Marketing Spark (The B2B SaaS Marketing Podcast)

In this  episode, Mark Evans interviews Jim Kraus, President of the Buyer Persona Institute, about the value and mechanics of buyer personas in marketing and sales. We discuss the definition of buyer personas, how to extract insights from customers and prospects, and the value of buyer personas in messaging, prioritization, and business performance.Jim explains the process of developing buyer personas and the key elements that make them effective. Jim emphasizes the importance of talking to recent buyers who have made the exact buying decision that a company is trying to influence rather than relying on existing customers. 

In this episode of Marketing Spark, Mark Evans and Clay Ostrom discuss the importance of brand positioning and how it applies to marketing, sales, HR, product development, and raising capital.We explore how positioning is about finding a unique place in the market and creating a memorable connection with customers.We talk about the importance of clear and effective positioning in order to stand out in a competitive market and avoid being lost in the crowd.We also discuss improving a company's positioning, including understanding customers, analyzing competition, and developing an offering that aligns with customer needs.We also touch upon the key deliverables of the brand positioning process and how to measure the ROI of the work done.

In this episode of the Marketing Spark podcast, Mark Evans interviews Paul Slack, founder and CEO of Vende Digital, about account-based marketing (ABM) and its growing popularity among B2B companies.The conversation covers the definition of ABM, its benefits, and best practices. Paul explains the four pillars of executing demand or ABM effectively and the importance of intent data in ABM campaigns.Mark and Paul also discuss the common mistakes that B2B companies make when implementing ABM strategies and the challenges of generating leads in a tough economic climate.Paul says that among the keys to ABM's success is the need for marketing and sales alignment and building strong relationships with potential clients.

In this episode of Markeitng Spark, Laura Gainer provides insight into how she helped turned pickleball into North American's fastest-growing sport.Laura talks about how she approached the sport after being hired by USA Pickleball to overhaul its brand, Website, and logo.We discuss how pickleball has attracted celebrities like Lebron James and why it has become so popular.

In this episode of the Marketing Spark podcast, host Mark talks to Sam Dunning, co-owner of Web Choice, about the common mistakes that B2B companies make with their websites and how to ensure that a website is a conversion machine. We discuss the importance of planning, messaging, and design when building or relaunching a website. Sam shares his insights on how to optimize the homepage, product page, pricing page, about page, and call-to-actions (CTAs) on a website. We also get into the signs that a company needs to redesign its website and where listeners can learn more about Sam and his work.

For many B2B SaaS companies, PR is a mysterious creature.They like the idea of media coverage to drive brand awareness and new business, but they're not sure how PR works and how to approach it.In this episode, Crackle PR's Parry Headrick provides great insight into the inner workings of technology PR and how companies can create win-win partnerships with PR agencies.We also talk about why entrepreneurs don't understand PR, why PR (and marketing) are among the early budget victims, and why Parry is excited about the work from home revolution.

In this episode, Sergey Ross and I explore the power of video for B2B SaaS companies looking to accelerate their growth. We talk about how video can be used at every stage of the sales funnel, from initial pitches to product demos and beyond. We also dive into best practices for creating effective video content, including tips for scripting, filming, and editing. Whether you're a startup or an established B2B SaaS company, we will give you the tools you need to use video to drive growth and increase conversions. Join us for an in-depth discussion on how to harness the power of video and take your B2B SaaS business to the next level.

In challenging economic times, marketing budgets are low-hanging fruit when it comes to cost cutting. In the process, many B2B SaaS companies turn to freelancers, contractors and agencies for strategic and tactical support.In this episode of Marketing Spark, Gwen Lafage (who has worked for agencies and as a B2B SaaS marketing leader) talks about how to hire and get value from top-quality suppliers.We also talk imposter syndrome and how B2B SaaS marketers can be creative to break out of the box.

In this episode of Marketing Spark, Andrew Arocha, Drift's chief revenue officer, talks about how less (marketing) will be more amid more difficult economic conditions.He talks about how companies will focus on revenue growth rather than brand awareness, the future of conferences (smaller and more intimate), best practices for ABM, and how companies should approach customer retention and churn.

As B2B SaaS companies focus on retention rather than acquisition, customer intelligence is becoming more important.On this episode of Marketing Spark, Mike Diaz talks about the different ways that companies can leverage data and information to keep customers in the fold.