Podcasts about Gong

Citrini Research claims AI agents will replace white-collar jobs by 2028, triggering a massive economic crash (and repricing of SaaS stocks). Sam Jacobs, AJ Bruno, and Asad Zaman analyze the validity of this thesis and the immediate impact on enterprise valuation multiples. The discussion moves to the practical realities of the innovator's dilemma, specifically how legacy software companies must cannibalize their own revenue to survive. They cover strategies for GTM transformation, the loss of pricing power in traditional SaaS, and why Gong's pivot to "Chief Revenue Architect" signals a deeper identity crisis in the market. Key Takeaways: * The hardest part of adapting to AI is destroying your current margins. Sam Jacobs argues that leaders get emotionally attached to ARR, noting that "the hardest part of the innovator's dilemma is price... the only way to get out of it is to... go towards a worse business" in the short term. * Pivoting sounds great on paper, but is far harder in practice. Asad Zaman highlights the operational difficulty of telling investors about the actual steps involved; e.g. "I'm going to do a reorg and I'm then going to change my strategy that's actually going to increase churn... That's a war at the board level." * Title changes don't fix structural issues. Asad Zaman and Sam Jacobs advise revenue leaders against accepting Gong's new "Chief Revenue Architect" title because "it's going to hurt your career moving forward... This sounds like you were demoted to rev ops to me." Your Hosts: Host: Sam Jacobs Host: AJ Bruno  Host: Asad Zaman Topline is more than a Podcast! Subscribe to Topline Newsletter: https://www.joinpavilion.com/topline-newsletter Watch on the YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@TOPLINE-Media Join the free Topline Slack channel to connect with 600+ revenue leaders to keep the conversation going beyond the podcast: https://www.joinpavilion.com/topline-slack Chapters: 00:00 Intro 02:04 The Citrini Report Examined 07:05 Startups vs. Innovator's Dilemma 12:35 SaaS Valuation Repricing 15:29 Losing Pricing Leverage to AI 21:29 Is White Collar Work Dead? 25:10 Margin Compression Strategy 31:17 Restructuring Engineering Teams 35:09 Microsoft's Product Pivot 39:54 How AI Improves CEO Workflow 44:50 Gong's Chief Revenue Architect 51:17 Why the CRO Title Matters 55:14 AI Predictions Looking Ahead

Rock gong music from Nigeria, some rhythms accompanied by singing, with spoken introduction.From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being one of a number of miscellaneous or individual ethnographic field recordings (rediscovered during a recent research project).Recorded by Bernard Evelyn Buller Fagg.Copyright Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford.———Part of the project A Century of Sounds, reimagining 100 sounds covering 100 years from the collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum at the University of Oxford. Explore the full project at citiesandmemory.com/century-sounds

 I was delighted to work with the recording of Aka masters Momboli and Gongé, playing flutes in the forest at night, recorded by Louis Sarno in the 1990s. I decided to retain the essence of the sounds of the forest camp at night, including the community of women, men, and children, as well as the wild shouts that are often parts of these moments. For many years, I have wished to visit the Congo, including the Dzanga-Sangha, and immerse myself among the Bayaka people. With this opportunity presented by the Century of Sounds project, I envisioned a composition that reflects this long-held dream. I decided to create a dreamscape. Perhaps I am dreaming while sleeping in one of the shelters within the forest camp? Or am I dreaming from a faraway country, caught between two worlds?The concept of a dreamscape was reinforced after listening to an interview with Louis Sarno on the Pitt Rivers Museum Vimeo channel. Sarno describes how Bayaka mbyo flute music can be experienced in dreams, and that the songs are often received in dreams. This insight confirmed that a dreamscape was the appropriate direction for my composition. Sarno also mentions that the sound of this flute no longer exists, as no one plays the flute anymore. The breathing of the dreamer draws the listener within the sleeper's dream, while a distant drum, perhaps a heartbeat or the pulsing of the forest, soothes and draws you deeper. For the final part of the composition, I improvised a flute part, playing with Momboli and Gongé. Joining these two masters across space and time was a privilege and honour, sharing a song, a highly-valued documentation of Aka culture.“A Sound That No Longer Exists”: a dreamer is immersed in the sounds of the forest at night with Aka master flute players, Momboli and Gongé. Perhaps the dreamer is asleep in the forest camp, or in another country altogether, dreaming and connecting across the unconscious mind and the supernatural.Breathing - laryngeal microphone.Traditional African drums, rainstick, flute, small bellsPerformed by Momboli and Gongé, and Vicki HallettFlutes in the forest at night reimagined by Vicki Hallett.———Part of the project A Century of Sounds, reimagining 100 sounds covering 100 years from the collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum at the University of Oxford. Explore the full project at citiesandmemory.com/century-sounds

Momboli and Gongé playing flutes in the forest at night.From the sound collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford, being from a large collection of cassette tape and digital audio tape recordings of Bayaka music and soundscapes made by ethnomusicologist Louis Sarno mainly in the Central African Republic (and the Republic of Congo) between 1986 and 2009.Recorded by Louis Sarno.Copyright Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford.———Part of the project A Century of Sounds, reimagining 100 sounds covering 100 years from the collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum at the University of Oxford. Explore the full project at citiesandmemory.com/century-sounds

This is a moment to reflect on community, as Elder Gerrit W. Gong teaches how there is always room in the Inn.

Nella serata di ieri si è verificato un grosso scossone in casa Microsoft. Lasciano la compagnia Phil Spencer e Sarah Bond, facendo entrare in gioco nuove figure nella dirigenza gaming di Microsoft. Ne parliamo approfonditamente in questo episodio di Gong, dedicato a ripercorrere tutta la storia recente di Xbox e i suoi nuovi piani per il futuro.

Audio-File der Darshan-Meditation zum 21. Februar 2026 (Mutters Geburtstag) mit Texten, Musik und einer stillen Meditation (die mit einem Gong endet).

2026-02-21_DSOM

How Gong Built a $7B AI Category: From "Conversation Intelligence" to the Revenue Operating SystemMost sales teams fly blind. They rely on "gut feel" and "art" rather than data and science. Eilon Reshef (Co-founder & CPO of Gong) realized this in 2015 and built a platform that captures the reality of every customer interaction to drive predictable growth.In this episode of Startup Project, Eilon breaks down the evolution of Gong, how they achieved 57% higher win rates for companies like PayPal and DocuSign, and why the "Revenue Graph" is the next frontier of enterprise AI.If you are a founder, a product leader, or a sales professional looking to understand how AI is actually transforming the enterprise, this deep dive is for you.What you'll learn in this episode:The Genesis of Gong: Why Eilon moved from a successful exit at WebCollage to solving the "black box" of sales conversations.The "Science" of Sales: How to move away from subjective CRM updates to hard data captured from video, email, and phone calls.The Revenue Graph: Why Gong's proprietary data model is more valuable than a generic LLM.Scaling to 5,000+ Customers: The tactical steps Gong took to achieve product-market fit in a crowded SaaS landscape.The Future of AI Agents: Why "Vibe Coding" and prosumer AI are just the beginning, and how the enterprise shift is happening now.Timestamps:0:00 - Intro: Meeting Eilon Reshef2:15 - The "Aha!" moment that led to Gong10:45 - Moving from transcription to "Revenue Intelligence"18:30 - How Gong achieves 57% higher win rates for customers25:50 - Building a proprietary AI layer on top of LLMs34:10 - The "Revenue Graph" explained42:15 - Why most enterprise AI implementations fail50:00 - Advice for founders building in the AI era54:14 - Closing thoughtsConnect with Eilon & Gong:Website: https://www.gong.io/Eilon's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eilonreshef#Gong #AI #SalesTech #StartupGrowth #Entrepreneurship #RevenueIntelligence #SaaS #ProductMarketFit #EilonReshef #StartupProject

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La notizia della chiusura da parte di Sony di Bluepoint Games ha sollevato tantissime polemiche legittime; in questo episodio di Gong ripercorriamo tutto il percorso dello studio, analizzando anche l'approccio ben poco virtuoso da parte di Sony nei confronti del mercato.

Stevie Case is the CRO of Vanta, the trust management platform serving everyone from founders to Fortune 100 CISOs. A former pro-video gamer who stumbled into sales through a mentor's bet, Stevie has built one of the most unconventional paths to the C-suite in tech. In this episode, she unpacks why early revenue hires fail, what separates a true CRO from a VP of Sales, and why she believes fewer than 10% of current CROs will thrive by 2028. In today's episode, we discuss: Why early revenue hires fail What a top 1% CRO actually does The scaling mistake Stevie made by copying Twilio's playbook at Vanta Why Vanta remains 100% sales-led at every segment AI vs. humans in go-to-market References: Cursor: https://cursor.sh/ Gong: https://www.gong.io/ Salesforce: https://www.salesforce.com/ Twilio: https://www.twilio.com/ Vanta: https://www.vanta.com/ Where to find Stevie: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steviecase/ Where to find Brett: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brett-berson-9986094/ Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/brettberson Where to find First Round Capital: Website: https://firstround.com/ First Round Review: https://review.firstround.com/ Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/firstround YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@FirstRoundCapital This podcast on all platforms: https://review.firstround.com/podcast Timestamps: 00:00 Why early revenue hires fail 02:23 Who to hire at $5M in revenue 04:16 Coin-operated sellers vs. long-term builders 05:57 What excellence looks like in the CRO role 07:44 Metrics, confidence, and velocity 12:04 Should CROs lead sales? 14:39 From shy seller to revenue leader 16:36 Learning to scale at Twilio 17:44 "There is no CRO playbook" 19:58 Stevie's scaling mistake at Vanta 22:16 Why Vanta stays 100% sales-led 23:16 The value of planning 24-26 months ahead 29:54 When trusting intuition was the wrong call 30:49 Do humans still have a place in the future of GTM? 33:33 Stevie's leadership non-negotiables 36:36 The myth of hiring for industry expertise 40:00 What stays centralized in a 600-person company 47:09 The hidden leverage of a customer's first 30 days 53:42 Why the CRO role will face enormous changes by 2028 58:42 What leaders must do now to stay relevant 01:02:30 Unpacking the CEO-CRO dynamic

Salespeople who swear on their calls close 8% more deals. Marketing teams using pink and purple instead of "Series A Blues" get more attention. Companies that avoid pissing anyone off end up exciting no one. In this episode, we sit down with Udi Ledergor, Chief Evangelist and former CMO at Gong, to unpack the psychology behind courageous marketing, the real impact of AI on sales teams, and why being different beats being better every single time. Udi reveals how Gong built one of the most recognizable brands in B2B by rejecting best practices, embracing controversy, and creating a culture where teams feel safe to fail. From the drooling bulldog mascot that made enterprise customers angry, to the viral research on swearing in sales calls, to the plain-text email that generated 700 event registrations in hours—this is a masterclass in standing out in a sea of sameness. We also dive deep into AI: what it can actually do right now, what it can't, and why the creators of ChatGPT don't use ChatGPT to run their revenue teams. Spoiler: AI isn't coming for your job. But salespeople who know how to use AI are coming for the jobs of those who don't. What You'll Learn: Why swearing on sales calls increases win rates by 8% The danger of "best practices" and why boring is the biggest risk in B2B marketing How to build a brand that polarizes—without crossing the line The two buckets of AI: what it can automate vs. what it can guide you on Why OpenAI and Anthropic use Gong to run their revenue teams (and what that tells you about generic LLMs) The plain-text email experiment that got 700 event sign-ups in hours How to create psychological safety on your team so they take risks and do their best work Why indifference is worse than hate when it comes to your messaging From privacy policy emails that went viral, to bulldogs on login screens, to the Starburst logo that refused to fit neatly into a square, this episode will change how you think about marketing, sales, and standing out in 2026. If your brand feels invisible, your messaging feels safe, or your team feels stuck playing by the rules everyone else is playing by, this conversation will give you permission to break free. Sponsored by Prospeo, the easiest way to find verified emails and contact data for outbound and lead generation. 98% more effective at finding mobile numbers and email addresses. Try it free at prospeo.io/wham About the Guest: Udi Ledergor is Chief Evangelist and former CMO at Gong, and author of the bestselling book Courageous Marketing: How to Take the Boring Out of B2B. He's known for building bold, unconventional marketing teams and helping sales leaders understand how AI is transforming their world. Find Udi on LinkedIn and grab his book wherever books are sold. Chapters: 00:00 Salespeople Who Swear Close 8% More Deals: The Research That Went Viral 02:15 Who Is Udi Ledergor: From Gong CMO to Chief Evangelist 04:30 Courageous Marketing: Why Different Beats Better Every Time 08:12 The Series A Blues Problem: How Gong Chose Pink and Purple 11:45 The Drooling Bulldog: When Enterprise Customers Hated the Brand 15:20 How to Be Polarizing Without Crossing the Line 19:03 The Plain-Text Email That Got 700 Event Registrations in Hours 23:47 AI vs Automation: What's Actually New and What's Just Rebranded 28:34 The Two Buckets of AI: Automation and Guidance 32:19 Why OpenAI Uses Gong to Run Their Revenue Team 36:55 Are We Losing Critical Thinking by Outsourcing to AI? 41:28 Building Courageous Teams: Psychological Safety and Process Accountability 47:12 The Privacy Policy Email That Went Viral on Twitter 50:45 One Question to Ask Yourself: How Can You Break Away From Boring Practices? #CourageousMarketing #UdiLedergor #Gong #SalesPsychology #AIinSales #B2BMarketing #WeHaveAMeeting

Send a textOk. So. ADHD is a thing and this episode got delayed, but it is before the New Year. The Lunar New Year but anyway. Gong xi fa cai and enjoy this episode from late 2025.Please check out Georgia's "Age of Diagnosis" video, it is very good.You can find us all on Bluesky: Simon, Alexander, Georgia & FilipAs ever we thank you, our loyal listeners for sticking with us. We would love to hear from you so look for our contact details in your podcast app or via our website.

Pacific St Blues & AmericanaFebruary 15, 20261. Memphis Royal Brothers / Gimme Back the Keys to My Cadillac2. Omar Coleman & Igor Prado / Cut You Loose3. Tinsley Ellis / Too Broke4. Joanne Shaw Taylor / Hell or High Water5. The Fabulous Thunderbirds / Can't Tear It Up Enuff16. Tommy Castro / Freight Train7. The Grateful Dean / Oh Babe It Ain't No Lie 8. Dave Alvin / Seeds9. Bywater Call / Only 10. Al Green & The Soul Mates / Back Up Train 11. Mike Farris / Snap Your Fingers 12. Albert Collins / When Welfare Turns It Back on You 13. Melvin Taylor & the Slack Band / Voodoo Daddy 14. Joe Bonamassa, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Noah Hunt / Let the Good Times Roll (BB King 100th Birthday Tribute album) What's the Common Thread 15. Elvis Presley / Follow That Dream 16. Bruce Springsteen / Johnny Bye Bye 17. The Beatles / Here Come Ol' Flattop18. T Rex / Bang a Gong 19. Chuck Berry / You Can't Catch Me 

 Kva skjer når seks gamle, i ordets rette forstand, menn med diakonutdanning  frå 1980-talet på Diakonhjemmet, set seg ned for å reflektere over kva for verdiar dei fekk med seg den gongen? Bakgrunnen for samlinga var at ein god kamerat Jan Gustav Hollund, kull januar 1982  ved Diakonhjemmet nett gjekk bort (1959-2026) og denne episoden av Diakonalganger til til eigna han som takk for kameratskapen, og eit ord for diakoni,Møt Øyvind Dåsvatn, ArnfinnRodal, Erling Jacobsen, Asbjørn Finnbak og Bård Kalstad.

Host Evie Stokes talks to KEXP DJ Jewel about the Kentucky band DOOM GONG and their unique brand of “denim psych.” Jewel shares the band’s song “The Future is a Choice" and talks about the band’s proclivity for wearing “Canadian tuxedos” on stage. The song comes from the group's 2025 self-released album, MEGAGONG. Produced by Lilly Ana Fowler & Dusty HenryMastered by: William MyersProduction support: Serafima HealyAssociate Director of Editorial: Dusty Henry Listen to the full songs on KEXP's "In Our Headphones" playlist on Spotify or the “What's In Our Headphones” playlist on YouTube. Support the podcast: kexp.org/headphonesContact us at headphones@kexp.org.Support the show: https://www.kexp.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Over the last 12 to 16 weeks, we've been sitting down with the one and only Jen Allen-Knuth (2–3 hours per week, plus an entire week of shooting) to build her course: Selling to the C-Suite. This is everything you could possibly need to close a 6–7 figure deal at power. Backed by Gong data of and 1M+ executive-level sales cycles. https://www.30mpc.com/course/multithreading-exec-selling-course-selling-to-the-c-suite FOUR ACTIONABLE TAKEAWAYS Start by aligning on the problem in the big team meeting and sell your champion on why it's important. At the beginning of the big team meeting present in this order, the problem > the cost of inaction > alternatives which include you. In the big team meeting, call out those people who are not voicing their perspectives and create a safe space to air out problems. Even if there is consensus, push for one more person to get involved in the deal cycle before making a solution recommendation. GET MORE TACTICS Join our weekly newsletter – https://hubs.ly/Q01-R33G0 Things you can steal and use today – https://linktr.ee/30mpc

Why you should listenFerny reveals how Sherpaneer uses AI across operations, from capacity planning models to proposal development, giving you a practical blueprint for integrating AI into your own consulting workflows.Learn how Ferny and her partner built a fully self-sourced pipeline through reciprocal partnerships with adjacent vendors like Gong, Clari, and FinancialForce, without relying on Salesforce for leads.Get Ferny's approach to managing AI tools across a team, including shared projects in Claude, an internal AI use policy, and a quarterly review cycle to keep everything current.You know you should be using AI in your consulting practice, but where do you actually start without compromising client data or wasting time on tools that don't stick? In this episode, I talk with Ferny Bengali from Sherpaneer, a boutique Salesforce consultancy that works with enterprise clients across high-tech, financial services, manufacturing, and healthcare. Ferny walks me through exactly how her team of 12 uses AI day to day, from feeding anonymized staffing data into models for capacity planning, to using voice notes and LLMs to prep for pitches. We also get into how she structures client knowledge across projects, her approach to AI-optimized content for SEO, and why she hired a part-time BD person instead of going full-time. If you've been experimenting with AI but haven't operationalized it across your practice yet, this conversation will show you what that looks like in action.About Ferny BengaliFarnaz (Ferny) Bengali is Co-President of Sherpaneer, a women-owned, diverse Salesforce consulting partner that helps mid-to-large organizations implement the right way, the first time. With 20+ years of industry experience—including leadership roles at MicroStrategy, Accenture, and The Carlyle Group—Ferny chose the boutique path over big consulting, building a practice that delivers senior-level expertise without the agency bloat. She's also a board member of WISE (Women in Salesforce Entrepreneurship), co-invests in hospitality through Dogwood Hospitality, and is passionate about using AI as an operating layer to scale consulting without scaling headcount.Resources and LinksSherpaneer.comFerny's LinkedIn profileRead.aiNotebook LMScribeChatGPTClaudeGoogle Gemini

Ready to churn less and win more?

What actually makes negotiations work—and why do so many “tough” tactics backfire? In this episode, Zach talks with professional negotiator Andres Lares about why the most effective deals rarely come from trying to win at all costs. Drawing from sports contracts, Fortune 500 negotiations, and decades of real-world experience, Andres explains the “power of nice,” the importance of looking for creative win-win approaches, and why public posturing can kill agreements. They also dig into the hype around body language—what's useful, what's overblown, and what actually matters when you're trying to read and influence people in the real world. Andres also talks about his views on AI-assisted sales-presentation-analysis programs (like Gong and Chorus). We also talk about the realism, or lack of it, in the movie Jerry McGuire. Andres is the CEO and Managing Partner of Shapiro Negotiations Institute (SNI), and the co-author of “Persuade: The 4-Step Process to Influence People and Decisions.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Oh Yes, Intern 1, and Maknae talk about certain things they don't necessarily vibe with, but have 공감(Gong Gam) for.

In questa puntata di Gong parliamo del nuovo titolo ambientato nell'universo di Horizon, ovvero Horizon Hunters Gathering, action co-op multiplayer dai toni decisamente volti ad acchiappare un bacino d'utenza più ampio. Un breve sguardo anche al futuro di Baldur's Gate, del quale è stata annunciata una serie TV prodotta da HBO.

Grab Kristin's free prompts & automations for better slides: https://clickhubspot.com/3e23f6 Ep. 398 Are slides the most underappreciated format of content on the internet—and has AI totally changed how we should use them? Kipp, Kieran, and Kristin Fracchia of Gamma, dive into the new world of automated, AI-powered slide workflows that turn every sales call, meeting, or brainstorming session into a high-impact visual deck. Learn more on using AI for automated sales follow-ups, brainstorming from data sources like Slack channels, and creating stunning, animated presentations—all with tools that make slides faster, more effective, and way more fun. Mentions Kristin Fracchia linkedin.com/in/kristinfracchia Gamma https://gamma.app/ Zapier https://zapier.com/ Gong https://www.gong.io/ Get our guide to build your own Custom GPT: https://clickhubspot.com/customgpt We're creating our next round of content and want to ensure it tackles the challenges you're facing at work or in your business. To understand your biggest challenges we've put together a survey and we'd love to hear from you! https://bit.ly/matg-research Resource [Free] Steal our favorite AI Prompts featured on the show! Grab them here: https://clickhubspot.com/aip We're on Social Media! Follow us for everyday marketing wisdom straight to your feed YouTube: ​​https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGtXqPiNV8YC0GMUzY-EUFg  Twitter: https://twitter.com/matgpod  TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@matgpod  Join our community https://landing.connect.com/matg Thank you for tuning into Marketing Against The Grain! Don't forget to hit subscribe and follow us on Apple Podcasts (so you never miss an episode)! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/marketing-against-the-grain/id1616700934   If you love this show, please leave us a 5-Star Review https://link.chtbl.com/h9_sjBKH and share your favorite episodes with friends. We really appreciate your support. Host Links: Kipp Bodnar, https://twitter.com/kippbodnar   Kieran Flanagan, https://twitter.com/searchbrat  ‘Marketing Against The Grain' is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by Hubspot Media // Produced by Darren Clarke.

Shanghai aims to become one of the world's top three cities by economic scale within this decade, driven by an ambitious annual GDP growth target that was outlined in the draft of the city's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30).根据上海市"十五五"规划纲要（2026-2030年）草案提出的宏伟年度经济增长目标，上海计划在本十年内，在经济规模上跻身全球前三甲城市之列。Already one of China's most dynamic economic hubs and the first city to surpass the GDP mark of 5 trillion yuan ($720 billion), Shanghai is targeting an average annual GDP growth rate of around 5 percent over the next five years. The goal is expected to significantly enhance the city's overall economic strength, global competitiveness and residents' livelihoods.作为中国最具活力的经济中心之一，也是首个地区生产总值突破5万亿元（7200亿美元）大关的城市，上海为未来五年设定了年均GDP增长约5%的目标。预计这一目标将显著增强城市的整体经济实力、全球竞争力及居民生活水平。The draft outline was unveiled at the annual session of the Shanghai Municipal People's Congress, the city's legislative body, which opened on Tuesday.该规划草案已于1月23日开幕的上海市第十六届人民代表大会第二次会议上提交审议。According to the plan, this targeted growth pace is expected to lift Shanghai's economic aggregate beyond 7 trillion yuan by 2030. At that scale, the city would rank among the world's top three by economic size, trailing only New York and Los Angeles.根据规划，这一目标增速预计将使上海的经济总量在2030年突破7万亿元。以此规模，上海将跃居全球经济规模前三，仅次于纽约和洛杉矶。After reaching the 5 trillion yuan milestone in 2024, Shanghai's GDP climbed further to 5.67 trillion yuan in 2025, placing the city among the world's top five urban economies. Meanwhile, per capita GDP rose to $32,000 in 2025, comparable to the level of a moderately developed economy.在2024年达到5万亿元里程碑后，上海GDP在2025年进一步攀升至5.67万亿元，使该市跻身全球城市经济总量前五。与此同时，2025年人均GDP上升至3.2万美元，相当于中等发达经济体水平。The draft makes it clear that the next phase of growth will focus on improving workforce skills and, more importantly, strengthening industrial development through scientific and technological innovation.草案明确指出，下一阶段的增长将聚焦于提升劳动力技能，更重要的是通过科技创新强化产业发展。"Shanghai will accelerate the intelligent transformation of key industries, establish more than 50 additional smart factories, and foster new artificial intelligence-native business formats," Mayor Gong Zheng said while delivering the Shanghai municipal government work report during the session.上海市市长龚正在作政府工作报告时表示："上海将加快重点产业智能化改造，新增50家以上先进智能工厂，积极培育智能原生新模式新业态。"Gong added that the city will also upgrade specialized industrial parks for sectors such as integrated circuits and large aircraft manufacturing, and will vigorously develop future industries including brain-computer interfaces and fourth-generation semiconductors.龚正补充道，上海还将升级集成电路、大飞机制造等领域的专业产业园区，并大力发展脑机接口、第四代半导体等未来产业。The shift toward future industries is already reflected in key indicators, experts said. In the past five years, the number of high-value invention patents per 10,000 residents in Shanghai rose from 29.6 to 65. The target for 2030 is about 85.专家表示，向未来产业的转变已反映在关键指标上。过去五年，上海每万人口高价值发明专利拥有量从29.6件增至65件。2030年的目标约为85件。Shanghai also plans to raise spending on research and development from about 4.5 percent of GDP in 2025 to more than 5 percent by 2030. In addition, the draft sets a goal for the value-added output of core digital economy industries to account for more than 20 percent of GDP by 2030.上海还计划将研发投入占GDP比重从2025年的约4.5%提升至2030年的5%以上。此外，草案设定的目标是，到2030年，核心数字经济产业增加值占GDP比重超过20%。The draft outline will be reviewed and discussed by lawmakers and political advisers during the annual meetings, which run through Saturday, and is expected to chart the course for the city's next phase of development.在持续至本周六的年度会议期间，人大代表和政协委员将审议和讨论该规划纲要草案，预计它将为上海下一阶段的发展规划路线。Many lawmakers and advisers said that Shanghai's economic structure is continuing to improve, with its three leading industries — AI, integrated circuits and biomedicine — posting rapid growth.许多人大代表和政协委员表示，上海的经济结构正在持续优化，其三大先导产业——人工智能、集成电路和生物医药——均呈现快速增长。Legislator Liu Zhi, vice-president of ShanghaiTech University, said the Shanghai high-repetition-rate XFEL (X-ray free-electron laser) and extreme light facility, known as SHINE, which has been built by the university, has entered the installation phase and is scheduled to begin testing this year.上海市人大代表、上海科技大学副校长刘志表示，由该校建设的上海硬X射线自由电子激光装置（简称SHINE）已进入安装阶段，计划于今年开始测试。"There are only two such facilities globally, the other being under construction in the United States," Liu said. "The facility will provide strategic support for tackling fundamental scientific challenges in frontier fields such as energy, biology, biomedicine and chip manufacturing. Strength in basic research means gaining greater initiative in setting standards and shaping future industrial development.""全球仅有两处此类设施，另一处正在美国建造，"刘志说，"该设施将为攻克能源、生物学、生物医药和芯片制造等前沿领域的基础科学难题提供战略支撑。基础研究的实力意味着在制定标准和塑造未来产业发展方面获得更大主动权。"Looking ahead to 2035, the draft envisions a comprehensive upgrade of Shanghai's role as an international center for economic, financial, trade, shipping, and scientific and technological innovation, with key indicators reaching globally leading levels.展望2035年，草案描绘了上海国际经济、金融、贸易、航运和科技创新中心功能的全面升级，关键指标达到全球领先水平。"Shanghai's overall capacity and core competitiveness are expected to rise significantly by 2035, with per capita GDP doubling from 2020 levels, establishing Shanghai as a world-influential socialist modern international metropolis," Gong said.龚正表示："到2035年，上海的整体实力和核心竞争力预计将显著提升，人均GDP较2020年水平翻一番，将上海建设成为具有世界影响力的社会主义现代化国际大都市。"economic hub /ˌiːkəˈnɒmɪk hʌb/经济枢纽/中心legislative body /ˈledʒɪslətɪv ˈbɒdi/立法机关economic aggregate /ˌiːkəˈnɒmɪk ˈæɡrɪɡət/经济总量future industries /ˈfjuːtʃər ˈɪndəstriz/未来产业brain-computer interfaces /breɪn kəmˈpjuːtər ˈɪntəfeɪsɪz/脑机接口high-value invention patents /haɪ ˈvæljuː ɪnˈvenʃən ˈpeɪtənts/高价值发明专利value-added output /ˈvæljuː ˈædɪd ˈaʊtpʊt/增加值产出socialist modern international metropolis /ˈsəʊʃəlɪst ˈmɒdən ˌɪntəˈnæʃənəl məˈtrɒpəlɪs/社会主义现代化国际大都市

An interview podcast giving the inside scoop of what happens in comedy scenes across the globe and dedicated to speaking to the mavericks in the comedy world. Join hosts Marvin McCarthy and Jack Wheeler as they interview Donatas Kveselys, the 6ft 7in Lithuanian comedian making waves in Sweden, the european circuit, Japan and conquering all UK gong shows. Based in Gothenburg, Sweden, the "Lithuanian Giant" has earned a reputation as one of the most exciting rising stars in stand-up comedy. Here is an overview of what we discussed:[[01:08]] The London Comedy Scene vs Everywhere ElseHow Donatas became a comedian, the success of Victor Patrascan, and the unique pressure of London gong shows. Why the London circuit is so overcrowded compared to the rest of the world. [[08:16]][[08:26]] Freedom to Fail: Europe vs The UKComparing the supportive atmosphere of the European comedy scene to the high-stakes, "no mistakes" culture of the UK. [[10:56]][[25:32]] The Truth About Bringer ShowsNavigating the controversial UK bringer show model and its impact on new acts. [[29:40]][[26:50]] Is All Stage Time Good Stage Time?Analysing whether simply being on stage is always beneficial for your comedy craft. [[28:10]][[28:00]] The London Grind & Material FatigueWhy London comedians repeat their sets until they are tired of their own material. [[31:00]][[32:16]] The Challenges of Hosting & MCingWhy hosting is a massive challenge and how it fundamentally changes a comedian's skillset. [[37:33]][[33:39]] Crowd Work Spotlight: Siobhan DoddDiscussing the art of interaction and the great crowd work of Siobhan Dodd. [[37:33]][[37:33]] Gothenburg vs Austin, TexasWhat makes the Swedish comedy scene so strong when compared to international hubs like Austin. [[40:27]][[40:27]] Essential Eastern European ComediansThe top comics from Eastern Europe that you should be following right now. [[44:13]][[47:12]] The Financial Cost of Comedy & Japan ToursHeadlining in Japan and the reality of the financial investment required to be a professional comic. [[50:12]][[53:10]] Changing the Game & Shout-outsHighlighting the people currently shaking up the industry and deserving recognition. [[01:01:48]][[54:40]] What Comedy Doesn't Need Right NowA critique of current industry trends and what we should move away from. [[57:29]]If you would like to know more on Jack Wheeler you can reach him on Instagram at pirate2908 and Facebook at Jack Wheeler, if you would like to know more on Donatas, you can reach on him on his Instagram at donataskveselys and his website at https://www.donataskveselys.com/.You can follow this podcast on Youtube at https://bit.ly/41LWDAq, Spotify at https://spoti.fi/3oLrmyU,Apple podcasts at https://apple.co/3LEkr3E and you can support the pod on:https://www.patreon.com/thecomediansparadise. #standupcomedypodcast #comedypodcast #interviewingcomedians #swedishstandup #lithuaniancomedian #standupcomedian

Welcome to episode 731. We have one tale for you this week, about a woman trapped in a time loop, in an endless fight for her freedom (and the truth).COMING UPGood Evening: 2026 Flash Fiction Contest: 00:01:06[Trigger] Corrine Engber's The Sound of a Gong as read by Krystal Hammond and Andrew Gibson: 00:04:11TRIGGER WARNINGSThe Sound of a Gong contains scenes of Domestic Abuse and Child Death.PERTINENT LINKSSupport us on Patreon! Spread the darkness.Shop Tales to Terrify MerchCorrine Engbar on TumblrKrystal HammondKrystal Hammond on TwitterAndrew GibsonAndrew Gibson | The Narrator Nook DiscordAndrew Gibson | The Haven DiscordOriginal Score by Nebulus EntertainmentNebulus on FacebookNebulus on InstagramSPECIAL THANKS TOOrion D. HegreSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/talestoterrify. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, Oh Yes, Intern 1, and Maknae discuss some 2026 resolutions that a website suggests for its visitors. How realistic or doable are they?Website for reference: https://www.shutterfly.com/ideas/new-years-resolutions-ideas/

This time around, we discuss Storm of the Century, Attack of the Killer Tomatoes. Wanted, Chris Pratt, Panic Buying, Dad shows, ASMR, Realty TV, Orb Girl. travel, and dubs vs captions.Listen to the Jortscenter Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2ioAsKKw7AhdJ0cCrasqfH?si=6c2cef121c3a4a9aJoin our Peloton!   https://www.patreon.com/JortsCenterFacebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/342135897580300Subreddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/jortscenterFollow us on Twitter:@JortsCenterPod Will is @wapplehouse Josh is @otherjrobbins Ryan is @ryhanbeard Vic is @DokktorvikktorZack is @ZackVanNus

In this episode, Udi Ledergor, Chief Evangelist at Gong and author of Courageous Marketing, explains why bold creativity is essential for startups competing in crowded B2B markets. Udi shares the principle behind Gong's rise from zero to hundreds of millions in revenue: “different is better than better.” From fuchsia branding and a bulldog mascot to running Super Bowl ads as a startup, he shows how courageous marketing helps companies punch above their weight. The episode also explores practical ways to create standout content, foster experimentation, and turn customers into passionate fans, even on a limited budget. Guest Introduction Udi Ledergor is Chief Evangelist at Gong and author of the bestselling book Courageous Marketing. He served as Gong's first CMO, helping grow the company from zero to hundreds of millions in revenue whilst achieving a multi-billion-dollar valuation. Over his 20-year career, Udi has led marketing teams at successful companies, advised startups, served as a board member and angel investor, and mentored hundreds of marketers. Key Topics Different is better than better: Why startups should stop trying to incrementally beat competitors at their own game and instead do something completely different to get noticedPunching above your weight: How small startups can use guerrilla marketing tactics like out-of-home advertising to appear much bigger than they are when selling to enterprisesCreating raving fans as a company-wide operating principle: Why marketing can't own brand alone, and how every employee at Gong works to create raving fan experiences for customers, candidates, and partnersBuilding a culture of experimentation: The importance of fostering an environment where teams can take calculated risks, fail safely, and learn from both successes and flopsGong Labs content marketing: How Gong created original, data-driven content by analysing millions of sales calls to position themselves as the most informed voice in sales effectivenessCategory creation strategy: When it makes sense to create a new category (and when it doesn't), illustrated through the De Beers diamond engagement ring marketing campaignBold visual identity choices: The decision to use fuchsia pink and purple with a bulldog mascot in 2018 when all B2B competitors were using corporate blueStartup advertising on a shoestring budget: Creative approaches to billboard advertising, Super Bowl commercials, and other typically expensive channels that small companies can leverage Resources & Links People Mentioned: Chris Orlob - First content hire at Gong who created most early Gong content independently. Devin Reed - Former Gong sales rep who transitioned into leading Gong's content marketing. Kyle Lacy - CMO referenced for using AI to eliminate obvious ideas and push creative thinking. Michael Lewis - Author and podcast host whose show drove inbound interest for Gong. Francis Gerety- Copywriter behind the “A Diamond Is Forever” campaign, cited as a category creation example. Companies & Platforms Mentioned Gong - Revenue intelligence platformGong Labs - Data research and insightsDe Beers - Diamond company referenced for category creation example Books & Resources Courageous Marketing - a practical playbook for B2B marketers to drive impact and accelerate career success. Contact & Credits Host: Shahin Hoda Guest: Udi Ledergor Produced by: Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell Edited by: Alexander Hipwell Music by: Breakmaster Cylinder APAC's B2B Growth Podcast is Presented by xGrowth

Full YouTube Episode Here Jen Allen-Knuth puts five real cold emails head-to-head to see which ones actually earn executive attention and which get instantly deleted. Watch as she breaks down subject lines, openers, tone, and CTA mistakes, crowns a single winning email, then rewrites it live using her Problem Prompter framework to show how sellers can stop pitching and start booking meetings with C-suite buyers. Over the last 12 to 16 weeks, we've been sitting down with the one and only Jen Allen-Knuth (2–3 hours per week, plus an entire week of shooting) to build her course: Selling to the C-Suite. This is everything you could possibly need to close a 6–7 figure deal at power. Backed by Gong data of and 1M+ executive-level sales cycles. https://www.30mpc.com/course/multithreading-exec-selling-course-selling-to-the-c-suite Get More Tactics: Join our weekly newsletter – https://hubs.li/Q02NJQ8p0 Things you can steal and use today – https://linktr.ee/30mpc_youtube

durée : 00:05:36 - Tanguy Pastureau maltraite l'info - par : Tanguy Pastureau - Tanguy a testé plein de nouvelles tendances bien-être. Résultat : il est toujours aussi mal. Vous aimez ce podcast ? Pour écouter tous les autres épisodes sans limite, rendez-vous sur Radio France.

Ci sono stati grossi scossoni in casa Ubisoft, tra giochi cancellati, altri rinviati, team di sviluppo a rischio e altri ricollocati in nuovi progetti. Il remake di Prince of Persia: Le sabbie del tempo è solo uno tra i tanti titoli che non vedrà mai la luce; ne parliamo approfonditamente in questa puntata monografica di Gong.

Nella puntata odierna di Gong parliamo delle novità su Marathon e della inevitabile fine della VR.

Send us a textAmit Bendov is the co-founder and CEO of Gong, the revenue AI platform he started in 2015 after realizing that traditional CRM systems tracked outcomes but failed to explain why deals were won or lost. That insight led him to focus on customer conversations as the missing source of truth in sales. Since its founding, Gong has raised more than $580 million and reached a valuation of $7.25 billion. Today, Gong helps sales teams reduce manual work, improve performance, and better understand what customers are actually saying.In this conversation, we discuss:Why traditional CRM systems track what happened but fail to explain why deals are won or lost, and how that gap led to the rise of Revenue AI as a new category.How Gong's Revenue AI differs from CRM by analyzing sales conversations, reducing manual admin work, and actively helping sellers prepare, follow up, and improve performance in real time.The emotional cost of sales work, and how using AI to remove administrative burden improves both sales results and seller job satisfaction.What it takes to build trust in AI tools that analyze customer conversations, including data stewardship, transparency, and delivering clear value to sellers.How an AI-first product vision can exist years before the technology is ready, and what it means to design systems for autonomy rather than simple automation.The reality behind “overnight success,” including early product-market fit tests, paid pilots that felt risky, and navigating growth slowdowns without abandoning the original vision.Resources:Subscribe to the AI & The Future of Work NewsletterConnect with Amit on LinkedInAI fun fact articleOn How AI Is Changing Finance: Data Challenges, Collaboration, and Future Trends with Mike SchusterOther episode mentioned in the show:On AI Design Philosophy and Building the Anti-PowerPoint with Grant Lee, CEO of Gamma 

Kavus Torabi is a British musician, composer, broadcaster, and DJ known for a "bent path" songwriting style. He's worked with Knifeworld, Gong, Guapo, and Cardiacs, and now focuses on structure-driven songs, home recording, and steering clear of cliché while bringing the music in his head to life.

Why B2B Lead Qualification Fails and How to Fix It  Traffic is cheap, but qualified B2B sales conversions are not. Too many CMOs in the B2B space are watching brilliant creative go to waste at the top of the marketing funnel because what's passing through as a “qualified lead” often isn't really qualified. How can B2B marketers identify where the real lead qualification bottleneck is? Why is rethinking how MQLs are defined, scored, and routed one the most strategic fixes a CMO can make to improve pipeline performance? That's why we're talking to Gabe Lullo (CEO, Alleyoop), who shared some insights around why B2B lead qualification fails and how to fix it at the top of the funnel. During our discussion, Gabe challenged the common misconception that poor lead quality is the issue when sales aren't closing. Instead, he emphasized the importance of a clearly-defined Ideal Customer Profile (ICP), a strong product-market fit, and a well-mapped B2B sales journey. Gabe also stressed the need for A/B testing, identifying and resolving funnel bottlenecks, and using data-driven decision-making to improve lead conversion rates. He underscored the value of nurturing leads and cautioned B2B marketers against dismissing traditional marketing channels without rigorous testing. https://youtu.be/KXVmywNsfP0 Topics discussed in episode: [02:36] Why top-of-funnel lead qualification breaks down in B2B. [16:37] How to define and operationalize your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP). [12:17] When MQLs hurt more than they help, and how to fix them. [26:14] How A/B testing and data-driven decisions improve lead conversion. [27:53] Why lead nurturing is critical to long sales cycles. [34:05] When to test (not abandon) traditional B2B marketing channels. Companies and links mentioned: Gabe Lullo on LinkedIn  Alleyoop  ZoomInfo  Salesloft  Adobe  Transcript SPEAKERS Gabe Lullo, Christian Klepp Gabe Lullo  00:00 So we’re doing top of funnel activities, and then we’re sending leads over. The sales team takes them, and then what we find, a lot, we hear this all the time, is leads aren’t closing. And what’s interesting is that it was never a lead problem. It was more of a, you know, seller problem. I don’t mean to put blame on it, but companies come to us saying, hey, my sellers are saying we don’t have enough leads, we don’t have better leads, we don’t have good leads, and they’re the ones complaining about the lead. So they come to us to fix the lead problem. We fix the lead problem, but it doesn’t fix the revenue problem. It’s still not closing. So what is it? Christian Klepp  00:30 Traffic is cheap, but conversion is not too many CMOs (Chief Marketing Officer) are watching brilliant, creative go to waste at the top of the funnel, because what’s passing through as qualified just isn’t so how can you identify where the real bottleneck is, and why is rethinking how MQLs (Marketing Qualified Leads) are defined and scored the single most strategic fix? A CMO can make welcome to this episode of the B2B Marketers on the Mission podcast, and I’m your host, Christian Klepp. Today, I’ll be talking to Gabe Lullo, who will be answering these questions. He’s the CEO of Alleyoop, a sales development agency working with industry giants such as ZoomInfo, Salesloft and Adobe. Tune in to find out more about what this B2B Marketers Mission is, and off we go. Mr. Gabe Lullo, welcome to the show, sir. Gabe Lullo  01:17 Christian. Thank you so much. First off, I’m a huge fan of yours, so is my team, and we just appreciate all that you do for the industry. And I’m so excited to be here. Thanks for the invite. Christian Klepp  01:28 Wow, wow. Thank you. Thank you so much. Right off the gate with the praise, thank you, sir. Gabe Lullo  01:33 Well, you deserve it, man, you’re the best. What do you do. I love it. I love your show, and I love being a part of that. Christian Klepp  01:38 I appreciate that. I appreciate that. You know, we really had an awesome, like, pre-interview conversation. I’m gonna say, like, you know, talking about coming up to Toronto and Buffalo and what have you. And I’m really looking forward to this conversation, Gabe, because, man, you know, what? As much as some Marketers probably don’t want to hear this. It’s an, I think this is an absolutely necessary conversation to have. Right this topic that we’re going to talk about, and I will not keep the audience in suspense for too long. I’m just going to jump into the first question, if you don’t mind. Gabe Lullo  02:09 Yeah, no problem. Let’s get right into it. Christian Klepp  02:11 All right, so Gabe, you’re on a mission to provide the ultimate assist to your clients by setting them up for success. So for this conversation, let’s zero in on the following topic of how B2B Marketers can fix qualification at the top. So here comes the first question in our previous conversation. You talked about many marketing funnels being a leaky bucket. Can you please explain what you meant by that? Gabe Lullo  02:36 Yeah, I think companies right now are going to market in a very hodgepodge type of way, you know, ICP (Ideal Customer Profile), you know, we throw that terminal around a lot, and, you know, people think they know what it is, or feel like they have it drilled down, or feel like it’s completely locked, locked in. And then clients invite us in, and we realize it’s not the case, and it’s not just what the ideal client profile is, which, of course, is quintessential to going to market, and it’s really the first step to qualification, isn’t it, right? But on the other side of it, it is, you know, is there a product market fit? Is there a pricing that needs to be aligned? What’s the competitive landscape look like? So when we’re having live conversations, our sellers are making, you know, 11 million cold calls a year. That’s front of the line conversations, right? And we can hear, understand, and truly, you know, debrief with what each call is sounding like, so we can then narrow in what those qualifications should be. You know, a lot of you know, let’s say VPs of sales come into the sales development side of the house or the marketing side of the house, and they apply sales training methodologies to top of funnel qualifications, and it really gets broken as well. So there’s a lot to unpack, but I’ll give you an example. You know, band for instance, but you know budget authority needed timing. Like, is that really the right qualification at the top of the funnel, or does that really, you know, evolve the seller and the demo and the discovery call at that moment in time. So really understanding who’s in charge of that top of funnel and what their experience is also as a part of it, in my opinion. Christian Klepp  04:13 Absolutely, absolutely and you’re absolutely right. There’s so much to unpack here, but I have to ask just from your experience, and I know you have a lot, it seems like it’s just, there’s so many moving parts in this ecosystem, and a lot of like, well, what causes the leaky funnel? I’m gonna say is a lot of the things that you just mentioned, right? It’s a lack of understanding of who the actual ICP is. It’s probably also, especially the bigger the the organization gets sorry to everyone out there, but the lack of ownership and accountability, the lack of an actual strategy, like, where’s this all gonna go? Right? Gabe Lullo  04:54 Oh, it’s interesting. Yeah, I find this to be our except we so we’re doing top of the funnel activities, and we’re sending leads over, the sales team takes them, and then what we find, a lot, we hear this all the time, is leads aren’t closing. And what’s interesting is that it was never a lead problem. It was more of a seller problem. Now I don’t mean to put blame on it, but companies come to us saying, hey, my sellers are saying we don’t have enough leads, we don’t have better leads, we don’t have good leads, and they’re the ones complaining about the lead so they come to us to fix the lead problem. We fix the lead problem, but it doesn’t fix the revenue problem. It’s still not closing. So what is it? It’s the entire channel, right? It’s the entire sales journey, and we have to make sure that all of those things are working like an engine, right? All the cylinders are working at the same time in the same motion, to truly know what the problem may be. So that that’s really exposed a lot when we step in and start doing top of funnel activities, Christian Klepp  05:55 Absolutely, absolutely. And that segues into the next question, which I feel you’ve already answered to a certain extent. But where do you feel the true bottleneck lies, and that may be dependent on the company, right? Because each company maybe has a different set of challenges. And most importantly, okay, where does the bottleneck lie? And how do how can B2B Marketing teams help address the bottleneck and not be part of the bottleneck? Gabe Lullo  06:21 Yeah, absolutely. I mean, there’s an eight step approach to sales. That’s what we call your sales journey, right? You have, obviously, you know, list building, and then we have, of course, outreach, we have qualification, we have discovery call, we have demo, we have, you know, closing or negotiating. We have client success. I mean, that’s the basic funnel, if you will. So is our, I should say, all of those things operating at the best of its ability. And what is broken, and it’s, it’s the old, you know, Henry Ford approach the assembly line. You know, there’s an assembly line and building a car, and there’s an assembly line in sales. And you have to know those steps, firstly, two, you have to know if those steps are working correctly, and figure out where that bottleneck is, and then, you know, take those blockers away so that those cars are flowing in and the production line doesn’t stop and we’re, you know, executing on the results that we need to serve our clients. Christian Klepp  07:16 100% agree. But now I’m gonna throw in another like wild card question, and I know you can handle it, right? When companies like yours come in to help organizations, right, there are times, even from my own experience, where the internal teams look at you and go, What are those guys doing here? Right? Like, is my job on the line. So they feel, they feel threatened, right by by somebody coming in and providing an external perspective. So I guess the question is, how do you deal with that kind of push back to help fix this leaky marketing funnel? Gabe Lullo  07:57 Yeah, it’s very important, right? Because a lot of companies come, you know, come in like us, and say, You know what, we’re going to come in here and try to solve the problem, or rip and replace or threaten the job. And it’s interesting, our point of contact, usually is the person who may be, you know, being fired because of our success. Well, we don’t want to approach it that way. So we set clear expectations that, hey, listen, we’re not here to rip and replace we are here to work as a parallel to what you’re existing doing, so we can A/B test and share best practices and be collective in those results. A lot of companies who have existing teams in place usually put us in scenarios where we’re bringing something new to market, or we’re reaching out to a market that is you know, you know, a new product line or a new segment, and we’re bringing that in. We do, however, see about a 20 to 30% increase in existing production when an outside partner comes in, because, again, we are sharing best practices. We’re all working together, but there is some pressure on the line when they see it. You know, another great player on the team playing ball. However, we did put a mechanism in place that really helps alleviate the fear, if you will, of that rip and replace scenario. Very unique thing to us, only a handful of companies I know about, of hundreds and if not thousands, that do what we do, do this. And here’s what it is, a lot of companies want to hire everything within and bring everything in house, in the sales development side within, because they graduate those people into account executives or closers or higher level performers or managers, so that graduation of career placement is there if you do it in house. So what we say is, you know what? You can have that great feeling of growing and building your team in house with us too. So all of our reps (representatives) who come work here, and all of our clients who enroll with us know that they can hire our reps and and bring them into their payroll and into their in house team with our help. So that’s a really good way of curving the fear, because they know, hey, this person who’s executing this outbound activity could be our next closer, and we can hire them to not take again, to not take away from what their current teams are doing, but to add to and grow that existing team they have. Christian Klepp  10:14 Absolutely, absolutely, and you know where I’m going with this, right? Because, like, you know, far too often, especially the higher ups that are not involved in the day to day, that are looking at this from the, I call it the Mount Olympus perspective, right, looking down at the land of the living, right? Like, why are you bringing in an external partner? Isn’t that your job to fix it? Right? But there are benefits to your point of, like, bringing in somebody that’s external, that’s not privy to, perhaps, some of the bias, some of the, certainly, the, certainly the organizational like dynamics and politics, which may, may be more detrimental than useful, right? Gabe Lullo  10:50 Yeah. I mean, we do punchy contracts, right? We have a six month minimum engagement. But so when we do that, you know, we’re saying, Hey, listen, we’re, we’re going to work with you for six months. We’re going to give it everything we got. And if it’s something you want to bring in-house from our team, great. If it’s you want to continue, great, or if you’ve learned a lot and you’re able to duplicate our efforts, also great too. So again, we’re not going in there saying, Oh, this is our world. Now. Get out of the way. Good luck, you know, and giving pink slips to people, it’s about really, again, how can we help? How can we assist? How can we hit this number? It’s not getting hit. There has to be reasons why. And let’s figure those numbers out, and let’s figure out the reasons why. And then, and then we move on, you know. So there’s short contracts, and then there’s very, very long contracts, you know, ZoomInfo has been a client off and on for the last decade. We’re doing a program right now where they just launched a lot of cool things, and we’re helping them so companies like that, size and stature, still come to outside help when necessary, when the timing is right and the fit is right. Christian Klepp  11:55 Amazing. Amazing. All right. Next question. So why do you believe rethinking how MQLs are defined and scored as the most strategic fix that a CMO can make, and what are some of these other key pitfalls that Marketers should avoid, and what should they be doing instead? I mean, let’s, let’s keep the conversation constructive here, right? Gabe Lullo  12:17 So defining and scoring MQLs is by far one of the first things, if not the most important thing, to start with, right? Because that is, again, the start of that assembly line. You know, garbage in, garbage out. And so if we’re not actually understanding why those MQLs are, the MQLs that we are saying they are, and what those triggering events are causing them to be considered. MQLs could truly dictate whether or not we’re receiving garbage into the funnel versus excellence and extraordinary leads and MQLs into the funnel. So again, it’s going back to that ICP, like we discussed earlier. It’s determining, okay, are these worthy and does it make sense to continue this, lead this MQL down the funnel, and will it produce results? Should it even be in the system at all? So knowing that up front, like I said earlier, it’s like the raw material. You know, if you have really bad raw material that you’re using to build your cars, you know, no matter how great it comes out at the other end, it’s not going to be a quality vehicle. So it’s that, it’s the raw material that we need to make sure that’s first and foremost, because it’s the start of the entire process. Christian Klepp  13:29 Yeah, yeah, no, that’s for sure. Because, you know, how many times have you heard that, right? Like the marketing team says, well, we’ve, we’ve got, we’ve generated the MQLs, we’ve passed them on to the sales team now, so we’re good, yeah, but that’s not where it stops, right? Like, so especially if the MQLs are, like, not qualified, right? Gabe Lullo  13:48 No, I couldn’t agree with you more. And again, having sales and marketing work synergistically in that determination is paramount. You know, so many companies, and it’s the old adage, and I think it’s almost a cliche now, because it’s been said so many times that you know, sales is throwing spears over the fence to marketing, and marketing is throwing another spear back to them, and they’re fighting back and forth over this wall. The deal is, you got to break down the wall and start having conversations. And again, sellers have to give feedback on why we’re seeing this to not be the right fit, and Marketers have to be curious and asking what those things may be happening on those conversations, so they can go find the MQLs that that is worthy. Christian Klepp  14:30 Absolutely, absolutely. And on that topic, what are some of these other pitfalls that marketers should be looking out for, and what should they be doing instead? Gabe Lullo  14:39 Yeah, I think what right now is that you have to really understand your channels. You know, a lot of Marketers right now are doubling down on things that may not be producing the results that they have been expecting. Maybe a year from now, two years from now, every company is different, every ICP is different, and every industry is different. I’ll give you an example. You know, if you’re reaching out to sellers and you know, red. Heads of revenue, you have to have a totally different approach than if you’re reaching out to VPs of technology and cyber security. Now that may sound basic, but if you were coming from a company and you’re in your head of marketing, and you’re coming from a company where your ICP and your persona is all tech based companies, or all tech based personas, and you go into a new industry or a new company, and you come with that lens. It’s not the right approach. You know, sellers like to pick up the phone. They think they’re customers. They use the phone all day long. They pick up the phone all the time. Maybe that’s the right channel, right? CTOs (Chief Technology Officers), CIOs (Chief Information Officers), CSOs (Chief Security Officers), they are not usually picking up the phone. Maybe they’re their channels significantly different, and so you have to realize, understand what your persona is, so you can do marketing activities towards that total addressable market that resonate and hit home and get their attention. And it could be just as much as where they live in regards to where, where do they associate with, what, what channel are they living on? Are they people that pick up the phone? Are they ones that live on LinkedIn? Are they ones that go to Instagram? Are they ones that go to conferences? Where is your audience? And know that first and then go talk to them? Christian Klepp  16:10 That’s definitely a great insight. You know it. I know it. The problem is that there’s so many teams out there that skip this part, right? Like that, like that. That detailed breakdown you just gave us about the different let’s call them like, the different personas, the different behaviors, the different channels, like, Why do you think a lot of teams out there skip this part? Is it because of the the time crunch, the pressure to deliver immediately is all of the above? Gabe Lullo  16:37 Yeah, I think, you know, there’s a lot of boardrooms out there. They come out with this unique product, and then with all they do is they do is they look at the TAM, what’s the total addressable market? But that’s like saying, I want to go catch a tuna fish. But you know, let’s just look at the entire ocean. Like, okay, we have to be more specific. Where do the tuna fish actually swim? Where part of Do they like warm water? Do they like the coast? Are they more towards New Zealand, or are they up towards the Massachusetts? So you have to know where your school of fish are. If you want to go fishing, you can’t just look at the entire ocean as the market. And I think narrowing it down to understand patterns and where people are so you can go talk to them is the right approach, versus this spray and pray mentality that I feel marketing has been living in for many, many years, and now it’s becoming more self evident because of AI, right? Because AI can tell us a lot of these things. AI can do a lot of analysis and research, and it’s giving us insights that we’ve never been able to really see before because of the speed and quickness of it. And so I think we are getting to a point, and I’m hopeful that we are more specific with our total addressable markets in new companies specifically that may not have the experience or the capacity like they used to. And I think it’s exciting. Christian Klepp  16:37 Oh Gabe, you just open the door to another question there. Man. Gabe Lullo  16:37 Like, start with an A. Christian Klepp  16:37 Yeah, it starts with an A. But, like, you know, since you brought it up, I’ve got to ask AI, right? Gabe Lullo  16:37 Yeah. Christian Klepp  16:37 And in terms of, like, helping to fix a leaky marketing funnel, how do you from your experience and your perspective, how do you think AI is helpful, and how is it harmful? Gabe Lullo  17:23 Sure. I mean double edged sword, right? We love AI. We accept it. We know it’s here. We’re not scared of it. We’re not running away from it, but we’re also not ripping and replacing things too abruptly with with the implementation of it, either. For instance, I’ll give you real examples. Are we telling AI to go make cold calls? Well, no, it’s illegal, technically. Secondly, are we using it, though, on the flip side, to train our reps on how to effectively handle great questions and objections through an AI sparring partner? Yeah, we are, and it’s amazing at it. So we actually have our reps when they’re brand new and onboarding or launching into a new campaign. We program the robot, the AI right to be able to have conversations in real life time with our reps, to literally spar with them. And it’s like practice. It’s a sparring partner before they go live onto a campaign, and it prepares them immensely before the live show, before they’re before they’re active, right on the campaign. So this is one way we’re doing it. Other ways, obviously email, messaging, obviously personalization, obviously research, you know, pre-call research, account research, determining who’s picking up the phone when they pick up the phone, how many times does it take to call them? You know, time zones? What’s the best time to call them? And it’s crazy what it could do, but it’s really, really helpful. But it’s not a crutch. It’s an assistant, and that’s how we’re approaching it. It’s not replacing human to human communication. If it was. Maybe you and I would just have our AI avatars do this podcast right instead of we’ll be on a beach somewhere, maybe we’ll be there in the future. I’m not predicting it, but I will say there’s a huge, significant role it plays right now, but it is not a role that’s, in my opinion, supposed to replace everything. It can replace a lot, but not everything. Christian Klepp  20:20 Absolutely. I mean, it certainly requires a lot of like, human intervention, right? And it’s and it’s constantly learning, and it’s learning quickly, which I think is to its benefit, to its detriment. And I think that’s, that’s your point as well. There’s a lot of stuff out there that’s AI generated that just looks off, starting with videos even, even like in I don’t know if you’ve dabbled with Google notebook, right? It can, it can take all that content and turn it into an audio file. And it’s scary. How real it sounds. Gabe Lullo  20:54 It is pretty scary. And I have seen tools like that. I love there’s one right now, where it’s actually tracking not even what someone is saying, but how they’re saying it. So tonality, right is a huge piece of communication, as we know, and so it’s literally listening to calls and sales calls, and not just again, we’ve seen it before, like, you know, Gong and others, where it’s telling, hey, maybe say this. Don’t say that, but it’s also giving that score of how they’re delivering that message, which, in my world, is huge because, you know, I could read a script, or I can, you know, have an amazing performance, and that’s how we approach, you know, the way we communicate on a phone call. So that is why we’re so excited. Because there’s new tools coming out all the time that are really, really impactful, for sure. Christian Klepp  21:42 Absolutely, absolutely. So you’ve touched on this a little bit like in the past couple of minutes, but explain how market research and strategy help to develop a solid marketing funnel, not a leaky one. Gabe Lullo  21:55 Yeah. I mean, I think it’s your playbook, right? You know, you have to have a built out playbook, and it’s your guide. And it’s not just important to go to market with a playbook, but it’s also going to market to scale, right? You know, once you get it to work, the ever everything after that is, how do we duplicate and how do we scale? So the playbook is that design is the architecture behind your strategy. So when we do start pouring fuel on the fire and we’re adding people, we’re adding leads, we’re adding workflows, we’re adding everything outside of that, we still go back to the playbook. It’s like the Constitution, right? Everything based off that in our country. I know we’re in different ones, but my point is is, is you have a framework, right, that we go off of and that playbook is so vital to our importance of market research gives us a great understanding of where that playbook is built and how it’s designed and how it’s architected, and that’s how we that’s how we do it here. Christian Klepp  22:55 And even how the playbook can be iterated, right? Because let’s not forget that it’s not written in stone. Gabe Lullo  23:01 Evolving. Yeah, absolutely. I do want to warn people, though, evolve with time. Be patient, right? You know, marketing, sales, development, it’s not a light switch. Yeah, I always say it’s like boiling water, right? So a watch pot technically does boil. It’s just painful to watch. So, but the point is, is that you have to give it enough time to see if that playbook is yielding results. What you don’t want to do is change the play, you know, too many times in the middle of the game, because then you look confused and confused. People do nothing, right? So, yes, is it evolving? Does it pivot? Does it grow? Do you do you change things up, of course. But also you want to do it in a tactful timeline to make sure that it is truly a working playbook or not. Christian Klepp  23:47 Absolutely, absolutely. And you brought something up, and I have to ask this, this next question, it’s… We know, from a marketing point of view, that rolling out these initiatives and seeing the results takes time, yeah, but we’ve had, I’ve certainly had this experience in B2B, that there are people, again, at the top, that don’t have oversight into the day to day, and probably also don’t understand quite how the process works, that don’t have that patience, right, that are telling you, like, hurry up and deliver like, we want results right now. So what do you say to those, I guess the people that are doubting that this initiative needs more time than they think it does. Gabe Lullo  24:30 Yeah. I mean, I think looking at benchmarks and case studies and past results is very important, like I said, Back to the boiling of water. You can show a thermometer as well, like you can see, is it working well? You can put a thermometer in a boiling pot of water and watch the temperature go up, right? And it gives you a clear indication and forecast, if you will, that you’re going to achieve boiling point eventually. It’s not just again, you put the water in and then. And you all of a sudden, measure boiling. You have to measure along the way, and that’s we want to do. So what the ways we do it specifically is, if we’re working on a campaign that is almost a look alike campaign to another company, maybe it’s in the same industry, same ICP, you know, same your size, same scope, we can look at that historical result and say, Hey, by the way, if we do these, these, these and these, you’re going to we’re going to expect boiling point at this time based on a company that’s very similar to yours. Now, is it identical? No, maybe that company has really bad sellers we talked about. Maybe that company doesn’t really care about content and they’re just missing the boat there. Maybe they have a crappy website, like, I don’t, there’s different levers that could, you know, alter the recipe, but we can absolutely make highly educated guesses, as opposed to just trying to wing it or give false expectations. Christian Klepp  25:54 Yeah, yeah, no, that’s absolutely right, all right. I mean, you’ve given us a lot of, like, recommendations, a lot of actionable tips. So walk us through, and I know it varies from company to company and case by case, but walk us through the process of how you actually fix a leaky marketing funnel. Like, what are the steps? What are those key components that absolutely have to be in that process? Gabe Lullo  26:14 Yeah, you have to, you know, inspect what you expect. You have to understand what your messaging is, and you have to A/B test it all the time. I A/B test everything, whether it’s data vendors, whether it’s email messaging, whether it’s LinkedIn content, what you have, obviously mechanisms, depending on what tech you’re working with, what vendors you’re working with, or your history or historical results are to give you grades and scores and A/B testing everything. So if you have, you know campaigns that are running that are successful, you should be able to know how to measure that. That’s what’s so important. So you have to have inspect, inspection tools in place across everything you’re doing on those campaigns to tell you, Hey, this is broken, this is leaky. This isn’t working. Or on the flip side, this is crushing right now. This is totally resonating right now, and we’re loving these, seeing these numbers, and then pour fuel on that fire and focus on that and remove the other ones, and still A/B test, because you always want to keep getting better. So A/B test everything, define the leaks, and then try to fix those leaks as fast as possible. Christian Klepp  27:23 Fantastic, fantastic. And because we’re talking about marketing funnels, I mean, like, I can’t help myself but ask you, okay, but what about metrics? Because that’s something that people want to see, right? But I’m not talking about like, let’s, let’s come up with this like, laundry list of like metrics, and you go down this deep rabbit hole. Like, what are the metrics that you would say, or you would advise B2B Marketers to look at to say, like, okay, we’re trying to fix the leaky marketing funnel here, and these metrics will help you to indicate that there is progress. Gabe Lullo  27:53 Yeah. I mean, it’s harder now than ever before to metric things out, and it’s because of tech that’s kind of getting in the way. You know, for instance, in an email campaign, there’s been some rules and regulations in the last recent years that prevents us from seeing whether or not there’s clicks and opens that are happening on email campaigns. I’ve actually removed many of those triggers completely away from our campaigns, because it’s preventing deliverability, and it’s preventing our ability to keep domains healthy. So there are a lot of moving parts right now that’s happening because of these AI filtration tools. I just heard Google just released that it’s going to now put disclaimers and emails saying that this was written by AI. And so there’s it’s ever involving so depending on I guess when your listeners are hearing this, it may be completely different in a year, but I will tell you that there are definitely things that we need to metric and we need to have KPIs for. But I think the priority of what we used to measure two, three years ago, is significantly different than what we measure today, because of those rules and regulations. So if we’re talking about emails, I want to know what we’re sending, who we’re sending it to, who obviously is responding. What are those responses look like? Is it turning to an actual lead? Are we turning on warm leads, or are we just looking at set meetings? You know, it’s interesting, right? There is only about 2 to 3% of the market ever wants to truly buy, and they’re in buying mode, and I think a lot of companies are just looking for those people, and about 20% of the market is actually interested in buying and we turn that entire segment off. It’s about 10 times more people. But if we can warm the nurture them correctly, and message them correctly, that’s where the rubber meets the road, and that’s where your gold is. I like to analogize everything. So, yeah, when you have a green apple, right? What do you do with the green apple? You put it on the window sill, and then the sun on the windowsill warms it up. Now, that doesn’t mean you just throw out the apple. That means you have a lot of opportunity. You just have. To nurture, and you be patient. And you have to know that timing is everything in business. So if you’re just looking for the red apples, you’re only gonna get 3% if you’re looking for green apples that turn into red apples, now you’re getting 25% so focus on the 25, be patient. Fix those leaky buckets, of course. A/B test, and then then you measure. Christian Klepp  30:20 Yeah or you get yourself an apple orchard. You mentioned one keyword there, nurture, right? I think that’s the one that’ll I see a lot of, like people in sales and even in marketing, right? They just don’t take that time to nurture those leads. They close in. I keep saying they close in for the kill too fast, right? Gabe Lullo  30:44 Yeah. I mean, go back to that food analogy, that the fruit analogy, again. Christian Klepp  30:49 Sure. Gabe Lullo  30:49 I’m on a roll with that. Christian Klepp  30:50 Please. Gabe Lullo  30:50 It’s the low hanging fruit cliche, right? Christian Klepp  30:52 Yes. Gabe Lullo  30:52 Everyone focuses on the low hanging fruit. They’re not focusing on what else is part of that harvest. They’re not focusing on the nurturing. They’re not focused on watering. They’re not focusing on circling back, following up, checking in, providing value in those checks. Not just say, Hey, I’m following up, no, provide value in those seconds, right? And that’s again, that’s where you see excellence happen, you know? And there’s a lot of young, and I don’t mean to be age, but like tenure, people that are experienced, that are in these experience roles right now, and I feel that they’re just trying to get that quick answer and that quick response. And we’re in this like dopamine, like, you know, hit like social media environment right now. Not to go off topic, but I think people are not again, they’re in this microwave society, and they don’t understand the value of nurturing. And if you do and you treat that part seriously, wow, it usually is a windfall at that time. Christian Klepp  31:47 Absolutely, absolutely. It’s an art, a skill, a craft, isn’t it? Right? All of you love, okay, my friend, we come to the point in the conversation where we’re talking about actionable tips, and Gabe, you’ve given us plenty, all right, but just think of this kind of like a recap. If there was somebody listening to this conversation that you and I are having, and you want them to walk away with three to five things that they that they can take action on right now, when it comes to fixing a leaky marketing funnel, what would they be? Gabe Lullo  32:17 Well, I think the best thing is you have to really decide if you have the right people in place, right, and are they? And it doesn’t mean that they are the ones that are going to bring it home. It doesn’t mean that they’re they don’t need support and training and love, like, do they have the commitment? Do they have good experience? Are they willing to roll up their sleeves and get get a little dirty, and if you feel like you have a great team in place of people that are ready to get to work and solve some problems. I think that is literally step one. Step two is, do we have the messaging in the mark, in the ICP nailed down? We really need to know that, because, again, there’s no point of building a campaign if you don’t know who you’re sending it to. And then, thirdly, you really have to make sure that you’re willing to A/B test. It’s hard enough to build a campaign, but it’s much more difficult to build two or three campaigns. Run three campaigns, right as opposed to one, and score each of them to determine what’s working, what’s effective, and what’s not, and then you pivot based on those results. So I think finding a great team is basic and fundamental. Finding a great ice or determining a great ICP is before you build the messaging and then measure the message across multiple campaigns, and then you should be on your way Christian Klepp  33:29 And test, test, test, everything, right? Gabe Lullo  33:34 Yes, it’s great. It could be working. It’s exciting, but maybe there’s a significantly more effective way of doing it, even though it’s still working, and let the data make those decisions for you and drive everything based off data driven decisions, and that’s how you should be operating. Christian Klepp  33:51 Absolutely, absolutely. All right. Here comes the soapbox question, a status quo in your area of expertise that you passionately disagree with and why? Gabe Lullo  34:05 Yeah, I think the big thing right now, and I have to just kind of talk about my space, because you said in my industries, like, there’s a lot of, you know, people out there soapboxing, to be exact, on things that are dead or not. And I will tell you that, you know, cold calling is dead, emailing is dead. You know, LinkedIn is dead, or all of these things and and when you peel back the onion, you notice that those individuals who are saying that users are trying to sell a book or something, and nothing against selling books, but it sounds like there’s a personal agenda and not actual operational intelligence that is dictating what they’re saying. So to your point about testing everything, don’t assume something is not going to work just because someone said it on the internet. Test it and then decide if it’s going to work. And it may surprise you in a big, big way. Christian Klepp  34:56 I truly believe that, man, I truly believe that. I mean to your point. About, like, email being dead. I mean, I did close one client who was a guest on the show, and it took me a year to close, but I closed it through email. Gabe Lullo  35:09 Yeah. Christian Klepp  35:11 Right. And it’s to your point, it’s sending, sending that person articles that were relevant to that person’s industry and saying, like, Hey, I read this the other day, what are your thoughts on this? And here’s my take. What do you think? Gabe Lullo  35:24 That is the best way to do an email, right? You know, we do a lot of content and on social media, we do a lot of podcasting, posts on LinkedIn, but that’s all great, but where the rubber meets the road is you take that post and you send it in an email or a direct message and say, Hey, listen. This made me think of our last conversation, and I really liked the way that this person mentioned this. Do you think you know that there is, is the timing right here to reopen this conversation, and you feel like the problem is still existing in your world, and love to see if we can solve it for you, that type of content, that type of message, that type of verbiage at the right time in a nurture campaign like we discussed, close one business, right? That’s how it works. Christian Klepp  36:08 Absolutely, absolutely okay. Here comes the bonus question, and for those of you that are listening to the audio version, Gabe’s got two guitars right behind him, so I’m just gonna go on a hunch here that he likes playing guitar, right? So the question is, if you had the opportunity to, like, go on a tour with your favorite guitarist/musician, who would it be, and where would you go? Gabe Lullo  36:36 Wow, I love this question. I do play the guitar. I’m a bet big avid music player. Love Rock as well, but all genres, I will say, in real life, we just actually my family, my wife and daughter and I went to go see Oasis reunion tour, which was in Toronto, actually, out of all places. Christian Klepp  36:53 That’s right, you mentioned it. Gabe Lullo  36:54 Yeah, we went to see that. It was epic. Obviously, the brothers have been apart for many years. A lot of drama there. But yeah, you know, I’m old enough to remember their original songs, so it was cool to reminisce and introduce my daughter to that music, which was pretty cool. We’re gonna go see Paul McCartney in a few weeks. He’s on tour now and never seen him or I’m a big fan of The Beatles, and I think that would be really exciting to tour with him, obviously. And I think those are definitely both of those right there kind of sum up the type of music that I resonate with. Christian Klepp  37:26 Amazing, amazing. I just remember, like, this is, this is a couple of years ago. I think he’s already passed away, but Compay Segundo. Gabe Lullo  37:33 Oh yeah. Christian Klepp  37:34 Buena Vista Social Club. And the guy was in his 90s, and they were, they had a concert, and they they brought him up in stage in his wheelchair, helped him get up, get out of that wheelchair, and they gave him that guitar, and off he went, Man, like, Gabe Lullo  37:48 Yeah, yeah, that’s amazing, man, that’s amazing. Christian Klepp  37:53 Gabe, this has been such a great conversation. Thank you so much for coming on and for sharing your experience and expertise with the listeners. So please quick intro to yourself and how folks out there can get in touch with you. Gabe Lullo  38:03 Yeah, LinkedIn is the best way to connect with me directly. I post twice a day, every day. We’re very bullish with our content. There’s a lot of free material there. We have a newsletter, so please take a look at that, and if you like what you see, and he heard today, you know, reach out, and I’ll definitely be responsive. And you know, anyone who is looking or struggling with the after-sales motion, which are after marketing motion, that sales development function, that’s where we play, and we’d love to look at what you’re looking for and see how we can help. Christian Klepp  38:33 Sounds good. Gabe, once again, thank you so much for your time. Take care, stay safe and talk to you soon. Gabe Lullo  38:38 Thanks, Christian. Christian Klepp  38:39 All right. Bye for now.

January buyers are motivated to fix Q4 problems, but their calendars are slammed. That means the rep who wins time, wins the conversation.In the second part of the prospecting masterclass, Chelsea Rickman and Marcus Chan joined the show to teach the cold calling tactics that work when prospects come into the new year with tight schedules and a reset mindset.You will learn how to open calls with confidence, break through early objections, and earn time with short, sharp, helpful discovery.We will close with how to land a next step when calendars are packed, using low-friction CTAs and simple micro commitments that keep momentum alive even when a full meeting seems impossible.You'll Learn:Three cold call frameworks for Q1: openings, micro discovery, and next stepsHow to reframe early objections like without sounding pushyLow friction CTAs that earn next steps when prospects have no timeThe Speakers:Leslie Douglas, Chelsea Rickman and Marcus ChanIf you want to catch The Daily Sales Show live, join hereFollow Sell Better to get the latest actionable tactics from sales pros at the top of their gameExplore our YouTube ChannelThank you to our sponsors: Gong and Hubspot

13 Jan 2025. ADNOC Distribution has opened one of the world’s largest fast EV charging hubs on the E11 between Dubai and Abu Dhabi, capable of charging up to 60 cars at once. We ask CMO Jacqueline El Boghdadi just how fast “fast charging” really is. Plus, as the World Future Energy Summit kicks off, sustainability expert Tanzeed Alam explains what it will actually mean for businesses in 2026. We also speak to Parkin about its new tie-up with Spinneys and the future of paid parking in the UAE. And former Gong and Clari content chief Devin Reed tells us why LinkedIn matters more than most people realise.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

MIT reports that 95% of AI initiatives are failing to show ROI. Pablo Dominguez, Operating Partner at Insight Partners, joins the show to explain how to escape that group, and be in the 5% of companies that succeed. Pablo opens the playbook on "Dylan," Insight's internal system of 13 autonomous agents that cut their due diligence process from 35 hours down to 14. Other high points: How Insight used tools like Relevance AI and Gong to build an agent swarm that handles research, analysis, and data cleaning. Why Engineers aren't necessarily who you'd want to build these workflows (and who you need instead) How the CEO of a successful SaaS company is aiming for 5x developer productivity in 2026 Plus the "why" behind some spicy 2026 predictions like: the death of the traditional CRM, Sam Altman's potential exit from OpenAI, and the coming consolidation of "vibe coding" platforms. Thanks for tuning in! Catch new episodes every Sunday Subscribe to Topline Newsletter. Tune into Topline Podcast, the #1 podcast for founders, operators, and investors in B2B tech. Join the free Topline Slack channel to connect with 600+ revenue leaders to keep the conversation going beyond the podcast!   Chapters: 00:00 Introduction: Pablo Dominguez and Insight Partners 04:57 Insight's Structure and Value Creation Engine 08:12 Why Most Companies Fail to Get AI ROI 11:05 Case Study: Automating Diligence with AI Agents 15:39 Resources Required to Build Autonomous Systems 21:23 Managing Hallucinations and Accuracy in AI 31:09 Scaling AI Literacy and Organizational Fluency 37:15 Measuring Engineering Productivity and Cloud Coding 43:14 Balancing AI Automation with Human Authenticity 52:23 Market Trends: Buyer Behavior and Churn Risks 57:18 The Spectrum: From Workflows to Agentic Systems 01:01:13 Why Retention Issues Are Always Product Problems 01:04:35 Bold Industry Predictions for 2026 01:05:43 The Potential Death of the Traditional CRM  

#thePOZcast is proudly brought to you by Fountain - the leading enterprise platform for workforce management. Our platform enables companies to support their frontline workers from job application to departure. Fountain elevates the hiring, management, and retention of frontline workers at scale.To learn more, please visit: https://www.fountain.com/?utm_source=shrm-2024&utm_medium=event&utm_campaign=shrm-2024-podcast-adam-posner.Thanks for listening, and please follow us on Insta @NHPTalent and www.youtube.com/thePOZcastFor all episodes, please check out www.thePOZcast.com Takeaways- Recruiting success is measured by a percentage of wins.- Personal experiences can profoundly influence professional motivations.- Life's challenges can provide clarity on what truly matters.- Caring about your work leads to emotional investment in outcomes.- Resilience is key in navigating the ups and downs of business.- Perspective shifts can arise from significant life events.- The importance of providing the right solutions in business.- Emotional roller coasters are part of the people business.- Understanding losses is crucial for growth in recruiting.- Finding meaning in work can stem from personal experiences.Chapters  [00:01] Welcome + Why We're Here — Adam tees up the POZcast mission and today's focus.[00:01] Guest Intro: Jordan Gasparri — From growing up in recruiting to founding Exclusent and winning an Inc. Power Partner Award.[01:16] Warming Up — Jordan joins; mutual respect and setting the table.[02:16] Growing Up with a Recruiter Dad — Early exposure, high-school internship, and falling in love with the craft.[03:21] Thrill of the Hunt — Why negotiation hooked Jordan and how recruiters drive real comp outcomes.[04:19] Old-School Lessons — Pre-LinkedIn fundamentals: presentability, first impressions, and context by role.[05:41] Art vs. Science — Motivation mapping, relationship foundations, and what tech can't replace.[06:37] Founding Exclusent After Loss — Channeling grief into purpose, betting on yourself, and early survival.[08:08] Agency vs. Solo — The leap from desk to founder, support systems, and the “eat what you kill” mindset.[10:17] ‘Unhireable' Bias — The corporate return dilemma for entrepreneurs and what hiring teams miss.[12:13] Taking Bigger Swings — Compounding courage, offices, gear, and managing the losses (baseball analogy).[14:11] Handling Failures Fast — Day-of fury, next-day reset; contingency realities and resilience.[16:47] AI + Authenticity — What Exclusent automates (sourcing, verification, notes) vs. what stays human (relationships).[18:19] Tools in the Stack — Sourcing evolution, AI interviews for access + fairness, caution on agentic outreach.[20:08] New Roles in TA — Vendor bets, process owners, and the rise of AI/TA SMEs.[22:36] Volume, Speed, and CX — Instant assessments, fewer ghosted candidates, smarter human time.[25:28] Negotiation Masterclass — Real-market intel over Glassdoor, lever trading (base, equity, PTO), and tough love.[27:17] Salary Bands & Candor — Setting expectations, transparency on caps, and why companies pay for value.[29:16] The Negotiation Room — Jordan's new series: real back-and-forths, 3-minute breakdowns, teachable plays.[31:41] Offer Horror Stories — Sunday-night reversals, bonus games, and ethics fails caught on Gong.[36:23] The Next 5 Years — A tight team of 10 great recruiters, sensible AI, and protecting service quality.[37:58] Advice to Younger Self — Calm down, ride the waves, keep shipping good work.[38:52] Never Lift Off the Gas — Consistency lessons from dry spells; content + practitioner balance.[40:10] What Keeps Him Up — Housing hunt, macro uncertainty, and waiting for clearer signals.[41:33] Defining Success — Peace of mind over vanity metrics; doing work you're proud of.[42:48] Wrap + Calls to Action — Where to find Jordan/Exclusent and how to support the show.

Nine years in. 500 episodes later. Hundreds of CMOs on the mic. A deep well of marketing wisdom for anyone brave enough to draw from it. This milestone episode is a celebration of the bold B2B ideas, experiments, and hard-earned lessons that have filled the show from day one. Thank-you to every marketer who has listened, shared, and dared to try something new because of what they heard here.    Recorded live at the 2025 Super Huddle, Drew's conversations with Udi Ledergor, Denise Persson and Chris Degnan, and Carilu Dietrich anchor this milestone episode.  In this episode:  Udi shares how Gong pulled off a Super Bowl spot on a regional budget, aimed it at VPs of Sales, and tracked impact in traffic, conversations, and pipeline.  Denise and Chris explain how a CMO and CRO stayed aligned through four CEOs at Snowflake and evolved the story from "cloud data warehouse" to "data cloud," all in lockstep.  Carilu shows how Lovable is building a movement with real users as influencers, a CEO who lives on social, and a speed-first mindset tuned to the pace of AI and customer buzz.  Plus:  Why a "crazy ideas" budget creates room for standout plays that still satisfy the CFO  How empathy for sales and shared ownership of the number strengthen CRO-CMO alignment  How CEO-led social, customer stories, and edutainment power modern B2B brands  What it takes to move at AI speed while keeping product value and customer love at the center If you want a concentrated hit of CMO-level courage, alignment, and playmaking, this milestone episode is your highlight reel.  For full show notes and transcripts, visit https://renegademarketing.com/podcasts/ To learn more about CMO Huddles, visit https://cmohuddles.com/

We are back, back, back! We're so excited to share with you all the recommendations we've accumulated over our break. As always, please send your recommendations to our instagram @makingthecutpodcast.Play Date - https://gotoplaydate.com/Eight Inch Chainsaw - https://oneclearwinner.co.uk/product/8-inch-cordless-chainsaw/?wbraid=Cj4KCAiAmePKBhAgEi4AYUdBECqphovMwOjNFN90eRaU986eOVxQ7Qj5nNmWyn-fFEhXqdg5QZsxDTjMGgLDxQ&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21370078229&gclid=Cj0KCQiAvOjKBhC9ARIsAFvz5lgWMUbubMNkWXDAf7F2gE2LfABVFMQi1DKiyYQ4p9W2QAFaDBuLqgIaAgDYEALw_wcBThe Tribe - https://www.thetribe.berlin/?srsltid=AfmBOorgHnGE3IhFAWlBX7kEMjUK0LXWpBkuq8bZdbMwuK-4DnXlyK5pSonora Gong - https://grottasonora.com/product-category/gong/deep-gong/?currency=EURGongs - https://www.gear4music.com/Percussion/Orchestral/Gongs.htmlMerlin - https://merlin.allaboutbirds.org/Don't Lose Time - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgTCvqE3xyA Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We put Evan Greek (Commercial AE at Gong) and Florin Tatulea (Head of Sales Development at Common Room) in a cold email cage match: 10 minutes per round, weird prompts, and you have to write something that would actually get a reply. Jason Bay (CEO at Outbound Squad) judges based on [The Reply Method](https://www.30mpc.com/course/cold-email-course) framework.  Evan and Florin show how they use AI in real time to research accounts and draft highly personalized emails in minutes (not hours), then do the human edits for finishing touches. These Courses Will Get You to President's Club

It's 2026…are we really still doing podcast episode descriptions? I mean, come on! It should be AI! Or it should be some guy on the other side of the world that we're just saying is AI. It should be at least that. UGH! Fine. I will write it. But it WON'T be good. On this episode of YKS there's a dog…uh, thing. Honestly this was recorded last month I don't remember what these were, save for one. I really really don't like the guy making the podcast about bringing people together. Well, I guess I should say I don't like the podcast, not that I don't like him. I don't know him. And actually I didn't really listen to the podcast, either, so that hardly seems fair. If I really think about it, what's causing me to have this reaction to him? Resentment…jealousy…just the way I was brought up? Gosh, I've never really thought about it. But now that I have, I have decided to change my mind. I'm now in favor of stupid fucking fake crap you put online for clout. And with that, enjoy this episode of Crap Shit Sucks: The AssCast. Music for YKS is courtesy of Howell Dawdy, Craig Dickman, Mr. Baloney, and Mark Brendle. Additional research by Zeke Golvin. YKS is edited by Producer Dan. Social Media by Maddalena Alvarez.Executive Producer Tim Faust (@crulge)We pour our damn hearts and souls into YKS Premium! And occasionally, we pour our Gatorades down our LEGS! If you're into any of that, Follow us on Instagram: @YKSPod, TikTok: YourKickstarterSucks and subscribe to our YouTube channel for more video stuff! Wow, 2025 is lit!! Gift subscriptions to YKS Premium are now available at Patreon.com/yourkickstartersucks/giftSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Send us a textZack Oates sits down with Geoff Henry, President of the Americas at Gong cha, to talk about what it takes to build and scale a global beverage brand. With leadership experience at Coca Cola, Jamba Juice, and now Gong cha, Geoff shares how personalization, quality, and data shape the modern guest experience in beverage concepts. The conversation explores why bubble tea has become a defining category for younger consumers, how kiosks and digital ordering impact satisfaction, and what brands must do to stay relevant as guest expectations evolve.Zack and Geoff discuss: Personalization and customization at scale Why bubble tea resonates with Gen Z consumers The role of kiosks and digital ordering Using guest feedback to guide decisions Brands that are getting guest experience rightThanks, Geoff!Links:https://www.linkedin.com/in/geoff-henry/https://www.linkedin.com/company/gongchagloballtd/about/https://www.gong-cha.com/https://www.instagram.com/gongchatea/

Jason Lemkin is the founder of SaaStr, the world's largest community for software founders, and a veteran SaaS investor who has deployed over $200 million into B2B startups. After his last salesperson quit, Jason made a radical decision: replace his entire go-to-market team with AI agents. What started as an experiment has transformed into a new operating model, where 20 AI agents managed by just 1.2 humans now do the work previously handled by a team of 10 SDRs and AEs. In this conversation, Jason shares his hands-on experience implementing AI to run his sales org, including what works, what doesn't, and how the GTM landscape is quickly being transformed.We discuss:1. How AI is fundamentally changing the sales function2. Why most SDRs and BDRs will be “extinct” within a year3. What Jason is observing across his portfolio about AI adoption in GTM4. How to become “hyper-employable” in the age of AI5. The specific AI tools and tactics he's using that have been working best6. Practical frameworks for integrating AI into your sales motion without losing what works7. Jason's 2026 predictions on where SaaS and GTM are heading next—Brought to you by:DX—The developer intelligence platform designed by leading researchersVercel—Your collaborative AI assistant to design, iterate, and scale full-stack applications for the webDatadog—Now home to Eppo, the leading experimentation and feature flagging platform—Transcript: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/we-replaced-our-sales-team-with-20-ai-agents—My biggest takeaways (for paid newsletter subscribers): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/i/182902716/my-biggest-takeaways-from-this-conversation—Where to find Jason Lemkin:• X: https://x.com/jasonlk• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonmlemkin• Website: https://www.saastr.com• Substack: https://substack.com/@cloud—Where to find Lenny:• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/—In this episode, we cover:(00:00) Introduction to Jason Lemkin(04:36) What SaaStr does(07:13) AI's impact on sales teams(10:11) How SaaStr's AI agents work and their performance(14:18) How go-to-market is changing in the AI era(19:19) The future of SDRs, BDRs, and AEs in sales(22:03) Why leadership roles are safe(23:43) How to be in the 20% who thrive in the AI sales future(28:40) Why you shouldn't build your own AI tools(30:10) Specific AI agents and their applications(36:40) Challenges and learnings in AI deployment(42:11) Making AI-generated emails good (not just acceptable)(47:31) When humans still beat AI in sales(52:39) An overview of SaaStr's org(53:50) The role of human oversight in AI operations(58:37) Advice for salespeople and founders in the AI era(01:05:40) Forward-deployed engineers(01:08:08) What's changing and what's staying the same in sales(01:16:21) Why AI is creating more work, not less(01:19:32) Why Jason says these are magical times(01:25:25) The "incognito mode test" for finding AI opportunities(01:27:19) The impact of AI on jobs(01:30:18) Lightning round and final thoughts—Referenced:• Building a world-class sales org | Jason Lemkin (SaaStr): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/building-a-world-class-sales-org• SaaStr Annual: https://www.saastrannual.com• Delphi: https://www.delphi.ai/saastr/talk• Amelia Lerutte on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelialerutte/• Vercel: https://vercel.com• What world-class GTM looks like in 2026 | Jeanne DeWitt Grosser (Vercel, Stripe, Google): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/what-the-best-gtm-teams-do-differently• Everyone's an engineer now: Inside v0's mission to create a hundred million builders | Guillermo Rauch (founder and CEO of Vercel, creators of v0 and Next.js): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/everyones-an-engineer-now-guillermo-rauch• Replit: https://replit.com• Behind the product: Replit | Amjad Masad (co-founder and CEO): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/behind-the-product-replit-amjad-masad• ElevenLabs: https://elevenlabs.io• The exact AI playbook (using MCPs, custom GPTs, Granola) that saved ElevenLabs $100k+ and helps them ship daily | Luke Harries (Head of Growth): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-ai-marketing-stack• Bolt: https://bolt.new• Lovable: https://lovable.dev• Harvey: https://www.harvey.ai• Samsara: https://www.samsara.com/products/platform/ai-samsara-intelligence• UiPath: https://www.uipath.com• Denise Dresser on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/denisedresser• Agentforce: https://www.salesforce.com/form/agentforce• SaaStr's AI Agent Playbook: https://saastr.ai/agents• Brian Halligan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianhalligan• Brian Halligan's AI: https://www.delphi.ai/minds/bhalligan• Sierra: https://sierra.ai• Fin: https://fin.ai• Deccan: https://www.deccan.ai• Artisan: https://www.artisan.co• Qualified: https://www.qualified.com• Claude: https://claude.ai• HubSpot: https://www.hubspot.com• Gamma: https://gamma.app• Sam Blond on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-blond-791026b• Brex: https://www.brex.com• Outreach: https://www.outreach.io• Gong: https://www.gong.io• Salesloft: https://www.salesloft.com• Mixmax: https://www.mixmax.com• “Sell the alpha, not the feature”: The enterprise sales playbook for $1M to $10M ARR | Jen Abel: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-enterprise-sales-playbook-1m-to-10m-arr• Clay: https://www.clay.com• Owner: https://www.owner.com• Momentum: https://www.momentum.io• Attention: https://www.attention.com• Granola: https://www.granola.ai• Behind the founder: Marc Benioff: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/behind-the-founder-marc-benioff• Palantir: https://www.palantir.com• Databricks: https://www.databricks.com• Garry Tan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garrytan• Rippling: https://www.rippling.com• Cursor: https://cursor.com• The rise of Cursor: The $300M ARR AI tool that engineers can't stop using | Michael Truell (co-founder and CEO): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-rise-of-cursor-michael-truell• The new AI growth playbook for 2026: How Lovable hit $200M ARR in one year | Elena Verna (Head of Growth): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-new-ai-growth-playbook-for-2026-elena-verna• Pluribus on AppleTV+: https://tv.apple.com/us/show/pluribus/umc.cmc.37axgovs2yozlyh3c2cmwzlza• Sora: https://openai.com/sora• Reve: https://app.reve.com• Everything That Breaks on the Way to $1B ARR, with Mailchimp Co-Founder Ben Chestnut: https://www.saastr.com/everything-that-breaks-on-the-way-to-1b-arr-with-mailchimp-co-founder-ben-chestnut/• The Revenue Playbook: Rippling's Top 3 Growth Tactics at Scale, with Rippling CRO Matt Plank: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3eYtzBpjRw• 10 contrarian leadership truths every leader needs to hear | Matt MacInnis (Rippling): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/10-contrarian-leadership-truths—Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.—Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

In this episode, Adam Ochart, #1 sales rep from Gong breaks down the exact demo framework that helped him earn 8 promotions, consistently win enterprise deals, and maintain a 30%+ win rate. He walks through how to prep demos, align with buyers before clicking anything, run discovery during the demo, and frame every feature using a why-before-what approach so prospects experience a true “test drive.” This is a tactical, repeatable demo playbook for sellers who want higher conversion rates and faster promotions. These Courses Will Get You to President's Club