Most common trust signals aren't working the way people think they are.

Casey Hill, CMO at DoWhatWorks has tested social proof across thousands of B2B SaaS brands. UserEvidence surveyed 800+ buyers, sellers, and marketers on what proof actually builds trust. 

Turns out, most social proof is losing. Logo bars. Star ratings. Vague testimonials. Not because they're wrong, but because the execution is generic and nobody's testing anything.

This one's for the marketers who are ready to stop assuming and start seeing what the data actually says.

Most customer awards programs peak at the trophy moment, and then everyone moves on to the next thing.

Kevin Lau, Customer Marketing leader and prominent voice in the space, doesn’t do that. His most recent programs at Freshworks and Adobe unlocked massive accounts that weren't giving his team the time of day, generated a full year of customer stories, and created a real trackable pipeline from a single program.

He walks through the leadership alignment, the judging process, and how to turn each winner into a strategic relationship over the next 12 months.

This one's for the CMA folks who want recognition programs that create impact way beyond the moment of recognition.

Getting customers to show up to a virtual CAB is the easy part. Getting them to actually engage? That's where most teams lose the room.

Irene Yam, author of Build a World-Class Customer Advisory Board and longtime customer advocacy leader, has spent years making virtual CABs feel less like a webinar and more like a real conversation. And Thomas J. Patti, a veteran CAB customer advisor, is bringing the customer perspective.

They're breaking it all down with us at The Outpost.

In this episode, Irene shares her playbook for building virtual advisory boards that are smaller, more focused, and built for honest dialogue over long presentations. She walks through how to co-build agendas with customers, create real trust, and make the meeting itself feel worth showing up for.

Tom explains what separates the CABs that actually stand out, why executive access only matters when it's used well, and how follow-through is often the difference between a session people remember and one they forget by Friday.

This one's for the customer marketers who want their CABs to feel more like a working relationship, and less like another meeting on the calendar.

Revenue attribution? For a customer evidence program? It can’t exist… right?

Emily Coleman, Senior Manager of Customer Marketing and Advocacy at LaunchDarkly, put on her data analyst hat and cracked the code to this long-standing “white whale” problem for customer marketing programs.

She’s sharing her entire playbook with us at The Outpost.

In this episode, Emily shares how she leveraged the tools her team already had to build an attribution model that uncovered a key insight: reps who engaged with the evidence library more often were more likely to bring customer proof into their sales conversations.

She dives into where LLMs are helpful—and where they fall short—and explains how spreadsheets and lightweight databases have led to more reliable analysis, connecting customer evidence to real business impact.

This one’s for the customer marketers who want to turn data into actionable insights, without waiting for the “perfect” system to come together.

What if the best reference call is the one you never have to schedule?

Cache Walker, Director of Customer Marketing at Trellix, has been asking that question (and building the answer).

In this episode, Cache walks through how Trellix is creating a customer evidence program that gets proof into the hands of sellers faster, with less pressure on the advocates who've already done their customers a solid.
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Surveys, reviews, sales training, and yes, even Reddit. It's all fair game when your job is making sure the right proof point lands at the right moment in a deal.

This one's for the customer marketers who are tired of being the reference desk, and ready to become the team that brings proof to the whole business.

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Thanks for joining us at The Outpost. Mosey on over to userevidence.com/outpost, where your peers are sharing their best customer marketing and advocacy plays in live sessions every other week. 

To learn more about how UserEvidence helps B2B marketing teams manage evidence, advocates, and references all in one place, check out userevidence.com

Product data + customer quotes. It's the foolproof formula that's helped Transcend change the customer storytelling game. 

In this episode, guest host Alex Eaton (Director of Product Marketing at UserEvidence) chats with Phyllis Fang, Head of Marketing at Transcend, about how her team turns complex, compliance-heavy work into creative, campaign-worthy stories. Think: Spotify Wrapped, but for data privacy.

Phyllis breaks down how they built and scaled “Data Rights Unwrapped”—a personalized, metrics-driven campaign that combines product usage data and customer feedback to tell stories that actually stick. We dig into how they’re using original research to reshape category perception, and how the sales team leans on proof points to close big enterprise deals.

What You’ll Learn:

• How Transcend scaled a Spotify Wrapped–style customer campaign (without losing the personal touch)
• The right way to blend product data + customer quotes into shareable stories
• Why original research is core to their narrative shift—and how to do it right
• What happens when sales, marketing, and product rally around customer insights

Listen for:

• (00:00) Mark passes the mic to Alex Eaton
• (00:38) What Transcend actually does (and why it matters for growth)
• (02:11) How “Data Rights Unwrapped” became a campaign that people actually wanted to talk about
• (04:58) Product data meets customer voice = a new kind of proof
• (06:02) Why letting customers define success metrics hits harder
• (09:03) Automating customer evidence (without making it feel robotic)
• (10:59) How sales reps use tailored stories to win deals
• (13:08) “Evidence is an answer, not just an asset”
• (14:00) How original research reframes the conversation
• (17:03) What works better: data reports, manifestos, or faceless stats?
• (19:29) Phyllis on automation + the “in-between” moments of storytelling
• (21:34) How customer insight is changing the way everyone works

Subscribe to Evidently, Mark’s newsletter for customer-obsessed marketers: https://evidently.beehiiv.com/subscribe

See how teams at Gong, Sendoso, and HackerOne use UserEvidence: userevidence.com

The right customer stories have the power to build trust and even accelerate deals. But we all know that chasing massive logos and begging for a case study isn't always the most efficient way to get those stories told. 

In this episode of The Proof Point, Mark passes the mic to guest host Alex Eaton, Director of Product Marketing at UserEvidence, who sits down with Yadin Porter de León, Director of Customer Advocacy and Thought Leadership at Heroku. Yadin pulls back the curtain on how he’s building scalable, trust-driven customer evidence programs that fuel content, campaigns, and in-person advocacy.

They dig into the power of trust in customer marketing, why storytelling is more about listening than talking, and how to ask better questions to get better answers. Yadin shares his approach to turning surveys into an engine for both qualitative insight and high-value advocacy opportunities, plus how Heroku has built a self-service portal that makes customer quotes and stories instantly accessible to GTM teams.

What You’ll Get:

• A practical framework for building trust that fuels stronger customer evidence
• How to turn surveys into a storytelling and advocacy discovery tool
• The three essential ingredients for impactful customer content (and why story is last, not first)
• Real-world tips for crafting questions that elicit opinion-rich, quotable responses
• A behind-the-scenes look at Heroku’s scalable, self-service approach to customer storytelling

Hot off the heels of Shopify’s leaked AI manifesto, most every marketing leader should be wondering the same thing this week: are we using AI well enough?

In this episode of The Proof Point, Dave Boyce, EVP of Product at Winning By Design, examines how AI is redefining the leadership landscape in the go-to-market space. And, he’s sharing the top 3 things every marketing team should be using AI for (and if you’re not...now’s the time to get started).

Dave discusses adapting leadership in the AI age, highlighting curiosity and process design over charisma. Listeners will learn how AI is shaping go-to-market strategies, with examples from Adobe, Uber Eats, and Calendly. This episode explores integrating AI with human efforts to drive exponential growth, stressing the importance of a clear process framework.Discover how to nurture a culture of curiosity and adaptability, and ensure AI implementation doesn't simply multiply inefficiencies. Dave discusses his hands-on experiences and shares practical approaches to managing AI alongside human talent in go-to-market teams.

What You’ll Get:

• The evolution of leadership skills crucial in an AI-first market 
• Insights into fostering a curious and innovative team culture 
• Strategies for scalable AI implementation that avoids chaos 
• Examples of AI transforming go-to-market operations at top companies

Things to listen for:
(00:00) Mark’s introduction and Dave’s time as an Eagle Scout
(03:14) Leadership shifts needed for an AI-driven go-to-market landscape
(09:01) The importance of systematic go-to-market instructions for AI
(14:24) AI agents and the significance of performance reviews
(17:59) Essential skills for leaders in a human and AI collaborative world
(20:05) Winning By Design’s innovative Revenue Architecture
(22:14) Success stories: Canva's customer-centric go-to-market approach
(38:40) Dave’s Boyce’s insights on freemium models and his book "Freemium"

Pre-order Freemium now!
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Target
Waterstone’s

Subscribe to Mark’s newsletter, Evidently: https://evidently.beehiiv.com/subscribe
Learn more about the customer evidence platform trusted by B2B teams at Gong, HackerOne, Sendoso, and more: userevidence.com.

In this episode of The Proof Point, host Mark Huber sits down with Navneet Singh, VP of Marketing for Network Security at Palo Alto Networks, to explore how trust is built in one of the most challenging industries—cybersecurity.

Navneet shares his perspective on overcoming skepticism in cybersecurity buyers through precision AI, customer evidence, and transparent marketing strategies. He breaks down the innovative ways Palo Alto Networks is leveraging AI to fight adversaries, close the cybersecurity skills gap, and deliver real value to customers. This episode is packed with actionable insights and forward-thinking ideas for B2B marketers.

We explore how Palo Alto Networks measures success, builds trust through transparency, and innovates with experimentation. Navneet shares practical insights on using precision AI and creating impactful product experiences for high-stakes industries.

What You’ll Get:

• How generative AI is transforming cybersecurity and solving the skills gap
• The role of transparency and customer evidence in building trust with skeptical buyers
• Why experimentation is essential for driving marketing innovation
• Real-world examples of precision AI in action at Palo Alto Networks

Things to listen for:
(00:00) Mark’s introduction and Navneet’s keynote reflections
(03:00) The importance of in-person connections in cybersecurity marketing
(07:20) How Palo Alto Networks is using precision AI to fight adversaries
(11:30) Building trust through holistic customer visibility
(15:00) Campaign success metrics and the impact of product test drives
(18:45) The role of explainable AI in fostering buyer confidenceSubscribe to Mark’s newsletter, Evidently: https://evidently.beehiiv.com/subscribe
Learn more about the customer evidence platform trusted by B2B teams at Gong, HackerOne, Sendoso, and more: userevidence.com.

2025 is the year to nail signal-based selling. If you’re sweating about it…don’t. This convo will get your gears turning.

In this engaging episode of The Proof Point, host Mark Huber sits down with Tom Wentworth, former CMO of Recorded Future and current CMO at Incident.io, to explore what it takes to build trust and execute bold marketing strategies in the competitive B2B landscape.

Tom shares how he launched The Record, a trusted cybersecurity news brand at Recorded Future, by aligning leadership on bold ideas and hiring top talent like NPR’s Dina Temple-Raston.

He also breaks down how to sell big ideas to the C-suite, scale media initiatives, and adapt to hands-on marketing in a Series A startup. Plus, Tom highlights tools shaping 2025, including signal-based selling and platforms like Clay and Common Room.

What You’ll Get:

• The blueprint for building a media brand that drives trust and engagement
• How to align executive leadership and secure buy-in for bold initiatives
• The power of hiring experienced journalists for B2B marketing success
• Lessons learned from scaling marketing teams and operations
• The role of signals and tools like Clay in modern demand generation

Things to listen for:

• (00:00) Mark’s intro and why trust is the cornerstone of B2B marketing in 2025
• (01:06) Tom’s unforgettable Austin mosh pit story
• (03:05) The genesis of The Record and building a media empire
• (05:15) How Tom sold the vision of The Record to Recorded Future’s leadership
• (07:45) Behind-the-scenes of creating a top-ranked tech podcast
• (14:03) Why every company isn’t cut out to be a media company
• (18:42) Transitioning to a Series A startup and the challenges of hands-on marketing
• (22:09) Tools like Notion, Clay, and Common Room that are shaping Tom’s strategy
• (27:10) Why automation and great data are critical for scaling go-to-market efforts

Subscribe to Mark’s newsletter, Evidently: https://evidently.beehiiv.com/subscribe
Learn more about the customer evidence platform trusted by leading B2B brands at userevidence.com.