Podcasts about marketing teams

This week on Alter Everything, dive into a comprehensive discussion on how AI is reshaping marketing teams, outlining what tasks AI is best suited for, and emphasizing the critical role of human oversight. This episode offers practical insights on integrating AI tools effectively while maintaining brand integrity and governance.Start your 30 day free trial of Alteryx desktop or the Analytics cloud platform at https://www.alteryx.com/AlterEverythingSubscribe to the Alter Everything podcast on your favorite podcast app:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/alter-everything/id1356137854Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/17KLxb23QlvgcbvLiaPck1?si=FWmOQEITRFCQ42smFjOpfAStitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/alteryx/alter-everythingEpisode Chapters0:00 AI meets real marketing teams1:35 What inbound marketing means4:08 Where AI in marketing stands today7:11 Adoption challenges: tools, workflows, and mindset12:00 The 80/20 shift for AI work15:50 Copywriting, brand voice, and human editing22:37 AI, design, and human creativity27:48 Marketing tech stacks and AI literacy34:04 Governance, security, and shadow AI40:32 What AI-first marketing teams may look like45:32 Lightning round: tools, skills, and mistakes51:18 Closing reflections

Unser heutiger Gast war schon einmal bei uns, in Folge 163. Damals haben wir über ein Leben gesprochen, das sich an einer sehr klaren Frage orientiert: „To live a life worthy of the respect and the love of my children and my wife.“ Er lebt seit über 20 Jahren in Kapstadt, ist Big-Wave-Surfer, Imker, Permakulturist und Vater von fünf Kindern, Zwillinge und Drillinge, geboren innerhalb von 13 Monaten. Unternehmerisch gehört er zu denjenigen, die Remote Work nicht diskutiert, sondern gebaut haben, bereits Anfang der 2000er mit einer der ersten vollständig remote arbeitenden Digitalagenturen für Kunden in Deutschland und der Schweiz. Heute führt er dieses Denken konsequent weiter. Mit The Factory hat er ein Produktionshaus aufgebaut, das sich auf die skalierte Ausproduktion digitaler Werbemittel spezialisiert hat, über 100.000 Assets pro Jahr für mehr als 100 Premium-Brands im DACH-Raum. Sein Fokus liegt darauf, Marketing-Teams ihre Zeit zurückzugeben, durch klar strukturierte Prozesse, eigene Software und eine radikale Effizienz in der Umsetzung. Sein Garnatieversprechen ist dabei so einfach wie selbstbewusst: Unhappy? You don't pay. Parallel dazu verfolgt er weiterhin seine zweite große Mission: Mit DADicated hat er eine Plattform geschaffen, die Väter stärkt und die Rolle von Vätern neu denkt – mit der Überzeugung, dass starke Familien die Grundlage für eine bessere Gesellschaft sind. Seit 9 Jahren beschäftigen wir uns in diesem Podcast mit der Frage, wie Arbeit den Menschen stärkt, statt ihn zu schwächen. Wir haben in mehr als 550 Episoden mit mehr als 700 Persönlichkeiten darüber gesprochen, was sich für sie verändert hat und was sich weiter ändern muss. Was verstehen Unternehmen bis heute nicht an Remote Work, obwohl es seit Jahren möglich ist? Wo genau verlieren Marketing-Teams heute am meisten Zeit und warum ist es so oft die Produktion von Werbemitteln? Und wie balanciert man ein Leben zwischen fünf Kindern, Big Waves und einem Business, das auf maximale Skalierung ausgelegt ist? Fest steht: Für die Lösung unserer aktuellen Herausforderungen brauchen wir neue Impulse. Daher suchen wir weiter nach Methoden, Vorbildern, Erfahrungen, Tools und Ideen, die uns dem Kern von New Work näherbringen. Darüber hinaus beschäftigt uns von Anfang an die Frage, ob wirklich alle Menschen das finden und leben können, was sie im Innersten wirklich, wirklich wollen. Ihr seid bei On the Way to New Work, heute mit Philipp Hartmann. [Hier](https://linktr.ee/onthewaytonewwork) findet ihr alle Links zum Podcast und unseren aktuellen Werbepartnern

In a marketing landscape shaped by lean teams, rising expectations, and an ever-expanding stack of AI tools, many leaders are asking the same question: do agencies still have a role to play? In this episode, Galen Low sits down with Tammy Valentine, President of LuckyTamm Marketing Group, to explore how boutique agencies are evolving in the age of AI—and why human expertise, trust, and collaboration still matter.Together, they unpack where AI genuinely adds value, where it falls short, and how marketing leaders can build stronger agency partnerships that help them achieve more with less. Along the way, they share practical lessons on experimentation, brand trust, onboarding, and the fundamentals that continue to drive marketing success regardless of technology shifts.Resources from this episode:Join the Digital Project Manager CommunitySubscribe to the newsletter to get our latest articles and podcastsConnect with Tammy on LinkedInVisit LuckyTamm

How to Build a Marketing Team That People Don't Want to Leave On this episode host Adam Turinas sits down with Larry Kaiser, Chief Marketing Officer at Optimum Healthcare IT, for a candid conversation about what it really takes to build a marketing team that lasts. Larry has spent nearly a decade growing the marketing function at Optimum from a logo and an outdated Drupal website into a tight, high-performing team. The lessons he has picked up along the way are ones that any marketing leader in healthtech will recognize. Find all of our network podcasts on your favorite podcast platforms and be sure to subscribe and like us. Learn more at www.healthcarenowradio.com/listen

Während die Schlagzeilen fast täglich neue Modell-Updates feiern, plädiert Fabian Ulitzka (Gründer von faive) für einen Perspektivwechsel. In dieser Folge von Digitale Vorreiter:innen erklärt der erfahrene Unternehmer, warum Unternehmen nicht primär technologischen Trends folgen sollten, sondern ihre eigene Wertschöpfung konsequent neu definieren müssen. Fabian räumt mit dem Mythos auf, dass KI lediglich ein Werkzeug zur Effizienzsteigerung ist. Er zeigt auf, wie Marketing-Teams durch echtes Enablement und den Einsatz von KI-Agenten den Sprung von der reinen Content-Produktion hin zu echter Innovation und nachhaltigem Wachstum meistern.

College marketing teams are being asked to do more than ever before, often with limited time, staff, and resources. So how do you move beyond production work and become a strategic partner across campus? In this QuickTake episode of the Higher Education Conversations Podcast, Cheryl Broom shares the mindset shifts community college marketing teams need to make to operate more strategically, efficiently, and effectively.Drawing on her experience as a former community college marketing director and now an agency CEO, Cheryl shares practical lessons on how even small teams can function like high-performing in-house agencies. If your team feels overwhelmed by requests, struggles to move from “vendor” to “strategic partner,” or is looking for ways to operate more efficiently, this conversation is for you.What You'll Learn:Why colleges need to position marketing teams as strategic partners, not production vendors How saying no to the wrong projects can improve your team's effectiveness Why building flex time into your schedule is critical for handling campus “emergencies” How understanding billable vs. non-billable time can transform team productivity Why the best in-house marketing teams know when to bring in outside supportThanks for listening!Connect with GradComm:Instagram: @gradcommunicationsFacebook: @GradCommunicationsLinkedIn: @gradcommSend us a message: GradComm.comHigher Ed Conversations is hosted by Cheryl Broom, CEO of GradComm, a marketing and branding agency specializing in community colleges and public education.

When your G2 category has 97 listings and the average is 75, sounding like everyone else is a death sentence. In this episode of Content Amplified, Mike McGee, Director of Product Marketing at Vantaca, explains why he's building his PMM team to look less like a traditional org chart and more like a digital newsroom, with product marketers assigned to specific customer roles the way reporters are assigned to beats. Mike walks through the inspiration (Nilay Patel's Decoder, the Brian Chesky episode on how Airbnb blended product, PMM, and program management), the internal precedent at Vantaca (support and implementation already reorganized around customer roles instead of platform modules), and the Seth Godin "who's it for, what's it for" lens he uses to pressure-test every messaging decision. He also gets honest about when not to overhaul an org: look at what's predictable and replicable first, find the gaps, and only do a major restructure when there's no tenable way to get from where you are to where you want to go. If you're scaling a PMM team and tired of inheriting your competitors' pitfalls, this one's for you.About MikeMike McGee is the Director of Product Marketing at Vantaca, where he leads the team responsible for messaging and go-to-market in community association management software. Mike got into marketing through customer success, spending several years managing the largest customers at a property management software company and learning how to translate one-on-one relationships into one-to-many storytelling. He joined Vantaca in May of 2025 and is currently scaling the PMM team from two people to five. Mike believes in breaking the rules when the rules just inherit your competitors' pitfalls, and he comes back constantly to the question of whether the team is serving customers to the utmost of its potential.Show Notes- Connect with Mike on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikepmcgee/- Decoder with Nilay Patel (referenced episode: Brian Chesky on Airbnb's product/PMM/program management restructure)Text us what you think about this episode!

Your marketing strategy is only as strong as the team executing it. Cardinal's VP of Brand Marketing Ashley Petrochenko sits down on the Ignite Healthcare Marketing Podcast with Kelly Perritt, Chief Marketing and Brand Strategy Officer at Horry Georgetown Technical College and a 20-year healthcare marketing veteran. Kelly shares the leadership principles she's used to build high-performing teams across nonprofit, for-profit, and academic healthcare environments, and why getting this right is the real driver of marketing results. You'll walk away with: A practical framework for aligning team members to roles based on strengths, not job titles Why listening is the most underrated skill in healthcare marketing leadership How to break down silos and create cross-functional alignment through process documentation What to look for when hiring multidimensional marketing talent in an AI-driven world If you want to build a team that can actually keep pace with where healthcare marketing is heading, this episode is essential listening. RELATED RESOURCES Connect with Kelly: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellymperritt/ Marketing + Operations: Why Total Alignment is Vital to Growth - https://www.cardinaldigitalmarketing.com/healthcare-resources/blog/healthcare-marketing-operations-alignment/ Harnessing the Power of AI Marketing for Healthcare - https://www.cardinaldigitalmarketing.com/healthcare-resources/blog/harnessing-ai-marketing-for-healthcare/ Is Your Organization Actually Ready for Marketing? - https://www.cardinaldigitalmarketing.com/healthcare-resources/blog/marketing-readiness/ How to Build a Healthcare Marketing Roadmap That Drives Patient Growth - https://www.cardinaldigitalmarketing.com/healthcare-resources/blog/how-to-build-digital-marketing-roadmap/

A CMO Confidential Interview with Jean English, CMO of CoreWeave, formerly the CMO of Juniper Networks, Armis, Palo Alto Networks and NetApp. Jean discusses the dynamics driving the voracious demand for computing power, why cloud infrastructure matters so much, and the ongoing AI shift from training to inference. Key topics include: - How models are leapfrogging each other at speed- The importance of B2B brands at a time when decisions are often made by teams of people- Why marketing is a great use case for AI- Creative uses for hackathonsTune in to hear why "80% right" is okay and a story about using AI for parenting advice. This episode is sponsored by Typeface - the agentic AI marketing platform that turns one idea into thousands of on-brand assets. Learn more: typeface.ai/cmoSubscribe for weekly episodes featuring world-class marketing leaders, board members, and C-Suite executives.⏱️ Chapters01:31 Guest Intro: Jean English (CMO, CoreWeave) 02:39 What CoreWeave Does (AI Cloud Explained) 04:20 AI Hype vs Reality 07:05 The AI Market & Competitive Landscape 09:40 Building an AI Brand 11:00 Buying Groups & Enterprise Complexity 13:01 Measuring AI Infrastructure Performance 15:32 Why Brand Matters in AI 18:11 IPO, Growth & Market Expansion 20:34 AI's Impact on Marketing Teams 24:32 Infrastructure, Scale & Future Demand 28:26 Final Advice for Marketers + Closing#AI #ArtificialIntelligence #CMO #MarketingLeadership #B2BMarketing #AIMarketing #GenerativeAI #AIInfrastructure #CloudComputing #DigitalTransformation #MarketingStrategy #FutureOfWork #AITrends #TechLeadership #BrandStrategy #EnterpriseAI #Innovation #MarketingAI #Leadership #ContentAtScaleSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode of the Healthcare Success Podcast, Stewart Gandolf is joined by Brooke Hynes, Anissa Davenport, and Dave Eilers of Possibility Partners to unpack one of the most persistent challenges in healthcare organizations: team dysfunction. From unclear roles and internal silos to cross-functional friction with IT, operations, and administration, healthcare marketing teams are under increasing pressure to perform—often without the alignment needed to succeed. The conversation explores why marketing teams frequently feel misunderstood, how that impacts performance, and what leaders can do to fix it.

AI has made marketing easier to produce - but harder to win. That's the sharp framing Cameron Partridge, Chief Growth Officer at Humanforce, brings to this conversation. Drawing on nearly a decade in the US, including a front-row seat to the AI boom at Invisible Technologies, working directly with OpenAI, Meta, Google, and Microsoft on AI training, Cameron delivers one of the most grounded takes on where marketing is heading. From the collapse of specialist roles to why marketing must own revenue, this is the episode to send to every marketing leader sitting on the fence about what AI means for their team and career. Guest Introduction Cameron Partridge is Chief Growth Officer at Humanforce, an AI-driven human capital management platform serving frontline workforces globally. He spent nearly a decade in the US, most recently as CMO of Invisible Technologies, one of North America's fastest-growing AI companies, where he helped grow revenue from $25-30M to close to $200M run rate while working directly with the world's leading AI model providers. He previously held senior leadership roles at BBDO and Macquarie Group, and began his career at Medibank, Telstra, and GE Capital in Australia. Key Topics Why AI has lowered the floor of marketing quality and what "AI slop" means for how you actually win in a crowded content landscapeHow the marketing function is collapsing from siloed specialists into generalists - and why that's both an opportunity and a threatWhy Cameron no longer hires for deep channel expertise, and what he looks for instead: cultural fit, outcomes focus, and "neural plasticity"Why marketing must stop reporting on activity and move toward shared revenue ownership with sales - and the rise of the Chief Growth Officer titleThe go-to-market engineer role: what it is, why it's a critical hire, and why these people are rare in AustraliaWhy AI boosts individual productivity but not organisational productivity, and how systems thinking closes the gapCameron's AI toolkit: Claude for deep work, ChatGPT for quick questions, Claude Code for vibe coding - and why courses are the wrong way to learn AIThe job outlook for marketers: why middle managers face the most risk and why now is the time to act Resources & Links Tools Claude - Cameron's go-to for deep work and complex tasksClaude Code - Used by Cameron for vibe coding projectsChatGPT - Cameron's "new Google" for quick questionsManus - Meta owned AI agent platform Cameron is experimenting withNotebookLM - Recommended for knowledge workSEMrush - Part of Cameron's cross-platform insights dashboardX (formerly Twitter) - Recommended for following AI researchersSubstack - Recommended for action-oriented AI insights People Mentioned Allie K. Miller - Top LinkedIn voice on AI; also on Instagram Companies OpenAI - Worked with directly at Invisible Technologies; recommended for following researchersAnthropic - Makers of Claude; referenced as a foundational model provider worth followingGoogle - Referenced in Cameron's analytics dashboard and as a major AI model providerInvisible Technologies - Cameron's former employer; recommended as a source for enterprise AI developments Contact & Credits Host: Shahin Hoda Guest: Cameron Partridge Produced by:  Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell Edited by: Alexander Hipwell Music by: Breakmaster Cylinder APAC's B2B Growth Podcast is Presented by xGrowth

On She Built It®, Dr. Debbie Qaqish, creator of Revenue Marketing® and founder of The Growth Factor, shares why the most urgent problem in marketing leadership today isn't strategy or AI; it's the human being trying to keep up with all of it.With 35 years in B2B marketing and a deeply personal journey through depression, ketamine therapy, and positive psychology, Dr. Debbie brings a rare combination of hard-won experience and science-backed tools to one of the most demanding roles in business. She talks about what survival mode is costing leaders and teams, how neuroscience explains why stress narrows our thinking, and the practical techniques (from breathwork to reframing to gratitude) that help leaders shift from hanging on by their fingernails to genuinely flourishing at work. This conversation is equal parts science, strategy, and deeply human.Connect with us:The Growth Factor WebsiteDr. Debbie Qaqish LinkedInDr. Debbie Qaqish TikTokVIA Institute on CharacterLeadership ResetWork with She Built It® Media She Built It® Instagram She Built It® CEO, Melanie Barr InstagramMelanie Barr LinkedInShe Built It® LinkedIn

Live-Webinare sind für Loser!Zumindest dann, wenn man davon abhängig ist. Es gibt einen besseren Weg, der uns durchschnittlich 1,79 Mio. € pro Kampagne eingebracht hat und konstant über Jahre hinweg läuft.Einen Weg, der Marketing-Agenturen überflüssig macht und Marketing-Teams in den Urlaub schickt, sobald er einmal aufgesetzt ist. Einen Weg, der Coaches, Berater und Ausbildungsanbieter reich gemacht hat.Und heute plaudern wir aus dem Nähkästchen.Viel Spaß mit der Folge!Warteliste:

This week on the Builder Marketing Podcast, Will Duderstadt of M/I Homes joins Greg and Kevin to share his experience on how to inspire, train, and lead a home builder marketing team to success. Whether you are managing a small team or directing a large, geographically dispersed group, this conversation will help you level up your leadership. https://www.buildermarketingpodcast.com/episodes/316-inspiring-and-leading-a-home-builder-marketing-team-will-duderstadt

In this episode, host Sandy Vance welcomes back Kathryn Ayers Wickenhauser, Chief Strategy Officer at DirectTrust, for her third time on the show. This time the conversation goes deeper than ever, covering three major developments: DirectTrust's role in vetting apps for the new CMS Medicare App Library, the launch of a groundbreaking AI accreditation program built on the NIST AI Risk Management Framework, and the urgent but widely misunderstood gap in HIPAA coverage that leaves millions of consumers thinking their health data is protected when it really isn't. If you work anywhere in the health tech ecosystem, this episode is essential listening. In this episode, they talk about: HIPAA only covers covered entities and business associates, meaning most consumer health apps have little obligation to protect your data The CMS Medicare App Library is a vetted directory of trusted digital health apps, and DirectTrust is helping validate which apps earn a spot in it When CMS moves, the rest of the industry follows, making this app library a trust signal far beyond Medicare beneficiaries DirectTrust's AI accreditation program is built on the NIST AI Risk Management Framework and assessed by independent third-party reviewers The program will offer two tiers: a foundational version for organizations early in their AI journey and a comprehensive version for those with greater maturity The four pillars of the AI accreditation program are governance, management, mapping, and measurement AI is unlike any other technology implementation because it touches every aspect of an organization simultaneously DirectTrust's annual conference is October 20th and 21st in Kansas City at the Oracle Innovations Campus A Little About Kathryn: Kathryn Ayers Wickenhauser, MBA, FACHDM, CHPC, is Chief Strategy Officer at DirectTrust®, the national non-profit alliance and accreditor building trust in healthcare technology and secure information exchange. With nearly two decades of advancing interoperability, identity, privacy, and technical trust, she leads community engagement, communications, and strategic partnerships, shaping national standards and policy. Kathryn is a recognized thought leader featured in outlets like Healthcare IT Today and Health IT Answers, and under her leadership, DirectTrust has earned multiple HITMC awards, including Marketing Team of the Year in 2025. She has been named among the Top 50 Women Chief Strategy Officers and Becker's 100 Women in Health IT to Know.

95% of books are sold through word of mouth—but most authors are still chasing reach instead of building relationships. That's a problem, especially in a market where social media visibility is unpredictable and ad costs continue to climb.In this episode, we break down the one marketing engine that consistently works: a small, engaged group of readers who genuinely want to see your book succeed.We walk through a simple but powerful reader funnel—how casual readers become fans, how fans become superfans, and how a select group naturally evolves into a street team that supports your launches, promotions, and long-term visibility. More importantly, we explain what “engagement” actually looks like in practice, how to identify the readers already leaning in, and why you don't need a massive email list to see meaningful results.If marketing feels overwhelming or never-ending, this framework simplifies the process. It's designed for authors who want to spend more time writing while still building steady momentum.We also share one of the most effective (and overlooked) tactics for generating more Amazon reviews and Goodreads ratings: a strategically placed back-of-the-book letter that invites readers to stay connected and take the next step. Done right, this creates a natural bridge from reader to subscriber—and eventually, advocate.From there, we get tactical about building a street team without overcomplicating it. You'll learn how to vet members using a simple form, organize assets in a shared folder, and provide clear, brand-safe guidance so your team amplifies your message the right way.Finally, we address the growing wave of AI-generated books and what it means for discoverability. Algorithms can be influenced—but genuine reader connection cannot be replicated. A trusted group of engaged readers is one of the most reliable ways to stay visible in an increasingly crowded marketplace.If you're looking for a smarter, more sustainable way to market your book, this episode lays out a framework you can start using immediately.Send us your feedback!Help shape our 2026 content by taking our 30-second listener poll!

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As a Fractional CMO, you're not supposed to do everything. So who — or what — does? In this episode, Casey breaks down the five-resource allocation framework: the exact model he uses to staff a marketing department without becoming the person who handles it all. He walks through each layer in plain terms — full-time hires, contractors, agencies, fractional talent, and AI agents. When to use each one. Where they break down. And how to sequence them so your 10 hours of CMO time actually multiplies into 40, 80, or more hours of output. The goal isn't to be cheaper. It's to be faster. But here's the trap Casey flags early: don't walk into a client engagement waving your AI toolkit like a merit badge. The CMO who leads with "look what I can automate" is solving the wrong problem. Your job is to build a marketing department that works — full-time people as the foundation, everything else layered on top when it earns its place. Agents aren't automations. Agencies aren't contractors. And your client's bookkeeper definitely isn't your fractional CFO. The distinctions matter, and Casey makes them clear. Key Topics Covered: What a "marketing technician" is — and why it's your ideal first hire The Upwork trick that tells you if a contractor is quoting you honestly Why agencies are mercenaries (and when that's exactly what you need) The difference between an automation and an agent — and why your clients need to understand it How to use AI to replace tasks, not people — and move your team to the next layer Why you should never let a six-month agency renewal sneak up on you The dangerous place CMOs end up when they become the "AI person" on the team  

In this episode of BRAVE COMMERCE, Rachel Tipograph and Sarah Hofstetter speak with Lara Vandenberg, CEO and Founder of Assemble, which connects brands with senior freelance marketing talent on demand. Lara shares why traditional marketing organizational structures are breaking down, and how leading CMOs are rethinking how work actually gets done.They explore the shift from fixed roles to flexible capabilities, the impact of overhiring and budget pressure, and why the biggest issue facing marketing teams today isn't talent, it's systems. Lara also unpacks the rise of new roles like marketing COOs and process improvement analysts, and what it takes to connect fragmented workflows, teams, and technologies to drive performance.Key takeawaysFlexible talent models are replacing traditional hiring and agency structures.Systems—not talent—are the biggest constraint on marketing performance.Winning teams align how work gets done with how consumers actually discover and shop. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

James Dickerson (AKA The Boring Marketer) has been consulting businesses on marketing and growth since 2012 — and he's now using Claude Code to do what used to require a $5-10K/month agency. In this episode, James goes screen-share and builds a complete marketing funnel live from scratch: a landing page, a quiz funnel, a 14-day email nurture sequence, and dozens of social and SEO content assets — all inside Claude Code with zero coding. We break down the psychology behind high-converting email sequences (micro commitments, reciprocity, objection handling), how James's "skills" system encodes expert marketing knowledge into portable AI instruction files, and why anyone with these tools can immediately outperform 80% of marketers. If you've been procrastinating on Claude Code, this is your sign to just download an IDE and start.X: https://x.com/BoringMarketerWebsite: https://vibemarketer.comYoutube: @theboringmarketer

There's a moment every in-house marketing team knows. You look up at 6 p.m., your to-do list is longer than when you started, and the big strategic work still isn't done. You were busy. Really busy. But doing what, exactly? That gap between daily execution and long-term strategy is real, and it's one of the most common challenges marketing teams face.At Littlefield, we work alongside in-house teams of all sizes. The best partnerships don't feel like vendor relationships. They feel like true collaboration. We're not here to replace your team. We're here to strengthen it, bring fresh perspective, and help carry the load when things get heavy.So here's the question: if your team had a strategic partner who could move fast, think differently, and stay focused on business goals, what could you accomplish that you're not doing today? That's the conversation worth having.See you next week for more Little Talks.— Sam, Chelsea, Roop, and ClaudiaTell us what you think!

Are your marketing people glorified order takers or proactive advisors? For many agencies, marketing is just the team that formats slide decks or requests quotes from carriers. But true marketing - especially in the B2B insurance space - is about owning the customer journey and building a community of engaged prospects long before the sale happens.My guest, Shelby Fitzpatrick, Manager of Marketing at Sterling Seacrest Pritchard, joins me to discuss what it takes to build a modern marketing department in the insurance industry. Coming from a decade-long career in sports marketing, Shelby brings a fresh perspective to a notoriously stale industry. We discuss the differences between B2C and B2B marketing, why marketing should be treated as a strategic sales partner rather than a fulfillment center, and how to structure your marketing team based on specialized skills rather than hiring "generalists."▶▶ Sign Up For Your Free Discovery Callcompletegameu.com/agaKEY MOMENTS(00:00:00) From College Tennis to Sports Marketing: Shelby's Journey (00:08:11) Ego, Time Management, and the College Athlete Mindset (00:12:27) Building Community and Engagement in Tennis (00:15:22) The Accidental Jump to Insurance: Joining Sterling Seacrest Pritchard (00:19:01) The Biggest Misconception: Quoting vs. Marketing (00:23:34) Why RFPs Are Your Best Opportunity to Tell a Story (00:26:38) B2C vs. B2B Marketing: Building Trust with the C-Suite (00:30:06) How Agency Leaders Should View Marketing (It's Not Just Lead Gen) (00:33:05) How to Build a Modern Agency Marketing Team from Scratch (00:37:08) The Role of AI in Marketing: Efficiency vs. Empathy (00:40:18) Shelby's Lightning Round: Morning Routines, Checklists, and PickleballCONNECT WITH ANDY NEARY

Marketing communication is more fragmented than ever. A new article from Kyrios breaks down how universal inboxes bring everything into one place—helping teams respond faster, stay organized, and keep leads from slipping through the cracks. To read the full article, visit: https://kyriossystems.com/post/universal-inbox-for-marketing-teams Kyrios Systems City: Hoover Address: 1236 Blue Ridge Blvd Website: https://kyriossystems.com

“Make you a bestseller.” It's the loudest promise in book marketing—and often the least meaningful.In this episode, we break down how to distinguish real strategy from fear-based selling, AI-polished outreach, and high-pressure tactics designed to close a sale rather than build a career. From alarming emails about “missing metadata” to vague guarantees and unusual payment demands, we explain what's legitimate, what's inflated, and what's simply noise.Then we shift to what actually compounds.We walk through the foundational elements of sustainable book marketing: an optimized Amazon retail page, intentional category and keyword strategy, a reader-focused website, an email list you control, and targeted outreach to reviewers, influencers, and podcasters who genuinely reach your audience. You'll hear why one-off promotional blasts rarely build traction, how to evaluate podcast quality beyond download numbers, and what meaningful preparation looks like before any pitch goes out.We also unpack the proposal details that matter: specific deliverables, realistic timelines, strategic positioning, and measurable outcomes rooted in discoverability—not guaranteed sales. A professional team should explain the “why” behind every tactic and connect today's work to results you can still benefit from months later.Finally, we talk author readiness. What should you own yourself? How should you think about ROI without chasing instant payoff? And if your budget is limited, where does your money work hardest?If you want to avoid scams, invest wisely, and choose partners who assess your book instead of selling you fear, this episode gives you a clear, practical framework.If you found this helpful, follow the show, share it with an author friend, and leave a quick review so more writers can find us. Have a topic you want covered next? Text the word podcast to 888-402-8940 and tell us what you need.Send us your feedback!Help shape our 2026 content by taking our 30-second listener poll!

Marketing feels chaotic because most businesses are chasing tactics without a system to support them. In this episode, John Jantsch and Sara Nay explain why a marketing operating system brings clarity, accountability, and predictable growth. They walk through how strategy comes first, how campaigns turn strategy into action, and why systems create long-term business value. If marketing feels scattered or hard to measure, this conversation shows how to turn chaos into a repeatable system that actually works. *This is a rerun of a previous DTM episode. Today we discussed: 00:00 Why Marketing Feels Chaotic in 2025 02:21 What a Marketing OS Is and Why It Matters 04:53 Strategy-First Marketing for Small Business 08:14 Turning Strategy Into Marketing Campaigns 09:25 SOPs and Workstream Engine for Marketing 12:54 How AI Fits Into Modern Marketing Systems 15:24 Scorecards, Metrics and Marketing Dashboards 17:57 Monthly Momentum Meetings for Marketing Teams 20:27 Quarterly Optimization for Better Results 22:33 Agency vs Fractional CMO Service Models 24:32 Book a Call Rate, Review, & Follow If you liked this episode, please rate and review the show. Let us know what you loved most about the episode. Struggling with strategy? Unlock your free AI-powered prompts now and start building a winning strategy today!

How to Achieve Outsized Outcomes with a Small B2B Marketing Team With the rapid advancement of AI, machine learning, shifting market dynamics, and more competition entering the ecosystem all the time, B2B marketers are confronted with more challenges than ever before. Teams are constantly facing the challenges of tightened budgets and even tighter deadlines. With this in mind, how can small B2B marketing teams achieve more with less and still deliver exceptional outcomes? That's why we're talking to Jordan Buning (Principal and Senior Account Executive, ddm marketing + communications), who shares insights and practical strategies on how to achieve outsized outcomes with a small B2B marketing team. During our conversation, Jordan discussed how teams can navigate market uncertainty and how AI has impacted efficiency. He emphasized the importance of revenue and pipeline metrics to demonstrate the financial contribution that marketing makes to the bottom line. Jordan also stressed the need for small B2B marketing teams to optimize campaigns, avoiding pitfalls like chasing immediate results at the expense of long-term success, and maintain continuous alignment with sales. He advocated for a platform approach over fragmented campaigns, regular metrics evaluation, and a focus on precision over volume. https://youtu.be/31Qts7vadLI Topics discussed in episode: [03:15] Why leadership often views marketing as an expendable variable rather than a core driver of the bottom line. [14:36] Jordan explains how to avoid “strategy whiplash” and over-reliance on performance tactics. [21:20] Discover why right-place, right-time messaging is non-negotiable, especially when it comes to appealing to the buying committee. [28:08] Instead of quarterly campaigns, build a core messaging “soundboard” that provides consistency and longevity. [33:36] Jordan walks through a 3-phase (90-day roadmap) approach consisting of diagnosing, activating, and doubling down to show ROI within one business quarter. [37:14] Why you must lead with pipeline contribution and opportunity creation rate when presenting to the board. [41:32] Why marketing belongs in every part of the organization, from customer experience and billing to employee engagement, not just lead generation. Companies and links mentioned: Jordan Buning on LinkedIn  ddm marketing + communications  Transcript Christian Klepp, Jordan Buning Jordan Buning  00:00 I think you know, the things that probably made this conversation happen in the first place are probably the first metrics you got to have. So it’s probably has something to do with revenue, and probably secondly, has to do with how quality they think the pipeline is filled with opportunities. Your initial metrics that would say this is working or not working. Really have to start there. And it may be two or three steps removed from some of the, you know, inside marketing measurements that that might be there, but at the end of the day, that’s what will kind of matter to them. And so what is, you know, the pipeline contribution looking like? What kind of opportunity creation rate is happening, revenue influence, those, those kinds of things, I think are components that that matter when we talk about revenue and pipeline is, are we actually contributing to the financial success of the organization. Christian Klepp  00:57 With the rapid advancement of AI (Artificial Intelligence) machine learning, changing market dynamics, market uncertainty and more competition entering the ecosystem all the time. B2B Marketers are confronted with more challenges than ever before. Another one of those challenges includes tightened budgets and even tighter deadlines. With this in mind, how can B2B Marketing teams achieve more with less and still deliver exceptional outcomes. 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 Jordan Buning, who will be answering this question. He’s the principal and Senior Account Executive at DDM Marketing and Communications who’s committed to doing great things with incredible people inside and outside the company. Tune in to find out more about what this B2B Marketers Mission is. Okay? Mr. Jordan Buning, welcome to the show, sir. Jordan Buning  01:48 Thank you. Appreciate you having me. Christian Klepp  01:50 Really looking for this conversation, Jordan. Not like man, I should have recorded the last couple of conversations that we had that, in itself, should have been the episode already, right? But I’m, I’m really looking forward to this conversation. You know, I had a great chat with your colleague, Joanne. And you know, we’re going to talk about a topic today that you and I both know it. It keeps coming up, and you ask 50 people out there, and they’ll give you 50 different answers to this question, right? So let’s, let’s just dive right in. I’m going to say you’re on a mission to help B2B companies deliver high impact marketing campaigns that drive measurable results. But I’d like to focus on this following topic for today’s conversation, and we’ve got plenty to unpack from this one, how small marketing teams can optimize campaigns to reduce waste and achieve outsized outcomes, probably I should highlight bold italic, underline that outsized outcomes, because that one’s going to be the interesting one. Let’s kick off the conversation with the following question, so I’m happy to repeat so why do you think many B2B organizations are spending less on their marketing efforts and shortening the timelines in which teams need to deliver results? And based on those constraints in your experience, where have you seen many marketing teams struggle? Jordan Buning  03:15 But you’re right. There’s a there’s a lot there, and trying to consolidate all of my thoughts down is a unique challenge. But, you know, I think part of it is not that marketing is losing importance sometimes in various circumstances, be it budgetary otherwise, but it’s more about the pressure of reshaping how it gets evaluated. There is a lag, I think in terms of how a lot of individuals perceive the importance in the in the contribution that marketing makes to the organization’s goals and ultimately to its bottom line. So if it’s disconnected, it becomes a variable, and a variable that, while maybe nobody is really wishing for, it sometimes becomes minimized or expendable, and therefore it’s really kind of a big push. And there’s certainly a variety of things that may be driving that. It could be their own, economic uncertainties, their market has changed. Therefore they’re making their adjustments. They’re managing risk. When they’re doing some of those kinds of things they may not necessarily see again that relationship between what they’re attributing to the bottom line. They may have measurements that are not aligned to show performance and not that it isn’t but they don’t have the data that’s that’s doing that and or they may even have a lag. They may have a lot of information, but it’s historical data, and present realities may be slightly different, and they don’t really have a way to connect to it. And then you’ve got a lot of other circumstances, like shift towards more immediate revenue. They may be saying, well, let’s just push out, let’s, let’s push more on. The sales side of this. Let’s work with partners, and let’s have them facilitate the process, and we’re going to get out of the sales and marketing role. Maybe what they say is, we’re going to park acquisition and we’re going to really go after account expansion. So those, those are all things that could be driving all of this. Then you throw in things like AI, where they might say, you know, it looks like there’s a lot of great tools out there. Why don’t we use more of those? Let’s use that to fill the gap where we maybe don’t have the resources that we once had. So those all become drivers in the whole situation. And somewhere in between is reality. One other thing, maybe, you know, a lot of organizations, depending on where they are, probably got where they were without maybe marketing being one of the primary drivers. Maybe they had a great engineering solution. They’re a great production organization, and maybe even a great selling organization. But marketing hasn’t been something that has necessarily been invested in as great they got there in their minds through other things. And so there’s suddenly a shift in terms of how to reconcile the value that marketing is contributing to the whole thing. And so it’s both an opportunity and a challenge. Obviously, in the moment, it’s it’s difficult and it’s painful. But those are, those are some of the circumstances that are kind of going on then based on constraints, where do we think marketing teams struggle? I had to remind myself of the question, so I wrote it down. If I were to zoom zoom out, I think the core struggle is, is somewhat capability and capacity. But it’s really kind of more the issue of time horizon that they might be running into, depending on what the issues are that are getting brought up. There could be a bit of a strategy whiplash where, you know, they had a plan, and the best laid plan has gone to waste, and there’s suddenly kind of a push towards a very different effort. And so the investment now is getting either tabled or stalled and and suddenly they’re they’re wanting to switch horses and go to a different direction. And obviously, from a marketing standpoint, that fear is great. We’ve got lots of activity. We’re doing a bunch of other things. We feel good about that. The other side of it is there’s a cost to losing that momentum of where you were going before. And how do you how do you kind of reconcile that? And then, how do you avoid continuing to have strategy change after strategy change along the way? Those are the things that really could create constraints out of very small marketing teams, maybe a team of one, maybe an outsourced resource, those things all get really kind of challenging, over reliance on performance, metrics and tactics. So you know, specifically, getting into things that seem to have the most immediate ROI, let’s just go after the search campaign conversions. Let’s go after some other things that are low funnel without maybe reconciling the understanding that you’re you’re doing that sometimes at the expense of the things that that that initiate things into the funnel as well, and so, you know, maybe creating a bit of a short term bump, but at the expense of long term success as well. So that’s a challenge. Confusion with sales, sales and marketing forever being sometimes perceived as opposing parties. So you know, again, I think this, this idea of we just need better leads, we just need more quality, whatever, faster kind of a thing, as opposed to, let’s, let’s be very team minded and intentional in terms of working together. Measurement paralysis, that’s a that’s another one that can happen where everybody’s got data, and you’re overwhelmed with that data, and you get so focused looking into rear view mirror, you’re losing track of the direction you’re supposed to be going all along. And then you get into some things like short term wins versus long term growth, and a very inconsistent narrative in terms of what you’re trying to talk about. And so, you know, I think those are, those are all kind of contributing factors that some organizations really have to wrestle with is it’s great to be responsive and reactive to real circumstances, and everybody knows how to hold a plan loosely. But what are the trade offs in being able to shift from having a strategy and then and then suddenly realizing there needs to be an adjustment. They get very eager and excited about creating a lot of energy. That energy is great, but that energy may not be harnessed in such a way that it’s actually going anywhere. So you’re feeling good about the activity and the responsiveness, but you might be trading one problem. Problem for another if you don’t have that clarity together as a team. And so I think it’s this, this thing that often we all talk about of like, go slow to go fast, is really an opportunity that that is presenting itself in a situation like that, like, before we move off of the solve this problem in a particular way, let’s pause and make sure we all know what we’re trying to do here and being able to accomplish that. Christian Klepp  10:25 Absolutely, absolutely. Thanks for sharing all of that that was a lot like within the past couple of minutes. I wanted to go back to something like you touched on it a little bit in the beginning, but it’s certainly been my experience, and I’m curious to see how it’s been over on your end. Do you think that a lot of these constraints, I mean, certainly a lot of it has to do with market dynamics, and, as you said, like the introduction of AI and machine learning? But do you also feel, I mean, we’re talking about B2B here, right? And a lot of these big companies, whether it’s in health care or manufacturing or chemicals or whatever. When you have a meeting, you know, you have these this meeting with senior management or the board of directors, marketing is not always the first thing that comes to mind. And I say that with a heavy heart being a marketer, but you know, you got to face the music, right? That’s the reality of it. Do you feel that a lot of times, especially with small marketing teams, the reason why they’re they’re having to navigate these challenges is because people within the organization, A don’t quite understand what marketing is, and B, they don’t quite understand why they should care. Jordan Buning  11:41 Yes, I definitely would agree with you. And I think it’s, it’s sometimes an educational problem, and sometimes it’s a self imposed problem, right, you know? And I think, I think on the to your point, it can be perceived as it looks easy, or, you know, it’s easy to get educated or feel knowledgeable about it’s, it’s viewed, sometimes more, as a an art form and very subjective, as opposed to a science and driven based on actual performance activities and and good strategy. And then, I think the marketers ourselves, sometimes unintentionally, have done that to ourselves. We’ve we’ve gotten very excited about a lot of things, maybe trends that are happening. Maybe we are just tied to the thrill of a great creative hook or message or whatever, and we miss the connectivity to the business itself. And you know, with that in mind, you just become an outer ring in some of the core things that the organization is doing and and, you know, the other part of it is sometimes your role could get perceived just as as responsible for help getting leads, as opposed to, hey, marketing’s responsibility is to be a part of probably a lot of the ecosystem. Not only do we help acquire, we help keep. We help create an experience. We help create an experience for our employees and so on and so forth. So, you know, I think, I think there’s, there’s shared responsibility, sometimes, certainly, a world that’s evolving. I think it’s getting better. I think, I think marketing has developed a more present seat in the C suite and leadership conversations, which is, which is positive, plenty of runway to go yet. But then there’s, there’s marketing themselves making sure that, hey, these things that we do, are they aligned and connected to all of the things that are happening that the organization cares about, are their goals, our goals, as opposed to, hey, we’ll just increase likes and shares and so on. Those are all good numbers for marketing. Maybe they don’t equate to the business, and therefore we sometimes shut ourselves outside of that conversation, as opposed to, you know, maybe how they perceive us. Christian Klepp  14:08 Absolutely, absolutely. I had another Golden Apple for you, but I’m gonna, like, save that one for later on in the conversation, moving on to the next question, just based on everything that you’ve said, and, you know, we are talking about how smaller teams can optimize campaigns, what are some of these key pitfalls you would say they need to avoid and to keep it constructive, we also need to talk about what they should be doing instead. Jordan Buning  14:36 You know, one of the things as I thought about that question was, really, you know, we often look at as a capacity. Are we just running a few people ragged? And there could be some truth to that. But I think the greater risk would be just, are we going about it in all the wrong ways? Right? There is a sense of urgency. We go running out of the room. We want to help. So, but by by nature of our activity and or the group’s conversation that we’re having, we actually could unintentionally just be creating an added level of chaos to the chaos that’s there. And so some of those pitfalls could be chasing immediate pipeline and ignoring the long term gain, and so you know, it’s it’s a both end strategy that we’re trying to educate on and maintain is, hey, how do we make sure we answer the bell on some of the more immediate issues that are going on, but that we also don’t do it at the expense of the long term importance and success of this organization as well. Another one is constant strategic repositioning, if what we do is go after some of the more immediate things, and that could be looking like a sale or a sale price, or something else that’s commodifies the product and service that they offer, that might get them a bump in the moment, but is that the identity that the organization and its products really want to be known for, and so it it may do damage to its long term narrative, depending on how some of the messaging comes out at that time as well. I think there’s a risk of over complicating what you’re trying to do. And I think that’s something that’s stuck in my mind. I’m, I’m probably, by nature, an over simplifier, or a simplifier, I should say. And I think there’s a, there’s a risk of of throwing a lot of things on the menu, looking at them as, like, 1000 bets. And you know, at least one of these bets is going to turn into something so, you know, it’s it feels like good activity. People feel good that there’s a response that’s happening. But it may be such a scatter, and it may so minimize the level of effort on a variety of different things, you know that it just minimizes the challenge that’s going on. And I think indirectly, in doing that, you also may broaden the gap and divide between yourself and marketing and some of the other groups, including sales. So hey, we’re going to go do this thing, and we feel really good about it. Maybe it even does the thing that we think it should do. But at the end of the day, it doesn’t really satiate some of the other drivers and motivators that they have. And so suddenly you’ve really got this, this growing divide, as opposed to a closing divide in terms of what’s going on. And so, you know, I think those all become kind of risks in this whole thing. And then, you know, maybe, maybe the last thing being taking risks on things you haven’t done before. So suddenly it’s, well, let’s, let’s try this technology solution. Let’s, let’s, let AI do a thing for us, or whatever. And when it’s most critical, you’re moving away from the things that you can believe in and trust the most, and you’re throwing a few Hail Mary sound down the field, it could be a risk that is of too great for the organization, as opposed to, hey, what are some fundamental things that we can really hone in on? What is maybe more how we narrow our efforts into much more focused activities and energies, and what are our best executions. So, you know, I think, I think with the best of intentions, and I’m sure I’m as guilty as anybody at times in my past of, let’s create a lot of activity potentially. You know, that’s the pressure you’re feeling. The real answer may be, how do we stop enough to create clarity? Really reset our pathway to what we need to accomplish, and then what’s the most, smartest and most effective way to get there? Christian Klepp  18:48 Absolutely, absolutely. I almost feel like sometimes us, marketers were guilty of like, okay, let’s just, let’s just try everything, or, or, some teams, and, you know, I’ve certainly worked with some of them in the past, they get pressure, and especially in B2B, they get pressure from higher ups saying, Well, you know, I saw something on Sunday, you know, like there was this video. So why don’t we do a why don’t we do a video, right? Why don’t we, why don’t we get on tiktok? And I had a briefing, and I shall not disclose the name of the client, but I we had a briefing many years ago where a client said, um, we want you to create a viral video for us, and to which I said, like, with all due respect that you don’t get to decice that.. Jordan Buning  19:34 Yeah, let’s, let’s make magic, right? Christian Klepp  19:36 Let’s make magic. And I can say, I can say, with confidence, we, walked away from that and said, you know, we can’t help you. We walked away from that. And, you know, unscathed. Jordan Buning  19:47 It’s the hardest thing to do sometimes, right? But it is wise at times to recognize that. Christian Klepp  19:53 Well and I’m sure you’ll agree, you’ll agree with me when I say this. I mean, like, you know, we’ve, we’ve been in this business for a bit, but. Um, it’s sometimes necessary to tell the client that, okay, you’re, you’re asking us to do something for you, and I’m gonna, like, disagree with what you’re asking us to do, because we believe, to our core that that’s not in your best interest, right? And it’s and it’s and it’s difficult to have that conversation. I’m sure you’ve had many of them, right? Jordan Buning  20:24 Sure, but you’re, but you’re right. It’s, you know, you’re paying for our candor, yeah. And I think you know, the risk would be, you know, arrogance. But I think for the most part, I think with with the relationship that you’re trying to build and forecasting that at times, that that can be a healthy thing too, and even if it’s a little challenging or impassioned, hopefully there’s a there’s a point where you can reconcile some of those things. But I agree with you, there’s there’s a time and a place. Christian Klepp  20:54 There’s a time and a place. Absolutely, this next question is going to sound a little bit like table stakes to you, but man, I have worked with a lot of teams where that wasn’t very clear. The importance of having a deep understanding of who your target groups are, and I’m gonna say plural, because it’s never, it’s never just one group and B2B, and an understanding of their of their buyer’s journey. All right, talk to us about that. Jordan Buning  21:20 Yeah, I think, I think there’s a variety of things that really popped up as I thought about that particular category and there to your point, it’s a complex group. And yet, I think this is also really a time where precision is important, when you start looking at urgent shifts and that kind of a thing. And so not to eliminate groups, necessarily, but hey, if we need to prioritize, how do we, how do we prioritize some of these things along the way? And one of the other things that was tied to this as well as I think sometimes when the client feels a sense of urgency, there can be pressure on the time it takes to to be clear about some of these things. And one of the things is challenged us to do is, hey, we’re not going to skip that step, but maybe we can come up with, uh, you know, not a strategy that takes weeks and months, but maybe we just need to develop a sprint session together, and that’s really forced us to be a little more streamlined ourselves. Don’t skip the step, but let’s make sure we have a smart way of creating some clarity around those things. And so that’s a little bit of a learning curve that we’ve we’ve worked our way through is, hey, sometimes you get, you know, the strategy is the project, and a lot of times the strategy is necessary component to get to the goals and the outcomes that they have. And so one of the things that I first jotted down was this idea of precision beats volume. And so it’s this, Hey, how do we create clarity in terms of where’s our best best focus, best energy? How do we target where the real pain is to get the best value? How do we prioritize high propensity accounts and opportunities and those kinds of things along the way. So that was kind of step one. Let’s make sure we’ve got some clear clarity around the focus of that. And then don’t confuse the buying committee as well. To your point, it’s like you could have leadership C suite. You’re going to have probably a finance person involved. You might have procurement. You might have the end user. Those are all very different drivers and motives in that whole thing. And so I think making sure we have clear lanes on some of that, so we don’t muddy this into such a chaotic thing, we forget that they have to want this product along the way. So I think there’s, there’s importance to that. And again, a lot of times that comes back to that early stage of a sprint. How do you then align messaging to decision stages? You know, I think we all wrestle with this, this whole thing. They’re gonna love it as soon as they hear it. Christian Klepp  23:58 Oh yeah, Jordan Buning  23:59 Right away. And, you know, I think, I think that’s important. Back to your, your buyer’s journey conversation again, to kind of say, hey, how do we, how do we move through a series of stages of experience, where first they they become aware of it, then they learn to engage with it and be well informed about what it can do. See reinforcement, see the data that supports it, and those things happen in timely phases. And so this right place, right time, right message component is critical to a lot of the sequencing that happens. And you know, we’re all guilty of periodically thinking this will be a one call, close type of interaction, when, in reality, the decision making is probably going the other direction over time. They’re risk averse. They’re not going to make wild decisions. They’re probably going to have multiple players of approval. They’re going to have other players in consideration often. In as well. And that’s just a reality that I think the world has to be more and more prepared for as we lose expertise and knowledge, as people retire and those kinds of things, people are going to go to the internet and these other places to begin the research process all over again. And so it will, it will take a very different approach to being able to do that. And then a few other things that I noted is, you know, again, just continuing to to build that sales and marketing alignment. What are the who is that primary audience? Does everybody agree? Do we all see the journey the same? Are we? Are we hitting that prospect with the right things at the right time, and then how do we make sure that we’re continuing to protect long term equity, and what we’re trying to do as well? So, you know, it’s it’ll continue to stay fairly important, and so even as the process may becomes faster in some of these situations, because the circumstances demand it. Skipping the steps is probably the way to get off off track. And so really kind of helping everybody stay focused, stay purposeful, be clear on the targets are still things that I think are Immutables in making changes. Christian Klepp  26:17 Yeah, absolutely, you know, and I have this conversation with marketers a lot like, I always highly encourage them, like, you know, have you sat have you sat in on sales calls back in the day, when I was starting out, I had to go out into the field with the sales people, right as an observer, so I’m just like the fly on the wall there, right, but listening to the way that they would present the company’s products and solutions to the prospect, how they would handle the objections and the concerns and whatnot of the of the of said prospect, and if there was an issue there. Okay, so how can we, how can we address that? Because it’s not always necessarily the salesperson’s fault, per se, right? And it’s, it’s that whole concept of, like, the way that we’re going to make this work is if we do it together, right? And having that good relationship, or having that close relationship with the sales people, I think, is a vital component of that, right? Because otherwise, like, like you said, it’s going to be, it’s going to be like, everything is in silos, and marketing is gonna, like, develop all these, these messages in isolation, and it’s not gonna work. Jordan Buning  27:26 Doesn’t say anything, you know, or whatever they might observe about the materials. But you’re right. I think if it’s more of a partnership and mutual education of the other I think there’s, there’s a lot more potential for for exponential outcomes as opposed to siloed solutions? Christian Klepp  27:43 Yep, absolutely. All right, I’m going to ask you two sets of questions here, and there’s plenty to unpack, so just take a deep breath, right? Because, um, this next question is about how small teams can leverage constraints to drive that clarity, that alignment and focused execution. So what are the steps that they need to take? What are some of those critical components that they need to throw into the mix? Jordan Buning  28:08 A few things that we’ve already talked about, but I think are worth repeating. You know, as far as key steps for small groups, I think ruthlessly defining who I think it can become much easier to start focusing on yourselves. And, you know, navel gazing, if you will. And so I think continuing to really think about, who is that ideal client? What do they need? What’s the problem we’re solving is really important. And that’s really the second one of clarify the core problem. You know, what urgent, high values thing are we really focused on, especially if the pressure is on right now, right who is it? What’s the context? How do we, how do we make sure that we’re really focused on them in terms of what we do, and then, what are the most important priorities that surround that? And again, I think really just making sure we narrow in, we don’t, we don’t dilute but, but we do focus. And so I think there is going to be even a necessary conversation that might say, hey, you know, we, we have an opportunity of, you know, this broad audience group, but who is our best and strongest environment, what are the best efforts that we can put forward towards helping them and supporting them? Then I said, Build one narrative platform. Not many campaigns. I think we’ve come out of a world at times where, hey, we do quarterly campaigns or whatever kind of a thing. And so, you know, we look, use it, use it like Kleenex, and kind of move to another one and another one. And I think in the era that we’re in, because of the diversity of tools, and therefore the types of interactions that people have, building more of a platform of, Hey, what is. This offering that we have, how does it align to the individual? What are the core individual messages that we have? It still gives you a lot of latitude for mixing some of those pillars and those messages together. I quite often will illustrate to clients that as we’re developing positioning and different pillars. I almost look at it like a soundboard in a recording studio where, hey, you’ve got all these knobs and buttons to push, and depending on the application and the moment of interaction and those kinds of things, we can turn up and turn down those core components and create a lot of different attributes and experiences around that whole thing, but there’s still the same core things. And so if anybody feels like, you know, as we narrow a little bit, that it’s going to get boring, I think it’s actually just the opposite. It creates a much richer experience, but it’s all much more coordinated as well. So I think that’s, I think that’s very much an opportunity, is make sure there’s a there’s a platform approach creates a lot more consistency, a lot more longevity, and therefore a lot more opportunity to stick over time with the audience that you’re trying to reach. And then, I think you know metrics, as we, as we continue to talk about metrics, make sure that we have a shared way to evaluate what we’re doing, and is it, is it working? And there’s, there’s a lot of different metrics that can go into that. And then I think it’s, you know, keep, keep the cycle tight. Once things are are in the marketplace, how do we continue to be able to circle back with regularity to say, What? What is this getting us? Is this doing the thing? And is it? Is it a thing we can reinvest in, or it is an adjustment that we can work our way through, but continuing to be able to do that in as close to real time as you can, so that that you’re working together, you know, you’d hate to kind of disappear for 90 days, show back up and then say, hey, look, it didn’t work, or vice versa. And I think it just allows, again, a much more team minded approach to being able to do this, or at least being able to share status and that kind of a thing, depending on what’s going on. Yeah. Christian Klepp  32:15 Yeah, absolutely. I mean, you know, especially as marketers, you never want to give people the impression that you’re that you’re running an art studio here, you know, you lock yourself up there for two weeks, and then I’m, you know, I’m working on my masterpiece. It’s not quite done yet, right? Yeah, it’s, it really needs, does need to be a two way street. Because, you know, you can attest to this. And I’ve, you know, I’ve gone through plenty of campaigns as well, where it almost becomes this, this weekly check in, sometimes, depending on the client, right? Sometimes it’s bi weekly, right? But okay, so this is how it’s going. This is, this is the progress so far. This is where we’re seeing some obstacles, and this is how we’re planning to address those, right? So, so it’s continuously evolving. It’s, it’s, I think you brought it up earlier. It’s an ecosystem. Yeah, yeah. Very much, very much. I agree, yeah. All right, so here comes the question of the hour. So with the reality of tight budgets and even tighter deadlines, marketing teams need to be more resourceful and agile. So this is one of those like, what would you do situations, right? So, Jordan, if you had a smaller marketing team and the senior management only gave you 90 days to deliver results, what would you do? So talk us through the process and what approach you would use, what initiatives you’d implement? Jordan Buning  33:37 Well, somewhat similar to our own process, we have something we call the DDM way, and in the first phase of that starts with listening and understanding. And so I had written down a phase for this that would be diagnose and focus in a situation like this. Again, I think this goes slow to go fast, mindset where you can kind of identify the best path, analyze the pipeline and have those conversations and get aligned with sales. I think those are the core components that have to be there. Or I think you’re going to continue to be battling the execution side of things down the road. And so I think phase one is very foundational, of really diagnose focus. Phase two, I said, activate, you know, your focus revenue engine. So precision, precision over scale, I think, is really the thing that you’ve heard me say a number of times is, you know, who are we targeting? Is it almost account based, focused or something similar? You know, what strengthen our conversion assets? We’ve been talking a little bit about that in terms of, what are those best tools? Are they case studies? Are they white papers? Are they various other sheets that need to get created, then building that platform, you know, and again, it may get executed as a campaign still, but you know, your platform has has more of a longer life. To it, and then optimize the channels that you’re using and really making sure you’re doing all the right things that are there. And then, I think, once you’ve got it in the market, the last phase of this whole thing is double down and then optimize or amplify at that point. So we’re big believers in terms of setting up some some things that you can see regular metrics and performance on. And then we usually will talk with our clients as well about, hey, what are the things we need to talk about if we’re going to make a change? And what are the things you should be expecting us just to go ahead and make adjustments on the fly that are supportive. And usually, if there are shifts in terms of approach or message or something we need to talk if it’s hey, let’s, let’s move our mixture of maybe a media placement or something like that within the budget we already have. Those are things they might expect us to go after and really make sure, you know, we’re keeping this thing optimized. And sometimes I respectfully describe our resources on the on the media side, is it’s almost like day traders. The tools are there. We should be paying attention on a regular basis, looking at performance and then optimizing for them, when and where we can along the way. And that’s the beauty of some of the digital tools that are out there. There’s, there’s always risks in over adjusting or or over manipulating, but I think there’s very much an opportunity for us to stay very up on on how everything is performing. Christian Klepp  36:31 Fantastic, fantastic. So, all right, so we’ve got we’ve got the clarity, we’ve got the alignment, we’ve got the understanding of the target audience, and there and the buyer’s journey. And now you’ve laid out your plan for the 90 days, and now the board is going to say, well, you know, that’s all well and good, Jordan, but we need to see the ROI, right? What are we? What are we spending money on here? And I’m sure you’ve had that conversation before, because I’ve certainly have. And then what? So what I’m getting at here is like, what kind of metrics should these marketing teams be paying attention to to prove that whatever it is they’re implementing is working? Jordan Buning  37:14 Yeah, I think you know, the things that probably made this conversation happen in the first place are probably the first metrics you got to have. So it’s probably has something to do with revenue, and probably secondly, has to do with how quality they think the pipeline is filled with opportunities. And so I think you know, your initial metrics that would say this is working or not working, really have to start there. And and it may be two or three steps removed from some of the, you know, inside marketing measurements that that might be there, but at the end of the day, that’s what will kind of matter to them. And so what is, you know, the pipeline contribution looking like? What kind of opportunity creation rate is happening, revenue, influence, those, those kinds of things, I think are components that that matter when we talk about revenue and pipeline is, are we actually contributing to the financial success of the organization? Then you can start dropping down and get closer and closer into some of your more specialty focused areas and that kind of a thing. I think then you get into stage, convergence leads to opportunities. Opportunities to proposals. Proposals closed one. I think, you know, those, those are very traditional funnels, and those are great, great things to have. I think those, those ladder up to some of the other things that we previously talked about, sales cycle length, maybe another one, win rates. Those are all really great things between sales and marketing to be able to say these things are starting to actually work. And then you get into things like efficiency rates and those kinds of things. Now you’re getting into probably platform specific performances, cost per opportunities, cost per clicks, cost, you know, so on and so forth. You’re probably getting into more marketing specific measurements. You could get all the way over to the brand side and start talking about, you know, messaging and market signals that you’re creating as well. Those are probably inside in your world. And there may be some ahas that you can really push, push back up to say, hey, giving you some forecasting here. Here’s what’s happening. People are starting to respond in this way to these particular messages. This is something that should be on our watch list, because it could be an opportunity. It could be a threat, you know, and a way it goes there as well. So it’s, it’s, it’s important to probably keep those things connected. But I think we have a tendency, and I know it’s we’ve been as guilty as anybody somewhere in our past, where you start from the bottom and you work your way up, and so you dazzle them with SEO (Search Engine Optimization) information and search statistics and social media information, and you have some. Be probably drumming their fingers across the table, kind of going, we’re bleeding money, or whatever the story could be, this isn’t meeting the conversation that we need to have. And so I think we need to start and meet them, and then be able to work our way down. And I think then, then the marketing connectivity, also, one of the things you and I talked about at the beginning will start to come back to them like, Oh, these guys understand what we’re motivated to do, and they’re now starting to contribute to the solutions that we’re trying to accomplish here. We’re on to something now. We’re a team. We’re not We’re not adversaries, trying to trying to find out who’s responsible for success or lack of so. Christian Klepp  40:42 Absolutely, absolutely, and yeah, like you said, it boils down to, like, revenue and pipeline contribution, right? Like, yeah, everything else after that is probably secondary. Jordan Buning  40:56 Well and again, we love to kind of show people some really neat things, but it’s, it’s kind of like, you know, if you just told me about barometric pressure, as opposed to, is it going to be stormy or is it going to be sunny today? It’s like, you know, you you need something that you can do something with, and I think you have to look at that leadership group with that in mind from a marketing standpoint. Christian Klepp  41:18 So that’s it. Okay, here comes the soapbox question. So a status quo in your area of expertise that you passionately disagree with, and why? Jordan Buning  41:32 Yeah, there’s, there was a couple different thoughts that were coming through my mind. And I think you know this idea that marketing exists just to, just to facilitate leads for a couple of different reasons. I think, I think it’s a means to an end that I think is, is a little limiting. It confuses the activity with the impact a little bit more. I think, you know, that’s that’s an element of something that, again, I’ll use the magic word of ecosystem. It’s a contributing ingredient, as opposed to something that’s done in isolation. And so, you know, certainly kind of wrestle with that a little bit more. I think the more we talk about it just being a responsibility to generate leads, the more we don’t leave room for the things that we know are critical ingredients, like brand you know, like the experience of working with the organization and or using the product. Those kinds of things could could really derail if all we have is all we want to do is acquire. That’s your only job. And you know, I think there’s a lot of organizations that are starting to realize we do a lot of work in healthcare. So that’s an example close to my mind where, you know, you can do a lot of work acquiring, but if we don’t do a great job of great giving them a great experience, even down to billing, especially in healthcare world, there, there is, there is, just, as you know, greater likelihood we’re going to need twice as many leads and opportunities if we keep losing them on the back end. And so I think marketing plays a more and more significant role in a number of fronts in terms of creating those experiences so that the not just the buyer’s journey, but the customer experience are accounted for in those things. And so it’s, I think it’s, it’s a it’s a good thing. We need to be responsible for that role. Certainly, if we don’t grow, there’s, there’s consequences. So we want to contribute to generating leads and generating new business. But I think it we need to be, hey, is marketing accounted for in a lot of the different components of of our organization? I think that’s a that’s a much more holistic mindset that organizations are doing more and more, you know, to their credit, yeah. So certainly don’t need to pick on them or anything like that. I think, I think the world is evolving just as much as the marketing discipline itself is absolutely, Christian Klepp  44:03 I mean, it’s, it’s very multifaceted, right? Like in, in every, in every aspect, right? So it’s, it’s, it’s, yeah, perhaps a certain part of it is lead jump, but there’s so much more than that. Jordan Buning  44:16 Yeah, I agree. There’s so many things, definitely you could, could label in there. But I think that’s, that’s probably the one is, is to be a more active participant in in everything the organization is doing is should be expected as much as they should be included. Christian Klepp  44:34 Absolutely, absolutely, and also just to build on what you build on what you said, especially ever since I started out my career in marketing, it’s to get people, and this is part of the reason why I started the show. It’s to get people to understand people in a non marketing role, to understand that marketing does have a strategic role, right? And just because perhaps they don’t understand. And that right now, that doesn’t mean it should be ignored. Jordan Buning  45:04 Totally agree. Christian Klepp  45:07 Jordan, this has been a great conversation. Thank you so much for your time and for sharing your expertise and experience with the listeners. Please, quick introduction to yourself and how folks out there can get in touch with you. Jordan Buning  45:16 Sure. I’m Jordan Buning from DDM Marketing and Communications. Officially, I’m considered the visionary of the organization, if you know EOS, but also involved very heavily on sales and strategy with a lot of our clients. You can reach DDM at teamddm.com or my email address is jordanb@teamddm.com. Christian Klepp  45:39 Fantastic, fantastic. And we’ll be sure to drop all that information in the show notes when the episode comes up. Sounds great once again. Jordan, thanks so much for your time. Take care, stay safe and talk to you soon. Jordan Buning  45:54 Thank you. Appreciate it. Christian Klepp  45:54 All right. Thanks. Bye for now.

You've got AI tools that are more powerful than entire creative teams from a few years ago… and yet you're still doing manual labor.I'm talking about the endless copy-paste shuffle. The re-explaining your business to every new bot. The feeling that you're supposed to be the one stitching all your tools together when they should be working for you.If that hits home, this episode is for you.I'm introducing you to the Bot Squad—and no, it's not a metaphor or a productivity hack. It's a fundamentally different way of using AI where your tools actually collaborate instead of working in isolation.I walk you through:What a Bot Squad is and why it changes everythingThe frustration of using custom GPTs that don't talk to each other (hello, copy-paste hell)How I built my own "Pod Squad" to plan, promote, and produce my podcast—without losing contextWhy this matters for both your internal workflows and your client deliveryA real-time example of how I'm using this system to launch our new platform (yep, this episode was created WITH my Bot Squad)If you've been feeling like you're close to something powerful with AI but still doing too much heavy lifting, you're right. And you're exactly who we're building this for.This is recorded in real-time on March 5th, 2026, as we're heading into our beta launch. Translation: this tech is happening now, and I can't wait for you to see what becomes possible when AI stops being a collection of disconnected tools and starts being an actual system.

TRAINING WEEKS Brett takes the listeners through his race week training in the lead up to Saturday night's 3000m second place finish in Hobart. We hear about his race tactics and what he would have done differently. Joel takes us through his training week which involved his Pulse 5000m pacing gig. What started out strong dwindled in the back half as he prioritised his favourite sport. THE BIG Q "Friend Of The Show" Vincent Tulley has a question around pacing and how to improve on it. Brett & Joel talk through ways runners can become better at pacing in training, which in turn helps for better pacing in races. GIVE SOME KUDOS Brett has a hilarious submission in "The Moon's Marketing Team" while Joel sends his to his well-deserving girlfriend Chelsea. TWHSOITWTWATSA Both Brett and Joel opt for race submissions this week - Brett with a clash between two college teammates, while Joel highlights the serious error from the lead bicycle/media car/race motorbike in the USATF Women's Half Marathon over the weekend.   SIGN UP TO OUR PATREON TODAY: www.patreon.com/forthekudos Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/forthekudos Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/forthekudos TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@forthekudos Brett: https://www.instagram.com/brett_robinson23 Joel: https://www.instagram.com/joeltobinblack  

Craig Hewitt, founder of the 7-figure SaaS Castos, breaks down how he uses Claude Code to run his entire content marketing operation. Despite not being a developer, Craig built his first Claude Code project in 45 minutes while waiting outside his son's basketball practice. In this episode, he walks through the exact system he uses, demonstrates live builds, and shares his free, open-source SEO Machine project that anyone can download and use today.YouTube: youtube.com/@thecraighewitt

Automation and Gen AI drive marketing teams to downsize while managing high-stakes challenges in the areas of brand ethics, cultural sensitivity, and the risk of automated missteps. That's the key take-away message of this episode of the Wise Decision Maker Show, which talks about how Gen AI can drive marketing teams to one.This article forms the basis for this episode: https://disasteravoidanceexperts.com/will-gen-ai-drive-marketing-teams-to-one/

In this episode, I sit down with Doug Bell — Fractional CMO, former leader at Automation Anywhere, LeanData, and Searchmetrics, top‑40 Substack writer, and co-host of Cannonball GTM — to unpack why modern go‑to‑market playbooks are breaking… and what the next generation of GTM looks like in an AI‑driven world.We go deep into the new patterns shaping high‑growth companies — and the uncomfortable truths most teams don't want to face.

We cut through AI hype to show what actually scales: disciplined ops, brand-led content, and a practical framework for awareness, nurturing, and trust. Eric Huberman shares Hawk Media's scaling lessons, where AI helps, where it hurts, and how to build a moat in a noisy market.• LLM shifts to persona-first, Q&A-led visibility• AI as acceleration, not strategy replacement• Hiring and tooling only with clear business cases• Lean tech stack choices that reduce complexity• Brand as the moat in a copycat software world• Branded entertainment and YouTube as growth engines• Limits of synthetic audiences and AI-looking creative• Deepfakes, eroding trust, and authentic messaging• The Hawk Method: awareness, nurturing, trust• Channels that scale for B2B and B2C performance—----------Guest Contact Information: Website: erikhuberman.comInstagram: instagram.com/erikhubermanLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/erikhubermanYouTube: youtube.comMore from EWR and Matthew:Leave us a review wherever you listen: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Amazon PodcastFree SEO Consultation: www.ewrdigital.com/discovery-callWith over 5 million downloads, The Best SEO Podcast has been the go-to show for digital marketers, business owners, and entrepreneurs wanting real-world strategies to grow online. Now, host Matthew Bertram — creator of the LLM Visibility Stack™, and Lead Strategist at EWR Digital — takes the conversation beyond traditional SEO into the AI era of discoverability. Each week, Matthew dives into the tactics, frameworks, and insights that matter most in a world where search engines, large language models, and answer engines are reshaping how people find, trust, and choose businesses. From SEO and AI-driven marketing to executive-level growth strategy, you'll hear expert interviews, deep-dive discussions, and actionable strategies to help you stay ahead of the curve. Find more episodes here: youtube.com/@BestSEOPodcastbestseopodcast.combestseopodcast.buzzsprout.comFollow us on:Facebook: @bestseopodcastInstagram: @thebestseopodcastTiktok: @bestseopodcastLinkedIn: @bestseopodcastConnect With Matthew Bertram: Website: www.matthewbertram.comInstagram: @matt_bertram_liveLinkedIn: @mattbertramlivePowered by: ewrdigital.comSupport the show

Memoirist and filmmaker Curtis Chin on pitching for national press, booking venues through cold emails, and making a high-volume book events strategy financially sustainable.   You'll learn:Why Curtis booked readings before his memoir released to drive pre-orders, and what that early push unlocked. How he found venues by researching programs and series online, then sending cold outreach without overcomplicating it. A practical way to define your “audience” so your outreach targets the right communities and institutions. How to write a venue email that creates urgency (a “hook” and a reason to say yes now), without sounding gimmicky. A press pitching approach that starts local, builds credibility, and then moves toward national outlets. What his spreadsheets are (and aren't) for, and a lightweight way to track outreach and payments without building a complicated system. How he initially used a publisher budget, then supplemented it with community funding when the budget wasn't enough. Why momentum compounds (your growing “resume” of events and media makes the next invitations easier), and how to lean into that effect. How he structures his day to keep writing, business logistics, and book marketing moving at the same time. How getting paid for talks changed the economics of touring, and why nonfiction subject expertise can create more paid speaking opportunities.  Resources & Links:

If AI still feels like something you dip in and out of for the occasional email subject line, this episode is going to change how you see it entirely. What if instead of a chat box, you had a fully functioning marketing department, one that knows your voice, your clients, your frameworks, and your way of thinking, available to you 24/7? This is the first in a series where I am pulling back the curtain on exactly how I have been using Claude AI to build out the kind of marketing system I have always wanted but never had the time to create. You'll learn: The key elements of Claude AI (from chat to deep research to projects to skills) and what each one actually does How to think about AI as a marketing department rather than just a tool you prompt Where to start if you are overwhelmed, and why one or two small workflows can make a bigger difference than you think This is not about prompts or custom GPTs. It is about building something that runs in the background, does the thinking with you, and stops you from having to repeat yourself every single session. Whether you are a total beginner or already dabbling, this episode lays the foundation for everything that comes next in this series. If you have not yet tried deep research mode, that is your first quick win. Send Claude off for 20 minutes to do a target market sentiment analysis and see what comes back. It is genuinely a gold mine. Want to see more of what I get up to when I’m not podcasting? Hang out with me on Instagram @yaelkeon Get my freebie: 80+ Fill in the Blank Email Ideas Get the FREE getting started course: Get Started with Email Marketing Shop The Email Marketing Superstore Join The Email Experience 1-1 Consulting See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Building a big team is one thing.Building a rock-solid team that lasts is something completely different.We're breaking down the 11 rules that separate leaders who flame out… from leaders who build 6 and 7 figure businesses with stability, duplication, and culture.If you've ever felt like:

Are your fundraising and marketing teams working in silos? You're not alone. In this episode, host Simon Scriver sits down with Amy Hutchings, co-founder of Storykind, to tackle one of the charity sector's most persistent challenges: the disconnect between fundraising and marketing departments. Amy shares insights from her new book "Smashing the Silos" and reveals why even well-intentioned organisations struggle with integration. From misaligned audience targeting to competing Christmas campaigns, Amy brings proven strategies to help organisations work better together In this episode, you'll discover: - Why silos form in the first place (hint: it's not just about different goals) - The hidden cost of separate brand and fundraising strategies - How personal targets can sabotage collaboration - Amy's "3 C's of Integration" framework you can implement immediately - Why your first integrated campaign will probably be terrible (and why that's okay) Want to continue your learning? Join Amy and other brilliant speakers at our Fundraising Marketing Conference on the 26th February Click here to subscribe to our email list for exclusive fundraising resources, early access to training, special discounts and more If you enjoyed this episode, don't forget to hit follow and enable notifications so you'll get notified to be first to hear of future podcast episodes. We'd love to see you back again! And thank you to our friends at JustGiving who make the Fundraising Everywhere Podcast possible.  

For marketers who've felt that video is too expensive, too technical, or too time-consuming, this episode offers a clear takeaway: you don't need a big budget or a big team to make video work, you just need the right approach and tools.Video is one of the most powerful content formats for marketers, but for years it also felt out of reach. That's no longer the case. Today, creating high-quality video for every channel is easier and more affordable than ever and video consistently ranks as one of the top-performing content types across channels. In this episode, Elise Beck, Senior Director of Product Marketing at Wistia, shares how today's marketers can create impactful video easily and affordably, even with lean teams and limited budgets.Video is uniquely effective for companies with complex products, long buying cycles, and technical audiences. From product demos and explainers to webinars and podcasts, video allows marketers to scale knowledge, replace in-person demos or plant tours, and communicate ideas that are difficult to explain with text alone.Video creation has become far more accessible in recent years. Elise explains how modern tools for recording, editing, and polishing video, has lowered the barrier to entry for marketers who don't have video production backgrounds. Features like screen recording, simple editing, AI-powered audio cleanup, social clip generation, and automated captions help marketers develop and publish quality video content.This episode also explores the evolving role of video in search and AI-driven discovery. As generative search and large language models change how buyers find information, Elise explains how making video content readable by AI is becoming increasingly important for visibility and reach. The episode goes beyond creation into measurement, highlighting how video analytics can give marketers and sales teams deeper insight into buyer engagement.Finally, the discussion looks ahead to emerging trends in video marketing, including AI-assisted ideation, localization, and the ongoing debate around synthetic video and avatars. Elise emphasizes the importance of balancing innovation with authenticity,  especially for technical and industrial brands where trust and credibility matter most. Key TakeawaysVideo's true power lies in its ability to simplify complexity and enable authentic communication at scaleEmbedding transcripts and enabling AI to read video content transforms videos into accessible, searchable assets, increasing reach and relevance.AI streamlines recording, editing, and post-production, making video creation feasible for small teams or individuals.Features like integrated editing tools enable quick turnaround and testing of video content.Organizations are bringing video production internally, leveraging AI for ideation, scripting, and editing, reducing reliance on external vendors.Trust and genuine human connection are prioritized over AI-generated video, especially in technical fieldsAll-in-one video solutions like Wistia empower lean teams to execute comprehensive video strategies efficiently.ResourcesConnect with Elise on LinkedInConnect with Wendy on LinkedInLearn more about WisitaLearn more about Wistia's State of Video Research ReportAI Benchmark: Will Smith Eating SpaghettiRelated Episode: How to Add Value-Driven Videos to Your Content Marketing Mix

G2's dataset reveals 70% of enterprise buyers now expect AI-optimized content discovery. Tim Sanders, Chief Innovation Officer at G2, oversees buyer behavior insights from over 100 million annual software purchasers and has identified critical gaps in how enterprise brands prepare for AI-driven search. Sanders shares G2's framework for markdown optimization that dramatically improves AI model inclusion during training phases. He also reveals why pricing page transparency has become essential for AI comprehension, challenging traditional negotiation-based sales approaches that create model confusion.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Tom Dingwall, AI Growth Manager at Passion Fruit, joins Pathmonk Presents to unpack how modern marketing teams can scale faster using flexible talent and AI-driven workflows. Tom shares how Passion Fruit connects companies with specialized freelance marketers across the full marketing mix, while avoiding the inefficiencies of traditional agency models. The conversation dives into the launch of PIP AI, Passion Fruit's marketing copilot built specifically for marketers facing repetitive tasks and limited time. Tom also explains how content, events, and outbound drive growth, why case studies are critical for website conversions, and what truly makes a high-converting marketing website in today's competitive landscape.

I literally replaced myself with AI, and by that, I mean AI took over my actual job. I've been a professional online direct response marketing copywriter and consultant for the past 26 years, and I handed over all of my marketing to AI. In this video, I show you exactly how I used my new "Chief Revenue Officer" (an AI agent inside oJoy.ai) to take over my entire marketing department. I gave it my 26 years of experience, and then I stepped out of the way. Warning: This is NOT for beginners looking for a "magic button." This strategy only works if you have a real business with actual customers. Chapters: 00:00 - The Replacement: How I fired myself  01:45 - The Audit: What a Marketing Team actually does 05:15 - The "Chief Revenue Officer" Agent 08:45 - The Input: Giving AI my 26 years of data 14:00 - The Campaign: Filtering out the "Lazy People" 17:21 - The Results: 62 Trials from a "failed" experiment 23:00 - The Upsell: How AI found "Free Money" in my funnel

Ever feel like Instagram is working against you instead of for you? You're not alone. In this episode, Yvonne Ashton, Ali Zimmerman, and Ana Romero from the Mayesh marketing team get brutally honest about Instagram's biggest frustrations—from the 90-second song limit and shadow-banning to the verification process that feels impossible, the collaboration caps that hurt our industry, and the scheduling limitations that disrupt workflow. But we're not just complaining—we're sharing real solutions, workarounds, and strategies that help us navigate these challenges while still building community and reaching florists. If you've ever wondered whether you're "doing Instagram wrong" or if the platform really is just this difficult—this episode is for you. Topics covered: The link-in-caption paywall problem Why new accounts don't get features immediately Video quality compression issues The 5-person collaboration limit Scheduling Reels challenges for seasonal businesses Algorithm changes and shadow-banning anxiety Practical workarounds: Edits app, Repost feature, autoresponders What we'd fix about Instagram tomorrow Join the conversation and remember: you're more than your engagement rate. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and pull up a chair for every episode. Visit the link for show notes and video podcast:  https://www.mayesh.com/blog/instagram-confessions-marketing-team-spills-the-tea 

Marketing feels chaotic because most businesses are chasing tactics without a system to support them. In this episode, John Jantsch and Sara Nay explain why a marketing operating system brings clarity, accountability, and predictable growth. They walk through how strategy comes first, how campaigns turn strategy into action, and why systems create long-term business value. If marketing feels scattered or hard to measure, this conversation shows how to turn chaos into a repeatable system that actually works. Today we discussed: 00:00 Why Marketing Feels Chaotic in 2025 02:21 What a Marketing OS Is and Why It Matters 04:53 Strategy-First Marketing for Small Business 08:14 Turning Strategy Into Marketing Campaigns 09:25 SOPs and Workstream Engine for Marketing 12:54 How AI Fits Into Modern Marketing Systems 15:24 Scorecards, Metrics and Marketing Dashboards 17:57 Monthly Momentum Meetings for Marketing Teams 20:27 Quarterly Optimization for Better Results 22:33 Agency vs Fractional CMO Service Models 24:32 Book a Call Rate, Review, & Follow If you liked this episode, please rate and review the show. Let us know what you loved most about the episode. Struggling with strategy? Unlock your free AI-powered prompts now and start building a winning strategy today!

PPC Strategies for Small B2B Brands to Beat Big Competitors So many B2B companies and marketing teams waste budget on tactics that don't drive results or support core business goals. Smaller B2B brands often compete against much larger companies while working with less internal bandwidth, tighter budgets, and limited resources. The key being successful lies in their ability to be strategic, efficient, and resourceful despite these obvious constraints. So how can small B2B brands outmaneuver big competitors using PPC and smarter marketing strategies? That's why we're talking to Andy Janaitis (Founder and Chief Strategist, PPC Pitbulls), who shared his experience and PPC strategies for small B2B brands to beat big competitors. During our conversation, Andy discussed the importance of foundational B2B marketing elements like high-converting landing pages, automated email flows, and a well-structured PPC strategy. He highlighted why targeted messaging and measurement are essential to compete more effectively against competitors. Andy also underscored the value of understanding B2B audience pain points, having a well-designed website, and leveraging key metrics such as first-order profitability and customer lifetime growth. He emphasized the importance of transparency and authenticity in B2B marketing strategies and advocated for a data-driven approach that achieves scalable, profitable growth. https://youtu.be/DR6d_dFfnVI Topics discussed in episode: [03:06] The Small Brand Advantage: Why being smaller allows for more targeted messaging that resonates better than broad, big-brand ads. [05:05] Avoid the Testing Trap: Why splitting a small budget across too many creative tests leads to insufficient data and wasted spend. [07:14] Winning the Auction: How the real-time ad auction rewards quality and specificity, allowing you to pay less than big brands for premium placements. [09:50] The Conversion Ecosystem: The critical role of landing pages and automated email flows in nurturing leads who aren’t ready to buy yet. [14:58] 5 Essentials for Ad Readiness: A checklist of what you need (from audience understanding to goal clarity) before launching your first campaign. [21:55] AI in PPC: How AI-driven automation has powered platforms for years and where it is heading next. [25:34] Better Metrics: Why you should look past ROAS and focus on first-order profitability and customer lifetime growth. Companies and links mentioned: Andy Janaitis on LinkedIn  PPC Pitbulls  Transcript Andy Janaitis, Christian Klepp Andy Janaitis  00:00 If you’re sending people to a landing page that’s not built to convert, if it doesn’t have the social proof that gives somebody the trust in your product or your service, you may be able to get folks to your site, but they’re not ultimately going to purchase for you, and that’s just one other component. Something else we see all the time is email flows, so making sure that you have automated welcome flows, that if they don’t purchase the first time they’re on your site, they have a lower value touch point, whether it be downloading a free lead magnet or something like that, that brings them into your ecosystem and allows you to start nurturing the relationship over time. Those are two things that we see all the time, landing pages and email flows that are fundamentals that get overlooked and people say, hey, the ads aren’t working, you know, I gotta, you know, try more creative. I gotta keep tweaking. I gotta change, you know, the different structure that some YouTube Guru told me that I need to be running, when in reality, it’s like, no, there’s some key fundamentals that you’ve got to get right about your business first. And getting those things right is going to have 100 times more impact than tweaking little bits of the creative here and there. Christian Klepp  01:04 So many B2B companies and their marketing teams waste money on marketing that doesn’t match their business goals. They go up against much larger competitors, while also having to contend with limited budgets, resources and bandwidth. So how can smaller B2B brands outsmart their biggest counterparts and win? 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 Andy Janaitis, who will be answering this question. He’s the Founder and Chief Strategist of PPC Pitbulls, a boutique digital marketing agency that helps B2B businesses grow past seven figures through leveraging Google and Meta ads. Tune in to find out more about what the speed to be Marketers Mission is. All right, and off we go. Mr. Andy Janaitis, welcome to the show, sir. Andy Janaitis  01:50 Thanks for having me, Christian. Christian Klepp  01:51 Really enjoyed our pre-interview conversation, Andy. We talked about a lot of things that range from B2B Marketing to family and hobbies and the different cities that we’re living in, and what have you. But I am really looking forward to this conversation, because it’s something that I think a lot of people in the B2B Marketing world can relate to. And if they can’t relate, they should all right, so let’s dive right in, because I think this is going to be a really interesting conversation, right? Andy Janaitis  02:19 Definitely. Christian Klepp  02:20 Okay. So Andy, you’re on a Mission to help scale independent B2B brands with data driven Google and Meta ads. But for this conversation, I’d like to zero in on the topic of how smaller B2B brands can outsmart the bigger competitors by being strategic with PPC. If we’re going to use military terms, it almost sounds like you have to learn how to use Guerrilla warfare instead of conventional war tactics, right? So I’m going to kick-off the conversation with two questions, and I’m happy to repeat them all right? So the first question is, what is it about PPC or Pay Per Click that you wish more people understood? And the second question is, why do you think small brands fail when they try to copy big brand ad strategies? Andy Janaitis  03:06 There’s a lot, a lot there to unpack, and I think, you know, there’s, I think you touched on it there, but there’s a lot of anxiety among small brands. We work with Founders and Marketing Directors of these independent brands, and oftentimes there’s a fear of a Google Ads or Meta ads, because they say, Hey, there’s some big competitors out there in my space that are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars a month. And if I’ve got my little budget, if I’m trying to spend $5 or $10,000 a month, how do I have any chance of competing with them? You know, surely they’re going to outbid me on every single keyword, every single ad placement that I could be in, and what gets missed there is that you actually do have a big advantage in that being smaller. Your product probably has a smaller niche than you think, because you’re not distributed to everybody, you’re speaking to a smaller audience, which allows you to be much more targeted in your messaging. So in that way, where you might have some of these bigger brands that are, of course, way out investing, you that investment is being spread across so many different audiences and so many different placements, whereas you have the ability to say, Hey, I’ve got a limited budget. Let me only target, you know, the most likely people to purchase from me, and the people who are, you know, who I’m most likely to resonate with, and then give them a message that really speaks directly to them. So I think that’s the first and foremost thing to remember, is that you can take this, you know, supposedly disadvantage, and really turn it into an advantage when you when you focus in on, you know, who is your smallest, tightest, ideal client, that that you can target and speak to. I think that’s really, really important and gets missed and to your second question around, you know, the big brand tactics. I think a lot of times people see these in Instagram reels, LinkedIn posts that come up with a lot of different strategies that could work well, but are only going to work well on those larger budgets. So one great example of this. A lot of times I see people talking about creative testing and talking about needing we tested across 100 different assets, talk about, you know, let’s use AI so that we have the model in this particular influencer ad. You know, we can change the hair color and the shirt color and all these different combinations and test all these different things. The problem with that is, if you try that with a much smaller budget, you’re necessarily going to split, you know, the budget that many different ways. So say you run 100 different combinations, 100 different messages targets, you’re splitting your budget that many different ways, and you’re not building up enough data about any one of those individual combinations to make a good decision. So I always kind of tell people focus on the fundamentals. First worry about your top level messaging. What is it that really matters most and makes your product different, you know, and your really key differentiators to your to your most ideal audience, forget about, you know, button colors, or, you know, with these smaller budgets, don’t worry about testing. You know, what’s the color of the shirt that the model is wearing kind of thing, you know, you’ll have time to test those things in the future. But, you know, I think people get too caught up in those, those types of practices that, you know, big brands are spending a lot of time and money on and forget about, you know, the fundamentals themselves. Christian Klepp  06:35 Absolutely, absolutely. You brought up some really great points. I like to go back to like, two of them that you mentioned, I think the first one, short of getting too granular or getting too in the weeds, but you brought up something that I thought was really important to discuss further about, like the worry or the concern the Marketers have that people are gonna outbid us for those, for those keyboards, For example, talk us through, if you can, even from a top level perspective, how does a small B2B Company navigate through that? Because it sounds like it can. It can be an exercise that could potentially become very complex. Andy Janaitis  07:14 And the nice thing about this is it’s all automated these days. So, you know, realistically, when you are putting, you know, saying, hey, I want to run an Ad, whether it be on Google or on Meta. What’s happening is a real time auction where they’re saying, Hey, there’s this particular placement or this particular search, in the case of Google, so anybody who could possibly run an Ad on that, we’re going to let them, you know, put their ad forth and how much they’re willing to bid on it, and see, you know, who kind of gets in the top position and gets to show their ad. Now the thing that’s interesting there is it’s not based only on how much you’re about to pay for the ad. It’s also based on the quality of the ad, or how good of a match the ad is for that particular person or that particular search that’s coming in. And that’s where your ad can be more targeted, can be a higher quality ad, because it’s more specific. So you actually are going to be paying a little bit less for that placement than even some of these really big brands that are necessarily speaking a little bit broader language and not as niche down of a message. So that’s one, one big way. The other big thing is, as I mentioned, it’s in real time on every single on every single potential ad placement, or every potential search. So what that means is you probably aren’t going to compete with the big guys across all of the searches they’re running, but you don’t have to, because you may only show up, you know, you may only overlap in 5% of the placement. So where their budgets are going out there to every single potential placement or search that they could show up for, you only need to compete with them in that small, small percentage that is most relevant to your specific audience. Christian Klepp  08:55 Okay, fantastic, fantastic. Okay, second follow up question, and again, got to be careful, because we could potentially go down the deep rabbit hole with this one. But one thing that we all know about PPC is that there’s a lot behind it. And what I mean by that is, it shouldn’t be viewed as this one and done exercise. There’s a there’s a bit of an ecosystem behind it. And what I mean by that is, if somebody goes and sees the ad on Google or Meta and clicks on it, well, that clicks got to redirect people somewhere, right, be that a landing page or a website or whatnot, what’s on? What’s on the co you know, what kind of content are we talking about? What kind of CTA are we talking about? Walk us through that about why, why is it so important for B2B Marketers to understand that PPC is a component in this, this ecosystem? Andy Janaitis  09:50 That’s so, so important, and it’s, it’s important, especially as we talk about, you know, smaller brands, smaller budgets. You know, in that $10,000 to. $20,000 ad spend range. What we find is that, first of all, as you mentioned, it’s a holistic ecosystem. So, yeah, the ads are one part, and you got to make sure that you’ve got your ad copy, you’ve got your placements, you’ve got your you know, your strategy in the ad platforms down. But as you mentioned, if you’re sending people to a landing page that’s not built to convert, if it doesn’t have the social proof that gives somebody the trust in your product or your service. They’re not you may be able to get folks to your site, but they’re not ultimately going to purchase for you. And that’s just one other component. Something else we see all the time is email flows, so making sure that you have automated welcome flows, that if they don’t purchase the first time they’re on your site, they have a lower value touch point, whether it be downloading a free lead magnet or something like that, that brings them into your ecosystem and allows you to start nurturing the relationship over time. Those are two things that we see all the time, landing pages and email flows that are fundamentals that get overlooked. And people say, you know, hey, the ads aren’t working. You know, I gotta, you know, try more creative. I gotta, I gotta keep tweaking. I gotta change. You know, the the different structure that some YouTube Guru told me that I need to be running, when, in reality, it’s like, no, there’s some key fundamentals that you’ve got to get right about your business first. And getting those things right is going to have, you know, 100 times more impact than tweaking little bits of the creative here and there. Christian Klepp  11:26 You brought up one word that I think is worth repeating. It’s nurturing, right? Like, and I think that gets, um, that gets ignored or overlooked a lot in B2B, especially like, when, when the organization’s very sales driven. So it’s all about like, volume, volume, volume, right? Like we gotta, like, I mean, just to use the the old adage of like, you know, gonna hit that phone right, or pound the pavement and just get those numbers up right? But at the end of the day, especially if we’re talking about B2B, not everybody is ready to buy at the first contact. In fact, that would, I would almost go as far as to say, like, 97%, 98% of the time, they’re not, not, they’re not in buying mode, right? They’re probably still in an investigative mode. They’re still looking at what the options are out there. They’re probably doing their own research. That’s how they have landed on those ads. So it’s to your point. It’s so important to like, nurture that at that that lead rather in a non-pushy, non-intrusive way that helps to build that trust, to give them that confidence that this is, in fact, the right company that we should be perhaps having a conversation with, right? Andy Janaitis  12:33 Exactly, yeah, and I think sometimes people spend so much time on their messaging and their differentiators, and then they forget to tell their customers that, you know, they spent all this time working through what exactly it is that made their business better than the competitor. But if you don’t take the time to, you know, set up a welcome email flow it or, you know, build a presence on build an organic presence on Google, on Instagram or Facebook, you’re not necessarily getting that message out and giving people a chance to get to know you and fall in love with your brand. So I think that’s so, so important and often overlooked. Christian Klepp  13:12 Absolutely, absolutely. You brought up some of these already, but talk to us about some of these key pitfalls that Marketing Teams should be avoiding when it comes to PPC, and what should they be doing instead? Andy Janaitis  13:24 So we talked about a few of them. You know, some of the fundamentals that exist outside of the ad ecosystem. But one pitfall that I really want to focus on, that that is really closely tied to the ad ecosystem is measurement. So making sure that once somebody hit your site, you understand where they came from and ultimately what they did so that might be filling out a lead form. That might be purchasing a product, if you’re in kind of the E-commerce space, might be adding a product to their cart. You’ve got to make sure that you’re measuring all those independent events for two purposes, one, passing that data back to a Google or a Meta is the only way that those platforms can optimize and continue to get you better and better results. And two, you need to have that data to be able to report on and understand where your ad dollars are going and whether they’re working or not. That’s how you make the decision of, should I be putting more budget into Google or into Meta or hey, are neither of them working? And I got to try something totally different that’s often overlooked. We see clients coming to us that have spent untold amounts of money, and they’re not really even sure how it worked because they weren’t measuring it in the first place. So they’re just basing it on getting the cheapest clicks possible and not focusing on, you know, really optimizing for conversion? Christian Klepp  14:44 Yeah, no, absolutely. Those are, those are some very important points. In our last conversation, you talked about these five essentials that B2B brands need to have before they run their first ad campaign. Can you talk to us about that? Andy Janaitis  14:58 Yeah, definitely. I. So yeah, I’ll kind of walk through, and I don’t know if we’ll end up on four or six, but we’ll shoot for five here. The number one thing as you’re going through or selling online, obviously, you need to have an understanding of who your audience is and who you’re going to be targeting from that and what comes out of that is having an understanding of what are the main pain points that they have, and making sure that you’re speaking to those on a really well designed website that’s designed for, I say, designed for conversion, but what I mean by that is it helps guide somebody through that buyer’s journey, taking them from the point of just getting to know your brand to understanding what you do, to understanding how you solve their pain points, and then some social proof about why you’re better than others. So a you know, understanding your audience, having a well developed website that speaks to the audience, and importantly, speaks to the real symptoms and pain points that they’re dealing with, and how you can help solve them. Number three, I would say, is measurement. That’s, that’s a big piece that, you know, we just talked about in depth, but making sure you’re understanding once somebody hits the site, what are they, you know, what are they doing? Where are they going? What pages are they viewing? Do they ultimately fill out a lead form? Do they ultimately, you know, add the product to their cart and then leave? You’ve got to be able to measure what’s happening once they hit the site. Beyond that, I would say maybe, maybe item number four will group together a lot of those other fundamentals. So things that even outside of the website, things like a nurture flow and email, a presence on social, these are all so, so important, and even if you’re focused on paid ads running to a website to get a conversion, all of these other things are going to help that process. It’s a holistic marketing process, because we know today that people see you across a number of channels. It’s not that they’re only going to see your ad, come to your website, make a decision and buy. They’re going to, you know, hopefully see your ad later on, maybe see an organic post that you made on your socials. Maybe they bump into you at a trade show or a conference, and ultimately get to your website, make the decision there so making sure that those other fundamentals, like a an email nurture flow or a good organic social present are available, and then number five, and I think this is most important. And what I see people get wrong all the time is, understand your goals. So people will say, hey, I need to run ads. I want to run ads because I want more leads. Ultimately, you know, obviously we can, can run ads, and that could be an outcome. But if you’re not able to say, you know, what type of leads do you want, why are you not getting enough leads today? What’s your capacity? How many leads can you handle? You know, what type of behaviors are you trying to get more of, whether it be leads versus, you know, sales versus, you know, people buying a purchase or even downloading a lead magnet so that we can begin the nurture process. These are all viable, viable directions to go. And if you’re not thinking through specifically for your business, what’s the very specific goal that you that you have, and more importantly, what are the constraints you have? What’s your budget? What how much creative do you have available? Do you have a team on staff that can create more creative or work with your marketing strategy, understanding the goals and the constraints? A lot of people get caught up and just say, Hey, I got to run some ads and go for it. I want more revenue, when, in reality, there’s all these different nuances to it, and you really need to know what your specific goal is. Christian Klepp  18:39 Yeah, no, no, that’s great stuff. So let me just quickly recap for the benefit of the listeners, right? So you were talking about understand who the audience is, which is, which is imperative. I mean, you know, you almost shouldn’t start anything without knowing that, right? The second one was a well developed website, and I’ve got a follow up question for you on that one. Third one is measurement. So metrics like, know what to measure, and we will have a separate question about metrics later on in the conversation. Four is nurture, flow and email and organic and a presence on social. And the last one is understanding your goals, right? Like, what is it you want to achieve with this? Right? So on the topic of websites, when you say, well, developed website, I’m I have this feeling that you’re not referring to it’s got to be this incredibly expensive and complex website. That’s not what you’re talking about, right? Andy Janaitis  19:34 No and oftentimes, the simpler it is, the better it’s going to convert. So I think that’s really important what we think about. And I think the way I think of it is, in the old days, you might have a salesperson who’s going to get in front of a potential lead and then help kind of, you know, work through the objections they might have. So hey, you know, I’m not sure this might be a little too expensive for me. Or, Hey, I’m not sure if you know, you really serve people in my niche. Or if you know you you work with somebody, somebody different. I don’t know that this is a great fit for me. And the salesperson would have all the answers, right? They would say, hey, if this is their objection, this is how we answer that. If this is their objection, this is how we answer that. This is how we tell them about how we solve their problems. In today’s day and age, you may still have some sales people, but your website needs to do a lot of that work itself. So that’s what we need to think through is, what are all the things that a buyer needs to know before they’re ready to make that purchase and make sure that we’re putting that in front of them in a way that’s super easy to understand. A confused buyer is not a buyer. There’s a better way to use that statement. I’m sure you’ve probably heard that somebody, if they find confusion, they’re not going to be ultimately making a purchase with you. So make sure it’s really, really clear what is your product or service, how does it solve the customer’s problem? And hopefully some social proof too, and making sure that there’s some confidence that you’ve solved this problem for other people, like the potential buyer. Christian Klepp  20:57 And when you say social proof, you’re, of course, referring to things like in the form of case studies, testimonials, maybe even reviews on like platforms like Clutch and the like. Andy Janaitis  21:07 Exactly. All of those are great. You know, if you have a partner badge that, hey, you’ve done good work, or you’re certified to do particular work, that could be another one. If you’ve been featured in particular publications, that can be another one. But yeah, ultimately, all of these different ways that help give confidence that you can do the job. Christian Klepp  21:24 Fantastic, fantastic. You kind of scratch the surface a little bit in the beginning of the conversation, but PPC and AI, right? I mean, you kind of, you kind of cannot avoid this topic, right? Because it permeates across the entire marketing spectrum. But you know, from your perspective and in your experience, to what degree do you find AI harmful and helpful when it comes to PPC? Andy Janaitis  21:55 So I would say, on kind of the helpful side, and this is something that’s what’s interesting is we think of AI, you know, in the last, say, three years since chatGPT released, was it three? Five was the first, you know, kind of big milestone, breaking model where people said, Oh my gosh, this is, you know, this can really do a lot of, you know, can sound like a real human kind of thing. But long before that, AI has been implemented in these platforms, in Google and Meta, and for probably the last 10 years, we’ve been moving in the direction of more automation, more AI. So earlier, we talked about that ad auction, where every single time a keyword is searched or a placement pops up on Facebook or Instagram, you have to have a particular bid of how much you’re willing to spend to get your ad there. These days, you’re not putting any of those bids in manually. You’re just telling Meta or Google, hey, here’s the budget I want, and here’s the data coming from my website to let people know if they’re purchasing or filling out a lead form or not. And now Google or Meta, go out there and run with it. You know, go ahead and optimize with the ad assets that I’ve given you and the budget that I’ve given you. Go ahead and put me wherever you need to put me in order to get the most possible, you know, results, goals that that you can and that’s all AI driven. Then it’s been that way for a long time. We’ve been moving in that kind of direction. So that’s on the helpful side. That’s where, you know, AI is really driving, driving success for us. On the hurtful side. You know, you hear a lot of times people talking about, you know, now, especially in Google, when somebody makes a search, they’re getting the information. They’re getting an answer right up front. Or maybe they’re not even going to Google. Maybe they’re in ChatGPT or Perplexity, so, Christian Klepp  23:44 It’s a summary at the top right? Yeah. Andy Janaitis  23:47 Exactly, yeah. So they don’t even need to come to your website. From a PPC perspective, there’s not that click that you can go ahead and bid on and put your ad in front of, and that can be a concern, honestly, from a services and product perspective, I find that to be a little bit less of an issue. It’s definitely more of an issue for publishers. So if you have an information content kind of business that’s really harmful for you right now, because, you know, people are getting that information without ever having to make the click onto your website. But ultimately, if somebody is going to want to hire you for your services or buy one of your products, they still have to click through at some point. They’re not necessarily making that purchase, or they’re definitely not making that purchase out of the Google results summary. That being said, the other kind of big thing, and why I’m not super, super concerned about that development, is that whether it be on chatGPT or on Google, they really haven’t started monetizing yet, and that’s where I think you’re still going to see ads up in that area, we know that you’re going to be seeing ads up there. In fact, chatGPT is already hiring up and staffing up an ad organization, so it’s just going to be one more platform, one more area where you can run ads and get in. Front of your ideal customers. Because ultimately, you know, a subscription model can work to a degree, but you know, these companies, from an economic basis, need to have ads in order to kind of fund the type of growth that they that they need to see over the coming years. Christian Klepp  25:15 Yeah, yeah, no, absolutely, absolutely, all right, previously, like when we talked about this, you mentioned this one thing, right? Kind of sounds like a song, right? Like this one metric that every B2B brand must know before scaling. So what is it? And why do you think B2B brands should have it? Andy Janaitis  25:35 So I’ll maybe take a little bit of a cop out. And they’re a couple different metrics. You know, we, especially on the e-commerce side, we look at four key metrics. One of the people get caught up when they’re thinking about on in the PPC world, a lot of times, people talk about ROAs (Return On Ad Spend) or CPA (Cost Per Acquisition/Action). So ROAs would be the amount of revenue that you’re getting in for every ad dollar your spend return on ad spend and CPA would be cost per action, or essentially, you know, if somebody is looking to get lead forms filled out, how many dollars of ad spend are you putting in for every lead form that you’re getting filled out? And those can be important metrics, but they abstract away a lot of important nuance, and it’s very possible to look good in those metrics and still not make a ton of money. So we have these four key metrics, especially on the e-commerce side, that we focus in on, and it’s things like first order profitability. So yeah, your ROAs may be high, but if it’s a lot of people making repeat purchases, you may still be spending too much money to acquire that that first customer so first order profitability is going to be the first time somebody makes a purchase. Are you profitable? Or are you not? You know that that one individual purchase even before you start to look at customer lifetime growth. Is it profitable for you? Another key metric that we look at is that customer lifetime growth. So okay, perfect. You’ve profitably gotten that first purchase, but are you building enough customer lifetime value so that over time it’s going to pay off what you had to put in to acquire that customer in the first place. Another key one that really applies, whether it be e-commerce or elsewhere, is the percentage of your revenue, the percentage of your leads that are coming from organic channels versus paid channels. So we love to focus on the paid side. We help people find scalable, profitable results in the paid channels, but if you’re too over indexed in those, if you’re getting too much of your revenue or your leads from paid channels, that tells you that you’re probably paying a little bit too much for it. And you need to develop that organic you know, from your your social from people just finding you via regular old Google search, making sure that you’re not over indexed towards the paid channel, if you want to be able to scale that profitably. Christian Klepp  28:06 Okay, okay, well, there’s some really great points, and I’m glad that you pointed that out about like, you know how everybody is very obsessed with ROAs and CPA, but there are actually, in fact, other metrics that they really should be paying more attention to, or that need, that deserve some of that limelight as well. Right? Andy Janaitis  28:23 Exactly. Christian Klepp  28:24 Fantastic. So we get to the point in the conversation, my friend, where we’re talking about actionable tips, and you’ve given us a ton already within these past like, 30 minutes. But just imagine there’s a B2B Marketer out there that’s listening to this conversation between you and I, and there are three to five things that you can tell them. You know, you can take action on this right now, right after listening to this conversation, what would those things be? Andy Janaitis  28:48 Yeah. So first and foremost, we talked about your measurement. So the action there is use GA for Google Analytics. If you don’t have Google Analytics installed on your website already. Make sure you go ahead and get that installed. It’s a free tool. There’s some other paid tools that are better in certain ways. But you know, for my money, as you’re getting started out, Google Analytics is absolutely table stakes. You’ve got to have that installed on your site and set up properly to measure the behavior of what’s what’s happening on your site. If we’re talking PPC, similar to that, is making sure that everything is technically configured correctly, so that when somebody makes executes a behavior, makes a purchase, fills out a lead form, that data is getting back to, you know, either Google or Meta. So those are, you know, kind of the some of the key things that you got to do right out the gate and GA for Google Analytics. It’s a free tool, so there’s no, really no excuse not to have that set up. The other thing that I think is a first step that a lot of folks really got to got to figure out is getting crystal clear on who your customer is, what their main pain point that you can solve is. Is, and then ultimately, what’s your goal for for ads. So those kind of three, three components all tied together a lot of times. You know, we find people that are either, hey, we’re just looking for leads, but they can’t really give a good answer on, you know, who their customers or what type of leads would be a good lead for them. Or, you know, maybe they they’re really tight on who their customer is. And they say, Hey, we just, we just got to run some ads, but understanding kind of where ads fit into overall ecosystem. How are you doing organically? How do you close the leads once you get them you know? How often do people who make that first purchase end up coming back and making an additional purchase? Make sure you understand what you’re actually trying to get out of the ads. I think that’s probably the number one thing, and you can’t do that without the measurement piece that we that we discussed earlier. But I would really, you know, kind of start from a measurement component. Make sure you understand what’s happening when folks at your site, and then, before you spend $1 in paid ads, make sure you understand what you’re trying to get out of those paid ads and what gap in your marketing, you’re trying to solve. Christian Klepp  31:02 Absolutely, and it’s such a dangerous mindset to have that, you know, we just want to quickly do this right, and we just want to, like, generate some quick leads so we can show some numbers. But if you, you know, to your point, and you’ve raised it a couple of times in this conversation, if you don’t do this heavy lifting up front with understanding who your target audience is and understanding what the actual goals of this exercise are, then all of this is gonna go like, down the drain at some point, right? I mean, like, I’ll have to tell you, this is your this is your area of expertise. But if you don’t know what you’re doing with paid ads, that budgets gonna, like, evaporate fairly quickly. Andy Janaitis  31:40 Exactly, yeah. Christian Klepp  31:42 We’re gonna move on to the soapbox question. I’m gonna say I was, I was, I was trying to think about, well, how to describe this, but, yeah, that’s the best description. What is the status quo in your area of expertise that you passionately disagree with, and why? Andy Janaitis  32:02 That’s a great question. I think we talked about some of the individual components earlier. You know, folks kind of listening to Gurus, kind of coming we still to this day, you know, have clients, or prospective clients coming in and say, Hey, I saw this YouTube video that told me I’ve got to do this. And it’s, you know, just bad advice for them kind of thing, you know, where they didn’t really, you know, get that good advice and take it one step further to see how that fits for their specific business. I think that happens all too often. The other big thing that we, we see, especially in marketing in general, I think there’s a lot of suspicion of, you know, marketing, you know, we people are really, really looking for authenticity these days. And I think there’s a fear that, you know, marketing as an industry is all about telling lies or not giving, you know, an authentic answer, trying to trick somebody into buying a product or a service. And a lot of that, you know, it’s kind of our own fault, honestly. You know, there’s a lot of Gurus out there that give the industry a bad name, when in reality, you know, all of this is about you should have a valuable product or a valuable service, and what we’re doing, you know, whether it be via paid ads or organic or you know those email nurture flows is just educating The customer on how your product authentically solves their specific pain points. So I think that’s, you know, something I would really like to kind of dispel that myth that marketing agencies say, you know, are not able to, are all charlatans and not able to give you good, authentic support. You know, we like to kind of think of it almost like when you bring your car to a mechanic, that old trusted mechanic thing, right? You don’t know what’s going on under the hood. You don’t know what that clunking sound is. So you better find a mechanic that you can trust to shoot it to you straight, not sell you something you don’t need. We like to think of ourselves like that in the marketing world, you know, in a world where there’s a lot of suspicion of the practitioners, you know, making sure that you can find somebody who is transparent and that you can trust to tell you the truth, I think that’s, you know, there’s a lot of good people out there and a lot of a lot of good businesses, agencies out there, you know, I’d like to kind of, you know, dispel that myth that there isn’t, you know, a trustworthy marketing agency that can really help you, guide your business to success, and help you find, you know, find the right answers for you, not what’s just profitable for the agency. Christian Klepp  34:33 This is gonna sound so biased coming from me, but yes, I agree with you. There are some good Marketers out there, right? I mean, we have to believe that too, because, you know, not, not all of us are, are out there to, like, just, you know, make some quick profit. In fact, like the way that I work with my clients, I always say up front, honesty and transparency. Andy Janaitis  34:52 Exactly. Christian Klepp  34:53 You know. And every time they asked me for for advice and or what I would do in this situation, I always start. Answer by saying full transparency, right? This is how I would do it, or I wouldn’t recommend you do this right now, because it’s not a good user for your budget, for example, right? And we and we know that, and we know that there are agencies out there that wouldn’t do that, right? They won’t say that, right? They’ll just say, oh, yeah, absolutely, go do it. Okay? But those relationships don’t tend to last very long in my experience. Okay, so here comes the bonus question, and we talked a little bit about this before I hit record. But rumor has it that you started your agency three months before your first child was born. So the question is, what important lesson to that experience teach you, both personally and professionally, like, like, it was almost like there was, there were two things coming into this world at that point in time as a war, right? Andy Janaitis  35:51 Yeah, it’s a great question. And certainly there’s been, you know, a lot that I’ve learned from, you know, both the business and and the parenting journeys, you know, I think kind of the crossover there, you know, we think about, like, the time component, right? You know, there’s only so many hours in the day. One big thing is, it definitely gives you perspective. You know, we always think about, you know, the perspective, hey, family matters the most and kind of what it means to, you know, now I know what’s really important, as opposed to getting worried or bent out of shape about, you know, some of the little things. But I think that really applies to the whole, you know, the holistic person, and, you know, the whole lifestyle, whether it be, you know, how we spend time with family or how we spend time, you know, working on the business and growing the business, it really forces you, because you have a limited time horizon, you know, forces you to kind of really focus in on what’s most important and not waste your time on, you know, either spending time on the things that aren’t going to be impactful or don’t matter so much, and especially not wasting your worry and your anxiety on, you know, things that are going to solve themselves and you really don’t need to be worried about. Christian Klepp  37:04 And just my two cents worth, because we kind of both started our businesses around the same time, but it kind of teaches you to prioritize and manage your time a little bit better. Not that we didn’t know how to manage our time previously, but it’s a different type of time management, right? Like, time management to take care of the family and time management to, like, run the business. Right? Andy Janaitis  37:26 Exactly. Yep. Christian Klepp  37:28 Yeah. No. Fantastic, fantastic. Andy, this has been such a great conversation. I really enjoyed it. Thanks so much for coming on and for sharing your experience and expertise with the listeners. Please. Quick intro to yourself and how folks out there can get in touch with you. Andy Janaitis  37:43 Yeah, so we’re at ppcpitbulls.com at PPC Pitbulls. We’re really focused on helping e-commerce Directors, Marketing Directors, and just small businesses in general, figure out, you know, kind of demystify the world of digital marketing, and go from confused, not knowing where the next dollars are going to come in, to having a really good, stable strategy, and, you know, confidence in, you know, a strategy for profitable growth. So if you want to learn more, come check us out. We’ll actually have a special page, ppcpitbulls.com/mission, and that will be for listeners of this particular podcast. I talked about those four key metrics that we really care about. We’ve got that all put down in kind of a self guide that you can go through. We call it our paid ads reality checklist you can go through step by step. And I’ll show you exactly how to calculate each one of those metrics and how to analyze it on the back end. If that’s too much for you, can always just book a time with me too. I love sitting down with and meeting new small businesses, learning about your niche and you know, talking about where you can go next with your digital marketing. Christian Klepp  38:52 Fantastic, fantastic. So once again, Andy, thanks so much for coming on. Take care, stay safe and talk to you soon. Andy Janaitis  38:59 Talk to you soon. Thanks for having me.

What does travel guru Rick Steves have to do with enterprise software marketing? Everything. Rick didn't just build a business; he built an empire by treating his content—his guidebooks and shows—as the actual product, a strategy that modern B2B brands are failing to replicate.In this episode, Lee Densmer, content marketer and author, joins the show to dismantle the "anonymous corporate marketing" playbook. She argues that to survive in a sea of AI noise and generic posts, companies must shift to human-led storytelling where the content itself is treated with the same rigor as the product you sell.In this episode, we cover:The Rick Steves Model: Why the "OG creator" is the blueprint for modern B2B success.Human-Led Content: Why you need to stop publishing from "The Marketing Team" and start utilizing the faces and voices of your subject matter experts.Cutting Through the Noise: How to curate your audience and use "spicy" points of view to defeat AI-generated slop.Internal Training: How to train your team to build personal brands that benefit the company.Links & Resources:Connect with Lee Densmer on LinkedInCheck out Lee's New Book (The Top 40 Content Problems)Text us what you think about this episode!

AI can now think like a seasoned marketing consultant. Watch the new AI called "Director of Sales" analyze my entire business to find the one singular move that generates maximum revenue immediately. [Context Block] In this video, we demonstrate Autonomous Strategic Reasoning. This is a fancy way of saying we get to see how AI literally analyzes a current business and thinks strategically just like a seasoned direct response consultant. This is much different than what you see with most AI out there. Most AI will just use generic pattern recognition to give you a bunch of ideas that "match" what it thinks you're looking for. The new Director of Sales AI from oJoy.ai analyzes your specific objective, constraints, and marketing assets (list size, offer, timeframe) to find the one singular action that will move the needle the most. You will see it audit a live business, ignore the low-value distractions, and prescribe a tailored campaign to generate maximum sales in the next 7 days. And then you will see it actually create the very campaign that it prescribes.

315 | Jess Lytle (Head of Marketing at Exit Five) hosts a live roundtable with Morgan Cole (VP of Demand Gen at Red Canary), Lisa Cole (CMO at 2X), and Jean Cameron (Sr. Director of Field & Partner Marketing at Demandbase) on how B2B teams are using AI to drive pipeline and revenue. They share real examples of how marketers are identifying in-market buyers earlier, moving deals faster, replacing outdated lead scoring, and keeping marketing, sales, and ops aligned around revenue. The conversation goes deep on intent signals, buying groups, predictive analytics, brand vs demand, and what's changing in the new era of pipeline accountability. Timestamps(00:00) - AI hype vs real revenue impact (06:16) - Panel intros and GTM perspectives (08:46) - The real pipeline problem: growth without more headcount (11:16) - How teams use AI to identify in-market buyers earlier (16:46) - Buying groups, not leads: why account signals matter (20:46) - Predictive analytics, pipeline forecasting, and deal analysis (27:36) - Why traditional lead scoring is breaking (37:28) - How teams “swarm” accounts with marketing + sales (43:48) - Brand and demand together: building future pipeline Join 50,0000 people who get our Exit Five Newsletter here: https://www.exitfive.com/newsletterLearn more about Exit Five's private marketing community: https://www.exitfive.com/***Today's episode is brought to you by Knak.Email (in my humble opinion) is the still the greatest marketing channel of all-time.It's the only way you can truly “own” your audience.But when it comes to building the emails - if you've ever tried building an email in an enterprise marketing automation platform, you know how painful it can be. Templates are too rigid, editing code can break things and the whole process just takes forever. That's why we love Knak here at Exit Five. Knak a no-code email platform that makes it easy to create on-brand, high-performing emails - without the bottlenecks.Frustrated by clunky email builders? You need Knak.Tired of ‘hoping' the email you sent looks good across all devices? Just test in Knak first.Big team making it hard to collaborate and get approvals? Definitely Knak.And the best part? Everything takes a fraction of the time.See Knak in action at knak.com/exit-five. Or just let them know you heard about Knak on Exit Five.***Thanks to my friends at hatch.fm for producing this episode and handling all of the Exit Five podcast production.They give you unlimited podcast editing and strategy for your B2B podcast.Get unlimited podcast editing and on-demand strategy for one low monthly cost. Just upload your episode, and they take care of the rest.Visit hatch.fm to learn more

In this episode of the Millionaire Car Salesman Podcast, Sean V. Bradley sits down with longtime industry strategist Troy Spring to discuss the evolving state of automotive advertising. With nearly four decades in the business, Troy brings a perspective shaped by experience, data, and a deep understanding of what truly moves the needle for dealerships! "I've never seen anything work better than direct mail ever." - Troy Spring From traditional marketing channels to modern digital ecosystems, the conversation explores how dealers think about their market, their budget, and the strategies that shape their advertising decisions. Sean and Troy examine the realities dealerships face today, from vendor relationships to the role of in-house marketing leadership, and why understanding your market is more important now than ever! "It's a chess match. It's not just advertising. It's about looking at everything holistically." - Troy Spring This episode challenges assumptions, reframes how dealers view their advertising spend, and offers a candid look at the mindset needed to succeed in a competitive landscape. If you're a Dealer, General Manager, marketing manager, or anyone responsible for driving traffic and generating opportunities… this is a conversation you'll want to hear firsthand! Tune in to learn how top operators are rethinking their advertising journey, and why the next evolution of automotive marketing starts with clarity, strategy, and control!   Key Takeaways: ✅ Direct mail remains one of the most effective traditional advertising methods for car dealerships, often outperforming digital strategies. ✅ To optimize marketing spend, dealers need to focus on their immediate market area before expanding efforts to broader markets. ✅ Understanding and calculating the true cost-per-sale involves more than just the simple division of ad spend by cars sold. ✅ Dealerships should ensure their marketing managers have both automotive sales experience and technical knowledge in digital marketing certifications. ✅ Successful dealer strategies often include a mix of both traditional and digital marketing methods, customized to their specific market needs.   About Troy Spring Troy Spring, Co-founder of Dealer World, is an automotive industry veteran with nearly 40 years of experience! He sold his first car at the age of 18 and rose quickly within the ranks to manage dealerships, including leading a four-store group as a platform manager. In 2009, Troy founded Dealer World, a boutique advertising agency specializing in driving traffic and sales strategy for car dealerships. He later co-founded Dealer Funnel, focusing on nurturing leads for better conversion rates. Known for his innovative approach and in-depth understanding of both traditional and digital automotive marketing, Troy is highly respected in the industry!   Disrupting Auto Dealership Strategies: Insights from Industry Experts Key Takeaways Dealers must focus on securing their local market before venturing into new territories to maximize profitability. A holistically-managed marketing plan, customizable per dealership's needs, outperforms cookie-cutter OEM vendor solutions. Successful dealership marketing relies on understanding both traditional and digital advertising fundamentals. The Importance of Protecting Your Primary Market Area (PMA) In the fast-paced world of automotive dealerships, focusing on expansion without reinforcing the existing customer base can be a recipe for inefficiency. Sean V. Bradley, president of Dealer Synergy, suggests a foundational strategy: focus on protecting your primary market area first. Bradley asserts that many dealers overlook the rich opportunities available locally. "It's interesting," Bradley remarks, "we'll sit with a dealer, and they'll say, 'I got to go after XYZ down the street,' when they should be protecting their backyard first." This discussion highlights that the inclination to conquest rather than consolidate can lead to a dilute marketing focus. The result? Dealers potentially miss out on higher return-on-investment (ROI) opportunities domestically. Bradley's recommendation to analyze the pump-in, pump-out report is a strategic reminder to first solidify one's standing locally. This approach not only optimizes ROI but also reduces advertising costs associated with pursuing less familiar, distant markets. Taking Bradley's advice to heart, a dealership can enjoy the double benefit of deepening customer loyalty while also enhancing word-of-mouth marketing locally. Through focusing efforts on holding on to current clientele before aggressively targeting competitors', dealerships can achieve a more sustainable, profitable growth model. Crafting a Custom Marketing Strategy: Beyond OEM and Vendor Scripts Both Bradley and Troy Spring, founder of Dealer World, make compelling cases against the dependency on prescribed OEM and vendor-driven tactics. Amid the rising challenges facing automotive dealerships, they argue for a bespoke marketing strategy that's adaptable to each dealership's unique environment. Spring states, "You have to be with someone who can think holistically because if you're on with linear OEM vendors, you're just gonna get told why you should continue to do more and more of what it is that they sell." Such insights underscore the limitations of formulaic marketing solutions. While OEMs often push for uniformity—to simplify their nationwide branding and operations—dealerships must vigilantly evaluate these suggestions. Bradley underscores a critical point, proposing that dealers risk spending thousands unnecessarily on ineffective lead generation strategies because they blindly follow OEM guidance. The conversation dives into the economics of advertising. Bradley shared, "I've got a dealer group spending $70,000 on a splash page generating just a few hundred leads each month." This statistic serves as a caution against the pitfalls of not closely scrutinizing advertising expenditures versus results. It's essential for dealerships to cultivate an advertising strategy where each segment, from pay-per-click (PPC) to SEO and database marketing, functions as an integrated system rather than disparate efforts. This avoids the trap of bloated expenses disguised within bundled packages, which can negate perceived savings with reduced effectiveness. Bridging Traditional and Digital Advertising for Maximum Impact The discussion also delves into appreciating the coexistence of traditional and digital advertising within dealership marketing, which offers a nuanced approach to driving traffic. One standout revelation from Troy Spring? The effectiveness of direct mail. Although often regarded as an antiquated medium, Spring asserts, "Nothing has ever worked better than direct mail." It's a thought-provoking declaration in an era rich with digital solutions. Contrary to perceived obsolescence, traditional methods such as direct mail remain relevant, especially when optimized with the latest data analytics techniques. Properly targeted, a traditional medium can reach high potential customers directly and personally. Given the inundation of digital ads, a physical piece of mail stands out, often carrying more weight. Spring further suggests that while digital tools, like social media and search engine marketing (SEM), play critical roles in modern strategies, their effectiveness hinges heavily on their synergy with traditional advertising channels. These multifaceted campaigns leverage the strengths of both domains—ability to track and personalize digital ads with the tangible and trust-building potential of offline methods. Emphasizing on integrative approaches that couple interactive digital platforms with traditional media allows dealerships to engage in comprehensive advertising strategies personalized to consumer behavior trends. Through harmonizing these forces, a dealership's presence is effectively cemented in the market, leveraging the best aspects of each medium. A Synthesis of Strategy and Practice The insights shared by Sean V. Bradley and Troy Spring showcase a wealth of expertise in crafting dealership marketing strategies that balance innovative thinking with foundational business tenets. As dealerships navigate the complexities of an ever-evolving industry landscape, these professionals emphasize the necessity for both strategic foresight and a command over advertising mechanics. Essentially, the most adept dealerships will be those that recognize the imperative to protect their primary markets while scaling responsibly. They explore bespoke advertising solutions beyond OEM packages, integrating digital dexterity with traditional marketing. Each dollar spent should be scrutinized for its ROI, as the measure of an effective advertisement goes beyond impressions or clicks to the tangible growth it champions for the dealership. In an industry as competitive as automotive sales, this layered, integrated approach becomes the solutions beacon through transformative, modern advertising challenges.   Resources + Our Proud Sponsors: ➼ The Millionaire Car Salesman Facebook Group: Join the #1 Mastermind Group in the Automotive Industry with over 29,000 members worldwide. Collaborate with automotive professionals, learn the best industry practices, and connect with top mentors, managers, and sales leaders. Join The Millionaire Car Salesman Facebook Group today! ➼ Dealer Synergy: The automotive industry's #1 Sales Training, Consulting, and Accountability Firm. With over 20 years of proven success, Dealer Synergy has helped dealerships nationwide build high-performing Internet Departments and BDCs from the ground up. Our expertise includes phone scripts, rebuttals, CRM action plans, lead handling strategies, and management processes; all designed to maximize your people, processes, and technology! ➼ Bradley On Demand: The automotive industry's most powerful Interactive Training, Tracking, Testing, and Certification Platform. With LIVE virtual classes and access to a library of over 9,000 on-demand training modules, Bradley On Demand gives your dealership the tools to dominate every department: Sales, Internet, BDC, CRM, Phone, and Leadership. From sharpening individual skills to elevating entire teams, this platform ensures your people are trained, tested, and certified for maximum success. Equip your dealership to sell more cars, more often, and more profitably with Bradley On Demand!  

The strongest marketing leaders are not the ones with perfect plans. They are the ones who know how to lead through real life.And few people understand that better than Niki Hall and Dayle Hall.Niki, former CMO of Five9, and Dayle, CMO of SnapLogic, join Marketing Trends to share how they balance two big careers, raise a family, and approach marketing from completely different angles.They break down how they support each other through major job shifts, navigate brand versus demand debates, and build teams that can adapt to rapid change. They also explain how AI is reshaping customer experience, what metrics actually matter, and why modern leaders need both operational rigor and creative courage. Key Moments:00:00 Meeting the CMO Couple02:23 How They Met at Cisco05:08 Early Career Moments That Shaped Them08:16 When Their Marketing Paths Split10:11 Growing Up as Marketers Inside Cisco12:00 Balancing Two Big Careers and a Family13:40 The Realities of Career Timing and Tradeoffs15:56 Parenting, Travel, and Real-Life Leadership18:15 Why Community Matters for Working Parents20:38 Helping the Next Generation of Leaders23:20 Marketing in 2026 and the Impact of AI24:43 Brand vs Demand and How They Debate It31:17 What They Learned From Each Other's Strengths32:00 Org Design and Building a Modern Marketing Team51:03 Career Pivots, Pressure, and Personal Growth1:12:54 Lightning Round and Final Takeaways  This episode is brought to you by Lightricks. LTX is the all-in-one creative suite for AI-driven video production; built by Lightricks to take you from idea to final 4K render in one streamlined workspace.Powered by LTX-2, our next-generation creative engine, LTX lets you move faster, collaborate seamlessly, and deliver studio-quality results without compromise. Try it today at ltx.studio Mission.org is a media studio producing content alongside world-class clients. Learn more at mission.org. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Is your marketing organization built for disruption or doomed to be disrupted?Agility requires both rapidly responding to market changes while also anticipating and shaping your products or services to map to evolving customer expectations. This means embracing new technologies and strategies while maintaining a laser focus on delivering value.Today, we're going to talk about how leading marketing organizations are leveraging AI and collaborative work management to not only survive but thrive in today's dynamic landscape. To help me discuss this topic, I'd like to welcome, Christine Royston, Chief Marketing Officer at Wrike. About Christine Royston Christine Royston serves as Wrike's Chief Marketing Officer and is responsible for overseeing the global marketing program, driving a customer-first strategy, and focusing on enterprise growth. Christine joined Wrike with more than 20 years of B2B enterprise marketing experience. She most recently served as Vice President and Global Head of B2B Marketing for Udemy and Vice President and Head of Marketing at Bitly. Christine has also held senior leadership roles at Dropbox, Imperva, and Salesforce. She holds a B.A. from the University of Virginia and an International MBA in Global Marketing from the University of South Carolina Darla Moore School of Business. ,Yes, this will be completed shortly Christine Royston on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christineroyston Resources Wrike: https://www.wrike.com/ The Agile Brand podcast is brought to you by TEKsystems. Learn more here: https://www.teksystems.com/versionnextnow Register now for Sitecore Symposium, November 3-5 in Orlando Florida. Use code SYM25-2Media10 to receive 10% off. Go here for more: https://symposium.sitecore.com/Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Palm Springs, Feb 23-26 in Palm Springs, CA. Go here for more details: https://etailwest.wbresearch.com/ Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.showCheck out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is your marketing organization built for disruption or doomed to be disrupted? Agility requires both rapidly responding to market changes while also anticipating and shaping your products or services to map to evolving customer expectations. This means embracing new technologies and strategies while maintaining a laser focus on delivering value. Today, we're going to talk about how leading marketing organizations are leveraging AI and collaborative work management to not only survive but thrive in today's dynamic landscape. To help me discuss this topic, I'd like to welcome, Christine Royston, Chief Marketing Officer at Wrike. About Christine Royston Christine Royston serves as Wrike's Chief Marketing Officer and is responsible for overseeing the global marketing program, driving a customer-first strategy, and focusing on enterprise growth. Christine joined Wrike with more than 20 years of B2B enterprise marketing experience. She most recently served as Vice President and Global Head of B2B Marketing for Udemy and Vice President and Head of Marketing at Bitly. Christine has also held senior leadership roles at Dropbox, Imperva, and Salesforce. She holds a B.A. from the University of Virginia and an International MBA in Global Marketing from the University of South Carolina Darla Moore School of Business. ,Yes, this will be completed shortly Christine Royston on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christineroyston Resources Wrike: https://www.wrike.com/ The Agile Brand podcast is brought to you by TEKsystems. Learn more here: https://www.teksystems.com/versionnextnow Register now for Sitecore Symposium, November 3-5 in Orlando Florida. Use code SYM25-2Media10 to receive 10% off. Go here for more: https://symposium.sitecore.com/Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Palm Springs, Feb 23-26 in Palm Springs, CA. Go here for more details: https://etailwest.wbresearch.com/ Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.showCheck out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company