Sipping From The Firehose

Its 2022, and we are back! Don't worry, we aren't going to say happy new year, although we did think about it. Nevertheless, we hope your year is off to a wonderful and prosperous start. Please excuse us, we are a bit late recording our first episode of the year. 2022 is off to a rocket start for us – especially Nick, who recently became a dad (finally all those dad jokes are gonna pay off)  Before all of that happened, we took some time to record our first episode of the year. On this episode we looked forward to our year of podcasting to come, while letting you know what we think are going to be some of the trends to watch for eCommerce in '22. We also go on somewhat of myth busting journey regarding certain “cryptic” topics, which are currently all the rage.

This month we talk to our friend Rob Rosa, Vice President, Global Service Sales at Extreme Networks. Rob really hits it out of the park on this episode (more baseball references to come) as he explains how he combined his passion for baseball with his day job, while helping Major League Baseball kit out Fenway Park with a state-of-the-art wireless experience. Rob gives us his top tips for those looking to or embarking on a similar journey to that of Extreme Networks while discussing the value of diversity in thought, perspective, and culture within an organization and his policy on no bad ideas. This episode is not one to be missed for those in the eCommerce space, particularly those looking to embark or undergo a digital transformation or if you are a baseball fanatic.   If you are interested in a more detailed and technical perspective our colleague Doug Caviness interviewed Rob for his “Talking B2B” series last year.   

This month, we interview Israel Greene, an old friend and a former cleverbridge employee. Since leaving cleverbridge, Israel has gone on to found Greene Consulting Group (GCG), a boutique consulting firm focused on diversity, equity and inclusion strategy and leadership development. In this episode Israel provides us with insight to his work, which is focuses on a simple yet powerful message, namely helping organizations move “beyond ticking the box” when it comes to race, diversity, and inclusion. We reflect on the societal changes over the last 18 months, which have impacted how organizations work and address the topic of diversity and inclusion and how these societal influences may not have driven the change we may have wanted or expected. Israel highlights that unfortunately many organizations still do not prioritize or take diversity and inclusion seriously enough and how these companies underestimate the impact this may have on their bottom line and or profitability. Furthermore, we explore the impacts which extend beyond monetary rewards specifically, this may have on their ability to compete when it comes to the war for talent and when it comes to winning new work. Finally, Israel gives us a fascinating insight into this toolbox of techniques he uses to disarm difficult and sensitive situations be it in a board room or within the wider organizational context. He also provides us with his top three tips for starting the conversation on diversity and inclusion within their respective organization/workplace. As you can tell throughout this episode, this is a topic which we are both extremely passionate about and while we may not be experts, we are proud to be connected with someone like Israel and wholeheartedly support his message of helping organizations move “beyond ticking the box”. Make sure you check out Israel's LinkedIn page, and if you would like to read more check out the link below to an article from our colleague Doug Caviness who interviewed Israel for his “Talking B2B” series last summer.

We're back! (Really, we never left.) Sipping From the Firehose is now The Growth Cast. Your same intrepid hosts on the same epic mission: digital growth. Except for now, we're corporate sell-outs. 

What is automation? Why should you care? Why can't anyone explain it in laymen's terms? We are joined by Caitlyn Truong - Managing Director, Financial Services at Accenture Strategy - to clear all these questions up. Bottom line, AI and automation give humans time and freedom to divert their focus elsewhere. Stick around for some cool catchphrases like: Swivel the chair Boil the ocean Buzzword bingo

Today we welcome Nick's boss to temporarily lift his suspension from doing anything fun. Jokes aside, Marina Zubricki - Manager, Digital Marketing Services at cleverbridge - joins the bros to administer a much-needed dose of feminism to the show She tackles what it's like to lead a team of men in an already male-dominated industry while bolstering other women to find their voices in the organization. Look out! She can smell tokenizing for clout from a mile away. We're told this one passes the sniff test. Links: Equal Pay Day More about Ellie Krug

We got prices! Lewis Mancer from Sophos joins us to talk about the many choices one must consider when setting - and changing - your MSRP and discounts. Incrementality, sunk cost, price sensitivity, regional trends... You, the marketer, must vie with complex decision sciences to come up with your price. However, the relationship between all of these is not always linear. No matter what, you have to 'do the work' to get it right. Links: Rafi Mohammed Learn more about Sophos

We're joined by Jessie Adamczyk to talk about her views on leadership, listening, and the perils of being 'nice.'

We're joined by Lauren Schwartz - cleverbridge General Counsel for North America - who teaches us that if you want to make that paper, you need to use your OWN paper. If you've ever wanted to see what makes your corporate legal team tick, here's your episode. We cover: Driving revenue through commercial agreements Not giving up the farm When to 'pound your chest' and when to concede Incredible, exciting tax nexus news How to be a good corporate citizen

Todd and Nick want you - Peanut Butter - to find your purpose - Jelly - this year. In other words, we want you to set lofty goals and take measurable steps to complete them. In this episode: Nick defines 'dumb dreams' Todd talks about intentional proactivity We talk about good missions statements We look for what people bring to their jobs and vice-versa

How should you reflect on a year such as 2020? Be brutally honest with yourself and your performance, but find the silver linings Separate what worked from what didn't, and avoid confirmation bias when talking about them But most important of all, do the reflection in the first place! Also, there's a fun aside about the future of watching movies.

The sipping buds are joined by conversion rate optimization extraordinaire Eric Harrington. When you decide to improve your conversions, you have a number of questions to ask yourself. What are you going to test? What is the goal? Do you go with your gut? Do you do things on your cart because that’s the way you like to shop online? How quickly should I gather results and change the test? Eric is here to tell you to dream big, swing for the fences, and throw away your pride and let the numbers speak. Books and reading material mentioned: Thinking Fast and Slow You Should Test That CXL Growth Hackers GetUplift https://behavioralscientist.org/ https://www.behavioraleconomics.com/

We're joined by the one and only 'godfather of digital distribution' Kerry Dean to figure out if the customer is always right. We talk about the give and take involved with partnerships, when to use leverage, and when to lose the battle to win the war.

Feeling the holiday crunch, Todd and Nick give you their thoughts on why Cyber Week is giving way to Cyber MONTH. In this episode: Todd gives a hot tip on how to shift subscription churn rates Nick makes a bold prediction. Both of the buds preach the good word of B2B seasonality, which very much exists

We’re joined by lover of leads Chris Higgins, Digital Marketing Specialist at cleverbridge, to talk about work-life balance, what is a 'bad' day, and how to calm your work brain. Then we get down to business and talk about how good lead generation can be when it's done correctly. We tackle topics like the best lead-gen KPIs, lead scoring, how leads work in SaaS, the 'email wall', and many more.

We’re joined by B2B ecommerce evangelist Doug Caviness, VP B2B Strategy & Partnerships at cleverbridge, to talk about an article on marketing to the new B2B buyer. The B2B ‘buyer’ isn’t some spirit haunting the office park, they’re ‘consumers’ just like you and we should be marketing to them just like a consumer with more buying power. Also B2B is cool. Take it from the youths.

Todd and Nick talk about the importance of international competencies in e-commerce and in work life. You will learn: What FIGS means Crucial local payment methods You probably shouldn't use the 'ok' hand sign ever again We live in a society

Despite his 5 years in the industry, Nick finally learns from Todd what SaaS actually means. Nick shares his favorite churn reduction tactics. Todd sings a few times. It's a good episode.

Introducing: Sipping From the Firehose. Your hosts Todd Garcia and Nick Oswald navigate the oft-misunderstood world of ecommerce, client success, and knowledge work. While our intrepid hosts tackle some complex concepts, they uncover that most underlying features of work and internet life are much simpler than they seem.