The Marketer's Journey

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/

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/ 

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/

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/

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/

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/

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/

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/

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/

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/