Creatively outmarketing industry giants to a $5.6B valuation | Jon Stona (Airwallex)

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Dec 17, 2024

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How can you rise to unicorn status in an industry dominated by legacy players? Jon Stona, VP of Global Marketing at B2B global payments processor Airwallex shares his insights into growing the company from a coffee shop in Australia to a dominant player in the fintech space.

Today, Airwallex has a $5.6B valuation and handles $100B in processing volume. So, what's the marketing machine behind this financial challenger brand?

00:00 Intro

01:29 What is the marketing budget for a $5B company?
02:55 Sponsorships and the theory of economic value
10:48 Celebrity partnerships

22:04 The mechanics of sports marketing
23:48 Bringing structure to a marketing team
26:53 The role of product marketing within a company
33:14 Transforming company culture
35:47 The difference between leadership and therapy
45:17 Building a sustainable brand
59:43 Measuring growth through branded search

1:06:20 Are operating principles important for a company?

1:12:01 Differentiating yourself as a commodity
1:14:08 Building out PMM teams for different products
1:16:57 Allocating SEO budget
1:18:48 The usefulness of industry reports
1:26:11 How to use case studies in marketing
1:31:04 Getting your name in the press
1:34:33 Driving growth through industry events
1:41:17 Industry awards

1:46:48 Outro

We hope you enjoyed this episode of Ahrefs Podcast! As always, be sure to like and subscribe (and tell a friend).

Where to find Jon:

LinkedIn: (https://www.linkedin.com/in/jstona/)

Website: https://www.airwallex.com/

Where to find Tim:

LinkedIn: (https://www.linkedin.com/in/timsoulo/)

X: @timsoulo

Website: https://www.timsoulo.com/

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Referenced:

McLaren: @mclaren
F1: @Formula1
Lando Norris: @LandoNorris
Shifted Perspectives: https://www.airwallex.com/airwallex-mclaren-racing-shifted-perspectives
Michael Murphy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Murphy_(sculptor)
Mere exposure effect (psychology): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mere-exposure_effect
Forrester: @forrester
Edgar, Dunn & Company: https://www.edgardunn.com/
Skift: @skiftnews
YouGov: https://www.yougov.com/
David Fallarme: (https://www.linkedin.com/in/dfallarme/)

Stripe Sessions: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcoWp8pBTM3CYTQho8i-a_lzx4cq7-ePh
Beyond Black Friday
eCommerce Champion Awards: https://www.airwallex.com/newsroom/amid-online-spending-resurgence-airwallex-unveils-inaugural-airwallex
Money20/20: https://www.money2020.com/

Cloud 100 list: https://www.forbes.com/cloud100/list/