should be part of the marketing team, not off in a corner somewhere.4. Ace Frehley (guitar) = Demand Gen. Pulling it all together.5. Doc McGhee (band manager) = PR. PR and marketing need to work together to make sure they're not mixing messages.6. KISS Army (fans) = The community. Like Seth Godin says, if you don't have somebody to consume your content, you don't have anything.

Each person in the team has an individual role that comes together to create a beautiful final product. For KISS, it's a record. For marketers, it's "Big Rock" content, content that has high value and can be repurposed and "sliced and diced" over and over again.

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Ann Handley is the Chief Content Officer for MarketingProfs, a company that offers real-world education for modern marketers through training, best practices, research, and other content. She also literally wrote the book on how to create great marketing content with her bestseller, Everybody Writes.

In this episode of Content Pros, Ann reiterates that writing isn’t reserved for a chosen few: “Our words are our ambassadors. They’re carrying messages for us. So when I hear from marketers sometimes, ‘I’m not a writer’ or ‘I don’t write,’ I call BS on that, because I think we are all writers. We are all communicators and we’re all communicating.” The first step is getting over the initial fear of the blank page and just get it out, whether through dictation or on the page. Then, on the rewrite, you can ask questions with the reader in mind: “Am I saying this as clearly as I could? Could I say this more briefly?”

On an organizational level, Ann talks about the six essential roles needed for a successful content marketing team, and the importance of setting goals and measuring success. Everything should connect back to an overall business strategy, but at the same time, that business strategy must be customer-centric. Talking about ourselves rather than how to help ease the customers’ pain points won’t do the job. Obviously the harder goals of leads and sales should be measures, but Ann also measures softer goals: awareness and shares. As someone who must be tuned into what resonates with her audience, she is not one to discount the validity of shares.

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Jason Falls is the Senior Vice President of Digital Strategy (& Director of Bourbon Integration) at Elasticity, a digital marketing and public relations firm. Think digital-era Don Draper (especially with the bourbon). Jason produces a ton of content, not only for clients, but he has two books of his own. On this episode of Content Pros, Jason shares that whatever the content, long-form or short, there are two things to remember:

1. Keep sight of the overall strategy.Don’t get so enamored with tactical executions and ideas that you forget what the overall strategy is. Get everyone on board, top to bottom. “There should be triggers in place to make sure that everyones is pointed in the same direction.”
2. Plan to measure.From the start, build the expectations of the metrics that you’re going to generate before you talk tactics. “It’s identifying the audience that is ultimately going to purchase your product and making the path to conversion as smooth as possible for them.” You can’t do that if you haven’t started measuring what works and what doesn’t.

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Jay Baer is the President of Convince & Convert, the digital marketing consulting company (whose blog you're reading right now!). The Convince & Convert blog was named the #1 content marketing blog in the world by Content Marketing Institute. Jay is also a keynote speaker and bestselling author.

Jay and Content Pros’ host, Amber Naslund, wrote “The Now Revolution” in 2010, predicting that social media will no longer be dedicated to one “social media person”, but instead each department within a business will need at least one person who is plugged into social.That’s coming true right now.

Jay’s next prediction is that within the next three years, marketing will move from having a content marketing department back to just one marketing department. Most of the marketing done now is wholly or partially content marketing, so why have a separate department?Jay’s #1 content trend for 2015 is this: embracing cooperative content. Finding customers, employees, associates, and collaborators will become more and more important for content marketers to produce content that is valuable. Watch out for video content, content amplification, and human resources while you’re at it.

Read the full highlights and learn more at http://contentprospodcast.com.