Demand Gen U – Détails, épisodes et analyse

Get ready as we take a trip down memory lane… 

We’ve got a bit of a different episode for you this time. We’re sad to say that Jason, our VP of Marketing, will be leaving Metadata. So we thought this would be a great opportunity to look back at Metadata’s marketing highlights, challenges, mistakes, and fun stories from behind the scenes of DGU.  

Join us for a bittersweet farewell as we swap stories and sum up all the lessons we’ve learned over the past few years of Jason’s reign over the marketing team.  

This podcast will be taking a pause after this episode – so watch this space for updates!  

Find out: 

• The DGU origin story 
• How Jason hired Mark 
• What we learned from our time running DGU

0:00 – 1:33 Intro 

1:33 – 4:13 Jason’s announcement  

4:13 – 5:35 How Jason found his first startup experience  

5:35 – 8:16 How working at Metadata compares to his previous roles 

8:16 – 12:56 The DGU podcast origin story 

12:56 – 17:13 The story behind Jason hiring Mark 

17:13 – 20:26 Metadata’s experiments with LinkedIn video 

20:26 – 24:03 Metadata’s LinkedIn strategy 

24:03 – 25:18 How Jason and Mark became the faces of Metadata  

25:18 – 32:56 How Metadata dipped its toes into marketing with celebrities 

32:56 – 36:31 How Metadata partnered with DGMG 

36:31 – 46: 20 Top moments from the marketing team’s retreat  

46:20 – 1:02:32 The not-so-great moments of marketing Metadata  

1:02:32 – 1:05:42 Goodbye from Jason  

We’d all love customers to have zero objections to buying from us, but overcoming sales objections is a key part of any sale.  

How we handle those objections makes all the difference between gaining a new customer and losing one.  

The truth is that sales objections are nothing to be afraid of. In fact, they’re a window into potential customers’ thoughts – and those thoughts can inspire great marketing content. In this episode of DGU, we talk about our own experiences with sales objections and how we turn that into valuable content to help win sales in the future. 

Find out: 

• How we identify sales objections 
• Ways to overcome them 
• How to use objections for marketing content 

To learn more, check out the full episode for tips on turning sales objections into high-value content.  

• 0:00 – 4:46 Intro 
• 4:46 – 8:08 What is objection handling? 
• 8:08 – 10:57 Objections vs. competition in the market  
• 10:57 – 12:24 How to decide which objections to address 
• 12:24 – 15:41 Objections we’ve dealt with at Metadata  
• 15:41 – 18:16 Why you need consistent responses to sales objections 
• 18:16 – 20:19 How to talk about objections in Leadership meetings  
• 20:19 – 24:15 How Metadata responds to objections in marketing  
• 24:15 – 28:33 Content you can create from objections 
• 28:33 – 29:07 Why we focus more on renewal rates than new sales  
• 29:07 – 37:28 Recent content we’ve created from sales objections  
• 37:28 – 39:30 How Metadata created a landing page to address sales objections  
• 39:30 – 40:17 Outro 

Budget cuts, layoffs and everything in between – it’s tough to be a B2B marketer right now.  

Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing, and Jason Widup, VP of Marketing at Metadata are feeling it too, which is why they figured the best place to start is with something you can control.  

So right now, they’re slap bang in the middle of a ‘no meeting’ experiment and it’s having all sorts of effects on the productivity of the team.  

Tune in to find out: 

• The lowdown on the experiment and how it started 
• Tools that make cutting down on meetings run smoothly 
• Plans for meetings going forward 

0:00 – 3:26 – Introduction (and Jason’s wallet story) 

3:26 – 11:19 - How the experiment started and things we considered 

11:19 – 15:01 - We set some ground rules 

15:01 – 17:21 - Changing up one-on-one meetings 

17:21 – 18:21 – Please don’t send Jason a long document 

18:21 – 22:05 - No-meeting experiment: the good, the bad, the ugly 

22:05 – 24:57 – Why we love Loom 

24:57 – 26:59 - What Mark has enjoyed about the experiment 

26:59 – 35:29- How Asana helps the experiment run smoothly 

35:29 – 39:53 - The changes to their meeting cadence 

39:53 – 41:13 - Outro

If you want to learn how to audit your ad accounts and make sure you’re set up for success in 2023, then guess what? You’re in the right place! 

On this episode of Demand Gen U, Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing, is joined by Silvio Perez, former Head of Product Innovation, to discuss all things ad audits. 

Silvio’s an expert on this, so Mark asks him what to bear in mind when looking for a new ad account in 2023. 

Plus, Silvio explains the biggest ways people mess up with ad accounts, outlines the basics of attribution, and shares one tip that could save your team “a ton of money in 2023”. Silvio’s treating you guys on this episode!   

Find out: 

• The basics of attribution 
• Why copywriting is king 
• About blended inbound performance 

0:00 – 1:38 - Introduction (feat Ad Man!) 

1:38 – 3:55 - Why to start with strategy and goals 

3:55 – 7:32 - Are you able to measure? (and the power of blended inbound performance) 

7:32 – 7:58 – Breaking down the episode 

7:58 – 12:40 - New ad account – the first steps 

12:40 – 18:06 - The biggest mistakes people make when setting up ad accounts 

18:06 – 22:00 - Discussing Google Analytics 4 

22:00 – 25:21 - Auditing your attribution 

25:21 – 27:21 - All things UTMs 

27:21 – 41:13 - Audiences and search – what to look at 

41:13 – 42:34 - Pro tip from Silvio! 

42:34 – 54:58 - Ad creative and copy 

54:58 – 56:14 - Outro 

What does good demand gen look like in 2023?

We scrolled through our archives and analytics to discover that episode 5, ‘What Good Demand Gen Will Look Like in 2022’ is one of our best-performing episodes. So, here we are. Doing it all over again for 2023.

On this episode, Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing and Jason Widup, VP of Marketing at Metadata, discuss the demand gen landscape for the year 2023.

They explore doing more with less after budget cuts, giving buyers total visibility, the new face of in-person events and so much more.

Find out:

• What budget cuts could mean for marketing teams
• The ins-and-outs of conversion rate optimization
• Why we should run campaigns that target whole buying committees

0:00 – 3:29 - Introduction (and Jason’s hair is different AGAIN)

3:23 – 7:25 - Doing more with less in 2023

7:25 – 8:52 - Can we forecast?

8:52 – 15:55 - Conversion rate optimization

15:55 – 22:42 - The power of word-of-mouth

22:42 – 26:57 - Complete visibility for buyers

26:57 – 30:47 - Campaigns to target WHOLE buying committee

30:27 – 37:22 - People buying from people

37:22 – 45:20 - The return (and new face) of in-person events

45:20 – 46:31 - Outro

As we wrap up our first year of Demand Gen U, we thought it would be fitting to look back at everything that’s happened at Metadata over the past year.

We’re taking a trip down memory lane to discuss the good, the bad and the ugly at Metadata in 2022!

Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing and Jason Widup, VP of Marketing at Metadata, reminisce over Demand events, comparison pages, LinkedIn demos and damning budget cuts. It’s not one for the faint-hearted!

Find out:

• Our successes with comparison pages and Demand events
• Why Metadata are stepping away from incentivized LinkedIn demos
• How we dealt with 30%-35% marketing budget cuts

0:00 – 1:43 – Intro (featuring beanies and man-buns)

1:43 – 6:44 – Podcasting trial and error

6:44 – 11:06 – What’s helped Jason grow in his role

11:06 – 13:39 – Analyzing the 6Sense comparison page

13:39 – 17:18 – Going bigger and better with Demand

17:18 – 19:46 – That LinkedIn incentivized ad cliff

19:46 – 25:08 – Why we U-turned on analysts

25:08 – 30:08 – Creating a new category (we’re not an ABM platform, guys)

30:08 – 34:35 – Dealing with budget cuts

34:35 – 39:43 – Planning for the ‘new normal’

39:43 – 42:37 – Goodbye MDF numbers…

42:37 – 44:12 – Outro

The disconnect between marketers and creative teams – it’s a tale as old as time! 

But it doesn’t have to be that way, right? When these two teams have a solid and productive relationship…BOOM…great things happen. 

On this guest episode of Demand Gen U, Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing at Metadata, sits down with Algert Sula, founder and CEO of creative branding agency.

Algert reveals all about his route into the industry, why he believes marketers and creatives sometimes struggle to gel and how copy and design should complement one another. 

Plus, he puts forward his B2B design trend predictions for 2023. 

Find out: 

• How Algert got started in creative work 
• Algert’s explanation for the disconnect between creatives and marketers 
• What ‘brand’ means to Algert 

0:00 – 1:24 – Introduction 

1:24 – 7:17 – Let’s introduce Algert 

7:17 – 11:19 – Why marketers and creatives don’t get along! 

11:19 – 14:11 – How marketers frustrate creatives 

14:11 – 17:14 – What brand means to Algert 

17:14 – 21:48 – Algert’s creative process (he’s got no secrets!) 

21:48 – 23:42 – How copy and design compliment each other 

23:42 – 27:51 – Metadata 2.0? 

27:51 – 31:52 – Algert predicts B2B design trends for 2023 

31:52 – 33:18 – Outro 

It’s no secret…being a marketing leader can be hard. No matter what study you’re looking at, it feels like the average job tenure for marketing leaders gets shorter and shorter by the month.

Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing and Jason Widup, VP of Marketing at Metadata, get vulnerable on this episode of Demand Gen U, as Mark asks Jason about everything that comes with being a marketing leader and invites him to share the challenges he has faced through his career.

Find out:

• How Jason has grown as a marketing leader
• The benefits of building strong relationships in marketing teams
• How to take feedback as a marketing leader

0:00 – 1:00 – Introduction

1:00 – 2:25 – Cause for celebration!

2:25 – 3:30 – Learning and growing as a marketing leader

3:30 – 6:01 – What is the job of a marketing leader (besides brewing kombucha…)?

6:01 – 8:00 – How has Jason’s definition of a marketing leader changed?

8:00 – 12:29 – Championing team building and morale

12:29 – 16:25 – Why is it so hard being a marketing leader?

16:25 – 18:15 – Some dangers of closeness at work

18:15 – 29:39 – Giving and receiving feedback

29:39 – 35:39 – Importance of team morale

35:39 – 41:08 – Looking after your team in your marketing plans

41:08 – 42:34 – Outro

No matter what industry you’re in, one thing is certain. You have direct competitors. And with so many options on the market, it can be difficult for buyers to see if you’re the option for them. 

Especially when they have to battle through buzzwords and empty promises! 

In this episode of Demand Gen U, Jason Widup, VP of Marketing and Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing at Metadata, discuss the humble comparison page. 

They discuss how you should use them, how much time to spend on them and explore top secrets on the Metadata vs. 6Sense comparison page. Check out the comparison page here. 

Find out: 

• Insight into Metadata’s comparison page 
• How to frame the conversation without bashing competitors 
• Common things that go wrong with comparison pages 

0:00 – 2:31 – Introduction (and Mark’s Invisalign) 

2:31 – 7:05 – Why do we need comparison pages?  

7:05 – 7:47 – Why they are high-intent pages 

7:47 – 16:27 – How comparison pages can go wrong 

16:27 – 21:25 – Where Metadata looked for comparison page inspiration 

21:25 – 30:46 – How Metadata executed the 6Sense page 

30:46 – 35:27 – How the page has been received 

35:27 – 36:41 – More comparison pages on the horizon? 

36:41 – 38:09 – Outro

At Metadata, this year has gone super fast. It feels like just last week we were finalizing our planning for 2022. But now the focus is very much on 2023.

In this episode of Demand Gen U, Mark Huber, Head of Brand & Product Marketing, is joined by Silvio Perez, Head of Product Innovation, and DGU newcomer Bryttney Blanken, Senior Demand Generation Manager at Metadata.

They discuss a range of topics surrounding campaign planning, including how to get started, whether you need campaign briefs and why it doesn’t have to be as complex as you think.

Find out more about Demand here: https://metadata.io/resources/demand/

Find out:

• The ins-and-outs of the Bullseye framework
• Why you should turn ideas into hypotheses
• How to sell your ideas internally

0:00 – 1:45 – Introduction

1:45 – 2:50 – The anxieties of campaign planning

2:50 – 4:44 – Why do marketers overcomplicate campaign planning?

4:44 – 7:10 – Where to get started

7:10 – 9:56 – How far to plan ahead

9:56 – 13:40 – Taking ideas a step further

13:40 – 21:44 – Taking a step back – first things to look at

21:44 – 27:45 – Is there a need for campaign briefs?

27:45 – 33:15 – Making a difference to the business

33:15 – 38:26 – Working cross-functionally on plans

38:26 – 44:21 – Getting leadership on board

44:21 – 46:03 – Outro