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Marketing is in the Middle: Joshua Duncan

Josh Duncan took some time out his busy schedule at start-up Zenoss to provide some insights. Josh is an Austin native and has had a very diverse background which spans hardware and software for both B2B and B2C markets, so he bring a bunch of experience to the table for this effort.

So here is Josh’s take:

What marketing roles have you had and in what markets?

I started the first phase of my career as a software consultant for Accenture and ended up an Enterprise Architect doing technology strategy for Bank of America. I loved the strategy aspect but wanted to do more on the business side of the organization so I did a career switch over to marketing.

My marketing roles and background have covered both business-to-consumer and business-to-business marketing, all in technology marketing.

As a consumer marketer, I worked planning and launching desktops, netbooks, and tablets for Dell’s consumer product group.

I currently lead the product and social marketing at Zenoss, an enterprise software start-up..

When you look at your career in marketing, what activities have you found most interesting/challenging?

That’s a trick question, right? One of the reasons that I made the career switch was because of all the interesting aspects of marketing.

Currently, I am finding building a product marketing program, in startup environment, is a very interesting challenge. When there is more work to do than time to do it and limited resources, what do you focus on to deliver the most results?

Based on your experience what activities do you think get the most return?

Currently, I am a big fan of projects that can be reused across multiple channels. For example, if we are working on building momentum around a product launch and are thinking of sponsoring a webinar, what else can we do at the same time? Can we turn this into an interview series, a blog post, a case study, a white paper, etc?

Basically, once we land on a good story, how many ways can we get it out there so that it finds its way to our customers in a manner that works for them.

What do you feel is the most important component of a successful marketing gig?

Being able to work with the organization to effectively build a marketing strategy that delivers results.

How have you seen organizations change in the last 3-5 years to better support the needs of product marketers, product managers and communications teams?

I would say that now, more than ever, successful organizations are finding a way to align their marketing, sales, and support teams to best server their customers. There is a greater understanding that all of these touch points are important when it comes to the customer experience.

In the past, it might not have been as apparent when there was communication challenges and dysfunction in the company but not any more. Consumers have much higher expectations and much lower threshold for B.S.

If you could design the perfect corporate environment for a marketer to be successful what would that be?

A great environment for a marketer is at a company that has figured out who their customer is (and whom to avoid) and unmercifully focuses on meeting their needs.

A perfect environment would be a company that isn’t just focused on selling a product for the short term, but is willing to take the time to invest in efforts with a long term horizon – building a movement (borrowing from the Brain’s on Fire terminology) .

How far is this from reality?

I think there are handful of companies out there, small and big, that are starting to figure this out and thriving because of it.

The trouble is that it is hard to bolt this on after the fact. It has to be a result of decisions made early on in the company’s life that are then maintained and built on over time.

So what’s next?

I think the big challenge for 2011 and beyond is going to be finding ways to be relevant. If you think it is noisy now, just wait till you see what the next few years bring.

This was a topic that I spoke on, along with three other marketing leaders, at the last Product Camp conference in Austin, TX. As we marketers look to grow our business, finding way to become and maintain relevancy are going to be critical.

It is going to be a tremendous challenge but I think if it is done right, is going to be worth the effort and has the potential of being a lot of fun.

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Twitter: @joshua_d

Blog: www.arandomjog.com

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Many thanks to Josh for his answers and make sure you connect with him if you are in Austin.

February 7, 2011 by Jon Gatrell

Can pricing change your business? Sure it can!

Innovation isn’t only limited to the product, the other P’s can also be leveraged for innovation. As product marketers / product managers, we can drive innovation with pricing, placement and promotion. Todd Sattersten has created this presentation which leverages pictures to provide insight into how pricing can change the business. this is a follow up to the eBook on Pricing he did in early 2010. Worth the click through – thanks todd!

Pricing Pictures

View more presentations from Todd Sattersten.

February 3, 2011 by Jon Gatrell

Marketing is in the Middle: Marty Thompson

The number 3 participant in this second round of Marketing is in the Middle is Marty Thompson. So Marty is a guy that I’ve been lucky enough to get insights from him for over a decade. He just one of those B2B marketing consultants whose insights help provide clarity for a business.

So here is Marty’s take:

What marketing roles have you had and in what markets?

I’ve worked primarily in marketing and product marketing management within several arenas, including CRM, eCommerce, Knowledge Management.

When you look at your career in marketing, what activities have you found most interesting/challenging?

I wouldn’t say it relates to activities, per se. I’ve gotten the most satisfaction from working with companies that are at a crossroads. Whether they are a start up, a well known company that is in acquisition mode, or one that has made the jump into uncharted waters, they tend to be willing to completely rethink their marketing efforts. This environment is not for the thin skinned, but it can be exhilarating, and marketers can see their efforts play into major successes.

Based on your experience what activities do you think get the most return?

Believe it or not, sound email marketing tactics are not going away. Tweeking SEO, creating sound content, are some of the most basic foundational activities that still matter. Anyone who says direct mail is dead better understand where their company exists in the food chain. Activity driven ROI depends on understanding what works. It’s that simple. But what I am also seeing out their is a willingness, and a slow evolution, of how organizations are using social as a springboard to finally transform their organization internally. 99% of all the advice out their regarding social media, whether it relates to policy, internal processes, readiness, etc, are missing the real point of what I think is happening when companies embrace social. The ones that end up using it well are the ones that have transformed their employees. The frightening aspect of this is that organizations are achieving various levels of success without any understanding of this internal transformation process. …and of course failures happen along the way too – learn from it and improve.

What do you feel is the most important component of a successful marketing gig?

The most successful marketers understand that they are one part of a very large team. I tell junior marketers to interview a prospective employer very critically. Don’t waste your time with a Bill Lumbergh. The precursor to being successful in any marketing role is to be sure that it is a good fit. Be sure the executive team “gets” you. Are they excited about what they are doing? Does it show? They need to understand what you think the challenges for the organization are…now, and in the future. You should be in agreement with your understanding of the marketplace, your goods or services, etc. They need to understand that failure is a part of this business, and that marketers in particular are in a position to learn from them. All the best technologies out there will not guarantee success. Talk to everyone on the team, and also try to chat with others in the company. Customer support, product management, anyone you will be interacting with in a marketing capacity. Read their tweets, their blogs, anything to better understand them.

How have you seen organizations change in the last 3-5 years to better support the needs of product marketers, product managers and communications teams?

A couple of things come to mind. first off, in at least two of my previous gigs, the CMO understood the value of the pragmatic model, and had embraced it as part of their raison d’etre. The second change is a bit tougher to find, even in the over saturated “social” environment. And that is a fundamental understanding that social technologies are on the one hand yet another channel, but more importantly, can be transformational. I like to call it socialized commerce, but of course that is nothing but a lovely generalization.

If you could design the perfect corporate environment for a marketer to be successful what would that be?

One of the most valuable things any marketer can do is spend time with their sales team. Go out in the field with them. Walk a mile in their moccasins. Believe it or not, they really want you to help them be more successful. And they spend more time talking with customers and prospects, more than most marketers do now. Spend time with your customers, even the ones who are unhappy. Get out there. If you are working in a company that has embraced their customers, using social technologies, and is attempting to build out a vibrant community, by all means be in the thick of it. And don’t try so hard that you stop listening.

How far is this from reality?

I would hope that almost every marketer out there is working in an environment that is getting close to this. If there is a major gap, it may fall back on the notion that they may be fighting an uphill battle. In that case, stop thinking about tactics and technologies. Start having the tough conversations with your CMO.

So what’s next?

I hope that this year we’ll see much of the dialog about social media move away from the same conversations we all had about CRM, marketing automation, and other things. I believe the real tsunami behind social technology is how for some organizations it was the internal transformational catalyst to change the way people think, how they interact, how they work together.

We’ll also see a huge shift to further understand the behavior of the consumer. How we make the leap from intent, whether implied or implicit, to accurately predicting behavior, this will be hotly pursued. However, we will as marketers come up against barriers, and perhaps rightly so. With the ability to dial in personalized data, from Facebook to device fingerprinting, many people are becoming increasingly sensitive to their behavior profiles. If your are under 20 years old, you are more likely to text than use email. Even though our world is becoming increasingly interconnected, we are beginning to see a backlash.

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A strategic approach to marketing and engagement requires a holistic examination of your process, touch points and customer transactions. Email is still a relevant part of the mix for B2B marketing. Yup, Marty is spot on with email and engagement. Thanks man.

Web: Two Bananas Marketing

Twitter: @freighter

January 28, 2011 by Jon Gatrell

Marketing is in the Middle: Jay Baer

This is the second one and I have really been impressed with the different approaches to the questions from the participants so far. I’m also encouraged by many of the answers I’m seeing in the responses on how businesses developing more strategic marketing organizations in many sectors.

Jay Baer was kind enough to participate in the Marketing is in the Middle series. I’m super thankful that since I’ve been reading Jay’s blog for several years now (Convince and Convert). It was one of those random word of mouth things… Dave Daniels tuned me in to Jay who then was in Phoenix and who now is in Indiana doing consulting work all over the place. I think Jay just might live in airports.

If you haven’t read/ran into Jay yet, he is real pragmatic in his approach – actionable strategies, tools and real-world use cases on how you can increase your operational effectiveness with social processes. Jay just co-authored a book which spoke to 7 critical shifts businesses just need to make when thinking socially.

So here’s Jay’s take on the questions:
What marketing roles have you had and in what markets?

I started as a PR intern in Phoenix. I was then a political campaign manager in Arizona for a few years, before moving to the client side as a marketer for Waste Management, Inc. in AZ and Southern California. I then was briefly the spokesman for a state agency before getting involved in online marketing in 1994. I was VP/Marketing at Internet Direct (the world’s first hosting company); co-founder at azfamily.com; Senior Director at visitalk.com; and founder of digital agency Mighty Interactive – all of those in Phoenix. Most recently in 2008 I started my Convince & Convert social strategy consultancy. I now live in Bloomington, Indiana but have clients everywhere.

When you look at your career in marketing, what activities have you found most interesting/challenging?

Adoption curves repeat themselves. The questions we’re asking and answering about social media today are very similar to those we dealt with regarding email a few years ago, and websites a few years before that. We’ve seen this movie before.

Based on your experience what activities do you think get the most return?
Anything that combines direct communication, opt-in, and relevancy. Email and search are the most noteworthy examples, and I hope social will continue to progress so that we can have the same potential successes.

What do you feel is the most important component of a successful marketing gig?
Cultural support for change, and a belief that the customer experience is paramount.

How have you seen organizations change in the last 3-5 years to better support the needs of product marketers, product managers and communications teams?
Much smarter about getting marketing involved earlier in the process, combined with a recognition that marketing is about more than a launch.

If you could design the perfect corporate environment for a marketer to be successful what would that be?

Allowing marketing to be as close as possible to product and customer support makes for the best environment. I also prefer it when companies embrace a spirit of testing and trial. Three years ago, suggesting that social would be a meaningful part of the marketing plan was crazy talk for most companies. And look at it now. Marketing must be fluid, because customer dynamics and expectations are fluid.

How far is this from reality?

Fortunately, it’s reality today in some companies, although they tend to be mid-market. Enough resources to try stuff, but unburdened by corporate process.

So what’s next?

I really, really hope we stop (at least for this year) talking about the hot new thing, and instead turn our attention to doing the current things better. Social media optimization and integration would be a good start. Social is an ingredient, not an entree.

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I’ve been using the ingredient quote for a while now. Social media for B2B marketing isn’t a pure play effort for most businesses, it requires an integrated and managed approach across the business – support, marketing, pr… Social processes should make your business more efficient and improve your customer’s experience.

Again, I am most appreciative of Jay taking the time to participate.

Blog: Convince and Convert

Twitter:@ jaybaer

Book: The NOW Revolution: 7 Shifts to Make Your Business Faster, Smarter & More Social