The Exit Five CMO Podcast (Hosted by Dave Gerhardt)

• Why I Love Marketing (Quick Voice Note From Dave)

  Dave here. Interrupting the regular podcast feed for a 3 minute story and rant about why I love the job of marketing and what it might mean in a world where AI is advancing so rapidly and changing the role of marketing. Send guest pitches and ideas to [email protected] the Exit Five Newsletter here: https://www.exitfive.com/newsletterCheck out the Exit Five job board: https://jobs.exitfive.com/Become an Exit Five member: https://community.exitfive.com/checkout/exit-five-membership***Today's episode is brought to you by Knak. Email (in my humble opinion) is the still the greatest marketing channel of all-time.It’s the only way you can truly “own” your audience.But when it comes to building the emails - if you’ve ever tried building an email in an enterprise marketing automation platform, you know how painful it can be. Templates are too rigid, editing code can break things and the whole process just takes forever. That’s why we love Knak here at Exit Five. Knak a no-code email platform that makes it easy to create on-brand, high-performing emails - without the bottlenecks.Frustrated by clunky email builders? You need Knak.Tired of ‘hoping’ the email you sent looks good across all devices? Just test in Knak first.Big team making it hard to collaborate and get approvals? Definitely Knak.And the best part? Everything takes a fraction of the time.See Knak in action at knak.com/exit-five. Or just let them know you heard about Knak on Exit Five.***Thanks to my friends at hatch.fm for producing this episode and handling all of the Exit Five podcast production.They give you unlimited podcast editing and strategy for your B2B podcast.Get unlimited podcast editing and on-demand strategy for one low monthly cost. Just upload your episode, and they take care of the rest.Visit hatch.fm to learn more

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  5:48
• The Future of B2B Marketing: AI, Execution, and Craft with Kieran Flanagan

  #257 AI Strategy | Dave is joined by Kieran Flanagan, SVP of Marketing at HubSpot and former CMO at Zapier. Kieran is a rare blend of technical operator, creative strategist, and team builder. He’s spent his career pushing the edges of B2B marketing, most recently through his work leading AI transformation initiatives at scale.Dave and Kieran cover:How AI is reshaping B2B marketing workflows, content creation, and team structureWhy the best marketers will specialize at the “outer edges” of creativity or technical execution (and what happens if you stay stuck in the middle)Kieran’s leadership philosophy: how he manages 300+ people while staying deeply involved in creative executionWhether you’re leading a marketing team or sharpening your own skills, this episode offers a clear look at how AI is changing the game and how B2B marketers can stay creative, strategic, and indispensable in the process.Timestamps(00:00) - – Intro (02:08) - – Kieran’s marketing journey (04:08) - – His 2-year mission framework (06:08) - – Advice for early-career marketers (07:38) - – Why the grind still matters (09:08) - – Ireland’s SaaS and startup scene (10:08) - – Balancing operator vs. manager (12:08) - – AI-generated “How to work with me” (14:38) - – Kieran’s push-and-pull leadership style (16:08) - – Giving direct creative feedback (18:08) - – Why “collaborative brainstorms” fail (19:08) - – The value of strong opinions (20:08) - – Learning through tough feedback (21:08) - – ChatGPT as a creative partner (23:08) - – Claude vs. ChatGPT vs. Gemini (25:08) - – Prompting differences in GPT-3.5 vs. 4.0 (28:19) - – Decision fatigue and AI loyalty (29:19) - – Where AI is taking B2B marketing (30:19) - – From answers to actions (32:19) - – Micro-audiences and personalization (34:19) - – The return of branded traffic (35:19) - – Why AI reignited Kieran’s spark (37:19) - – Avoiding AI-induced multitasking burnout (38:49) - – Deep work vs. whack-a-mole (39:49) - – Don Draper meets ChatGPT (40:49) - – Picking a lane: tech vs. creative (42:19) - – The value of podcasting practice (43:19) - – Building a prompt muscle (45:19) - – How Kieran trains GPTs (47:19) - – Prompting tips for marketers (48:19) - – The future CMO: part IC, part leader (49:19) - – How agencies will evolve with AI (50:19) - – In-person is back (51:19) - – Overrated AI use cases (52:19) - – Favorite tool: GenSpark (54:19) - – Mistakes marketers make with AI (55:19) - – Does anyone care if it’s AI? (56:19) - – Lessons from fatherhood (57:19) - – Final thoughts and wrap-up Send guest pitches and ideas to [email protected] the Exit Five Newsletter here: https://www.exitfive.com/newsletterCheck out the Exit Five job board: https://jobs.exitfive.com/Become an Exit Five member: https://community.exitfive.com/checkout/exit-five-membership***Today's episode is brought to you by Knak. Email (in my humble opinion) is the still the greatest marketing channel of all-time.It’s the only way you can truly “own” your audience.But when it comes to building the emails - if you’ve ever tried building an email in an enterprise marketing automation platform, you know how painful it can be. Templates are too rigid, editing code can break things and the whole process just takes forever. That’s why we love Knak here at Exit Five. Knak a no-code email platform that makes it easy to create on-brand, high-performing emails - without the bottlenecks.Frustrated by clunky email builders? You need Knak.Tired of ‘hoping’ the email you sent looks good across all devices? Just test in Knak first.Big team making it hard to collaborate and get approvals? Definitely Knak.And the best part? Everything takes a fraction of the time.See Knak in action at knak.com/exit-five. Or just let them know you heard about Knak on Exit Five.***Thanks to my friends at hatch.fm for producing this episode and handling all of the Exit Five podcast production.They give you unlimited podcast editing and strategy for your B2B podcast.Get unlimited podcast editing and on-demand strategy for one low monthly cost. Just upload your episode, and they take care of the rest.Visit hatch.fm to learn more

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  56:46
• Email Deliverability: What Every B2B Marketer Needs to Know

  #256 Email Deliverability | In this episode, Dan is joined by Sarah McNamara, Revenue Operations & GTM Strategy Lead at Vector, and Alex Fine, co-founder of Understory, an agency helping B2B SaaS companies scale with outbound, paid, and email. Both Sarah and Alex are experts in email strategy, specifically the behind-the-scenes mechanics that make or break your deliverability.They break down what B2B marketers often overlook when it comes to getting emails opened, read, and replied to, and share practical tactics to improve performance across newsletters, outbound, and lifecycle campaigns.Dan, Sarah, and Alex cover:Why email deliverability issues are more common than you think and how to spot them earlyThe metrics that actually matter (hint: opens and clicks aren’t on the list)How to protect your domain reputation and warm up inboxes the right wayIf email is part of your GTM motion, this episode will help you reach more inboxes and stop your messages from disappearing into the void.Timestamps(00:00) - – Intro (03:18) - – Meet Sarah and Alex (05:23) - – Why email deliverability matters more than subject lines (07:38) - – How to tell if you have a deliverability problem (09:53) - – The most useful (and overlooked) deliverability metrics (12:13) - – Why replies matter more than opens or clicks (14:38) - – Tools Alex and Sarah use to monitor deliverability (16:53) - – Should you buy a dedicated IP? (18:48) - – How to evaluate platforms for deliverability (21:08) - – Getting sales to care about data hygiene (23:38) - – Deliverability tips for small senders and solopreneurs (27:34) - – Subdomains vs. secondary domains (30:24) - – How many inboxes per domain is too many? (32:29) - – Best practices for cold outreach (35:19) - – How security bots skew your open and click data (38:19) - – What counts as “spam” (and how filters decide) (41:34) - – How to re-engage cold or inactive lists (44:19) - – What to A/B test in subject lines (and when it’s pointless) (47:29) - – How to build a healthy, opt-in list from scratch (50:19) - – When to stop emailing cold leads (52:34) - – Welcome sequence tips for engaged subscribers (55:29) - – How to warm up a new domain (58:49) - – Final takeaways and advice Send guest pitches and ideas to [email protected] the Exit Five Newsletter here: https://www.exitfive.com/newsletterCheck out the Exit Five job board: https://jobs.exitfive.com/Become an Exit Five member: https://community.exitfive.com/checkout/exit-five-membership***Today's episode is brought to you by Knak. Email (in my humble opinion) is the still the greatest marketing channel of all-time.It’s the only way you can truly “own” your audience.But when it comes to building the emails - if you’ve ever tried building an email in an enterprise marketing automation platform, you know how painful it can be. Templates are too rigid, editing code can break things and the whole process just takes forever. That’s why we love Knak here at Exit Five. Knak a no-code email platform that makes it easy to create on-brand, high-performing emails - without the bottlenecks.Frustrated by clunky email builders? You need Knak.Tired of ‘hoping’ the email you sent looks good across all devices? Just test in Knak first.Big team making it hard to collaborate and get approvals? Definitely Knak.And the best part? Everything takes a fraction of the time.See Knak in action at knak.com/exit-five. Or just let them know you heard about Knak on Exit Five.***Thanks to my friends at hatch.fm for producing this episode and handling all of the Exit Five podcast production.They give you unlimited podcast editing and strategy for your B2B podcast.Get unlimited podcast editing and on-demand strategy for one low monthly cost. Just upload your episode, and they take care of the rest.Visit hatch.fm to learn more

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  56:29
• How to Structure and Lead a Full-Funnel B2B Marketing Org with Kelly Hopping

  #255 Leadership | In this episode, Dave is joined by Kelly Hopping, CMO of Demandbase, a B2B company known for pioneering account-based marketing. Kelly leads a 70+ person marketing org that spans brand, demand gen, product marketing, events, and SDRs, and she shares exactly how she structures and operates that team to drive results.Dave and Kelly cover:How to design and run a full-funnel marketing team that includes SDRs, content, field, and brand, and keep them aligned on pipelineThe annual planning strategy Kelly uses to balance short-term targets with long-term positioning (including what changes quarter to quarter)How her team is using AI right now and what she’s doing personally to stay sharp as the pace of change acceleratesWhether you're a first-time CMO or just trying to scale your B2B marketing engine, this one is packed with insights from someone who’s operating at a high level.Timestamps(00:00) - – Intro (03:08) - – What Demandbase actually does (05:08) - – How the Demandbase marketing team is structured (07:38) - – Who owns what: brand, content, demand, SDRs (10:08) - – Account-based marketing + broad demand gen (12:38) - – What a CMO actually does at this stage (15:08) - – Kelly’s early CMO learning curve (18:08) - – Planning your first 90 days as a CMO (20:08) - – Balancing pipeline today vs. positioning for tomorrow (22:38) - – What changed between a bad Q4 and strong Q1 (27:19) - – How Kelly thinks about yearly pipeline pacing (30:19) - – Staying relevant in a fast-moving MarTech world (32:49) - – Why marketers need to work like product teams (36:19) - – “I am the ICP”: Why product marketing works better (37:49) - – Kelly’s #1 job as CMO: Make sales love marketing (40:19) - – Becoming a peer to product and revenue leaders (42:49) - – Best-performing channel right now: in-person events (44:19) - – Brand, attribution, and pipeline are all connected (45:49) - – How Kelly’s team is using AI today (47:19) - – The future of marketing roles in an AI-powered world (49:49) - – Why she’s still learning new AI tools herself (52:19) - – Why AI is fun again for marketers (53:19) - – Closing thoughts Send guest pitches and ideas to [email protected] the Exit Five Newsletter here: https://www.exitfive.com/newsletterCheck out the Exit Five job board: https://jobs.exitfive.com/Become an Exit Five member: https://community.exitfive.com/checkout/exit-five-membership***Today's episode is brought to you by Knak. Email (in my humble opinion) is the still the greatest marketing channel of all-time.It’s the only way you can truly “own” your audience.But when it comes to building the emails - if you’ve ever tried building an email in an enterprise marketing automation platform, you know how painful it can be. Templates are too rigid, editing code can break things and the whole process just takes forever. That’s why we love Knak here at Exit Five. Knak a no-code email platform that makes it easy to create on-brand, high-performing emails - without the bottlenecks.Frustrated by clunky email builders? You need Knak.Tired of ‘hoping’ the email you sent looks good across all devices? Just test in Knak first.Big team making it hard to collaborate and get approvals? Definitely Knak.And the best part? Everything takes a fraction of the time.See Knak in action at knak.com/exit-five. Or just let them know you heard about Knak on Exit Five.***Thanks to my friends at hatch.fm for producing this episode and handling all of the Exit Five podcast production.They give you unlimited podcast editing and strategy for your B2B podcast.Get unlimited podcast editing and on-demand strategy for one low monthly cost. Just upload your episode, and they take care of the rest.Visit hatch.fm to learn more

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  51:29
• How to Get Sales on Board with Your Marketing Content with Kira Federer, VP of SMB Marketing at Paramount Advertising

  #254 Brand | In this episode, Dave sits down with Kira Federer, VP of SMB Marketing at Paramount Advertising, and formerly at companies like Reddit and Glassdoor. Kira shares her journey from sales to product marketing and the lessons she’s learned along the way.Dave and Kira discuss:How to align marketing and sales through co-creation to ensure your sales team uses the content you createThe value of a strong messaging framework and how it drives consistency in B2B marketingWhy you need to time your product launches and ensure that marketing resonates with both your team and the market at the right momentTimestamps(00:00) - - Intro to Kira (06:02) - - Kira’s Career Journey From Sales Enablement to Product Marketing (09:16) - - Challenges of Building Community / Getting Connected with Exit Five (15:32) - - How To Get Sales To Use Content from Marketing (18:07) - - How to Align Marketing and Sales Teams (25:24) - - Effective Messaging and Having a Core Company Narrative (30:32) - - Why You Should Identify What Differentiates Your Business (34:15) - - How To Create Strong Brand Positioning (37:00) - - Why You Need To Have A Clear Vision And Strong Point of View in Marketing (38:44) - - “The Risk Of Insult Is The Price Of Clarity” Send guest pitches and ideas to [email protected] the Exit Five Newsletter here: https://www.exitfive.com/newsletterCheck out the Exit Five job board: https://jobs.exitfive.com/Become an Exit Five member: https://community.exitfive.com/checkout/exit-five-membership***Today's episode is brought to you by Knak. Email (in my humble opinion) is the still the greatest marketing channel of all-time.It’s the only way you can truly “own” your audience.But when it comes to building the emails - if you’ve ever tried building an email in an enterprise marketing automation platform, you know how painful it can be. Templates are too rigid, editing code can break things and the whole process just takes forever. That’s why we love Knak here at Exit Five. Knak a no-code email platform that makes it easy to create on-brand, high-performing emails - without the bottlenecks.Frustrated by clunky email builders? You need Knak.Tired of ‘hoping’ the email you sent looks good across all devices? Just test in Knak first.Big team making it hard to collaborate and get approvals? Definitely Knak.And the best part? Everything takes a fraction of the time.See Knak in action at knak.com/exit-five. Or just let them know you heard about Knak on Exit Five.***Thanks to my friends at hatch.fm for producing this episode and handling all of the Exit Five podcast production.They give you unlimited podcast editing and strategy for your B2B podcast.Get unlimited podcast editing and on-demand strategy for one low monthly cost. Just upload your episode, and they take care of the rest.Visit hatch.fm to learn more

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  43:30

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