Ep #131: Why Segmentation Starts with Brand Positioning w/ Carin Van Vuuren, CMO at Greenhouse

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.

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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/