Building With Buyers

Anna Furmanov

A show that explores the role that customers play in helping companies build to their next level of growth. Hosted by Anna Furmanov. Visit furmanovmarketing.com to learn more about the host.

  1. 24 Aug

    278 - The Rise of the SuperPMM

    The PMM role is under real pressure right now.VPs of Marketing and CMOs are being asked to do more with less: fewer headcount approvals, leaner teams, tighter budgets. And PMM is often the first place that gets squeezed.Instead of hiring a full-time PMM, companies ask the existing team to absorb the work. Or they bring in a fractional. Or they just... don't do it, and wonder later why GTM feels off.At the same time, the scope of what PMMs are expected to own has exploded.Positioning, messaging, sales enablement, competitive intelligence, content strategy, analyst relations, product launches...and more.And now there's AI on top of it, which hasn't lowered the pressure to produce more, faster.So here's my take: we're at a real inflection point for this role. And in this episode, I explain where I believe we're headed. Here's the LinkedIn post where I talked about it first. Jump in:02:26 - Marketing teams are under pressure to do more with less03:38 - The PMM scope has expanded beyond what it was 5 years ago04:09 - Introducing the "superPMM"04:39 - Using ahaPMM to speed up customer research synthesis05:22 - Building messaging infrastructure with MojoPMM06:07 - Faster creative and landing page production using Claude, Figma, and Vector06:31 - Why AI still needs human judgment07:32 - Execution is democratized, but judgment is not08:17 - Why this topic is getting so much engagement Subscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show. Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Website (getting a facelift, stay tuned): ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠One Insight⁠⁠

  2. 15 July

    277 - Marketing Leaders Intense Needs Right Now & Where To Go From Here

    Finally doing a solo episode! 'Bout time. I talked to 18 CMOs / Mktg VPs for 9 hours about what is super intense for them right now and then I analyzed what I heard and packaged it up for you. Here's the report. Let me know if you have any questions as you review + please share with your team and your marketing leader friends. Jump in: 00:00 - Intro to the research00:33 - The motivation behind exploring in-depth insights01:14 - The "Aha Moment" skill for finding truths 01:57 - The scoring system02:45 - The mess AI leaves behind03:11 - What's going well05:09 - The surprising top needs06:02 - Governance over AI06:27 - The debate: buy or build07:07 - Internal marketing is even more important today07:53 - The challenge of product builds outpacing marketing playbooks08:13 - Leadership burnout08:41 - Visibility concerns from AI search and zero click09:02 - The bottleneck of editing content produced by AI10:04 - Creating a clear AI governance system to help avoid chaos11:35 - Product survival in an AI future12:38 - Example of a company moving towards in-house tool development13:32 - The importance of differentiation, distinction, positioning, story, brand14:06 - Winning through relationships, outcomes, and showing up at the right moments (memorable)15:01 - The case for powerful storytelling and brand15:38 - Organizational shifts - the org chart is changing16:11 - The impact of AI on headcount and organizational structures16:33 - CEOs' perspectives on AI replacing marketing jobs and the potential fallout17:19 - Leveraging AI to scale teams20:23 - The overall mood is that two things are true Subscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show. marketing leaders intense needs report: https://marketing-needs-synthesis.vercel.app/ Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠One Insight⁠⁠⁠

  3. 8 July

    276 - Rob Snyder Changed My Mind On How To Sell

    Rob Snyder is founder and advisor to b2b startups, Fellow at Harvard Innovation Labs, and Operating Partner at Grix VC. He wrote a book called The Power of PULL which I recommend to folks that are building 0 to 1 (and beyond). We discuss: Quick explanation of PULL; Anything less than "Hell Yes!" is a no, but this is not what we learn in sales; The Rule of One and focus on one person when you’re creating your PULL hypothesis; Are aesthetics even meaningful; Why selling and delivering needs to be a startups primary form of research (wait what about customers); What happens when you had PULL, scaled it, and now growth is stalling; One thing you're working on that you don't fully know how to solve yet. Jump in: 02:14 Understanding the Concept of PULL 08:58 The Importance of Hell Yes Customers 12:38 The Rule of One in Customer Understanding 17:07 Aesthetic Differentiation: Meaningless or Meaningful? 22:49 Customer Conversations versus Sales Conversations 28:44 Navigating Sales Challenges and Growth Stalls 33:05 Understanding Demand vs. Supply in Startups 39:42 Rob’s Current Struggles Subscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show. Rob on LinkedIn: ⁠www.linkedin.com/in/rsnyder1 Rob's website: ⁠robsnyder.org⁠ Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠One Insight⁠⁠

  4. 17 June

    275 - AI Made Writing Cheap, Listening Just Got More Valuable (Maitri Sheth, Hubspot)

    Maitri Sheth is Senior PMM at Hubspot, previously PMM at Gong. We discuss: From B2C to B2B marketing, me too! How has b2c shaped your approach to b2b product marketing; Previously Gong, now Hubspot. What did you do in your first 90 days; One PMM workflow that you’re excited about; Do you feel like you have a good grasp on how AI workflows tap into meaningful business results; Marketing is using creativity to solve business problems. Share how you infuse creativity into your work; Hubspot is 12k+ ppl! How do you get the rest of the org to adopt the same story; How do you approach writing with AI in your role. Jump in: 03:04 The Importance of Listening in PMM 06:06 B2C thinking in B2B 09:06 First 90 Days at HubSpot 12:00 Understanding Customer Needs 14:46 Pattern Recognition & Beyond Patterns 17:59 The Value of Direct Customer Engagement 21:08 Streamlining PMM Workflows with AI 24:03 Navigating Rapid Product Engineering Releases 26:45 Evaluating AI Tools and Their Impact on Business Results 32:56 the problems with "Blank Slate" 35:13 The Role of AI in Productivity 38:43 Creativity in Marketing 41:30 Balancing AI and Human Creativity 51:19 Effective Messaging Across 12,000 people Subscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, tell me what you're listening to, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show. Maitri on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/maitri5 Hubspot: www.hubspot.com Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠One Insight⁠⁠

  5. 6 May

    274 - Your AI's Outputs Are Only As Good As Its Brain (GTM News Desk)

    Natalie Marcotullio & Mark Kilens invited me on their podcast GTM News Desk. We discuss: How do you build messaging that actually sticks across every team that touches it? How do you know when an "insight" is genuinely worth acting on or when it's just a pattern dressed up in fancy words? What does it take to teach AI to think like you, not just write like one version of you? Mojo Founder Eric Holland and I reveal what's really broken about how B2B companies develop and distribute their messaging. We dig into why most customer research is pulled from the most biased data available and how to document your decision-making, not just your knowledge, so AI can actually replicate your judgment. We also provide answers to why chasing every new AI workflow is making most marketers worse, not better. Eric and I challenge the idea that volume of insights equals quality of insights, arguing that a single finding that changes how your whole company goes to market is worth more than a hundred tagged Gong quotes. Jump in: (00:00) We need a higher standard for b2b research (00:35) What CMOs are actually talking about at conferences right now (04:40) How shame and fear became the default AI adoption strategy (08:41) The difference between AI-exhausted and AI-excited teams (12:44) Four Tendencies and what it means for AI adoption (16:31) Why B2B messaging is broken even at well-funded startups (19:14) What separates Mojo from just pointing Claude at your Notion (27:26) What good writing actually feels like and whether AI can get there (32:17) The solar plexus test and how to know when your copy is working (34:05) Why nuance and emotion are the real gap in AI writing (39:27) Why most insight tools are just pattern-matching machines (44:19) How to check if your researcher is actually any good (47:30) The danger of everyone using the same workflows to find the same "insights" (50:01) What B2B marketing gets wrong that B2C figured out long ago (53:21) Go deep on one thing for a quarter (55:22) Why you should only build what you already know in your sleep Connect with Eric: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-holland-not-a-marketer/  Connect with Anna: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov/  Mojo: https://mojopmm.com/ Mojo + Moxie: https://mojo-and-moxie.com/ Natalie: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-marcotullio/ Mark: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markkilens/

  6. 25 Mar

    272 - Should AI Help You Write? with Eric Holland (Mojo PMM)

    Eric Holland is a recovering product marketer who quit his job to focus on custom messaging assistants + interactive demos. Founder @Mojo PMM: Burn your boring messaging doc. Mojo is your custom messaging assistant that creates bold, persona-specific messaging for anything you need, that your whole team wants to use. I recently joined Eric at Mojo PMM as their first ever Messaging Whisperer. Co-Founder @DemoDash: 100+ interactive demos shipped for Navattic customers (that’s actually how we met). Also co-hosts the We’re Not Marketers podcast. We talk about messaging & AI, specifically: Can AI help you write copy? Should AI help you write copy? Marketing teams are moving faster with AI, but not necessarily making better decisions. What’s broken? What we're building and why. Subscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, message me what you're listening to, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show. Eric on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/eric-holland-not-a-marketer Mojo PMM: mojopmm.com Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠One Insight⁠

About

A show that explores the role that customers play in helping companies build to their next level of growth. Hosted by Anna Furmanov. Visit furmanovmarketing.com to learn more about the host.

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