Demand Gen U

Budget cuts, layoffs and everything in between – it’s tough to be a B2B marketer right now.  

Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing, and Jason Widup, VP of Marketing at Metadata are feeling it too, which is why they figured the best place to start is with something you can control.  

So right now, they’re slap bang in the middle of a ‘no meeting’ experiment and it’s having all sorts of effects on the productivity of the team.  

Tune in to find out: 

• The lowdown on the experiment and how it started 
• Tools that make cutting down on meetings run smoothly 
• Plans for meetings going forward 

0:00 – 3:26 – Introduction (and Jason’s wallet story) 

3:26 – 11:19 - How the experiment started and things we considered 

11:19 – 15:01 - We set some ground rules 

15:01 – 17:21 - Changing up one-on-one meetings 

17:21 – 18:21 – Please don’t send Jason a long document 

18:21 – 22:05 - No-meeting experiment: the good, the bad, the ugly 

22:05 – 24:57 – Why we love Loom 

24:57 – 26:59 - What Mark has enjoyed about the experiment 

26:59 – 35:29- How Asana helps the experiment run smoothly 

35:29 – 39:53 - The changes to their meeting cadence 

39:53 – 41:13 - Outro

If you want to learn how to audit your ad accounts and make sure you’re set up for success in 2023, then guess what? You’re in the right place! 

On this episode of Demand Gen U, Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing, is joined by Silvio Perez, former Head of Product Innovation, to discuss all things ad audits. 

Silvio’s an expert on this, so Mark asks him what to bear in mind when looking for a new ad account in 2023. 

Plus, Silvio explains the biggest ways people mess up with ad accounts, outlines the basics of attribution, and shares one tip that could save your team “a ton of money in 2023”. Silvio’s treating you guys on this episode!   

Find out: 

• The basics of attribution 
• Why copywriting is king 
• About blended inbound performance 

0:00 – 1:38 - Introduction (feat Ad Man!) 

1:38 – 3:55 - Why to start with strategy and goals 

3:55 – 7:32 - Are you able to measure? (and the power of blended inbound performance) 

7:32 – 7:58 – Breaking down the episode 

7:58 – 12:40 - New ad account – the first steps 

12:40 – 18:06 - The biggest mistakes people make when setting up ad accounts 

18:06 – 22:00 - Discussing Google Analytics 4 

22:00 – 25:21 - Auditing your attribution 

25:21 – 27:21 - All things UTMs 

27:21 – 41:13 - Audiences and search – what to look at 

41:13 – 42:34 - Pro tip from Silvio! 

42:34 – 54:58 - Ad creative and copy 

54:58 – 56:14 - Outro 

What does good demand gen look like in 2023?

We scrolled through our archives and analytics to discover that episode 5, ‘What Good Demand Gen Will Look Like in 2022’ is one of our best-performing episodes. So, here we are. Doing it all over again for 2023.

On this episode, Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing and Jason Widup, VP of Marketing at Metadata, discuss the demand gen landscape for the year 2023.

They explore doing more with less after budget cuts, giving buyers total visibility, the new face of in-person events and so much more.

Find out:

• What budget cuts could mean for marketing teams
• The ins-and-outs of conversion rate optimization
• Why we should run campaigns that target whole buying committees

0:00 – 3:29 - Introduction (and Jason’s hair is different AGAIN)

3:23 – 7:25 - Doing more with less in 2023

7:25 – 8:52 - Can we forecast?

8:52 – 15:55 - Conversion rate optimization

15:55 – 22:42 - The power of word-of-mouth

22:42 – 26:57 - Complete visibility for buyers

26:57 – 30:47 - Campaigns to target WHOLE buying committee

30:27 – 37:22 - People buying from people

37:22 – 45:20 - The return (and new face) of in-person events

45:20 – 46:31 - Outro

As we wrap up our first year of Demand Gen U, we thought it would be fitting to look back at everything that’s happened at Metadata over the past year.

We’re taking a trip down memory lane to discuss the good, the bad and the ugly at Metadata in 2022!

Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing and Jason Widup, VP of Marketing at Metadata, reminisce over Demand events, comparison pages, LinkedIn demos and damning budget cuts. It’s not one for the faint-hearted!

Find out:

• Our successes with comparison pages and Demand events
• Why Metadata are stepping away from incentivized LinkedIn demos
• How we dealt with 30%-35% marketing budget cuts

0:00 – 1:43 – Intro (featuring beanies and man-buns)

1:43 – 6:44 – Podcasting trial and error

6:44 – 11:06 – What’s helped Jason grow in his role

11:06 – 13:39 – Analyzing the 6Sense comparison page

13:39 – 17:18 – Going bigger and better with Demand

17:18 – 19:46 – That LinkedIn incentivized ad cliff

19:46 – 25:08 – Why we U-turned on analysts

25:08 – 30:08 – Creating a new category (we’re not an ABM platform, guys)

30:08 – 34:35 – Dealing with budget cuts

34:35 – 39:43 – Planning for the ‘new normal’

39:43 – 42:37 – Goodbye MDF numbers…

42:37 – 44:12 – Outro

The disconnect between marketers and creative teams – it’s a tale as old as time! 

But it doesn’t have to be that way, right? When these two teams have a solid and productive relationship…BOOM…great things happen. 

On this guest episode of Demand Gen U, Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing at Metadata, sits down with Algert Sula, founder and CEO of creative branding agency.

Algert reveals all about his route into the industry, why he believes marketers and creatives sometimes struggle to gel and how copy and design should complement one another. 

Plus, he puts forward his B2B design trend predictions for 2023. 

Find out: 

• How Algert got started in creative work 
• Algert’s explanation for the disconnect between creatives and marketers 
• What ‘brand’ means to Algert 

0:00 – 1:24 – Introduction 

1:24 – 7:17 – Let’s introduce Algert 

7:17 – 11:19 – Why marketers and creatives don’t get along! 

11:19 – 14:11 – How marketers frustrate creatives 

14:11 – 17:14 – What brand means to Algert 

17:14 – 21:48 – Algert’s creative process (he’s got no secrets!) 

21:48 – 23:42 – How copy and design compliment each other 

23:42 – 27:51 – Metadata 2.0? 

27:51 – 31:52 – Algert predicts B2B design trends for 2023 

31:52 – 33:18 – Outro 

It’s no secret…being a marketing leader can be hard. No matter what study you’re looking at, it feels like the average job tenure for marketing leaders gets shorter and shorter by the month.

Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing and Jason Widup, VP of Marketing at Metadata, get vulnerable on this episode of Demand Gen U, as Mark asks Jason about everything that comes with being a marketing leader and invites him to share the challenges he has faced through his career.

Find out:

• How Jason has grown as a marketing leader
• The benefits of building strong relationships in marketing teams
• How to take feedback as a marketing leader

0:00 – 1:00 – Introduction

1:00 – 2:25 – Cause for celebration!

2:25 – 3:30 – Learning and growing as a marketing leader

3:30 – 6:01 – What is the job of a marketing leader (besides brewing kombucha…)?

6:01 – 8:00 – How has Jason’s definition of a marketing leader changed?

8:00 – 12:29 – Championing team building and morale

12:29 – 16:25 – Why is it so hard being a marketing leader?

16:25 – 18:15 – Some dangers of closeness at work

18:15 – 29:39 – Giving and receiving feedback

29:39 – 35:39 – Importance of team morale

35:39 – 41:08 – Looking after your team in your marketing plans

41:08 – 42:34 – Outro

No matter what industry you’re in, one thing is certain. You have direct competitors. And with so many options on the market, it can be difficult for buyers to see if you’re the option for them. 

Especially when they have to battle through buzzwords and empty promises! 

In this episode of Demand Gen U, Jason Widup, VP of Marketing and Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing at Metadata, discuss the humble comparison page. 

They discuss how you should use them, how much time to spend on them and explore top secrets on the Metadata vs. 6Sense comparison page. Check out the comparison page here. 

Find out: 

• Insight into Metadata’s comparison page 
• How to frame the conversation without bashing competitors 
• Common things that go wrong with comparison pages 

0:00 – 2:31 – Introduction (and Mark’s Invisalign) 

2:31 – 7:05 – Why do we need comparison pages?  

7:05 – 7:47 – Why they are high-intent pages 

7:47 – 16:27 – How comparison pages can go wrong 

16:27 – 21:25 – Where Metadata looked for comparison page inspiration 

21:25 – 30:46 – How Metadata executed the 6Sense page 

30:46 – 35:27 – How the page has been received 

35:27 – 36:41 – More comparison pages on the horizon? 

36:41 – 38:09 – Outro

At Metadata, this year has gone super fast. It feels like just last week we were finalizing our planning for 2022. But now the focus is very much on 2023.

In this episode of Demand Gen U, Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing, is joined by Silvio Perez, Head of Product Innovation, and DGU newcomer Bryttney Blanken, Senior Demand Generation Manager at Metadata.

They discuss a range of topics surrounding campaign planning, including how to get started, whether you need campaign briefs and why it doesn’t have to be as complex as you think.

Find out more about Demand here: https://metadata.io/resources/demand/

Find out:

• The ins-and-outs of the Bullseye framework
• Why you should turn ideas into hypotheses
• How to sell your ideas internally

0:00 – 1:45 – Introduction

1:45 – 2:50 – The anxieties of campaign planning

2:50 – 4:44 – Why do marketers overcomplicate campaign planning?

4:44 – 7:10 – Where to get started

7:10 – 9:56 – How far to plan ahead

9:56 – 13:40 – Taking ideas a step further

13:40 – 21:44 – Taking a step back – first things to look at

21:44 – 27:45 – Is there a need for campaign briefs?

27:45 – 33:15 – Making a difference to the business

33:15 – 38:26 – Working cross-functionally on plans

38:26 – 44:21 – Getting leadership on board

44:21 – 46:03 – Outro

Buying B2B software can be such a pain. Many companies require you to book a demo and speak to multiple people, only to be asked the same questions you’ve already answered!

To put it simply, buying B2B software is broken.

In this episode of Demand Gen U, Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing at Metadata, is joined by special guest Sam Senior, co-founder and CEO of TestBox, to discuss how to fix buying B2B software.

Sam explains why he started TestBox, how and why B2B companies should ungate their products and which software categories are ripe for TestBox’s processes.

Find out:

• How TestBox are flying the flag for customer-led buying experiences
• How sellers can adapt to the new buyer
• What the modern buyer really wants

00:34 Introducing Sam and TestBox

05:06 Gated versus Ungated Content

09:34 How product knowledge and reviews have changed the sales process

10:51 Adapting to educated buyers

13:15 How to start ungating your content

15:20 Making the case for ungating your product internally

18:40 Showing off value to your buyers

21:25 Companies that really know their activation metrics

23:36 Buying fatigue for RevOps and MarTech products

26:04 Consumer expectations when buying software have changed

30:09 Why you should get your product team involved

31:10 Outro

It’s that time of year again! Time to put a finger in the air and make an educated guess at what you need to do across the next 12 months to drive your business forward. 

Planning is a colossal challenge. When you throw limited resources and an ever-changing business landscape into the mix, it can look like a pretty scary prospect.   

In this episode of Demand Gen U, Mark Huber, Head of Brand and Product Marketing joins Jason Widup, VP of Marketing at Metadata to discuss how you can build your 2023 marketing plan…sort of! 

Mark and Jason explain the benefits of involving other teams in your planning, how to plan objective key results that work and why planning your year to the letter is simply impossible.  

Find out: 

• Why goal setting often trumps stringent planning 
• About when marketers become salespeople 
• How far ahead to plan 

0:00 – 2:58 – Intro 

2:58 – 7:07 – Should you create a 12-month marketing plan? 

7:07 – 7:57 – The benefits of transparency around planning 

7:57 – 11:13 – Why not involve other teams in your marketing plan? 

11:13 – 14:18 – Jason’s best experiences of planning in past roles 

14:18 – 19:10 – The benefits of OKRs (when done well) 

19:10 – 20:55 – Planning for other marketing functions 

20:55 – 25:44 – Getting other team members involved 

25:44 – 28:54 – Why plan more than you need? 

28:54 – 31:30 – Planning in challenging times 

31:30 – 33:20 – Advice from an advisor 

33:20 – 35:29 – Revisiting plans 

35:29 – 37:06 – How much to plan 

37:06 – 38:19 – Outro