B2B Marketing Leaders: Embracing the Building Mindset for a More Fulfilling and ‘Fun’ Career

As I reflect on my career in marketing—a career I never initially envisioned for myself—I realize how vital a “building mindset” has been in shaping my journey and one that continues to keep it fun for me. As I stumbled into a career in marketing many years ago, I did so because I found fulfillment in problem-solving and I realized that marketing was no longer just about creative ads, but instead it was about data, automation, and leveraging the best tech solutions to maximize results. I never had the luxury of abundant resources at my disposal. Still, I realize now that that has been a blessing as it pushed me to find creative ways to get results and helped me stay curious, pushing me first to understand how to build effectively before scaling.

In the fast-paced world of B2B marketing, it is easy to get swept up in growth and expansion, or being worried and frustrated when you don’t have enough resources to do everything. However, adopting a building mindset is crucial for sustained success and personal career development. Here are my key lessons for marketers at any stage of their careers:

1. Cultivate a Culture of Innovation

Regardless of the size of your company, fostering a culture of innovation is vital. A building mindset encourages marketers to view challenges as opportunities for growth. This entrepreneurial approach helps avoid stagnation and keeps the team motivated. I have found that the best and most successful people I have worked with, are the ones I can freely brainstorm and collaborate with without worrying about not having all the answers or making mistakes. Those are the people who will follow you to other companies and you will be able to rely on them any time you need help or advice.

Action Tip: Regularly brainstorm new strategies and technologies with your team. Encourage experimentation and be open to fresh ideas, even if they come from unexpected places.

2. Embrace Team Agility

Even in bigger organizations, smaller, agile teams can make quicker decisions and adapt to market changes more readily. Emphasizing a lean structure allows for ownership and accountability among team members, which can enhance creativity and responsiveness. In my experience, you will find that with a simpler and leaner structure, you can more effectively prioritize the right projects with the biggest impact, and your team will start thinking more creatively about the best way to get the right things done.

Action Tip: Strive to keep your team compact and focused. Your team structure should be able to fit in a napkin, keeping your organization as flat as possible covering the four most essential functions: product marketing, growth, branding, and operations. Empower each member to take initiative, fostering a sense of ownership over their projects.

3. Engage in Hands-On Leadership

As you advance in your career, it may be tempting to delegate tasks completely. However, staying involved with day-to-day operations allows you to maintain a clear understanding of your team’s dynamics and challenges. Recently, I realized I wanted to keep up my creative thinking and decided to take on an event branding project, while it feels overwhelming on top of my other responsibilities, it is also giving me a jolt of creativity and new motivation.

Action Tip: Be present and active in your team’s processes. This engagement not only helps you stay informed but also inspires your team and reinforces a collaborative spirit.

4. Prioritize Continuous Learning

The marketing landscape evolves rapidly, making continuous learning essential. Encourage your team to pursue professional development through workshops, online courses, and industry events. My favorite personal story is when someone on my team suggested we read “Obviously Awesome” by April Dunford, and it turned into an actionable and successful project that led us to rework our company positioning. The reason for the success was because the full team was so excited and committed, we were all bought into what we just learned, and we were eager to put it into practice.

Action Tip: Allocate time and resources for team members to learn new skills. This commitment not only enhances their capabilities but also fosters a culture of innovation. Create a ‘book club’ to share learning on new books/podcasts/marketing events. (Here are some of my most recent go to favorites: everything that April Dunford publishes, Exit Five community and podcast, podcasts and book The Next CMO by Peter Mahoney , podcast the SaaS Talk, Kell Blog, books: Loved by Martina Lauchengco Make it Punchy by Emma Stratton )

5. Build Strong Client Relationships

Strong relationships with clients are essential for gathering valuable feedback and insights. Engaging with clients on a personal level allows you to refine your strategies and create solutions that genuinely meet their needs. I know how hard it is to find the time and then chase sales to get you involved in clients’ meetings, but nothing has been more valuable for me to be in front of customers, not to mention the relationship you build with sales in the process, you are on the road with them, and they always appreciate that.

Action Tip: Regularly interact with clients to understand their perspectives. Make a point to travel with sales once a quarter. Use this information to inform your marketing initiatives, and improve offerings and value proposition.

6. Leverage Data for Decision-Making

Utilizing data analytics is crucial for identifying growth opportunities and refining your marketing strategies. Data-driven insights can illuminate customer behaviors and reveal successful tactics. My experience is that every time you take on a new job, the marketing analytics are often not fit for purpose, this is most likely due to legacy operational/processes issues and it can take up to the first 12 months of your tenure to get things in order, but in the meantime, look for leading indicators that things are heading in the right direction (website visits, time on site, SEO ranking, social media followers, etc.) while you get your funnel to measure accurately.

Action Tip: Assess your top 3 priorities and define your leading and lagging indicators to guide you at a macro level so you can confidently present to your executive team how you are improving, building trust, and having the runway to build your engine. Regularly analyze data to assess the effectiveness of your campaigns. Use these insights to guide future strategies and enhance your marketing efforts.

The Challenge of Scaling

As companies grow, the risk of bureaucratic stagnation increases. To maintain a building mindset, consider these strategies:

• Encourage Cross-Functional Collaboration: Break down silos by fostering teamwork across departments. Diverse perspectives can lead to innovative solutions.
• Preserve Company Values: Ensure that core values remain intact as the organization grows. A strong culture emphasizing a building mindset is vital for maintaining an entrepreneurial spirit.
• Reassess Goals Regularly: Continuously evaluate and adapt your goals and strategies. Open dialogue about what’s working and what isn’t keeps innovation at the forefront.

In B2B marketing, the desire to build should be a constant. By nurturing a building mindset, you can drive personal growth, foster innovation, and inspire your team. Embrace experimentation, learning, client engagement, and data-driven strategies to ensure that your contributions to the company remain robust and impactful, and most of all, you can keep having fun!