How to Actually Be a Data-Driven Marketer (Without a Data Team) w/Growth Advisor Gallant Chen

Everyone wants to be “data-driven.” But what does that actually look like when you’re a marketer without a data warehouse, a team of analysts, or endless resources?

In this episode, we talk with Gallant Chen, a marketing strategist who helps companies make better decisions with imperfect data. From messy attribution models to marketing CRMs that don’t talk to your ad platforms, we get honest about the real-world barriers marketers face—and how to work around them. If you’ve ever wasted hours in a spreadsheet or fought with your team over who “gets credit,” this one’s for you.

We’ll talk systems, shortcuts, and how to build the simplest version of a marketing data engine that actually drives results.

What you’ll learn:

• How to set up a marketing system that delivers insights—even if your tools are limited
• The dangers of over-optimizing for data (and when to just make a call and act)
• What kind of attribution model actually works for most marketing teams

Resources: 

• Connect with Gallant on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gallantc/ 
• Connect with Paxton on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paxtongray/ 
• Check out Gallant’s work: https://gallant.co/
• Request a free AI Audit: https://97thfloor.com/ai-audit/ 
• Looking for an agency that'll be worth the investment? 97th Floor creates custom, audience-first campaigns that drive pipeline and conversions. Get started here: https://97thfloor.com/lets-talk/. 

About Gallant Chen: 

Gallant is the Founding Partner of Gallant Growth and a seasoned Marketing Executive with a track record of scaling growth for B2B SaaS and marketplace businesses.

He has served as an Advisor and Consultant for companies including Docusign, Shopify, New Relic, Mixpanel, Nutanix, Upwork, and Thumbtack on marketing strategy, customer acquisition, retention, and monetization. He has deep expertise in demand gen and paid acquisition, but also supports areas including the hiring of internal/agency teams, lifecycle and email marketing, CRO, marketing analytics, and marketing operations.

Prior to founding Gallant Growth, he ran Digital Marketing at Zendesk and held marketing roles at SurveyMonkey and Apple. He started his career as a strategy consultant at Bain & Company and holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management and a BS from Stanford University.

Timestamps: 

• 3:17 - Under-resourced data analytics
• 8:59 - Marketing-specific data warehouses
• 18:35 - AI/Smart bidding with proper data
• 27:02 - Practical alternatives
• 43:22 - Taking ownership of data problems
• 48:01 - Leveraging platform AI investments

"If you don't have the right data and reporting to be effective in your job, you got to fix that. You have to figure out a way... if your success is tied to some of these analytics or data or reporting issues, to me, those things are far more important." - Gallant Chen