In this episode, hosts Josh Wagner and Sean Kester are joined by Steve Armenti, B2B Marketing VP, ex-Google, to discuss two angles of storytelling: how to storytell to the market and how to storytell internally to build a career and achieve goals. Steve shares his experience of bringing ABM (Account-Based Marketing) into Google Chrome and the playbook he ran. Together, they touch on the importance of storytelling in marketing and the need for operational infrastructure to support marketing efforts. Steve emphasizes the significance of understanding the audience and tailoring the story accordingly. 

Tune in for a discussion on the challenges of marketing to marketers and selling to salespeople and advice for creating a compelling narrative.

Takeaways: 

1. Storytelling as a Core Strategy: This applies not only to external marketing efforts but also internally within an organization. Steve shares that effective storytelling is crucial for securing budget, aligning teams, and driving initiatives forward.
2. Importance of Internal Alignment: Achieving internal buy-in, especially between marketing and sales, is critical. Steve emphasized the need for joint OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) and cross-functional collaboration to ensure both departments are aligned in their goals and strategies, particularly in a challenging environment where budgets are tight and expectations are high.
3. Operational Efficiency and Data-Driven Marketing: Operational infrastructure, including data management and automation, is essential to enhance marketing effectiveness. Organizations must invest in operations to handle large-scale lead generation efforts effectively and reduce inefficiencies, such as high rejection rates of marketing-qualified leads (MQLs).
4. Targeting the Right Audience: Steve shares that when marketing or selling, understanding the specific type of person you're dealing with is key. Tailoring your approach to their specific needs and roles can significantly improve the effectiveness of your message.

Quote of the Show:

"Tune into the emotional aspect of your customer and make them the main character of the story. When you get that right and you do that repetitively and it's true in everything you create, then it starts to stick and that's what makes a good brand.” - Steve Armenti

Links:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephenarmenti/  

Shoutouts:

https://hockeystack.com/ 

https://www.lavender.ai/ 

https://www.clay.com/ 

Ways to Tune In:

• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5GpM8myxsUinc5bfLIbjJz?si=0af576adfb8e49f8 
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-cheat-code/id1692445190 
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