Every week on the Revenue Rehab podcast, our host Brandi Starr, is joined by talented marketing and sales leaders from diverse industries.
Don’t miss out on our recent discussions! We have summed them up for your enjoyment below:
Voice of the Customer: Understand Your Customers' Needs and Feelings
In this episode, Brandi and Christina Kyriazi, Vice President of Marketing at Ekos, tackle the impact and importance of understanding your customers’ needs.
According to Christina, analytics and market research are key methods for tapping into the voice of the customer. She believes that the voice of the customer is a foundation that holds everything in place. Therefore, your customers’ voice should be at the forefront of any marketing and even business strategy.
Christina advises CMOs to take advantage of the gold mine of information customers can lend to your business. She recommends CMOs to implement a strategy such as ‘’30 on 30’’, which consists of speaking to 30 customers in 30 days. According to Christina, this strategy can be extended to the entire organization. This is particularly significant for sales and support departments who need to collaborate together to best leverage customer insights.
Next, Christina and Brandi discuss the significance of keeping an eye on the latest trends. It is important to do so to ensure your organization is growing and remaining relevant.
Our key takeaway from Christina? Start and start now! When you pull up a client list and talk to a single customer or client, you’ll be amazed at what you might learn.
CMO Exit Strategies: Fractional CMO
Brandi opens up the conversation with Alon Waks and Will Scott to tackle CMO exit strategies. Alon is a 4-time CMO/marketing leader and seasoned enterprise software executive. Will is a Fractional CMO, with 25 years international experience leading B2B Technology.
Will discusses how the role of a Fractional CMO has evolved. Instead of simply paying for senior people on an FTE basis, Fractional CMOs can do more than serve as advisories; they can integrate and serve a company to its advantage. Alon also discusses how hiring a Fractional CMO is organizationally advantageous: Companies receive extensive mentorship and guidance without forking out for a full-time CMO.
According to Will and Alon, loneliness is a major fact to keep in mind for those considering moving to a fractional role. Additionally, you will be leaving a stable income for the unknown, which can sometimes be unstable. For those seeking independence via self-employment, the risk is often worth the reward.
Brandi asks Will and Alon about the potential red flags you can encounter when employed as a Fractional CMO. For Will, these red flags include (1) founders and senior executives who won't let go, (2) unrealistic expectations, and (3) cheaping out on your services. Alon also emphasizes how scope and expectation are very important, and how to avoid companies who expect instant, magic results.
Will ends the discussion with a crucial takeaway for those considering going down the fractional CMO path, he encourages them to compile a list of pros and cons, and make a decision based on logic.
Meaningful Pipeline: More Spend is NOT the Answer
In this episode, we were joined by Shift Paradigm VP & Sr Principal advisor, Jen Anderson-Alonzi, to discuss Pipeline Strategies for CMOs.
Brandi and Jen tackle the struggle CMOs experience as they develop a meaningful pipeline. Jen believes that ‘’more spend is NOT enough’’.
Jen talks about digital post-pandemic changes and how CMOs need to diversify into real experiences. She highlights the shift from relying on digital volume alone to the importance of focusing on real metrics. These metrics involve a deep dive into both quantitative and qualitative primary research. Jen also emphasizes how re-evaluating your metrics is a key part of creating a meaningful pipeline.
Jen advises CMOs to start with understanding their target consumer, especially within a B2B context. “Research, buyer research, do it!” Jen emphasizes, “nothing else matters if you don't know your buyer intimately”.
Journey + Process: Unlocking the Values of Existing Customers
Ed Frame, founder of Exemplify, joins the Revenue Rehab couch to dig deep into mapping out the customer journey. He discusses the necessary processes to create a world class post-sale customer experience.
Ed and Brandi discuss how creating an exceptional post-sale customer experience can increase revenue. Research has shown that it’s “4-8 times easier to retain a customer rather than getting that new one.” Ed says, “If you increase your customer retention rate by 5%, your profitability can increase anywhere between 25% and 95%.”
Ed and Brandi talk about trust and long-term relationships in sales and marketing. CMOs can reach their target outcomes and customer retention can be elevated when sales teams establish trust with customer service teams.
Ed examine how post-sale experience can greatly benefit from Strategic Customer Mapping, long-term financial growth and stability for a company. He stresses the importance of looking at your sales incentives and customer service handover processes.
Un-Siloed: Leading a Single Revenue Team
On Un-Siloed, Helen Baptist, joins Brandi to deconstruct the silo through the lens of Helen’s unique role as a COO and revenue owner.
Helen talks about The Customer Journey Post Signature and the importance of building a relationship. According to Helen, all touchpoints along the journey need to be documented. For example, something as simple as a note from the CEO thanking the new client for their business requires minor effort but can reap a large reward.
Helen answers the question “Can an un-siloed something be replicated or is it a rarity?”. She believes that being a specialist is beneficial in a large organization. However, in a smaller organization, passion and curiosity can lead to massive opportunities for non-specialists. The secret to Helen’s success? A combination of being passionate about customers, along with a healthy dose of curiosity Combine these factors together, and being ‘un-siloed’ is feasible.
According to Helen, the one thing CMOs can start with today is to focus on the customer and become customer centric. Seek out a special project which will expand your understanding of people's roles and responsibilities because this will help you understand the customer outside of your own silo.
We hope this month's recap brought you some perspective and direction to support your journey.
If you are looking for more inspiration and would like to listen to the full episodes, check out the Revenue Rehab Podcast. And If you have any feedback or stories to share as a guest, reach out to us.
Happy Revenue Rehabbing!
