APAC's B2B Growth Podcast

What does it actually look like to roll out AI at enterprise scale inside one of the world's most recognisable technology companies? Craig Mills, APAC Head of Demand Generation and AI Marketing Transformation Lead at IBM, shares the real story: the internal lockdowns, the false starts, the springtime of ideas that fizzled, and the hard-won clarity that followed.

Craig walks through IBM's shift from experimentation to intentional, use-case-driven execution in 2026, with a focus on email marketing as an underrated strategic weapon. He also shares a simple three-part navigation framework any B2B marketer can apply, regardless of the size of their organisation.

Guest Introduction

Craig Mills is the APAC Head of Demand Generation and AI Marketing Transformation Lead at IBM. With over two decades at IBM, Craig has led marketing transformation across Asia Pacific, focusing on data-driven demand generation and the practical adoption of AI across complex, multi-market enterprise environments.

Key Topics

• IBM's AI adoption arc: from pre-GPT predictive analytics through the GPT moment, internal lockdowns on AI use, the launch of IBM watsonx in 2023, and the shift to focused execution in 2026
• The "client zero" experience: how IBM employees lived the AI transformation firsthand through changes to HR systems, well before the broader market caught up
• Why email marketing is Craig's number one AI use case and how IBM is moving from successful pilots to systematic, micro-targeted execution at scale
• Micro-segmentation at enterprise scale: how AI enables hyper-personalised outreach to audience pockets that were previously too small to justify the investment
• The people-process-tools interconnectivity challenge: why enterprise AI is so difficult and why most organisations are still struggling to get it right
• Craig's three navigation points for B2B marketers: get closer to customers and partners, get closer to your product, and go faster
• Building maximum mental flexibility: why clarity of mission is the prerequisite for individual speed and creative agility in an AI-driven environment
• The IBM Enterprise 2030 finding: 79% of executives expect AI to drive significant revenue by 2030, yet only 24% know where it will come from

Resources and Links

Tools

• IBM Enterprise 2030 Report -Craig's North Star on AI strategy: 79% of executives expect AI to drive significant revenue by 2030, but only 24% know where it will come from.
• This Week in Startups -Podcast by Jason Calacanis. Craig recommends it for building a startup mindset inside large organisations.
• IBM watsonx -IBM's enterprise AI platform, launched May 2023, central to IBM's AI transformation story.
• Microsoft Copilot -AI productivity tool Craig uses to move faster through emails and meetings.
• Claude -Anthropic's AI assistant, used by Craig for external customer research.

People Mentioned

• Jason Calacanis -Entrepreneur and host of This Week in Startups. Craig spent a year listening to build a startup mindset within IBM.
• Ray Dalio -Founder of Bridgewater Associates. Craig follows him for his geopolitical frameworks and historical perspective on the forces shaping the world.

Companies

• IBM -Global enterprise technology and consulting company.

Also mentioned 

• Diablo - The classic video game. Apparently the only thing more addictive than playing with AI tools at midnight. 

Contact & Credits

Host: Shahin Hoda

Guest: Craig Mills

Produced by: Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell

Edited by: Alexander Hipwell

Music by: Breakmaster Cylinder

APAC's B2B Growth Podcast is Presented by xGrowth

AI has made marketing easier to produce - but harder to win. That's the sharp framing Cameron Partridge, Chief Growth Officer at Humanforce, brings to this conversation. Drawing on nearly a decade in the US, including a front-row seat to the AI boom at Invisible Technologies, working directly with OpenAI, Meta, Google, and Microsoft on AI training, Cameron delivers one of the most grounded takes on where marketing is heading.

From the collapse of specialist roles to why marketing must own revenue, this is the episode to send to every marketing leader sitting on the fence about what AI means for their team and career.

Guest Introduction

Cameron Partridge is Chief Growth Officer at Humanforce, an AI-driven human capital management platform serving frontline workforces globally. He spent nearly a decade in the US, most recently as CMO of Invisible Technologies, one of North America's fastest-growing AI companies, where he helped grow revenue from $25-30M to close to $200M run rate while working directly with the world's leading AI model providers. He previously held senior leadership roles at BBDO and Macquarie Group, and began his career at Medibank, Telstra, and GE Capital in Australia.

Key Topics

• Why AI has lowered the floor of marketing quality and what "AI slop" means for how you actually win in a crowded content landscape
• How the marketing function is collapsing from siloed specialists into generalists - and why that's both an opportunity and a threat
• Why Cameron no longer hires for deep channel expertise, and what he looks for instead: cultural fit, outcomes focus, and "neural plasticity"
• Why marketing must stop reporting on activity and move toward shared revenue ownership with sales - and the rise of the Chief Growth Officer title
• The go-to-market engineer role: what it is, why it's a critical hire, and why these people are rare in Australia
• Why AI boosts individual productivity but not organisational productivity, and how systems thinking closes the gap
• Cameron's AI toolkit: Claude for deep work, ChatGPT for quick questions, Claude Code for vibe coding - and why courses are the wrong way to learn AI
• The job outlook for marketers: why middle managers face the most risk and why now is the time to act

Resources & Links

Tools

• Claude - Cameron's go-to for deep work and complex tasks
• Claude Code - Used by Cameron for vibe coding projects
• ChatGPT - Cameron's "new Google" for quick questions
• Manus - Meta owned AI agent platform Cameron is experimenting with
• NotebookLM - Recommended for knowledge work
• SEMrush - Part of Cameron's cross-platform insights dashboard
• X (formerly Twitter) - Recommended for following AI researchers
• Substack - Recommended for action-oriented AI insights

People Mentioned

• Allie K. Miller - Top LinkedIn voice on AI; also on Instagram

Companies

• OpenAI - Worked with directly at Invisible Technologies; recommended for following researchers
• Anthropic - Makers of Claude; referenced as a foundational model provider worth following
• Google - Referenced in Cameron's analytics dashboard and as a major AI model provider
• Invisible Technologies - Cameron's former employer; recommended as a source for enterprise AI developments

Contact & Credits

Host: Shahin Hoda

Guest: Cameron Partridge

Produced by:  Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell

Edited by: Alexander Hipwell

Music by: Breakmaster Cylinder

APAC's B2B Growth Podcast is Presented by xGrowth

See the results: https://xgrowth.com.au/reports/abm-pulse/

ABM is evolving fast in APAC, and xGrowth has the data to prove it. In this episode, Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell unpack the findings from xGrowth's latest ABM Pulse benchmark, based on responses from 93 B2B marketers actively running ABM programs across the region.

From a dramatic shift away from one-to-few programs to AI quietly expanding the scale of what a single budget can cover, this episode cuts through the noise and tells you exactly what is actually happening with ABM in 2025. If you are making investment decisions or defending the ABM line item to your CFO, this one is for you.

Key Topics

• Why one-to-few ABM dropped from 72% adoption in 2024 to around 38% in 2025, and what that signals about market maturity in APAC
• How strategic (one-to-one) ABM has held steady at around 50% as organisations focus on protecting and expanding existing customer relationships
• The AI effect on program scale: why nearly a third of respondents are now running programs targeting 100 or more accounts on the same budgets they used for far fewer
• ABM investment sentiment in 2025: 57% of respondents are holding or growing their ABM budgets, with only 5.2% cutting
• Why inbound is under pressure from zero-click search and LLM-driven traffic drops, and how this is pushing more organisations toward ABM as a primary pipeline channel
• Budget planning paralysis: why a significant portion of APAC marketing leaders still had not confirmed their 2026 budgets well into Q1, and what that says about market uncertainty
• How to use benchmark data like this as social proof when making the case for ABM investment to a CFO or board

Resources & Links

• xGrowth ABM Pulse Report - download the full benchmark findings
• xGrowth - APAC's B2B growth agency
• Shahin Hoda on LinkedIn
• Alexander Hipwell on LinkedIn

Contact & Credits

Hosts: Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell

Produced by:  Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell

Edited by: Alexander Hipwell

Music by: Breakmaster Cylinder

APAC's B2B Growth Podcast is Presented by xGrowth

Running a global marketing function from APAC sounds like a logistical headache. For Jon Stona, VP of Global Marketing at Airwallex, it's a deliberate competitive advantage. In this episode, Jon unpacks how one of the world's fastest-growing fintechs has architected a marketing org that's globally consistent yet locally authentic - spanning Singapore, San Francisco, London, and regional hubs across Asia, Europe, and Australia.

From making the case for product marketing before performance spend, to using an F1 sponsorship to systematically close a trust gap against legacy financial institutions, Jon brings rare clarity to the strategic decisions that most B2B marketing leaders only talk about in theory. If you want to think bigger about brand, team design, and what marketing can actually own in a scaling business, this episode is worth your time.

Guest Introduction

Jon Stona is VP of Global Marketing at Airwallex, the Australian-founded global payments and financial platform supporting over 150,000 businesses worldwide. Before joining Airwallex, Jon held senior marketing roles at Stripe, Google, and Nike - giving him deep experience scaling marketing across global technology platforms and challenger brands at every stage of growth.

Key Topics

• Why Airwallex built its global marketing org out of APAC, and why the APAC talent pool - wired for fragmentation and global trade from day one - is a genuine strategic asset
• How the team is structured across Singapore, San Francisco, London, and regional markets, and why a flat, matrix model is essential when you're this geographically dispersed
• The case for investing in product marketing before growth marketing - and why getting your positioning, segmentation, and value prop right is the "root" everything else depends on
• The four truths Jon applies to any market expansion: brand truth, product truth, market truth, and user truth - and how product marketing is the function that calibrates where the variation sits
• How Airwallex uses its McLaren F1 partnership to build trust at scale, structured around the reliability-credibility-intimacy-low self-orientation framework - and how they actually measure the pipeline and employee sentiment impact
• Where AI is genuinely delivering efficiency gains in marketing (Writer, Jasper, Profound) and the paradox this creates: as AI levels the playing field on distribution, the non-technical facets of marketing - storytelling, positioning, insight - matter more than ever
• Jon's advice for B2B marketers who want to take bolder moves: return to first principles, and remember you're marketing to humans who happen to make business decisions

Resources & Links

Books

• Nudge by Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein
• Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely

AI Tools

• Writer - AI content platform for brand voice consistency and marketing workflow efficiency
• Jasper - AI platform for end-to-end marketing content creation
• Profound - Tool for tracking how your brand appears across LLM platforms

Blogs & Publications

• HubSpot Blog

People Mentioned

• Reko Rennie - Internationally acclaimed Kamilaroi artist who collaborated with Airwallex and McLaren on the 'Shifted Perspectives' campaign at the 2025 Australian Grand Prix
• Dan Ariely - Behavioural economist and author

Companies & Platforms

• Airwallex
• McLaren Racing

Contact & Credits

Host: Shahin Hoda

Guest: Jon Stona

Produced by: Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell

Edited by: Alexander Hipwell

Music by: Breakmaster Cylinder

APAC's B2B Growth Podcast is Presented by xGrowth

Events are one of the highest-effort, highest-impact levers in B2B marketing, but most teams run them on autopilot. In this episode, Shahin sits down with Jannat Dawra, Head of Marketing APAC at Dotdigital, to break down her commercial, revenue-first approach to field marketing and events.

Jannat runs 80 to 100 events a year and brings a rare blend of creative instinct and commercial rigour to the craft. From deciding which event type to run, to managing a thin attendance list two weeks out, this episode is packed with practical frameworks for senior B2B marketers.

Guest Introduction

Jannat Dawra is Head of Marketing APAC at Dotdigital, a leading customer experience and data platform. Based in Sydney, Jannat leads brand and demand generation across the region and has previously held senior marketing roles at Insider and LinkedIn.

Key Topics

• The three event buckets: sponsored industry conferences (brand and first-touch), strategic partner events (deepening executive relationships), and owned events (roundtables, community events, summits).
• A commercial approach to event prioritisation: reverse-engineering every event from revenue and pipeline goals. Does it add value to the ICP, accelerate existing pipeline, or strengthen retention and expansion?
• The opportunity cost framework: why a $10K event is never just $10K, and how to factor in team time and effort before committing.
• Planning across the funnel: quarterly check-ins with sales, CS, and partnerships to flex the event mix based on where pressure sits in the business.
• The individual event checklist: clear objective and KPI, stakeholder buy-in, a one-sentence audience definition, speakers matched to the audience profile, and a project plan with contingencies.
• Post-COVID attendee expectations: smaller rooms, curated guest lists, clearer themes, no buzzwords, and ROI scrutiny over vanity metrics.
• The 70/30 prospect-to-client split: why each audience needs different event design, and what happens when you blur the two objectives.
• The post-event playbook: individual follow-up, nurture automations, and treating events as one touchpoint in an 8 to 12-step buying journey.

Resources and Links

People Mentioned

• Simon Sinek, speaker and author referenced by Jannat

Companies and Platforms

• Dotdigital, Jannat's company, cross-channel marketing automation platform

Books and Podcasts

• Atomic Habits by James Clear
• The Diary of a CEO, podcast hosted by Steven Bartlett

Contact & Credits

Host: Shahin Hoda

Guest: Jannat Dawra

Produced by:  Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell

Edited by: Alexander Hipwell

Music by: Breakmaster Cylinder

APAC's B2B Growth Podcast is Presented by xGrowth

Getting your buyer's attention has never been harder. In this episode, Shahin sits down with Scott Albro, serial entrepreneur and GTM advisor to early-stage AI founders, to unpack what modern go-to-market actually looks like. Scott reframes the most common answer to "what's changed?" by showing how AI isn't just a trend; it's an accelerant for the three forces already making buyer attention scarce.

From founder brand to manufactured moments, tight customer feedback loops to strategic narrative, Scott shares the GTM pillars he works through with his founder clients. He breaks down why the new breed of AI startups is out-marketing incumbents, what Lovable's live-streamed design competition can teach any B2B team, and why ServiceTitan's origin story is the best strategic narrative he's ever heard.

Guest Introduction

Scott Albro is a serial entrepreneur and go-to-market strategist who co-founded TOPO, a sales and marketing research and advisory firm acquired by Gartner, and advises early-stage AI founders on building their first go-to-market functions, drawing on 30 years of experience studying the GTM practices of the world’s fastest-growing companies.

Key Topics

• Why attention scarcity is the defining GTM challenge today, and how AI makes it worse across three fronts: information overload, professional busyness, and competitive noise
• What incumbent vendors like Salesforce and Workday need to do to defend their position as AI-native startups grow more innovative in both product and go-to-market
• Founder brand as a strategic GTM asset: why it goes far beyond LinkedIn posts, and how Nick Mehta made Gainsight synonymous with the customer success movement
• Growth experiments and the "Mr. Beast for SaaS" mindset: how Lovable drove 40,000 live viewers and 3 million replays with a zero-budget design competition
• Building tight customer feedback loops: why the company that iterates fastest wins, and how AI is finally making weekly feedback cycles achievable
• Manufacturing moments: how Mark Benioff staged a fake protest at Siebel's user conference to launch the no-software movement and put Salesforce on the map
• Strategic narrative done right: why ServiceTitan's "the trades stand frozen in time" story is the best B2B narrative Scott has ever encountered
• The danger of performative nihilism: why shock-value launches like Cluely's generate page views but destroy brand equity

Resources & Links

People Mentioned

• Nick Mehta, former CEO of Gainsight
• Marc Benioff, Chair, CEO and Co-Founder of Salesforce

Companies & Tools

• TOPO / Gartner
• Gainsight
• ServiceTitan
• Lovable
• Evidenza - a synthetic customer research platform
• Salesforce
• G2

Contact & Credits

Host: Shahin Hoda

Guest: Scott Albro

Produced by: Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell

Edited by: Alexander Hipwell

Music by: Breakmaster Cylinder

APAC's B2B Growth Podcast is Presented by xGrowth

What does it take to build a brand from nothing in nine weeks, with no assets, no brand book, and a board breathing down your neck? Penny Elmslie did exactly that as the first Marketing Director Xero hired outside of New Zealand, turning a company most Australians confused with a certain photocopier brand into one of the world's most recognised accounting software businesses.

Penny shares the story behind Xero's early Australian growth: the scrappy "Hello, Xero with an X" campaign, guerrilla activations like Cloudstreet, the partner strategy that turned accountants into an army, and the event machine that scaled from 30 people in a winery to thousands globally. She also opens up about joining Affinda as CMO and why AI document processing today mirrors where the cloud was a decade ago.

Guest Introduction

Penny Elmslie is a CMO, Board Director, and marketing coach who spent over a decade at Xero, rising from Australia's first Marketing Director to Global Director of Brand and Community. She is currently CMO at Affinda, a Melbourne-based AI document processing company named one of Australia's fastest-growing tech companies by Deloitte.

Key Topics

• Building Xero's brand in nine weeks: Launching a full campaign with no brand book, no assets, and a tiny budget, and why the insight was simply making people spell the name correctly.
• The accountant-as-channel strategy: How Xero built its go-to-market around accountants and bookkeepers, turning that partner network into the most efficient channel to market.
• From "Hello" to XeroCon: How brand experience evolved from small intro sessions to national roadshows and a flagship conference now running worldwide.
• Cloudstreet and guerrilla marketing: The pop-up activation that scaled from a city storefront into a shipping container touring Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane.
• B2C thinking in a B2B world: Why Penny approaches every B2B campaign as human-to-human, and how that philosophy shaped her work at Xero.
• Joining Affinda: What drew her to an AI-first scale-up and the brand-building opportunity still ahead.
• Reactive vs. responsive: Why responding to market opportunity beats forcing a proactive plan early in a CMO role.
• Content quality in an AI-flooded world: Why human expertise must stay on the levers, and why brands that commit to their ICP and tone will win.

Resources & Links

People

• Chris Ridd- Former MD, Xero Australia (2011–2016)
• Rod Drury- Co-founder, Xero

Companies & Tools

• Affinda- AI document processing platform; Penny's current company
• Affinda Group- Parent company of Affinda, Draftable, Pathfindr, and Vesparum
• Draftable- Document comparison software for legal teams
• Xero- Cloud-based accounting software for small businesses
• MYOB- Accounting software competitor
• Leo Burnett Australia- Creative agency Penny briefed on day one at Xero
• Sputnik Agency- Melbourne agency Penny partnered with to launch Xero's first Australian campaign

Contact & Credits

Host: Shahin Hoda

Guest: Penny Elmslie

Produced by: Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell

Edited by: Alexander Hipwell

Music by: Breakmaster Cylinder

APAC's B2B Growth Podcast is Presented by xGrowth

While everyone panics about ChatGPT stealing traffic and AI replacing jobs, the data tells a different story. For every search on ChatGPT, there are 373 searches on Google. AI's disruption is far less dramatic than media hype suggests. Rand Fishkin challenges this prevailing wisdom about AI's impact on B2B marketing.

In this conversation, Rand and Shahin explore why consensus views are usually wrong, how to build marketing strategies around actual audience behaviour, and what Rand learnt from building Moz versus SparkToro. From audience intelligence research to radical transparency about the venture capital trap, Rand delivers insights that help B2B marketers make smarter decisions.

Guest Introduction

Rand Fishkin is the co-founder and CEO of SparkToro, an audience research software company, and Snackbar Studio, an indie game development studio. Previously, he founded Moz, where he grew the company from debt to $50M+ in revenue over 17 years. He's the author of Lost and Founder: A Painfully Honest Field Guide to the Startup World and is known for his radical transparency about startup life and his contrarian takes on marketing trends.

Key Topics

• AI's real impact on search: Data shows ChatGPT handles one search for every 373 on Google, and AI hasn't caused predicted job displacement (US unemployment remains historically low).
• Audience-specific research: Rather than following industry trends, marketers should investigate where their audience spends time using tools like SparkToro to discover relevant channels and influencers.
• Channel strategy and execution: Effective B2B marketing requires both overarching positioning strategy plus channel-specific tactical approaches for LinkedIn, email, and content platforms.
• Learning from hype cycles: From mobile apps to crypto, media creates fear-based narratives around technology that rarely match reality, and marketers who chase every trend waste resources.
• Building companies differently: Rand compares growing Moz with VC funding to building SparkToro through alternative funding, highlighting how serving investors rather than customers creates misaligned incentives.

Resources & Links

People:

• Amanda Natividad - VP of Marketing at SparkToro, referenced for her philosophy on social media algorithms and authentic engagement

Companies & Tools:

• SparkToro - Audience research software
• Moz - SEO software platform
• Snackbar Studio - Indie game development studio
• ChatGPT - Large language model by OpenAI
• DuckDuckGo - Privacy-focused search engine

Books & Resources:

• Lost and Founder: A Painfully Honest Field Guide to the Startup World by Rand Fishkin
• SparkToro Funding Documents - Open-sourced funding model and incorporation docs
• Snackbar Studio Funding Documents - Open-sourced funding model for indie game studio

Contact & Credits

Host: Shahin Hoda

Guest: Rand Fishkin

Produced by: Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell

Edited by: Alexander Hipwell

Music by: Breakmaster Cylinder

APAC's B2B Growth Podcast is Presented by xGrowth

In this episode, Udi Ledergor, Chief Evangelist at Gong and author of Courageous Marketing, explains why bold creativity is essential for startups competing in crowded B2B markets.

Udi shares the principle behind Gong’s rise from zero to hundreds of millions in revenue: “different is better than better.” From fuchsia branding and a bulldog mascot to running Super Bowl ads as a startup, he shows how courageous marketing helps companies punch above their weight.

The episode also explores practical ways to create standout content, foster experimentation, and turn customers into passionate fans, even on a limited budget.

Guest Introduction

Udi Ledergor is Chief Evangelist at Gong and author of the bestselling book Courageous Marketing. He served as Gong's first CMO, helping grow the company from zero to hundreds of millions in revenue whilst achieving a multi-billion-dollar valuation. Over his 20-year career, Udi has led marketing teams at successful companies, advised startups, served as a board member and angel investor, and mentored hundreds of marketers.

Key Topics

• Different is better than better: Why startups should stop trying to incrementally beat competitors at their own game and instead do something completely different to get noticed
• Punching above your weight: How small startups can use guerrilla marketing tactics like out-of-home advertising to appear much bigger than they are when selling to enterprises
• Creating raving fans as a company-wide operating principle: Why marketing can't own brand alone, and how every employee at Gong works to create raving fan experiences for customers, candidates, and partners
• Building a culture of experimentation: The importance of fostering an environment where teams can take calculated risks, fail safely, and learn from both successes and flops
• Gong Labs content marketing: How Gong created original, data-driven content by analysing millions of sales calls to position themselves as the most informed voice in sales effectiveness
• Category creation strategy: When it makes sense to create a new category (and when it doesn't), illustrated through the De Beers diamond engagement ring marketing campaign
• Bold visual identity choices: The decision to use fuchsia pink and purple with a bulldog mascot in 2018 when all B2B competitors were using corporate blue
• Startup advertising on a shoestring budget: Creative approaches to billboard advertising, Super Bowl commercials, and other typically expensive channels that small companies can leverage

Resources & Links

People Mentioned:

Chris Orlob - First content hire at Gong who created most early Gong content independently.

Devin Reed - Former Gong sales rep who transitioned into leading Gong’s content marketing.

Kyle Lacy - CMO referenced for using AI to eliminate obvious ideas and push creative thinking.

Michael Lewis - Author and podcast host whose show drove inbound interest for Gong.

Francis Gerety- Copywriter behind the “A Diamond Is Forever” campaign, cited as a category creation example.

Companies & Platforms Mentioned

• Gong - Revenue intelligence platform
• Gong Labs - Data research and insights
• De Beers - Diamond company referenced for category creation example

Books & Resources

• Courageous Marketing - a practical playbook for B2B marketers to drive impact and accelerate career success.

Contact & Credits

Host: Shahin Hoda

Guest: Udi Ledergor

Produced by: Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell

Edited by: Alexander Hipwell

Music by: Breakmaster Cylinder

APAC's B2B Growth Podcast is Presented by xGrowth

What if a $28 Facebook ad could generate $20 million? Stu Heinecke, the father of contact marketing, reveals how micro-focused campaigns connect you with virtually anyone.

Stu shares stories of a sales rep who used a live pigeon to reach a famous CEO, a startup that landed Walmart with one targeted ad, and how Kris Kristofferson landed a helicopter on Johnny Cash's lawn to deliver a demo tape.

Guest Introduction

Stu Heinecke is a bestselling author, Hall of Fame-nominated marketer, and Wall Street Journal cartoonist who helps B2B sellers acquire million-dollar accounts. His campaigns have produced response rates as high as 300% and ROI in the millions of percent.

Key Topics

• Contact marketing defined: Targeted campaigns (as few as one person) marked by creativity, audacity, and relevance
• Pigeon campaign that closed a $250,000 deal with a famous tech CEO
• Orabrush's $28 Facebook ad that landed a 735,000-unit Walmart order
• Deep personalisation through profile research and relevant gifts
• Why compelling campaigns exceed 100% response rates through viral sharing
• Getting started by reading foundational books and researching prospects

Resources & Links

People Mentioned

• Dan Waldschmidt - Turnaround specialist who sends swords, achieving 100% response rates
• Kris Kristofferson - Singer-songwriter who landed helicopter on Cash's lawn for demo delivery
• Johnny Cash - Country legend who received Kristofferson's helicopter delivery
• June Carter - Cash's wife who received Kristofferson's demo tapes
• Leonardo da Vinci - Renaissance artist who used creative approaches with the Count of Milan

Books

• How to Get a Meeting with Anyone - Foundational contact marketing book, top 65 sales books of all time
• Get the Meeting! - Follow-up with 60+ illustrated case studies

Companies & Organizations

• Orabrush - Tongue cleaner startup, $28 Facebook ad to Walmart
• Walmart - Retail giant targeted by Orabrush's Bentonville ads
• American Marketing Association - Named Stu "father of contact marketing"

Subscribe to the xG Weekly Newsletter for weekly insights on B2B growth across APAC: https://xgrowth.com.au/newsletter

Contact & Credits

Host: Shahin Hoda

Guest: Stu Heinecke

Produced by: Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell

Edited by: Alexander Hipwell

Music by: Breakmaster Cylinder

APAC's B2B Growth Podcast is Presented by xGrowth