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In episode 165 of the Marketing Freaks Podcast, Jon is joined by Marianna Satanas, President of Hanro USA to discuss scaling a luxury brand and the challenges that come with it. 

Discover strategies for balancing growth with premium customer experience, the importance of high-quality content, and the unique challenges of luxury vs. mass-market brands. Marianna also dives into the differences between scaling and growth, taking calculated risks, and the power of data-driven decisions. 

Whether you're navigating the complexities of luxury retail or looking to refine your marketing approach, this episode is packed with valuable takeaways to help you scale smartly and sustainably.

• Gain insight into how to scale a luxury e-commerce business.
• Understand the difference between scaling and growth.
• Discover the importance of balancing ambition with achievable growth targets.
• Explore strategies for balancing customer retention with new acquisition
• Understand how to leverage technology to adapt and react quickly to market changes.

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Welcome to episode 164 of the Marketing Freaks Podcast and the next episode in the scale up season.

In this episode, Jon is joined by Richard George, Global Head of Business Marketing at the London Stock Exchange (LSEG) to the unique challenges of B2B marketing in the highly regulated financial sector.

He shares insights from his 17-year career, From aligning marketing with business goals and driving revenue, to overcoming tracking challenges and simplifying complex products, Richard provides practical advice for marketers in highly regulated industries.

• Learn how to align marketing objectives with business goals, focusing on revenue, brand, and customer experience as key performance indicators in B2B marketing.
• Discover practical strategies for creating strong cross-team alignment and ensuring leadership clarity, including fostering accountability and consistent communication.
• Gain insight into the challenges of tracking and attribution in B2B marketing, and how customer data platforms (CDPs) and CRM integration can help overcome these obstacles.
• Explore the importance of balancing brand awareness with direct response efforts, especially in industries where the line between brand and performance marketing is often blurred.
• Understand how to simplify complex product offerings and navigate regulatory constraints, with examples of innovative marketing tactics like VR experiences used at LSEG.

To learn more about scaling your B2B business, download our free B2B business outcomes guide here: https://bit.ly/3XWhWie

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Welcome to episode 163 and the next instalment of The Scale Up Season.

In this episode, Jon is joined by Natasha Crowe, Global Head of Marketing at Kraken, which powers Octopus Energy. Jon and Natasha discuss some of the key challenges in B2B marketing and the strategies that are driving growth in a competitive industry.

In the episode, Natasha Crowe provides insight into Kraken's approach to creative strategy, especially within the context of B2B marketing, how Kraken is navigating current economic challenges, optimising its marketing efforts, and staying ahead in an ever changing market.

From balancing brand building with direct performance tactics to leveraging technology for marketing success, Natasha provides actionable insights that any B2B marketer can apply to their own strategies.

Key learnings include:

• Learn how to strike the perfect balance between brand-building and direct performance marketing to drive sustainable growth.
• Understand the power of personalisation to create content that connects with high value prospects.
• Discover the power of Account-Based Marketing and how it fits into a comprehensive B2B strategy.
• Gain insight into prioritising the right marketing channels during economic uncertainty to maximise ROI.
• Learn ways to simplify complex tech solutions for your audience, making it easier to communicate value.
• Find out how to align marketing efforts with customer needs by reacting swiftly to market conditions and consumer behaviors.

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Welcome to episode 162 of the marketing freaks podcast and the next installment in the scale up season. 

In this episode, Jon is joined by Yasmine Khan, a business psychologist who specialises in working with founders and senior leadership teams in high-growth companies. 

Yasmine shares insight into the overlooked human and psychological aspects of scaling a business and how mindset is a key driver of growth alongside tactics and strategies. 

Key learnings from this episode:

• Fear is the biggest barrier in professional and personal growth. Understand how to recognise and confront these fears to move forward.
• Discover how adopting a growth mindset can be the key to unlocking business success and overcoming fear of failure.
• Gain insight into the power of self-awareness and self-regulation for founders and leaders, particularly in recognising stress and burnout during high-pressure growth phases.
• Learn how aligning leadership teams and fostering collaboration can prevent conflict and stress, creating a cohesive environment that drives sustainable growth.
• Discover how micro feedback and real-time coaching play a crucial role in reinforcing employees' significance and driving continuous learning, without relying solely on formal training sessions.
• Gain insight into how confronting common fears can propel both personal and business growth.

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Welcome back to episode 161 of the Marketing Freaks Podcast and the 4th episode in the Scale Up Season.

In this episode, Jon is joined by Arafa Heneghan, Director of Brand at AO to discuss the impact of brand investment and strategy in AO's growth. From creating a unified customer experience across all touchpoints to finding the perfect balance between brand building and performance marketing, Arafa shares insights into the tactics that senior marketers need to stay ahead. 

Discover how AO stays relevant with even the most functional products and learn why simplicity in messaging and internal brand alignment are critical for scaling success. If you're a senior marketer looking for actionable strategies to elevate your brand, this is a must-listen!

Key Takeaways:

• Gain insight into how AO uses a unified brand strategy across every customer touchpoint to build a consistent and memorable experience.
• Understand the distinction between brand building and performance marketing and how both are essential for driving long-term business success.
• Learn how to leverage simple, clear messaging to communicate the value of functional products without overwhelming customers with technical details.
• Discover how to measure success.
• Understand how to put the customers needs first to make even functional products seem more appealing. 
• The value in understanding the "so what"?

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Welcome to episode 160 of the Marketing Freaks Podcast and episode 3 in the Scale Up Season! 

In this episode, Abi is back! Jon and Abi talk about the key "gotcha" moments that often impact the ability to scale, and how to tackle them. 

Key Takeaways:

• Why scaling up isn't just about increasing spend and the importance of having the appropriate structure across the business.
• The elements to consider that are potentially hinder your scaling efforts.
• How to set realistic expectations and align goals across departments.
• The importance of deciding when and where to scale.
• The common pitfalls which can limit scaling 
• The importance of being realistic about goals and maintaining flexibility to adapt strategies as needed

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Welcome back to episode 159 and the second instalment in the Scale Up Season. 

This week, we're joined by Melina Palmer, applied behaviour economist, podcast host of the Brainy Business and Author. Melina's latest book "The Truth About Pricing" discusses how pricing isn't just about price and the psychological factors to consider to make your customers buy. Jon had the chance to chat with Melina about what drives consumers to buy, how business can tailor their pricing strategy for scale and how you might be the biggest hindrance to your sales. 

Key takeaways:

• How to focus on the psychological aspects and make it easier for people to buy from you.
• Learn how understanding and applying behavioural economics can provide businesses with a competitive edge in influencing consumer behaviour and driving sales.
• Discover practical pricing strategies and psychological pricing techniques that can help businesses scale effectively while enhancing perceived value.
• Understand the anchoring concept, how it can be applied and how it can heavily influence consumer perception of value and willingness to pay.
• Discover the power of experience and how pricing can be about the experience and perception of value.

This episode delves explores the often-overlooked importance of pricing strategy in business success, emphasising that pricing is less about the numbers and more about the psychological factors that influence consumer behaviour.

Melina shares her expertise, including the common misconceptions about pricing, the role of behavioural economics in setting effective prices, and how brands can strategically position themselves to either focus on quality or value. Melina provides practical examples and advice on how businesses can reframe their pricing strategies to maximise success.

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Welcome back to episode 158 of the Marketing Freaks Podcast! We've taken an extended break, but we're back with the Scale Up Season. We will be inviting key individuals from brands that are currently and successfully scaling their business, mar-tech providers and digital marketing practitioners to join us on the sofa to share their knowledge. 

We're kicking off the new season with Jack Hayes, Head of Growth at Pooch & Mutt. As one of the UK’s fastest growing and most loved pet food brands Pooch & Mutt has grown over 400% in the last couple of years and Jack has been with the business during much of that time.

Jon will be talking to Jack about how businesses can utilise profit and loss statements to guide marketing decisions, set budgets and manage operations for growth.

Key Takeaways:

• Discover why integrating marketing spend with P&L is crucial for informed financial decisions and aligning business objectives.
• Find out why understanding business dependencies enhances performance marketing and resource allocation.
• Learn how effective negotiation and cost-saving measures can open up opportunities for increased marketing investment.
• Discover how transparent communication with financial directors enables strategic reinvestment of savings to drive growth.
• Gain insight into how embracing a collaborative, open approach to budget management improves decision-making and overall profitability.

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Hi all and welcome back to another episode!

This week, we are talking about paid social for small business. So often, larger brands with the bigger budgets get all the attention, but running any marketing for a smaller business requires a different approach and to a certain degree, a different skillset.

Joining us for this episode is Jo Francis, Meta Ads specialist, who shares her advice on how to make the most of smaller budgets when running activity on paid social. 

Enjoy!

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Hello and welcome to another bitesized episode!

This week we are talking about B2B marketing, and how to make your content stand out. Compared to most content efforts in the B2C realm, often B2B content is lacking in inspiration and fails to engage. 

Why is this the case and how should you go about fixing it?

Joining me for the episode is Cass Swallow, a B2B marketeer who's CV boasts brands including Virgin, eEnergy and more. 

Enjoy!