Ep.55 - How could reducing customer churn be your next growth lever with Patrick Campbell, CEO at ProfitWell

In this episode, we dive into product-led growth (PLG) and the effectiveness of content marketing strategies in the SaaS industry with our guest Emilia Korczynska, the head of marketing at UserPilot.

Emilia is the Head of Marketing at Userpilot, a Product-Growth Platform for SaaS companies. She’s especially interested in product-led growth, product marketing, and content marketing in SaaS companies. 

Emilia highlights the adverse effects of companies pivoting away from PLG due to economic downturns and stresses the importance of maintaining a product-led mindset in growth strategies. We discuss how product-led strategies can enhance acquisition, activation, retention, and expansion, even in an enterprise context.

With a staggering output of over 130 blog posts a month, Emilia also unveils the secrets behind UserPilot's content marketing success. She explains their dual approach, combining original, human-led content with programmatic SEO to dominate search engine rankings and drive organic traffic.

Stay tuned for more episodes of Paris Talks Marketing, where we continue to explore cutting-edge strategies and insights from industry leaders.

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Links:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/emiliakorczynska/
https://userpilot.com/

More about:
Explore: https://hop.online/
Connect with Paris Childress, the Host: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parischildress/
Subscribe for more insightful episodes: https://paristalksmarketing.transistor.fm/

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Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction
02:07 The State of Product-Led Growth
05:39 Understanding the User Journey in Product-Led Growth
10:11 UserPilot's Marketing Efforts
15:40 The Power of Content Marketing
23:04 How GA4 Changed the Digital Marketing Space
30:56 The Future of SEO and Content Marketing

In this episode, we dive into the forefront of SaaS marketing strategies with Caya, CEO of Slidebean.

Caya Jose Cayasso, a seasoned entrepreneur with a flair for storytelling, currently spearheads Slidebean, a venture-backed startup established in 2014, as the CEO. Nestled in the heart of New York City, Slidebean assists founders in pitching to investors through its innovative SaaS product and specialized consulting agency.

Since stepping into the role of host for the company's YouTube channel in 2018, Caya has navigated the brand to become one of the platform’s most-watched startup-centric channels, fast-approaching the 500,000 subscriber milestone.

Caya shares insights on leveraging AI in content creation without incurring Google's penalties, debunking common marketing myths, and the transformative journey of Slidebean's marketing approach from focusing on SEO to producing impactful YouTube content.

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Links:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/caya/
https://slidebean.com/

More about:
Explore: https://hop.online/
Connect with Paris Childress, the Host: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parischildress/
Subscribe for more insightful episodes: https://paristalksmarketing.transistor.fm/

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Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction
03:24 Busting Marketing Myths: AI Generated Content
06:45 From 0 to 150,000 Monthly Website Visits
13:14 Slidebean's Marketing Team for Their SEO Strategy
17:27 The Future of Content Creation: AI and Human Collaboration
21:45 The Power of Video Content for Creating a Media Company
30:22 Advice for B2B SaaS Marketers on Creating YouTube Video Content
32:52 The Role of TikTok in B2B Marketing
35:44 Final Thoughts and Advice

In this podcast episode, we spoke with Andreea Stefan, the SEO Lead at Planable, a social media content collaboration and approval platform.

Andreea Stefan has spent the last 8 years in marketing agencies and client-side, creating and executing SEO strategies, building SEO teams, and managing resources for organic growth. Now, she is the SEO Lead @ Planable.io.

In the last 2 years at Planable, her focus has been building their topical authority from the ground up, setting up a healthy SEO foundation, and scaling content production without sacrificing quality. They started this year with 30,000 monthly organic visits, and they're now at 80,000+. They've doubled the number of revenue-generating blog posts, and they've seen a 250% increase in ARR from organic traffic.

We discussed the approach Andreea took in driving a 250% increase in ARR and doubling organic traffic to Planable's website by focusing on a thorough SEO foundation and effectively strategizing content. 

We covered several pivotal components of their strategy, such as: 

• Content pruning
• Proper keyword and persona research
• Creating detailed content briefs
• Leveraging AI but also capitalizing on expert opinions for a unique content touch
• And collaborative efforts among freelance writers and in-house team.

With their focus on quality over quantity and a spectrum of content that caters to the different stages of their customers' journey, Planable has created a recipe for a winning organic strategy.

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Links:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreea-stefan/
https://planable.io/

More about:
Explore: https://hop.online/
Connect with Paris Childress, the Host: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parischildress/
Subscribe for more insightful episodes: https://paristalksmarketing.transistor.fm/

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Timestamps:

00:00 Intro
03:14 Busting SEO Myths: The Power of Internal Linking
07:44 The Importance of High-Converting Blog Posts
09:48 The secret behind Planable's Organic SEO Growth
11:35 The Process of Content Pruning and Refreshing/
20:31 Building a Comprehensive Keyword Mapping & Persona Research
23:00 Introducing Planable: A Content Collaboration Tool
28:28 The Content Editorial Calendar
30:27 The Art of Keyword Research and Intent
33:51 How to Write Successful Content Briefs
37:40 The Impact of AI on Content Creation
42:05 Planable's Content Promotion Strategy

Misinformation/disinformation is the number one global risk to organizations across the globe in 2024, as stated by the World Economic Forum.

In this episode, we dive into Narrative Intelligence with Dan Lowden of Blackbird.ai. Pay close attention as Dan demystifies the role AI plays in detecting and combating misinformation/disinformation (or what Blackbird calls "narrative attacks"), a serious threat currently facing numerous global organizations. 

Our discussion also reveals how a mission to safeguard digital communications from harmful narratives motivated Dan to join the dynamic team at Blackbird. 

Dan Lowden has over 20 years of strategic experience at the executive level and leads the marketing efforts for Blackbird AI. Blackbird AI protects organizations from narrative attacks that cause financial and reputational harm. 

Dan's work has helped lead to nine successful exits/acquisitions across cybersecurity, cloud computing, mobile commerce, Wi-Fi services, robotics, and mobile computing creating significant value for large enterprise and fast-growth companies.

This episode is a deep dive into understanding modern cybersecurity threats, AI's power in narrative attacks, and how responsive strategies can help businesses effectively tackle these challenges.

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Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/danlowden/

https://www.blackbird.ai/

More about:

Explore: https://hop.online/

Connect with Paris Childress, the Host: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parischildress/

Subscribe for more insightful episodes: https://paristalksmarketing.transistor.fm/

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Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

02:45 Dan's take on a marketing myth-busting

04:57 How Dan has helped companies go through nine successful exits/acquisitions

07:55 Blackbird's marketing team & Dan's career story

15:41 Who is the bad guy in a narrative attack?

23:00 Manipulation & AI

27:20 Illustration of narrative attacks with a real example

34:56 Blackbird.ai, a trailblazer in Narrative Intelligence

In this episode, we explore the world of SMS marketing. Our host, Paris Childress, interviews Georgi Petrov, founder and CEO of NitroPack, as they discuss the benefits of SMS marketing, its use cases, and debunk common myths. Georgi also discusses his success within the Shopify ecosystem and highlights the importance of user-centered product development. 

Georgi Petrov is the Founder and CEO of NitroPack & the Founder of SMSBump (exited to Yotpo).

NitroPack helps ecommerce, content publishers and web agencies achieve outstanding website speed optimization results. 

Yotpo SMSBump lets D2C brands grow sales&revenue using SMS automations with stunning ROI and conversion rates. It is an SMS marketing & automation app for Shopify. 

As Georgi shares in our discussion, SMS marketing is a more personal and underused channel than email.

Learn how companies can benefit from SMS marketing, especially for running targeted campaigns. 

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Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgipetrov/

https://nitropack.io/

https://smsbump.com/

More about:

Explore: https://hop.online/

Connect with Paris Childress, the Host: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parischildress/

Subscribe for more insightful episodes: https://paristalksmarketing.transistor.fm/

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Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

02:23 Busting Myths About Core Web Vitals

04:40 The Importance of SMS Marketing

06:33 SMS Open Rates and Conversion Rates

07:53 Use Cases for SMS Marketing

12:43 Acquiring Opt-ins for SMS Marketing

17:32 Georgi's Career Journey and Running Two Companies

21:26 Success of SMSBump in the Shopify Ecosystem

27:24 Final Tips for Entrepreneurs

In this episode, Emmet Gibney shares his insights on affiliate marketing for SaaS businesses. 

Emmet Gibney is the CEO of Rewardful, an all-in-one affiliate management software for businesses using Stripe or Paddle for payments. Rewardful was founded in 2018, and fast forward to today, it has thousands of customers worldwide.

We explore common myths and misconceptions about affiliate marketing, its evolution in the past decade, and key strategies for building a successful affiliate program. 

Emmet shares his three principles for launching an affiliate program: 

1) Making it easy for affiliates to earn money

2) Running an affiliate program professionally

3) Continuously recruiting new affiliates

Tune in to learn how you should strategize your SaaS affiliate marketing initiatives!

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Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/emmetgibney/ 

https://www.rewardful.com/

More about:

Explore: https://hop.online/

Connect with Paris Childress, the Host: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parischildress/

Subscribe for more insightful episodes: https://paristalksmarketing.transistor.fm/

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Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

02:01 Common affiliate marketing myths

04:09 How has affiliate marketing changed over the years

07:17 How to build an affiliate marketing program for SaaS

20:34 How quality content can help affiliates sell better

23:58 Partnerships with review sites

33:48 The future of AI and marketing

Join us as William Ballance, CEO of Lavender 💜, unfolds the journey from a sales representative to a groundbreaking entrepreneur, transforming the sales email landscape with AI-driven innovations.

A sales rep turned startup founder, William Ballance is the co-founder and CEO of Lavender.ai, a tech startup that uses communication psychology and AI to help salespeople write more effective emails faster.

Explore the intersection of AI and sales email strategy with Lavender's William Ballance.

Learn more about:

• How William's experiences shaped Lavender's development
• Lavender's unique approach to optimizing sales emails through AI, balancing automation and personalization
• How AI is transforming sales strategies
• How Lavender built its brand and community through a focus on authenticity and user engagement

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Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/wmb1/

https://www.lavender.ai/

More about:

Explore: https://hop.online/

Connect with Paris Childress, the Host: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parischildress/

Subscribe for more insightful episodes: https://paristalksmarketing.transistor.fm/

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Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

02:27 SaaS parties & community-led marketing

07:25 Lavender's target user base, focusing on Gen Z & their approach to sales emails

11:07 The Story of Lavender, the AI-powered email marketing platform

13:58 The role of personal branding for Lavender, a founder-led brand

22:06 Misconception: LinkedIn InMails don't work

23:56 The impact of AI and automation on personalization in outbound cold emails

33:13 Lavender’s marketing strategies and experiments

40:49 How building virality into content and products has impacted Lavender's growth 

We explore Casey Cheshire's journey from running a marketing automation agency to embracing the power of podcasting in creating genuine B2B connections. 

Casey Cheshire is a lifelong marketer, serial entrepreneur, and adventurer. Casey’s passion for podcasting led to him founding Ringmaster Conversational Marketing. Ringmaster helps B2B businesses launch podcasts that drive growth and revenue. He also serves as a Fractional CMO to several growing B2B professional service firms.

In this episode, Casey shares his insights on the limitations of traditional, automated marketing methods and how podcasting opens up a world of authentic, one-on-one conversations with prospects and customers. 

Delving into the practicalities and the transformative potential of this approach, Casey provides valuable perspectives for businesses looking to deepen their customer relationships and drive growth in a meaningful way. 

Join us for a conversation that redefines the essence of customer engagement in the B2B space.

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Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/caseycheshire/

https://ringmaster.com/

More about:

Explore: https://hop.online/
Follow the Host, Paris Childress: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parischildress/
Subscribe to Paris Talks Marketing: https://paristalksmarketing.transistor.fm/

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Timestamps:

02:44 Marketing Myth Busting

05:57 Podcasting for customer engagement & Conversational Marketing

12:25 Growing a podcast audience

20:07 The right approach to inviting podcast guests

25:56 The future of marketing and why everyone should be a media brand

33:15 Advice to Casey's younger self about career and passion

34:53 Longevity and personal routines

Yaron Been, an ecommerce entrepreneur, growth coach, and industrial engineer, discovered his entrepreneurial path almost by accident from a childhood friend. Intrigued at the idea of generating online income, he and his wife built a weak, "shitty" ecommerce store the next day. But to their surprise, they got their first sale that very evening!

Since then, Yaron has made "a lot of mistakes" and learned countless lessons on his entrepreneurial journey while traveling across the globe.

Yaron emphasizes that business is a derivative of life and the same principles apply to entrepreneurship. Despite having a successful track record with bootstrapped seven-figure e-commerce stores, Yaron admits that the landscape has changed post iOS updates, which have made front-end profitability more challenging. He believes that today's e-commerce players must focus on lifetime value rather than immediate profit and should consider entering the market with a brand-focused approach and greater capital.

Tune in this episode, reflecting on principles that bridge philosophy, self-improvement, business, and life itself.

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Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/yaronbeen/

https://ecomxf.com/

More about:

https://hop.online/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/parischildress/ (The host)

https://paristalksmarketing.transistor.fm/

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Timestamps:

01:52 How the principles of stoic philosophy, personal development & bodybuilding apply to business

05:07 Launching an e-commerce business while being a digital nomad

08:01 How did Yaron identify the niche for e-commerce?

10:03 Is bootstrapping an option for e-commerce stores?

11:18 Shopify vs. Amazon

14:01 Types of e-commerce funnels

17:40 How does a quiz funnel work?

22:23 Most common e-commerce shop owners mistakes

30:23 Automations for ecommerce stores

36:04 Build assets, don't focus on income

37:17 Physical products vs. digital products

In this episode, we dive deep into the intricacies of modern marketing with Eric Holtzclaw. Eric, a visionary and a serial entrepreneur, brings over 30 years of experience in tech and marketing to the table.

Today, Eric is a Founding Partner and Chief Strategist at Liger, one of Inc. 5000’s fastest-growing companies of 2022, where he’s able to combine his three loves: business, technology, and people, and guide businesses to find their identities and core values, craft their visions, and establish their brands.

Eric has also contributed to magazines and online publications and wrote the book, “Laddering: Unlocking the Potential of Consumer Behavior.”

We discuss the complexities of today's marketing landscape and discover strategies for success.

Tune in to learn how to master the 'Modern Day Marketing Maze.'

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Timestamps:

• 02:35 - The modern marketing maze
• 06:24 - How being a marketer became complicated
• 09:35 - The BATCOM framework (Branding, Awareness, Traffic, Conversion, Optimization, Maintenance)
• 11:46 - Balancing Demand Gen & Lead Gen
• 14:56 - Creating content that converts
• 20:48 - Career development in marketing
• 22:53 - Marketing & AI disruption
• 29:31 - How marketing's function has changed