[ Heart + Smart ] Blog by Authentic Brand - Marketing content for B2B growth organizations

07Sep 2017 by Jennifer Zick

Everything Marketing Automation: A Virtual Panel of Expert Perspectives

Brand & Messaging, Digital, Marketing, Virtual Panel

What do you get when you pick the brains of five digital marketing experts, representing partnerships with some of the most popular martech platforms on the market? You get everything marketing automation: the good, the bad, the ugly, and a whole lot of wisdom gleaned from the trenches. Welcome to Authentic Brand's first "virtual panel": a Q&A exchange with five leaders in the Twin Cities digital community. (more…)

25Aug 2017 by Jennifer Zick

We fed 50 kids for a year!

Community, Event, Two Or More

What an awesome feeling. Serving side-by-side with 30 business professionals, representing brands from all across the Twin Cities, gathered together for one reason: to do good work. Yesterday, Authentic Brand had the opportunity to host a second event for Two Or More: a community service movement. And the movement is building! Even on a summertime afternoon in Minnesota, when calendars are jammed with vacations and back-to-school activities, this crew showed up. They served with big hearts, and had a ton of fun in the process. (more…)

15Aug 2017 by Jennifer Zick

There’s no such thing as balance. How life and EOS showed me a better path.

Brand & Messaging, EOS / Traction, Marketing

Balance. I once thought it was possible. Until I hit the proverbial wall. My career wasn't moving in the direction I had planned. I had just had my second child. I was spending too much time commuting, not enough time sleeping, and was nowhere near living up to the expectations I'd set for myself as a wife, mother, friend, community member, and business leader. In short, I felt like I was half-assing every category in my life. (more…)

20Jun 2017 by Jennifer Zick

Beyond Buzzphrases: How emerging tech could actually change everything for marketers

Digital, Marketing

For the past several years, there's been plenty of buzzphrase mania around topics such as IoT (internet of things), connected devices, big data / deep data, artificial intelligence, cognitive computing, machine learning, and virtual / augmented reality. And while many of these concepts may still feel abstract and fuzzy, these emerging technologies are taking tangible shape right now in many businesses. In fact, new research just released by Forbes today, based on Salesforce's Fourth Annual State-of-Marketing Report, shows that: (more…)

26May 2017 by Jennifer Zick

Two Or More Service Event: Feed My Starving Children

Community, Event, Two Or More

Join us for the two or more LAUNCH event on June 29th, 2017! (Updated) The first two or more service event is coming up, and we are now at capacity and taking registrations only on a wait-list basis. If you haven't done a meal-packing event with this organization before, you're in for a treat. And if you have done this before, you know just what a great experience it is - so grab a friend, colleague, or customer and let's do this. (more…)

24May 2017 by Jennifer Zick

Let’s be friends: How sales and marketing can help each other

Brand & Messaging, Marketing

What can salespeople do to help marketers? And conversely, what can marketers do to support sales? I love this question because I've been on both sides. I cut my professional teeth in B2B sales before shifting my focus to marketing, and then marketing team leadership. I've experienced the tension between these departments, and the reality is that it doesn't have to be that way. So, here's a little bit of advice for both sides, from someone who gets it. (more…)

18May 2017 by Jennifer Zick

How Do We Get More Customers?

Marketing

“How do I get more customers or clients?” It sounds like a smart question, right? Because it's not asking "How do we get more leads?" but rather "How do we get more sales?", which should be the core metric of a growing business. But be careful here. We're living in an era of MORE. (more…)

18May 2017 by Jennifer Zick

Event Recap: DenamiCON17

Event

Earlier this week, I had the privilege of being included in the speaker lineup for DenamiCON17, an inbound growth-focused event, hosted by Denamico (Hubspot-certified partner) and MentorMate (software development firm). Missed the event? Watch the recorded live stream here, and follow along with my mini blog series below that provides my expanded perspective on the topics discussed. (more…)

15May 2017 by Jennifer Zick

Shocking But True: The Marketing Automation Disconnect

Brand & Messaging, Digital, Marketing

I'll never forget the day I realized just how huge the gap could be between expectation and reality, relative to marketing automation. I had recently taken a new job, after 13 years in sales and marketing for a fast-growth technology consulting start-up; a firm that specialized in CRM and marketing automation. My new organization was a contrast to my start-up experience in every way (more…)

05May 2017 by Jennifer Zick

The Hard Truth About Marketing Automation

Brand & Messaging, Digital, Marketing

It's one of the greatest misnomers of modern marketing: Marketing Automation. It's not a new term or technology. In fact, the pioneers in this space entered the market as early as 1999. And yet, despite its strong adoption and incredible growth (300 solutions added in just the past year - see graphic below), businesses large and small still struggle with what marketing automation actually means, and the level of commitment and resources required to manage an effective program. (more…)