Building With Buyers: Startup Marketing and Growth Fueled By Customers

In the last episode (270), Caitlin Sullivan (AI + Customer Research expert) asked me "what would have to change for you to feel that AI is trustworthy?" It's a really good question and I answer it in this short episode.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.Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠One Insight⁠

I know, I know. Season 5 wrapped up. But I couldn't help myself.Caitlin Sullivan is an expert in AI for Customer Research. She trains growth-ready product & design teams to know their customers faster. Clients include YouTube, Spotify, Ramp, Meta, and Canva.Here’s what we covered:00:00 Introduction to AI in Customer Research03:41 The Shift in AI Usage for Customer Research09:25 Building Systems for Effective Research12:59 Challenges with AI Insights17:55 Completeness in Research with AI21:17 Common Mistakes in Customer Research25:01 Emotional Nuances in Research & Why they're important27:08 Understanding AI's Interpretation of Emotions29:46 The Role of Human Insight in AI Training32:25 AI as a Co-Pilot and The Importance of Collaboration35:37 Catching AI Errors38:30 The Necessity of Human Involvement in Research39:55 Balancing AI and Human Decision-Making45:02 Knowing When You Have Enough Data To Stop And Decide46:44 Favorite Tools for Research and Analysis50:00 Caitlin asks me her burning question which I will answer in a separate BONUS episodeCaitlin on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/caitlindsullivanAI Analysis for PMs course: https://maven.com/caitlin/ai-analysis-pmsSubscribe 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.Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠One Insight

Thanks for being here, for listening, for collaborating, thanks for sharing episodes with others, for sharing stuff with me - when people DM me on LI with their fave episodes - for leaving a review, thank you for all of it. Here's the link to the article "35 Creative Customer Marketing Plays". Wishing you a warm + connected holiday season and positive, fresh beginnings for 2026.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.Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠One Insight

To wrap the year, my client Navattic invited nine of their marketing advisors (including me!) for an open panel on what’s working and what’s worn out from 2025, and where we're placing big bets for 2026. ~300 ppl registered.A few highlights - Worn out: Being a part of every over-saturated channel. AI hype. Talking about how SEO traffic is “collapsing.” Instead, focus on channels where you are the only one (like self-hosted events), thoughtfully using AI tools instead of from pressure, and recognizing that traffic is no longer the best way to measure trust.What we're keeping for 2026:Pipeline acceleration campaigns (instead of just acquisition).Customer marketing as a strategic growth strategy.Bespoke events that attendees want to post photos of on social.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.Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠One Insight

Everyone's been telling me "you gotta talk to Kevin!" Kevin Lau is VP Global Customer Marketing at Freshworks. Freshworks provides AI-assisted IT and customer service software to 75k+ companies. 9,500+ employees, IPO’d back in 2021.Here’s what we cover:01:58 Why Customer Relationships are so important especially going into next year05:40 The Customer Marketing Team at Freshworks09:02 Redefining Customer Marketing at Freshworks (more than just advocacy)12:56 Collaboration Between Customer and Product Marketing16:48 Voice of Customer and ongoing Feedback Mechanisms27:58 The Importance of Customer Marketing & why companies that focus on Net New are already behind31:10 Most Creative Customer Marketing Plays37:24 Building Customer Engagement Programs from scratch39:42 Measuring the Impact of Customer Marketing43:08 Using AI in Customer Marketing50:46 Hopes, fears, future outlook on AI and Customer Marketing (it's not all bad)Kevin on LinkedIn: ⁠www.linkedin.com/in/kevinkennethlauFreshworks: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.freshworks.comSubscribe 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.Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠One Insight

Melanie Paddock is Sr. Manager, Customer Marketing & Advocacy at Gainsight. Gainsight is the world’s leading Customer Success platform. 1,100 ppl, $156M+ total funding, Series E.Here’s what we cover:02:48 The Importance of Customer Love05:34 Building an Advocacy Program from Scratch08:24 Gamification and Customer Engagement11:16 Creating a Community for your Advocates14:20 Leveraging Customer Proof for Sales17:08 Top Challenges in Customer Marketing19:57 Building deep Relationships with Customers is such an opportunity22:41 Avoiding Transactional Relationships in Customer Marketing23:31 How to build trust29:08 Transforming Customer Marketing into your Strategic Advantage, not a "nice to have"29:24 The Role of Customer Research in Marketing34:30 Leveraging AI in Customer Marketing43:59 Melanie asks me her burning question (HINT: the future of customer marketing + the impact of AI)Melanie on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/melaniepaddockGainsight: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.gainsight.comSubscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, let me know what episodes you're into, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show.Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠One Insight

Shannon Howard is Senior Director of Customer & Content Marketing at Intellum. Intellum is AI transformation for enterprise learning. $25M in funding, 139 people.Here’s what we cover:05:35 Shannon shares some Creative Customer Marketing Strategies08:41 Building the Foundation for Customer Marketing11:09 The Role of Data in Customer Marketing14:00 Surprise and Delight16:49 Empowering Customers Through Recognition19:57 Segmentation and Personalization in Marketing22:33 B2B vs B2C Marketing Dynamics26:28 Why Customer Marketing is often overlooked by CMOs30:00 Customer Marketing Strategies to put in your back pocket33:17 The Role of Customer Research & Shannon's take37:12 The Impact of AI on Customer Insights50:38 Shannon asks Anna her burning questionShannon on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/shannonlagassehowardIntellum: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.intellum.comSubscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, let me know what episodes you're into, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show.Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠One Insight

If you're in the US, Happy Thanksgiving. When I look back at 2025, one thing is very clear: my clients taught me more than any book, course, or conference ever could. Here are the six lessons I learned from the leaders I worked with this year.Subscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, let me know what episodes you're into, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show.Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠One Insight

Aditya Vempaty is VP of Marketing at MoEngage. MoEngage is a consumer engagement platform used by 1350+ consumer brands globally. $180M funding, 869 ppl.Here’s what we cover:02:46 Team Structure and Regional Dynamics - including why one PMM reports under the CEO05:33 Steering the Ship & Gaining Buy-In for Strategic Initiatives11:10 The Role of Customer Feedback in Marketing13:48 Repositioning MoEngage in a Changing Market16:32 Navigating AI in Customer Engagement19:33 Positioning and Storytelling Across Regions26:52 Cultural Nuances in Storytelling e.g. India versus US28:07 The Importance of CEO Buy-In30:43 Customers as your Heroes and why that's such an important mindset shift43:47 The Nuances of AI in Marketing - Aditya's hot takeAditya on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/adityavempatyMoEngage: ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.moengage.comSubscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, let me know what episodes you're into, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show.Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠⁠Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠One Insight

Jess Cook is Head of Marketing at Vector. Vector is the only way to build ad audiences by name. Contact-based ads platform so your ads reach the right people (those that want to buy).Here’s what we cover:02:39 Understanding Vector's (new!) Positioning05:30 Customer-Centric Growth Strategies08:16 Repositioning and Messaging Evolution11:04 Incorporating Customer Feedback and why we brought our customer into our strategic company meeting14:05 The Role of Research in Marketing16:37 Building Ad Audiences by Name19:18 Our Creative Process Behind the Brand22:09 On Launching the Podcast with the CEO - we fly down to Florida and film in the studio26:47 Focused growth channels 28:04 Creativity that stems from customer research and insights30:42 Sabrina Carpenter's hairbrush microphone34:06 My favorite customer interview question38:30 Customer marketing plays at Vector41:46 Our influencer marketing experiment results46:47 Leveraging AI in Marketing51:11 Innovative SEO Strategies we're usingJess on LinkedIn: ⁠linkedin.com/in/jesscook-contentmarketingVector: ⁠www.vector.coSubscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, let me know what episodes you're into, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show. Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠Newsletter: ⁠⁠One Insight

Anthony Pierri helps founders market hard-to-market products as Co-Founder and Partner at FletchPMM. We're both in the Chicago area, Anthony is just a (trail) bike ride away. I asked Anthony to join me for round 2, also listen to Ep. 199 “Why Your Homepage Is A Great Predictor of Your Startup's Future Success...Or Failure.”Here’s what we cover:“Let’s fix your confusing positioning” why you changed the copy on your homepage;Positioning, messaging, how do you get the entire company marching to the same beat, especially larger companies;After you help companies with their positioning and messaging, do they stick to it? Do they go back to their old ways? Why might this happen;You don’t recommend outsourcing talking to customers BUT founders and marketers don't know how, so what's the solve here, let's talk this out;Segmentation old way versus new way.Anthony on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/anthonypierriFletchPMM: www.fletchpmm.comSubscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, let me know what episodes you're into, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show. Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠Newsletter: ⁠⁠One Insight

Mark Huber is VP of Marketing at UserEvidence. UserEvidence is a Customer Evidence Platform that lets you collect feedback, curate success stories, and create content that credibly proves the value of your product. Don’t beg for case studies. Get customer proof at scale.Mark and I are both Navattic advisors.Here’s what we cover:Tell me about your team, what’s everyone doing;Tell me about how your positioning and messaging has changed, and how it’s landing;How’d you get the entire company marching to the same beat;How do you incorporate customers as part of UserEvidence’s growth efforts;How’re you using AI in your role, what scares you, what are you hopeful about;Mark asks me his burning question.Mark on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/markehuberUserEvidence: userevidence.comSubscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, let me know what episodes you're into, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show. Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠Newsletter: ⁠One Insight

This is a geeking out episode. If you love customer research as much as I do and know how important it is for marketing and business growth, this is the episode you'll want to hear.Hannah Shamji is a former Therapist and now Consumer Psychology Researcher. Hannah digs deep to uncover the emotional and psychological reasons your customers buy, stay, or leave in order to help inform retention, engagement, or positioning challenges.Here’s what we cover:Focus of your work these days;How're you using AI as part of your work;In research conversations, how to peel back the layers beyond logical answers, in order to go deeper on the emotional and political stuff;The worst customer interview you’ve ever done;How do you know something is an insight;An example of turning insights into action;Hannah asks me her burning question.Hannah on LinkedIn: ⁠www.linkedin.com/in/hannahshamjiFor more content, subscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever, let me know what episodes you're into, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show. Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠Newsletter: ⁠⁠One Insight

Mark Schaefer is keynote speaker, university educator, futurist, and bestselling author of books like Marketing Rebellion, Audacious, and most recently How AI Changes Your Customers.Mark also joined me a couple years ago, listen to Ep. 132: How AI Is Changing Marketing Forever & Why Creativity Matters More.Here’s what we cover:What’s changing with our customers, and how do we change alongside them;What scares you most about AI;What makes you hopeful;Why curiosity matters now more than ever;Where are you finding purpose and where can marketers find purpose at a time when we’re kinda lost;Why awkwardness is a brand superpower;The 3 questions we should be asking to guide our company's next chapter.Mark on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/markwschaeferMark's website: businessesgrow.comFor more content, subscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever, let me know what episodes you're into, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show. Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠Newsletter: ⁠One Insight

After 5+ years working with early and growth stage companies, I created the Customer Insights Roadmap, a 4-phase process that helps founders/CEOs and their teams understand their customers deeply, translate those insights into clear and compelling positioning and messaging, and then scale growth in a way that works for your specific target buyer. It’s the exact process I take my clients through and it all starts with the hard work: real conversations with your customers. We run this program and it's not uncommon to see faster sales cycles and even 4X closed won deals.Read about the Customer Insights Roadmap: furmanovmarketing.com/blog/customer-insights-roadmapRead more about the Content Strategy Canvas: furmanovmarketing.com/blog/content-strategyFor more content, subscribe to Building With Buyers wherever you like to listen, let me know what episodes you're into, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show.Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠⁠One Insight newsletter: ⁠⁠Subscribe⁠

So ya know how I’m exploring the role that customers play in helping companies build to their next level of growth? My goal is to invite on more superstar customer marketers and this episode is no exception. Why such an obsession with customer marketing? people don’t stop to consider how important their customers are;we always seem to be chasing net new;trust is peer-led and most growth (still) comes from referrals, word of mouth, and bottom-up adoption;your customers are your moat because they are unique to you;you're probably doing some of this, it's just not officially in your business strategy (it should be).Holly Higgins is Sr. Customer Marketing Manager at Nectar. Nectar is an employee recognition & rewards platform for companies investing in culture. $58.7M in funding. 245 people.Here’s what we cover:Holly's responsibilities and goals;How do you incorporate customers as part of your growth efforts;Gamifying customer engagement;How you use AI in your role;How AI makes you and me more human;Holly asks me her burning question.Holly on LinkedIn: ⁠www.linkedin.com/in/holly-higgins-28841a1b7Nectar: nectarhr.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠For more content, subscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, let me know what episodes you're into, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show. Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠Newsletter: One Insight

I reached out to Denny Hollick on GrowthMentor as a mentee. Denny was a good match because I wanted to ask him some questions I’ve had for a while around customer marketing and customer advocacy. Yes, most people agree that understanding customer needs can transform product development, but what’s often overlooked is how customer advocates can significantly influence your market success and GTM plan's impact. Denny is Head of Product Marketing at Puzzle. Prior, he held marketing leadership roles at Minerva, Kajabi, Unbounce, and Wealthbar (acquired in 2018).Here’s what we cover:Why customer advocacy is crucial for startup growth;How building relationships with customers can lead to advocacy;Examples of customer advocacy programs;Effective customer marketing requires collaboration between teams;Startups should invest in customer advocacy programs early;Creating a customer advisory board is probably the easiest step one;Customers want to feel valued and recognized, how can you make that happen;How successful advocacy programs turn customers into partners.Denny on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/dhollickFor more content, subscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, let me know what episodes you're into, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show. Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠⁠One Insight newsletter: ⁠Subscribe

Lately, I’ve been intrigued by “State of The” reports. Many of them are examples of what good content looks like. Tommy Walker created his State of (Dis)Content report so naturally I wanted to learn exactly how he did it. Tommy is founder at The Content Studio. The Content Studio is a content marketing consultancy focused on creating, developing, and improving content programs for growth-stage B2B startups and enterprises.Here’s what we cover:What's your approach to creating really good content;The problem with good enough content;The problem with perfectionism;Walk me through the steps you took to create The State Of (Dis)Content;How does this report tie directly into the sales process.Tommy on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tommyismynameThe Content Studio: www.thecontentstudio.comThe State Of (Dis)Content: ⁠www.thecontentstudio.com/the-state-of-discontentFor more content, subscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, let me know what episodes you're into, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show. Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠⁠One Insight newsletter: Subscribe

Shoshana Kordova joined me to talk about some of my favorite customer research and insights topics, she's founder of Peel Product Marketing and 3X founding product marketer with over a decade of journalism experience.Here’s what we cover:How does your journalism background help you with customer research;There are many Product Marketers, how do you differentiate;How do you know something is a true customer insight;How do you turn insights into action;What’s the biggest challenge for companies you’re working with right now.Shoshana on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/shoshana-kordova Peel Product Marketing: https://app.assetmule.ai/vVFtTvys Check out her customer insights playbook: https://jetpack.productivepmm.comFor more content, subscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, let me know what episodes you're into, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show. Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com⁠

Gianna Scorsone is co-founder and COO at ChampionHQ. ChampionHQ is the customer-led growth platform. Turn your customers into your No. 1 growth engine. Seed funded.Here’s what we cover:Customer-led growth vs. customer marketing and why both are important;How to turn customers into your No. 1 growth engine;How do you incorporate customers as part of your own growth efforts;Who’s doing customer marketing well;How you're building community at ChampionHQ.Gianna on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/giannascorsoneChampionHQ: ⁠⁠⁠www.championhq.comFor more content, subscribe to Building With Buyers on Apple or Spotify or wherever you like to listen, let me know what episodes you're into, and don't forget to leave a review if you're lovin' the show. Music by my talented daughter.Anna on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/in/annafurmanov⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠furmanovmarketing.com