Scale of One to Tech

Very few of us wake up excited to buy insurance, so how do you cut through in a market awash with apathy? It’s that unique challenge that’s so rewarding to Laura Woodhead and Sam Knott.

As Urban Jungle’s Marketing Director & Marshmallow’s VP of Marketing respectively, we hear from Laura & Sam how they found vision and purpose in InsureTech and their lessons from key failures.

We also dive into the ‘unnecessary nonsense’ in our industry’s hiring processes, plus the power of embracing new channels.

This episode covers:

• The challenge of attracting interest in an inherently ‘unsexy’ industry
• How the cost of living crisis and Covid have affected marketing strategies
• Sam & Laura’s biggest mis-steps and learnings throughout their careers
• Key frustrations and ‘unnecessary nonsense’ within the hiring process
• Why we shouldn’t write off new marketing channels as fads

This month's episode is sponsored by WeDiscover. WeDiscover has supported high growth companies like carwow, Thread, fi, and many more. As specialists in paid search and marketing technology, WeDiscover aims to be the most consistent source of growth for their clients. If you're a scale up with multi million pound growth targets, or an already big and successful company looking to invest smarter, our friends at WeDiscover we'll make a great extension to your team. You can click the link in the show notes or go to https://www.we-discover.com/.

The new year demands a new approach to marketing in 2023, and one of the most hotly contested industries right now is FinTech, particularly in the B2C space.

Among the CMOs bringing their exciting services to life are Amabel Polglase (HyperJar, formerly at Facebook), Alessandro Onano (Tymit, formerly at Moneyfarm) and Abba Newbery (CIRCA5000, formerly at Habito).

We hear from these remarkable marketing leaders as they take us through their brands’ marketing strategies despite consumers’ lower disposable incomes, whether BCorp helps with consumer marketing, and fundraising millions amid the economic downturn.

This episode covers

• The biggest changes to marketing strategies in 2022, and how it’ll inform the year ahead
• New approaches since iOS 14’s effect on data collection
• How becoming a CMO demands new skillsets of marketing professionals
• Focusing on hiring for personality and attitude over raw talent
• 2023’s greatest challenges and ambitions

This month's episode is sponsored by WeDiscover. WeDiscover has supported high growth companies like carwow, Thread, fi, and many more. As specialists in paid search and marketing technology, WeDiscover aims to be the most consistent source of growth for their clients. If you're a scale up with multi million pound growth targets, or an already big and successful company looking to invest smarter, our friends at WeDiscover we'll make a great extension to your team. You can click the link in the show notes or go to https://www.we-discover.com/.

Everyone has experiences with health, therefore successfully navigating the sector opens up a huge potential for businesses utilising the latest in Health Tech.

Flo Health have grown from a period tracker to becoming an essential female health partner, and PillSorted are driving digital accessibility to pharmacy services, both driven by exciting advancements in the space.

Nick Lisher & Chris Rushe join us on this month’s Scale of One to Tech to break down the unique challenges in the sector, and how their committed marketing teams make waves in the most important industry in the world.

This episode covers

• The compelling appeal of the Health Tech sector
• Strategies to convey unique propositions to cut through the noise
• Key hurdles appearing within Health Tech in the near-future
• Hiring eager, intrinsically driven marketeers to solve health challenges

This month's episode is sponsored by WeDiscover. WeDiscover has supported high growth companies like carwow, Thread, fi, and many more. As specialists in paid search and marketing technology, WeDiscover aims to be the most consistent source of growth for their clients. If you're a scale up with multi million pound growth targets, or an already big and successful company looking to invest smarter, our friends at WeDiscover we'll make a great extension to your team. You can click the link in the show notes or go to https://www.we-discover.com/.

Covid exposed every child to a new, technologically fueled world of learning by necessity. With so many players in EdTech, how can you cut through to more customers, and keep them for longer?

We’re joined this month on the podcast by VP, Marketing at Multiverse Rachael Beckett, and returning guest James Hamlin, once CMO at Tutorful and now Fractional CMO & Consultant. 

Rachael and James dive deep on the foray into new channels, the pain points they’re solving, how to cut through the noise, and staying ahead of a widespread wavering in consumer confidence.

This episode covers

• How Multiverse have tackled the highly degree-led US market
• Transferrable experiences from different sectors, and how they inform current marketing approaches
• Embracing new channels to dial into increasingly tech-savvy consumers
• How to boost lifetime value in the face of declining consumer confidence

This month's episode is sponsored by WeDiscover. WeDiscover has supported high growth companies like carwow, Thread, fi, and many more. As specialists in paid search and marketing technology, WeDiscover aims to be the most consistent source of growth for their clients. If you're a scale up with multi million pound growth targets, or an already big and successful company looking to invest smarter, our friends at WeDiscover we'll make a great extension to your team. You can click the link in the show notes or go to https://www.we-discover.com/.

Welcome back to the Scale of One to Tech podcast, returning for a stellar series 2!

Kicking things off strong with a focus on the D2C world, we’re joined by three fantastic CMOs - HelloFresh’s Luis Lacerda, Finisterre’s Franky Athill and Bella & Duke’s Tushar Kaul.

In this premiere of the new series, find out what distinguishes communities from an audience, why attribution should be your #1 priority, the secrets to efficient performance marketing in the face of waning consumer confidence, and much more…

This episode covers

• Staying competitive through economic turbulence and downturns in consumer confidence
• Why community building is vital, and distinctions between community and audience
• Paying attention to US markets as a testbed
• Increasing efficiency and effectiveness of performance marketing
• Importance of a strong attribution model

This month's episode is sponsored by WeDiscover. WeDiscover has supported high growth companies like carwow, Thread, fi, and many more. As specialists in paid search and marketing technology, WeDiscover aims to be the most consistent source of growth for their clients. If you're a scale up with multi million pound growth targets, or an already big and successful company looking to invest smarter, our friends at WeDiscover we'll make a great extension to your team. You can click the link in the show notes or go to https://www.we-discover.com/.

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com

Mindful Chef is a healthy food subscription revered as the UK’s top healthy recipe box, an accolade achieved through fostering innovation rather than obeying tradition…

Bringing his marketing experience from Betfair and M&C Saatchi, Co-Founder & CMO at Mindful Chef Giles Humphries joins us for a dive into adapting channel mixes to reach new audiences, creating laser-focused branding, and why you should break the ‘business by textbooks’ approach.

This episode covers

• Advice for bringing hungry, driven talent into your business
• Why it’s often worth valuing innovation over tradition
• Shifting channels as your target demographic grows
• The simplicity of messaging that’ll be a key challenge for CMOs

This month's episode is sponsored by WeDiscover, a Paid Search Agency who combine world-class Marketers with innovative Engineers and Data Scientists to deliver incredible, measurable results for our clients. Learn more: https://www.we-discover.com/

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com

You’d be lucky to acquire the experience of joining one unicorn in your marketing career, but between Deliveroo and Depop, Yoann Pavy has the lessons from two of the largest.

Now taking his expertise to an innovative FinTech startup in the form of Nude, Yoann joins Alex on the Scale of One to Tech podcast to demystify network effects, and the overused buzzword of ‘growth marketing’. 

We also hear the challenges coming from creating content more native to new platforms, how business size affects the skillset you need as a marketing leader, and much more!

This episode covers

• Yoann’s experience at two unicorn startups, with roles at Deliveroo and Depop before their most prolific years
• The role of marketing in a business’ overall efforts to highly focus their product/service
• Nude’s achievements to date, and their success on Apple’s App Store
• Network effects, and using a product-led approach to convert customers into advocates
• The challenge of being more native when creating content for specific channels & platforms

This month's episode is sponsored by WeDiscover. WeDiscover has supported high growth companies like carwow, Thread, fi, and many more. As specialists in paid search and marketing technology, WeDiscover aims to be the most consistent source of growth for their clients. If you're a scale up with multi million pound growth targets, or an already big and successful company looking to invest smarter, our friends at WeDiscover we'll make a great extension to your team. You can click the link in the show notes or go to https://www.we-discover.com/.

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com

Being a successful CMO takes a determined individual with a great skill set, but there’s much more to learn from those who do so alongside being a Co-Founder…

The resilience that Alex Latham has shown is exhibited marvellously in Chip, one of the UK’s fastest growing FinTech startups with a huge customer base of over 200,000 users. 

In this month’s Scale of One to Tech, we learn the resilience and collaboration that makes an admirable Co-Founder, the product-focused approach we’re yet to see from many CMOs, and how to create content that stands head and shoulders above the rest of an increasingly competitive FinTech market.

This episode covers

• Key qualities of a CMO, and what to look for in a great Co-Founder
• Chip’s remarkable crowdfunding campaigns, raising over £30m
• Standing out in an increasingly competitive FinTech market through innovative content
• The difficulties that shaped Alex & Chip, and proved their commitment to customer experience

This month's episode is sponsored by WeDiscover. WeDiscover has supported high growth companies like carwow, Thread, fi, and many more. As specialists in paid search and marketing technology, WeDiscover aims to be the most consistent source of growth for their clients. If you're a scale up with multi million pound growth targets, or an already big and successful company looking to invest smarter, our friends at WeDiscover we'll make a great extension to your team. You can click the link in the show notes or go to https://www.we-discover.com/.

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com

Today Spotify has over 180 million premium subscribers, but at the start of Nikki Lambert’s tenure, that number was just 200k. 

Having been involved in its meteoric expansion into dozens of new territories, it’s clear that Nikki’s marketing focus promises a bright future for Popsa, where she’s now CMO.

Nikki joins Alex Marriner on this episode of Scale of One to Tech to share how she uses data to tell stories, the immeasurable value that a passionate leader can bring to a team, and how Popsa overcomes the challenges of longer lead times.

This episode covers

• Nikki’s illustrious and eventful career, through Virgin, Spotify, and MelodyVR/Napster
• How to use data to tell meaningful stories, particularly with Nikki’s involvement with the first ‘Spotify Wrapped’
• Opportunities presented by Covid to engage less tech-adept users with Popsa’s easy interface
• Overcoming the challenge of attracting consumers to services with longer lead times

Topic Segments:

1:35 - Nikki’s Answers to the Quickfire Questions

4:35 - Experience at Virgin

10:50 - Joining Spotify’s Exceptional Growth

20:20 - Shifting Focus at MelodyVR

26:50 - Insights from Nikki’s Current CMO Role at Popsa

41:30 - Creation of Spotify Wrapped & Regional Work

51:20 - Top Leadership Traits & CMO Challenges Ahead

This episode of Scale of One to Tech is sponsored by eOpinion, who are on a mission to change the face of the survey industry by captivating and entertaining your users and customers. They use 30 seconds speedy polls to create interesting stories, actionable insights and increase engagement. Get a half price Speedy Poll at https://eopinion.org/alex/.

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com

Any entrepreneur needs to be somewhat adept in marketing and, having been CMO at Quidco, Chris Hutchings is taking these learnings forward into his latest venture - eOpinion.

Across the numerous, varied experiences Chris has been through en route to becoming a Founder, he’s learned the keys to cutting through to the forefront of the survey space.

In this month’s Scale of One to Tech, Chris shares how he shapes his approach to polls for maximum engagement, his focus on long-term success, and when to work hard vs when to work smart.

This episode covers:

• Takeaways from Chris’ CMO experience at Quidco
• The survey experience that influenced the start of eOpinion
• Chris’ biggest career challenges and turning points
• How authenticity is essential in modern marketing
• Advantages of an external network, such as our own ‘CMO & Marketing Director Forum’

This episode of Scale of One to Tech is sponsored by eOpinion, and Chris has a very special offer for our listeners: not only can you get a half price Speedy Poll at https://eopinion.org/alex/, but the first to sign up will get it completely free!

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com

As an Asian woman, Mai Fenton has leapt over her fair share of hurdles through her rich and varied career, and as Superscript’s CMO she’s illustrating the opportunities available for multi-skilled female marketers like herself.

Mai’s 20-year career includes stints with Unidays, TKMaxx & Pentland Brands; she’s taken the industry-specific skills from wildly different sectors and channelled them into her role at this rapidly growing startup. 

On this month’s episode of Scale of One to Tech, we learn how Mai has developed her conversational interview style, the emphasis she puts on collaborative, T-shaped marketeers, and the inspiring self-confidence that will see more women finding success in CMO roles.

This episode covers:

• Superscript’s unique take on flexibly de-bundling insurance
• The transferrable skills permeating Mai’s extensive and diverse history in marketing
• The barriers that Mai has broken as a successful, Asian, female CMO
• How creating T-shaped marketing team encourages better collaboration
• Tips for finding success with a more conversational interview style

This episode of Scale of One to Tech is sponsored by eOpinion, who are on a mission to change the face of the survey industry by captivating and entertaining your users and customers. They use 30 seconds speedy polls to create interesting stories, actionable insights and increase engagement. Get a half price Speedy Poll at https://eopinion.org/alex/.

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com

Considering the number of current channels and platforms that didn't even exist at the start of James Hamlin’s marketing career, it’s evident that the emergence of new technologies is presenting opportunities to disrupt sectors.

James, now CMO at online EdTech marketplace Tutorful, joins Alex on the Scale of One to Tech podcast to discuss how the necessary tech shift that we’ve seen in the past two years has changed marketing strategies, the need for an authentic and transparent voice, and creating career opportunities when entering a startup.

This episode covers

• James’ illustrious career prior to Tutorful
• Catalysing opportunities to work in a startup
• The focus on being authentic, upfront & transparent
• Changing your marketing proposition/approach for the effects of Covid on the industry
• How to alleviate common solopreneur/startup mistakes

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com

Leadership is not the same as it was 12 months ago, regardless of industry - with the past year’s events CMOs have been forced to adapt to keep their teams collaborating effectively and their messages cutting through. 

As CMO in a thriving D2C powerhouse, Trinny London’s CMO, Shira Feuer, is taking the pandemic in her stride, employing the incredible experience she’s amassed at giant brands like Burberry and The Walt Disney Company.

Join us as we discuss the differing approaches to marketing within massive scale companies and fast-growing startups, the need to continuously invest in culture, and hiring new team members who believe in your brand’s vision.

This episode covers

• The biggest challenges facing CMOs in the coming year
• Continuous investment in culture
• Curating a community which posts more than marketing content
• Brand marketing vs performance marketing at various growth stages
• Major differences between large corporates and small, speedy startups

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com

Breadth of experience is a formidable tool in any CMO’s arsenal. Between startups, scaleups, international roles and varying industries, it’s safe to say that Molo Finance’s Dennis Volkmann fits the bill perfectly.

Dennis has held management positions and CMO roles for an impressive period of his career spanning renowned brands like Depop, Airbnb and Mettle, and it’s this range of roles that have delivered with them lessons on ideal leadership traits, choosing the most effective channels, and how to grow a team that share your business’ values.

This episode covers

• What startups and scaleups stand to learn from each other
• Turning failures into learning points
• How Dennis’ attraction to storytelling in advertising has shaped his career
• The ideal balance between skills and experience in a leadership role
• Brand marketing vs performance marketing - which is more important for startups
• Airbnb’s value-based hiring - how it’s done and why it helps the team

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com

Welcome back to the CMO series of the Scale of One to Tech podcast! We’ve been lucky enough to speak to some incredible CMOs with an array of experiences under their belt, and today’s guest is no different. Formerly at ClearScore, Wonga, uSwitch, and most recently SO-SURE, Nicola Vidal has enjoyed a prosperous career in marketing spanning over 20 years.

With such a plethora of knowledge and experience, we hear Nicola weigh in on what makes a great marketing leader, FinTech’s increasing appeal to Gen Z, diversity in the FinTech & CMO space, advice for CEOs hiring their first CMO - and that’s just scratching the surface...

This episode covers

• Attributes that make a great marketing leader
• FinTech’s shift towards appealing to Gen Z-ers and Millennials
• Making the most of influencer marketing
• Advice for CEOs hiring their first CMO
• Boosting diversity in the FinTech CMO space
• Writing better, clearer, more inclusive job ads
• Killer interview questions

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com

Welcome back to the next episode in our CMO series of Scale of One to Tech, and we’re continuing with a guest whose incredible career path has seen him in top marketing positions at Google, Badoo, Emma, and now Appear Here, one of Wired Magazine’s 100 Hottest Startups.

With international marketing experience, two Master's degrees and 8 languages under his belt, Gaston Tourn has demonstrated at the highest level how to combine creative writing and storytelling skills with the more analytical side of marketing.

This episode is truly packed with thought provoking debate around which brands are nailing their marketing campaigns in light of business mistakes, opportunities opening up in an ever-evolving high street, and how you can apply the successful ethos behind Google’s infamous hiring process in a business of absolutely any size...

This episode covers

• Shifting the misplaced perception of marketing as deception to a form of storytelling
• Adjusting to regional differences in dating culture at Badoo/Bumble
• Creating Appear Here, and how businesses use it as a whole new marketing channel
• How marketers should combine analytical and creative skills (left brain vs right brain)
• The lessons businesses can learn from each other about exciting marketing and effective storytelling
• Google’s hiring strategies, and how to bring objectivity into recruitment
• Leadership through transparency and giving context rather than taking control
• How retailers are adapting to change, and the future of the high street

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com

As the need for sustainable hygiene products grows ever-stronger, the space in the market for an environmentally friendly, convenient way to rid the bathroom of plastic waste has opened up for the incredible Wild Cosmetics. 

With a focus on innovating beyond their initial, highly successful natural deodorant, the Co-Founder and CMO behind their marketing strategy - Charlie Bowers-Lyon - joins Alex on this episode of Scale of One to Tech to detail the story of their turbulent two year journey as a D2C brand.

We hear how Wild Cosmetics has diversified their channel mix to avoid any massive impacts to their strategy, what they look for when hiring new team members, and constructing their marketing campaigns without coming across as ‘preachy’.

This episode covers

• Wild Cosmetics’ USPs in a growing, environmentally conscious market
• The massive range of channels that help Wild to grow
• Marketeers maintaining their edge by staying hands on with new technologies
• Hiring with skills, experience, attitude and diversity in mind
• Tips for starting a D2C business
• Whether to prioritise a great product or a great brand

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com

With an almost immeasurable series of variables that come with setting up a growth framework, there are numerous, invaluable lessons to learn from the experience that Oren Greenberg has amassed, nurturing massive growth in startups and corporates alike.

From the considerations of building in-house functions vs enlisting the specialisms of an agency, to identifying the right skills in budding growth marketeers, and much more, we hear from Oren - a Growth Marketing Advisor and Founder of Kurve - on the next, insightful episode of the Scale of One to Tech podcast.

This episode covers

• The varying experiences advising in scaleups vs corporate environments
• Making a switch from traditional marketing to growth marketing
• Qualities that make a great growth marketing team
• Attributes of a good leader
• Deciding between building an in-house team or considering agencies
• How internal education becomes a block for marketeers
• Whether to look for generalists or specialists

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com

Whether you’re bootstrapping or boosted by seed funding, crafting a marketing strategy to scale up requires patience to reap the rewards. As it turns out, Lucy Woolfenden - a growth marketer with incredible credentials including Yolt and Skype - has refined the concept into a growth formula of her own: her 7 Steps to Scale.

Now the Founder of The Part-Time CMO, Lucy joins us on the podcast to talk about the strategies that help her clients through early stages of seed funding, and maximise their resources, as well as her ideal tools to implement when in the early stages of lead generation.

This episode covers

• Upskilling and supporting bootstrapped tech startups
• Adopting similar marketing methods in B2B and B2C
• The tools Lucy would recommend for promoting content
• Allowing a marketing strategy time to work properly
• Lucy’s 7 steps to scale
• Collaboration across functions

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com

We’ve all been through our personal hell recently. So how do you adapt your leadership style to make the most of your team when they’re battling the stresses of home life? In Gareth Knight’s view, a small show of vulnerability and a healthy dose of empathy go a long way to earning your team’s respect.

Having held numerous senior and CMO roles at TransferGo and PayAsUGym and bringing his expertise to Trainline, Gareth goes into detail in this episode of the Scale of One to Tech podcast on tailoring campaigns for local markets, the varying utility of Facebook and Google’s technologies in different regions, and the conception of his incredible and unique ‘Heuristic Growth Formula’...

This episode covers

• The method behind Gareth’s ‘Heuristic Growth Formula’ 
• Identifying the skills and traits that best fit your growth marketing team
• How leadership styles have adapted to recent adversity
• Getting people on board with you as a new senior leader
• How FinTech differs from other high growth industries
• Facebook vs Google in different territories
• Combining messaging, channel and localisation for maximum results

Links and references at: https://www.acquiredigitaltalent.com/
Get in touch: alex@acquiredigitaltalent.com