Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career

The ultimate guide to Martech | Austin Hay (Reforge, Ramp, Runway)

Aug 13, 2023

In this discussion, Austin Hay, Head of Marketing Technology at Ramp and a veteran in the Martech landscape, sheds light on the evolving role of marketing technologists. He explains when companies should hire for Martech roles and shares his favorite tools for success. Austin delves into the complexities of attribution models and the importance of robust data management, while also addressing the balance between individual contributions and team dynamics. He wraps up with practical insights on 'thinking gray' for making better decisions.

01:24:37

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Episode guests

Austin Hay

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Quick takeaways

Marketing technologists play a crucial role in navigating complex ad landscapes and optimizing marketing strategies.

Martech is a cross-functional discipline that combines processes and systems from various disciplines to manage marketing operations.

B2B businesses face the challenge of managing complex integrations and designing future-proof systems to achieve effective attribution and optimize marketing strategies.

Collecting essential data from the start and setting up the right infrastructure allows for robust attribution analysis and effective campaign spend optimization.

Deep dives

The Rise of Complex Ad Networks and the Challenges for Marketers

The speaker discusses how ad networks have become more complex and sophisticated, making it harder for marketers to understand their spending. They emphasize the importance of making decisions with probabilistic data and finding other information to create models for specific audiences. This shift in the ad landscape has led to the need for marketing technologists who can navigate these complexities and optimize marketing strategies.

Approaching Challenges and Problem-Solving By Creating Systems and Inderstanding Processes

00:59

How Did You Prepare?

01:23

Move from community-driven to centrally owned tools post 100-150 employees

01:25

TV Show Recommendations and Favorite Interview Question

01:20

Intro

4min

Navigating Marketing Technology

9min

Integrating Technical Roles for Effective Growth Strategies

5min

The Role of Marketing Technologists

22min

Navigating Attribution Models in Marketing

5min

Navigating User Attribution and Martech Skills

19min

Frameworks for Work-Life Integration

20min

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Austin Hay is currently Head of Marketing Technology at Ramp and was previously the VP of Business Operations at Runway, the VP of Growth at mParticle, and the fourth employee at the unicorn Branch Metrics. In 2022 he sold his online course, the Marketing Technology Academy, to Reforge, where he now teaches Martech and has a program launching in the fall. He’s consulted on Martech and growth for companies including Notion, Airbnb, Robinhood, Postmates, Walmart, JPMorgan Chase, and many others. In today’s podcast, we discuss:

• What exactly marketing technology is

• What a Martech person can do for your business

• When to hire a Martech person and what to look for

• Austin’s favorite tools

• Advice for doing attribution

• Frameworks on tooling, systems, and building vs. buying

• How to apply the concept of “thinking gray” to make better decisions in work and life

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Find the full transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-ultimate-guide-to-martech-austin

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Where to find Austin Hay:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/austinahay/