The Revenue-Driven CMO Chris Mechanic

Today’s guest has played pivotal marketing roles at high growth companies like Conga and InContact. Randy Littleson is the CMO of Salesloft. Randy joins Host Chris Mechanic to discuss the impact of align marketing goals with revenue goals, how to succeed by including the sales team in your planning, and why marketing’s job doesn’t end at the top of the funnel. Randy also shares how he’s thinking about AI’s place in B2B sales tools and what Salesloft’s acquisition of Drift will mean for future sellers and sales organizations.
 
Takeaways:
Align marketing goals with sales and the broader organizational revenue objectives. This ensures every marketing effort contributes directly to the bottom line. Regularly communicate with the sales team to update goals and strategies, ensuring alignment at all times.
Develop an operational framework that supports your aligned goals. This might include clear plans, timelines, and KPIs that both sales and marketing teams can work towards.
Avoid "random acts of marketing" by sticking to a plan that is cohesive, strategic, and directly linked to company-wide revenue goals.
Over-communicate plans, successes, and lessons learned with both the sales team and within the marketing team itself. This ensures everyone is on the same page and can contribute to refining and executing strategies.
Involve sales teams in planning marketing campaigns. Their insights can provide valuable direction and ensure the marketing efforts are more targeted and effective.
View marketing and sales not as separate entities but as parts of a single revenue-generating team. This perspective helps in creating strategies that are more holistic and encompassing of the entire customer journey.
Marketing’s job is full cycle. That means marketers should not only focus on lead generation but also on enabling sales to close more deals and post-sale customer engagement.
 
Quote of the Show:
“Marketing’s job is full-cycle.” - Randy Littleson
 
Links:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/randylittleson/ 
Salesloft Website: https://www.salesloft.com/ 
 
Shoutouts: 
Feedly: https://feedly.com/
 
Ways to Tune In:
Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/7334aa0c-702a-47aa-8c55-760fa2cf4dda/the-revenue-driven-cmo 
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-revenue-driven-cmo/id1444680950   
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1OCuYchAG8TlGv82YARRhy?si=60a093a194c64c17 
iHeart: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-the-revenue-driven-cmo-99614345/ 
Listen Notes: https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/the-revenue-driven-cmo-chris-mechanic-rdU1oESluqs/
YouTube: https://youtu.be/Cbr_5sW8Tec 
 
The Revenue-Driven CMO is sponsored by WebMechanix, the performance marketing agency that makes you smarter. Learn more at https://www.webmechanix.com/ 

The Revenue-Driven CMO is produced by Ringmaster, on a mission to create connections through branded podcasts. Learn more at https://ringmaster.com/

Today’s guest has over 25 years of marketing experience in which she has executed campaigns for household name brands like Wachovia, Energizer, Safeway, Nabisco, Ocean Spray, Black Decker, and many others. She is also a founding member of the DC Chapter of CHIEF, which is an organization devoted to connecting and empowering women in leadership. Pam Piligian is the Chief Marketing Officer of Navy Federal Credit Union. Pam joins Host Chris Mechanic to discuss an extremely powerful quote from the Honorable Ruth Bader Ginsburg that every marketer should live by. Pam also shares why continual testing and iteration are crucial to succeeding in marketing, how to prioritize customer privacy while utilizing their data, and how to use storytelling to reach multiple audiences with different needs.
 
Watch the full episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/RfANEBoAi-4
 
Takeaways:
Always align marketing efforts with revenue generation. Brand awareness and metrics are important, but they must ultimately contribute to the company's bottom line. Encourage your team to always question how their projects contribute to revenue to maintain focus on impactful activities.
In the planning stages of every marketing campaign, ask how it will add value or serve your audience. This builds trust and loyalty over time as part of the ongoing relationship between your brand and your customers.
Marketing is a relationship business. Every interaction and touchpoint with your brand is an opportunity to deepen the connection with your audience.
Utilize the data available to you to tailor your marketing efforts to the unique needs and preferences of your audience. In so doing, be mindful of the insights customer data provides while also considering your customer’s privacy.
Implement a continuous testing environment. It promotes innovation and ensures you are always ahead in understanding what resonates with your audience.
Create an atmosphere where it's safe to take risks and embrace failures. Celebrate learning from failures as much as celebrating successes. This fosters innovation and encourages team members to propose bold ideas.
Encourage each member of your marketing team to find activities that recharge them and ensure they make their personal well-being a priority alongside their professional responsibilities.
 
Quote of the Show:
“All CMOs really have to be revenue-driven. We can talk about brand metrics til the cows come home, but until that can turn into revenue, it's a missing gap.” - Pam Piligian
 
Links:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pam-piligian-324582/ 
Company website: https://www.navyfederal.org/ 
Shoutouts: 
The One Big Thing by Gary Keller: https://a.co/d/1ltryWn 
Simon Sinek
Adam Grant
 
Ways to Tune In:
Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/7334aa0c-702a-47aa-8c55-760fa2cf4dda/the-revenue-driven-cmo 
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-revenue-driven-cmo/id1444680950   
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1OCuYchAG8TlGv82YARRhy?si=60a093a194c64c17 
iHeart: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-the-revenue-driven-cmo-99614345/ 
Listen Notes: https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/the-revenue-driven-cmo-chris-mechanic-rdU1oESluqs/
YouTube: https://youtu.be/RfANEBoAi-4 
 
The Revenue-Driven CMO is sponsored by WebMechanix, the performance marketing agency that makes you smarter. Learn more at https://www.webmechanix.com/ 
 
The Revenue-Driven CMO is produced by Ringmaster, on a mission to create connections through branded podcasts. Learn more at https://ringmaster.com/ 
 

Today’s episode features five outstanding women in marketing and highlights the secrets to marketing success they shared in a past episode. Jill Kellett is the Vice President of Product & Marketing at Root Insurance. Jill details her approach to evaluating and setting up a creative team for success and the six key competencies critical to successful creative teams. Tifenn Dano Kwan is the CMO of Amplitude and shares how to implement a potent Product-led Growth motion. Melissa Rosenthal is the Chief Marketing Officer at Insight Timer and discusses how to strategically use humor in B2B product marketing. Melissa Wright is the CSO and CMO of American Pacific Mortgage and discusses the impact of leading your team through radical generosity. Sydney Sloan is the first-ever CMO of Drata and shared the Five-part Alignment Framework for market evaluation and why segmentation is a critical part of any marketing strategy.



Jill Kellett’s Links:
Full Episode: http://revenuedrivencmo.com/how-to-build-your-creative-team-with-jill-kellett-vice-president-of-product-marketing-at-root-insurance 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jill-kellett/ 
Personal Website: https://jillkellett.com/ 
Root Website: https://www.joinroot.com/ 
 
Tifenn Dano Kwan’s Links:
Full Episode: http://revenuedrivencmo.com/how-to-make-your-plg-motion-pack-a-punch-with-tifenn-dano-kwan-cmo-of-amplitude 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tifenndano/ 
Amplitude Website: https://amplitude.com/ 
 
Melissa Rosenthal Links:
Full Episode: http://revenuedrivencmo.com/humanizing-b2b-marketing-with-humor-with-melissa-rosenthal-cmo-of-insight-timer 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissarosenthal5/ 
Insight Timer Website: https://insighttimer.com/ 
 
Melissa Wright Links: 
Full Episode: http://revenuedrivencmo.com/leading-with-radical-generosity-with-melissa-wright-cso-and-cmo-of-american-pacific-mortgage 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissa-wright-b70bb58/ 
American Pacific Mortgage Website: https://www.apmortgage.com/ 
 
Sydney Sloan Links:
Full Episode: http://revenuedrivencmo.com/the-5-part-marketing-alignment-framework-with-sydney-sloan-cmo-of-drata 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sydsloan/ 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/sydsloan 
Drata Website: https://drata.com/ 



Ways to Tune In:
Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/7334aa0c-702a-47aa-8c55-760fa2cf4dda/the-revenue-driven-cmo 
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-revenue-driven-cmo/id1638785560 
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1OCuYchAG8TlGv82YARRhy?si=60a093a194c64c17 
Google Podcast: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9tb3JlbWFya2V0aW5nLmxpYnN5bi5jb20vcnNz 
iHeart: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-the-revenue-driven-cmo-99614345/ 
Listen Notes: https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/3-minute-marketing-with-chris-mechanic-rdU1oESluqs/ 
YouTube: https://youtu.be/xMbEe-g3mCg
 
The Revenue-Driven CMO is sponsored by WebMechanix, the performance marketing agency that makes you smarter. Learn more at https://www.webmechanix.com/ 
 
The Revenue-Driven CMO is produced by Ringmaster, on a mission to create connections through branded podcasts. Learn more at https://ringmaster.com/ 
 

Today’s guest is TJ Waldorf, Chief Marketing Officer at OneWorldSync. TJ joins Host Chris Mechanic to discuss his journey from sales to marketing, emphasizing the importance of staying close to marketing fundamentals despite the allure of new technologies like AI. TJ also shares insights on the significance of direct customer engagement and maintaining a focus on basic marketing strategies. 
 
Takeaways:
Stick to the fundamentals of marketing, even with AI and shiny new tools. Engaging with customers, delivering the right message at the right time to the right people remains crucial. 
Sales and marketing are not isolated functions; they're deeply interconnected. Even as a marketer, it's essential to maintain direct contact with customers and understand their perspectives.
Look for opportunities to learn directly from customers. For example, a CEO made a point of interacting with at least one customer daily and shared insights from these interactions company-wide. This fosters a customer-centric culture and ensures that the entire company is aligned with customer needs and expectations.
Dedicate time each week to dive into customer feedback, like satisfaction surveys and NPS scores. This not only helps in understanding customer sentiment but also provides real, actionable insights that can guide marketing strategies and initiatives.
Don’t shy away from the ‘basics’ of your job, no matter how high you climb the ladder. Being involved in messaging and understanding the impact of marketing efforts through metrics like open rates and response rates is crucial. It ensures that your marketing efforts remain grounded and effective.
Embrace tasks that don't scale. Sometimes, diving deep into the nitty-gritty aspects of your business, like manually reviewing how leads are managed in the CRM, can uncover valuable insights that automated processes miss.
A mix of inbound marketing, community engagement, and a proactive sales development team can create a powerful revenue engine. It’s critical to balance these elements and continuously evaluate their effectiveness.
 
Quote of the Show:
“Get in front of customers, grab lunch, have dinners. Don't think that that's not part of your role because you're in marketing and not in sales. It really is part of our role.” - TJ Waldorf
 
Links:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tjwaldorf/ 
1 World Sync Website: https://1worldsync.com/
 
Shoutouts:
Taking People With You by David Novak
High Output Management by Andrew Grove
The CMO Podcast: https://www.jimstengel.com/the-cmo-podcast/ 
 
Ways to Tune In:
Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/7334aa0c-702a-47aa-8c55-760fa2cf4dda/the-revenue-driven-cmo 
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-revenue-driven-cmo/id1444680950   
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1OCuYchAG8TlGv82YARRhy?si=60a093a194c64c17 
iHeart: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-the-revenue-driven-cmo-99614345/ 
Listen Notes: https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/the-revenue-driven-cmo-chris-mechanic-rdU1oESluqs/
YouTube: https://youtu.be/LveJh5zrO-8 
 
The Revenue-Driven CMO is sponsored by WebMechanix, the performance marketing agency that makes you smarter. Learn more at https://www.webmechanix.com/ 
 
The Revenue-Driven CMO is produced by Ringmaster, on a mission to create connections through branded podcasts. Learn more at https://ringmaster.com/ 
 

Our guest today has led marketing teams at a wide variety of brands, including B2B, B2C, startups, and Fortune 500 businesses. Patrick Reynolds is the CMO of BlueConic. Patrick joins host Chris Mechanic to explore how to actually help buyers in their research, how to carefully segment prospects without getting in their way, and what Customer Data Platforms enable marketers to do with data. Patrick also shares how marketers should be leveraging intent tools to cultivate a deep understanding of customer journeys. Additionally, Patrick sheds light on how to navigate the post-cookie era by using first-party data to deliver highly personalized experiences.
 
Takeaways:
Be voracious observers of the marketplace and customer behavior. Understand that sometimes the most crucial insights come from simply watching and understanding your target audience.
When creating your content, position your brand to be readily available without bombarding the potential customer with sales messages right away. Respect their research phase and present your brand as a helpful resource.
Customize your marketing approach based on the phase your customer is in within their buyer's journey. The one-size-fits-all strategy does not work. Tailor your content and interactions to be useful and relevant according to the customer's current needs.
Utilize intent tools to better identify potential customers in the research phase. Additionally, gather insights from current customers and closed-lost deals about their journey and decision-making process to refine your strategies.
Implement self-selection mechanisms on digital platforms to segment your prospects based on things such as their industries and buying stage. Use content on your website or landing pages that allow potential customers to identify their own needs, industry, or stage in the buying process. This facilitates more personalized and relevant engagement.
Marketers need to shift away from a transactional mindset in order to foster genuine, value-driven engagement. Ask customers what they want or need and provide them with exactly that.
Be open and honest with prospects about your offerings, strengths, and how you compare with competitors. Sharing comprehensive information, including third-party analyses, empowers the customer to make an informed decision.
 
Quote of the Show:
Regarding Spam outreach, “It's actually antithetical to the purpose of marketing, which is awareness, consideration, intent, desire, all those things. I just go, I don't want to ever hear from these jamokes again, because they just constantly harangue me.” - Patrick Reynolds
 
Links:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patreynolds/ 
BlueConic Website: https://www.blueconic.com/ 
 
Shoutouts: 
Atomic Habits by James Clear
James Clear’s Masterclass: https://www.masterclass.com/classes/small-habits-that-make-a-big-impact-on-your-life 
Clayton Christensen
Good to Great by Jim Collins
 
Ways to Tune In:
Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/7334aa0c-702a-47aa-8c55-760fa2cf4dda/the-revenue-driven-cmo 
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-revenue-driven-cmo/id1444680950   
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1OCuYchAG8TlGv82YARRhy?si=60a093a194c64c17 
iHeart: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-the-revenue-driven-cmo-99614345/ 
Listen Notes: https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/the-revenue-driven-cmo-chris-mechanic-rdU1oESluqs/
YouTube:
 
The Revenue-Driven CMO is sponsored by WebMechanix, the performance marketing agency that makes you smarter. Learn more at https://www.webmechanix.com/ 
 
The Revenue-Driven CMO is produced by Ringmaster, on a mission to create connections through branded podcasts. Learn more at https://ringmaster.com/ 
 

Today’s guest is a seasoned marketing professional with experience across major companies like PepsiCo, Visa, Expedia Group, LendingTree, and now at Savvy Matters. Shiv Singh is the author of Savvy, Editor of the Savvy Matters newsletter, and Co-Founder of the AI Trailblazers community. Shiv joins Host Chris Mechanic to share insights from his career path, the importance of zagging when others are zigging, and the evolving role of AI in marketing. He delves into how performance marketing is becoming commoditized due to automation and suggests that future marketers need to focus on brand building, loyalty, and product innovation. Shiv also discusses the potential for AI to change human interactions and emphasizes the importance of understanding psychology in the AI era. He advocates for a people-first approach to technology and suggests that SMBs could lead in adopting AI due to their agility. 
 
Takeaways:
Embrace your uniqueness and leverage it in professional settings. This mindset can inspire you and your team to think creatively without being afraid to explore unconventional ideas.
The value of foresight in marketing cannot be overstated. Being able to anticipate trends and shifts before they happen gives a marketer a significant edge. Encourage your team to stay informed and perceptive to foster an environment where foresight is a common trait.
If you are a marketing leader, you need to stay informed about AI but remember that technology alone is not a silver bullet. The integration of AI in marketing strategies should be thoughtful, enhancing human creativity and intuition rather than replacing it.
Psychology will play a critical in future marketing efforts, particularly as AI becomes more integrated into our lives. Understanding human behavior and emotions will be pivotal. This highlights the importance of developing empathetic skills and psychological insights.
Being curious and a lifelong learner should be prerequisites for any marketing role. Encourage your team members to pursue learning in emerging fields as this can lead to breakthroughs and innovation.
Despite advancements in AI, the human aspects of marketing—empathy, understanding, creativity—will continue to be invaluable. This reaffirms the importance of cultivating these skills.
 
Quote of the Show:
“One of the most important traits that a marketer can have is foresight.” - Shiv Singh
 
Links:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shivsingh/ 
AI Trailblazers Website: https://www.aitrailblazers.io/ 
Savvy Matters Substack: https://beingsavvy.substack.com/  Book Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1940858720/ 
 
Shoutouts: 
Figure: https://www.figure.ai/ 
Microsoft CoPilot: https://copilot.microsoft.com/ 
 
Ways to Tune In:
Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/7334aa0c-702a-47aa-8c55-760fa2cf4dda/the-revenue-driven-cmo 
Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-revenue-driven-cmo/id1444680950   
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1OCuYchAG8TlGv82YARRhy?si=60a093a194c64c17 
iHeart: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-the-revenue-driven-cmo-99614345/ 
Listen Notes: https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/the-revenue-driven-cmo-chris-mechanic-rdU1oESluqs/
YouTube: https://youtu.be/Ff_ht_mJ9iY 
 
The Revenue-Driven CMO is sponsored by WebMechanix, the performance marketing agency that makes you smarter. Learn more at https://www.webmechanix.com/ 
 
The Revenue-Driven CMO is produced by Ringmaster, on a mission to create connections through branded podcasts. Learn more at https://ringmaster.com/