Did you just get fired? Spend a bunch of money on a marketing project or campaign that didn’t work? It can feel like marketing failures are happening today at a higher rate than ever before. Markets are changing; buyer’s processes, decision-making, and budgets are in flux; and companies are switching up their marketing organizations and leadership. Devin and Margaret explore our own relationship with failure—and what you can do next—on this episode of Don’t Say Content. Resources: Subscribe to o...
Feb 07, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Season 8Ep. 1
Here's a bonus episode from Devin's conversation with Joei Chan on her post, Good Boss, Bad Boss. It's a meaty one where she share lots of secrets about being a good and bad boss, and stories from her time as the boss of all bosses (CEO). Also, season 4 is dropping soon! We're kicking off season 4 on 2/6 with a live show on YouTube. You won't want to miss it. (And if it's past 2/6/24—press play already.) Listen to Good Boss Bad Boss on Apple , on Spotify , or on YouTube (or wherever you get your...
Jan 30, 2024•36 min
Have you missed us?! Don’t Say Content season 4 is coming back on February 6th, and we’d love for you join us—here on the feed or live, on Youtube. We’re starting the season off on YouTube live on February 6th at noon ET. But don’t worry, we’ll drop the live show on the podcast feed if you can’t make it. Wanna join us live? Check out our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=danFfrLz5XQ (And set your notifications so you don’t forget!) Otherwise, make sure you’re subscribed to th...
Jan 29, 2024•2 min
Bonus episode time! Before season 4 drops, enjoy this bonus episode where Margaret joined Ramli John's Marketing Powerups podcast to talk about her strategic brand flywheel. Like what you hear? Check out Ramli's podcast here: https://marketingpowerups.com/podcast/ For more from Devin + Margaret, head to dontsaycontent.com . Created in partnership with Share Your Genius: https://www.shareyourgenius.com/...
Jan 23, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Season 3Ep. 13
We're even less filtered than normal in our Season 3 finale, so buckle up: we’re talking about our challenges with gender inequity, patterns of entrenched misogyny, societal expectations, unhealthy boundaries, and reflections on how our careers are viewed by others in the industry. Big life changes and challenges bring big reflections and feelings. They also spotlight challenges we’ve accepted and taken for granted, bringing a strikingly clear question to the fore: Why are we so afraid? [ NOTE :...
Nov 29, 2023•37 min•Season 3Ep. 12
What if we started looking at marketing as a business growth strategy instead of a promotional department? Devin and Margaret discuss the role Marketing plays in fundraising and investor board meetings. They explore how the current startup investing structure only widens the trust gap between CEOs and Marketing, including understanding the chasm and how that leads to wrong solutions that are often avoidable. Connect with Devin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/devinbramhall/ Connect with Margaret: ht...
Nov 21, 2023•30 min•Season 3Ep. 11
Q4 has begun, and the year is coming to a close. But you’re in overwhelm—from setting new goals for next year, setting the big vision for your strategy, and oh yeah—finishing out this year strong. But that overwhelm and busyness is not new to the B2B tech world. Some of the problems that rear their heads in times like these are just that: nothing new. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t any easier to handle. Where do you find the right marketers to take your team to the next level? Where do you fi...
Nov 07, 2023•38 min•Season 3Ep. 10
😱WHAT. A GUEST?! 😱 We said we weren’t doing an interview show, but we did need a hand with this week’s topic: how do visual mediums help achieve business growth, and what role do executives and team members outside the marketing team play in modern marketing strategy? Rachel Downey, CEO and founder of Share Your Genius joins the show today to break down what companies actually want to do: create content that moves your company toward your growth goals and outcomes. Marketing is about influenci...
Oct 31, 2023•29 min•Season 3Ep. 9
Newsflash: your lifeboat has a hole in it. Oh, and that life vest you’re wearing—lol. It doesn’t help when you’re sinking into an ocean of lava. No, we’re not talking about the apocalypse, we’re talking about what it takes to make your company survive in 2024 and beyond. If you’re reaching for familiar growth tactics, you’re putting your company at risk and missing the opportunities embedded in times of uncertainty and change. Here’s the deal: the only reason your playbooks worked before is beca...
Oct 24, 2023•33 min•Season 3Ep. 8
Confusion. Miscommunication. Misunderstandings. That’s what happens when marketers and business leaders use too many buzzwords. YET WE ALL KEEP USING THEM (us, too). Chaos agents disguised as trendy trifles that we claim to aid in communicating our marketing plans and getting buy-in from CEOs, clients, and teams. Poppycock! Don’t use buzzwords, say what you mean, otherwise, you’re just perpetuating a broken system where: The C-suite doesn’t trust marketers Marketers struggle to get buy-in from C...
Oct 17, 2023•42 min•Season 3Ep. 5
We’ve got a sweet treat for you this week: a deep dive into Halloween candy, horror movies, and a deep analysis into how much Margaret pumpkin spice lattes in the fall vs summer months. …And we continue our convo about the marketing gig economy and how fear-based decisions are causing marketers and leaders to miss the huge opportunity in front of them: Chaos. No more social “town square”; folks have scattered to small communities across platforms. For now, marketing budgets are anemic and it is ...
Oct 12, 2023•20 min
Times of chaos can be huge opportunities for companies who are open to thinking outside the playbooks and frameworks they’re familiar with. Leaders who approach current industry and economic challenges with curiosity and bravery will find themselves uniquely positioned to win. It’s time to get scrappy! This includes how marketing leaders plan for growth on limited budgets and even more scrutiny from investors, CFOs, and CEOs. These days, a good marketing strategy looks a lot more like a business...
Oct 10, 2023•28 min•Season 3Ep. 6
Moments of chaos are moments of opportunity. That is your marketing mantra heading into 2024. In this conversation, Devin and Margaret cut through the chaos that is the present-day marketing landscape to offer marketing leaders a bit of clarity. The key to your company’s strategic growth may not be as complicated as you think. It isn’t another tool in your tech stack, there’s no AI hack, and it’s not something you can gather pixel data on. Are you ready for this? The answer is… your network. It’...
Oct 03, 2023•41 min•Season 3Ep. 5
Most of us used the wrong criteria when we evaluated job opportunities at some point in our careers. You know what they are: reactive, emotion-driven departures. Being lured by pay without evaluating the health of the company. Taking a lateral move at a company based on a promise that - if we were looking at the situation objectively we’d know—never results in the upward motion or promotion we were promised. The list is long. Then comes this point where you not only see the whole game board, but...
Sep 26, 2023•45 min•Season 3Ep. 4
Did you attend this year’s HubSpot Inbound conference? Whether you did or not, Devin and Margaret are here to break down the highlights of everyone's favorite marketing conference. What did they take away? What was their favorite part? (And maybe even spill a little tea about where they leave room for improvement, too.) From juicy behind-the-scenes details of being a speaker at one of the top marketing conferences to tried-and-true conference strategies, this episode will have you both laughing ...
Sep 21, 2023•24 min
Is the marketing industry better or worse off in today’s day and age based on the fact that we have access to more data than we could ever possibly report on? They share stories of the good and bad ways they’ve seen data used to adjust marketing programs, the power of data in marketing experimentation, and share hot takes they gathered from their friends in the industry. Since we have so many data points across platforms and initiatives, there’s so much to interpret and use to make decisions. Th...
Sep 19, 2023•32 min•Season 3Ep. 3
We asked, you answered. What are your least favorite marketing jargon terms? Sourced from our loyal community on LinkedIn, hosts Devin Bramhall and Margaret Kelsey discuss some of the most used marketing terms in the industry today, challenging marketers and executives to move beyond “strategic” and “evergreen” as descriptors of your efforts. And in Devin’s own words, “Say what you actually mean.” But don’t worry, Devin and Margaret know they aren’t exempt from this industry-wide communication p...
Sep 12, 2023•34 min•Season 3Ep. 2
We’re back for season 3 with a topic sent in by a listener: the relationship between sales and marketing. Fraught relationship or not, there is so much opportunity and growth when these teams are aligned. So why is it so hard to make that happen? Devin and Margaret challenge leaders to bridge the communication gap with their sales counterparts, and challenge marketers to gain an understanding of how to extract crucial customer information from sales conversations, build exclusive content offers ...
Sep 05, 2023•38 min•Season 3Ep. 1
In this bonus episode, Devin Bramhall and Margaret Kelsey sit down with Rachel Downey, CEO and Founder of Share Your Genius (their production company) to reflect back on how the podcast came to be, how transformative it has been for themselves and their personal brands, and how this podcast has helped move them past their fear. And don’t worry, there are some solid asides too. You won’t want to miss hearing about the episode that got cut. 😉Press play for a look back and a look forward in the wo...
Aug 29, 2023•36 min
We’re back with a bonus episode to hold you over until season 3 drops in September of 2023! What are your guesses for how many times our hosts Devin and Margaret said the word “content” during season 2? Hint, it’s over 50. 🤯 Devin and Margaret reveal the total number and more in this episode, including teasing what’s coming up for season 3, reflecting on the original premise of Don’t Say Content, and sharing a few times where saying the word “content” was actually warranted (that might also dou...
Aug 22, 2023•14 min
Here’s a bonus episode where our host, Margaret Kelsey, joined Exit Five, hosted by Dave Gerhardt. Layoffs, budget cuts, slower sales cycles, and a lack of urgency to buy your product right now. That's become normal in B2B SaaS over the last two quarters. But what does it mean for marketer? Do nothing? Just play defense? Yeah right. Marketers are being asked to do more with less, and if you're one of those marketers this is a session you don't want to miss. Dave is joined by Margaret Kelsey (Fou...
Jul 26, 2023•51 min
The relationship between Founders/CEOs and their heads of marketing is broken. The Boss doesn’t understand how marketing works, so they micromanage their marketing leaders into poor performance. Marketing leaders struggle to communicate value because much of their work isn’t tied directly to revenue and they don’t always know how to speak to the business metrics and challenges that matter to The Boss. This tension at the executive level leads to wasted money, slowed company growth, and more rece...
Jun 27, 2023•58 min•Season 2Ep. 10
Have you ever had one of those days where you just don't feel like doing anything? Or maybe a deadline is looming, but it's not quite here yet, so you're putting it off? You just can’t seem to make your brain do what it needs to? Devin and Margaret jump into their shared insights into what motivates them and how they tackle obstacles to rise above the pernicious "shoulds" in their life. The act of inventory-ing the “shoulds” and deciding what is actually key to forward progress is crucial. We ca...
Jun 20, 2023•46 min•Season 2Ep. 9
The Year is 2014. The article title is 7 Tips For Cooking The Perfect Marry-Me Chicken. You wade past the thick veil of misogyny, but the stench of grifting just won’t go away. The first tip is to Check Your Local Grocery Store For Sales, with an affiliate link listing nearby sale produce. Flash forward to 2023. You’re scrolling through LinkedIn and belligerent posts about AI flood your feed. You search for the earnest, meaningful comment furthering the conversation, but all you see are grifters...
Jun 13, 2023•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 8
The market has rapidly evolved over the last few years. What worked 5 years ago isn’t working as well as it used to, and we’re seeing signs of more “traditional marketing” fading into the background in the B2B space. So what can we do to increase our chances of success? Where is the future of content headed? Our hosts, Devin Bramhall and Margaret Kelsey dive into their thoughts on what is working currently, how we can all capitalize on technology and existing marketing tactics, and where the fut...
Jun 06, 2023•37 min•Season 2Ep. 7
The People-First movement in workplace culture has risen in popularity over the past several years and ushered in the concept of bringing your “whole self” to work. It aims to prioritize the well-being and satisfaction of employees. But does bringing your whole self to work truly benefit you and your colleagues? And do you truly want *everyone* to bring their whole self? Your boss, your CEO, etc - does it make you feel more safe knowing every part of everyone at the company? Several challenges a...
May 30, 2023•55 min•Season 2Ep. 6
Over the past 5 years—and especially in 2023—hiring in every industry has been turned upside down. Marketers want to know what has changed, and what has stayed the same. What goes on behind the scenes of hiring the best marketers? How do marketing execs evaluate cover letters and resumes? What are they thinking about and evaluating during various phases of the interview process? Margaret Kelsey (VP of Marketing at Openview, Director of Brand and Creative at Invision) and Devin Bramhall (former C...
May 23, 2023•51 min•Season 2Ep. 5
The world of creativity is multifaceted. How do you tap into it? How do you use it effectively? And how do you enjoy it? B2B marketing execs Margaret Kelsey (VP of Marketing at OpenView, Director of Brand and Creative at InVision) and Devin Bramhall (former CEO of Animalz, Director of Content at Help Scout) explore the multidimensional nature of creativity and how it can be unlocked through various means. From taking breaks and pursuing fun activities to pushing through exhaustion with set goals...
May 16, 2023•59 min•Season 2Ep. 4
It's bonus episode time! Our host, Devin Bramhall joined David Khim, Co-Founder of Omniscent Digital, on Onmiscent's podcast, The Long Game. They discuss Devin's rise from content manager to CEO, the future of AI, content marketing, and leadership lessons, where Devin reflects on lessons learned from mistakes she's made along the way. Listen to The Long Game: https://beomniscient.com/blog/category/the-long-game/ Connect with David: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidlykhim/...
May 12, 2023•55 min
Why can founders and CEOs let marketers do their jobs? From cutting marketing projects mid-flight, to not clearly defining goals or changing KPIs on a whim, founders and CEOs continue to mettle in marketing. Why does this keep happening? Last season we talked about what’s wrong with marketers and the marketing industry. It’s time we flipped the script and put the spotlight on founders and CEOs. B2B marketing execs Margaret Kelsey (VP of Marketing at OpenView, Director of Brand and Creative at In...
May 09, 2023•36 min•Season 2Ep. 3
