Jon Miller is described as a legend in our industry, the co-founder and original CMO of Marketo, and the former CMO of DemandBase; his opinion is well worth watching. 

The extensive article that inspired this conversation makes 13 predictions, and, of course, following the show's editorial policy, Ian and Jeff pick 5 that resonate most with them.  

They discuss: 

• Marketers will begin marketing to agents, not just humans

• Taste, trust, and accountability will become the antidote to AI slop

• Composable stacks will be mainstream by 2030, but <20% will adopt in 2026

• AI will completely transform legacy SaaS martech - but not in 2026

• AI-driven uncertainty will intensify in 2026; preparation is the only answer

Ian then joins Robert Rose in the virtual bar, The Rose & Rockstar.

They keep the AI theme going with a discussion about an article from The Content Marketing Institute - Good Editing Makes AI Content Memorable - and discuss whether it’s true that editing can make mediocre AI content memorable, following some criticism of this article on LinkedIn.   

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Jon Miller’s Predictions for B2B Go-To-Market in 2026 – chiefmartec

• Adriaan Bloem’s LinkedIn post on AI content

• Keith Smiith's post about using CoPilot for BD

• Fathertime Bourbon

• Good Editing Makes AI Content Memorable

• Robert’s podcast: This Old Marketing 

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

• Life During Wartime (2003 Remaster)

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

 They discuss: 

• Audience segmentation beyond job titles

• Building and operationalizing personas

• The role of AI and content in marketing

• Customer journey mapping and needs analysis

Ian then joins Robert Rose in the virtual bar, The Rose & Rockstar, for a classic cocktail and a chat. 

This week, Ian and Robert discuss Robert’s latest article in his Rose Tinted Glasses column on the Content Marketing Institute blog: The Career Hedge: Why Even Your 'Satisfied' Employees Are Running an Exit Strategy

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Cathy McKnight on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Bear Essentials: You Can’t Personalize What You Don't Understand

• The Career Hedge: Why Even Your 'Satisfied' Employees Are Running an Exit Strategy

• Robert’s podcast: This Old Marketing 

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

They discuss: 

• Quantify the cost of inaction

• Understand persona needs

• Lower risk of change

• Bring proof

• Build internal consensus

Ian then joins Robert Rose in the virtual bar, The Rose & Rockstar, to celebrate 6 years of the podcast.

Over a fabulous cocktail, they revisit the first chat they had in the bar, about expressing your point of view in “unprecedented” times and how this relates to his work today, and their discussion two weeks ago about showing your “pointy bits”.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• The JOLT Effect

• What is Customer Indecision? Understanding and Overcoming Buyer Hesitation

• The Greatest Sales Deck I’ve Ever Seen | by Andy Raskin | Mission.org | Medium

• Rockstar CMO FM #9 - Ahmed Hasan and Cocktails with Robert Rose

• Robert’s podcast: This Old Marketing 

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

• Prince - Nothing Compares 2 U (Official Music Video)

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

They discuss: 

• Some categories still need basic education

• Keep the education grounded

• Present your unique POV on how to solve buyer challenges

• Do buyers want to be experts?

• Campaigns need to master “answer engine optimization”

Ian then joins Robert Rose in the virtual bar, The Rose & Rockstar, for a classic cocktail and a chat. 

This week, Ian and Robert discuss the latest article from Robert in his Rose Colored Glasses Series on the Content Marketing Institutes blog - The Ghost Workforce: How AI Is Reshaping Content and Marketing Roles in 2026

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Buyers are not blank slates - Kerry Cunningham, 6Sense

• The Beat Newsletter - Just Enough Education to Perform

• The Ghost Workforce: How AI Is Reshaping Content and Marketing Roles in 2026

• Robert’s podcast: This Old Marketing 

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

• Stereophonics - Mr. Writer (Official Music Video)

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

They discuss: 

• The funnel is not dead, but it needs a refresh 

• The impact on marketing when this foundational work is broken.

• What a modern funnel looks like (and it’s not about attribution)

• Mapping to the customer journey, and thinking beyond the buying journey 

• Focusing on solving the customer's problems, not showcasing features

• Metrics to focus on 

Ian then joins Robert Rose in the virtual bar, The Rose & Rockstar, for a classic cocktail and a chat. 

This week, Ian and Robert discuss a phrase Robert has been using in his writing, “The Pointy Bits”, as he encourages B2B writers to stand out and show their pointy bits, instead of smoothing all their content with AI, but include the slightly uncomfortable, but differentiated things about you, your company, and brand. 

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Cathy McKnight on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Bear Essentials: The Funnel Isn’t Dead, Your Version of It Is

• Robert’s YouTube Channel

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

They discuss:

• The Slice community and what inspired it

• Defining fractional CMOs

• Why organizations choose fractional talent

• Lessons Learned from the Community

• Advice for transitioning to fractional marketing

• What they would have on their riders when starting a new gig 

• What they would chuck into our Rockstar CMO Swimming Pool

Ian then joins Robert Rose in the virtual bar, The Rose & Rockstar, for a classic cocktail and a chat. This week, Ian and Robert discuss a recent article that describes Rick Rubin as the future of work and our role as creative production moves to AI. 

If you have any comments or thoughts on this topic, we would love to hear them!

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Catherine Nichols on LinkedIn

• Jeremy Laight on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• The Slice Network

• The Slice Network LinkedIn Group

• Robert’s podcast: This Old Marketing 

• Rick Rubin Is the Future of Work - by Tom White

• The New Marketing Skill Isn't Prompting. It's Building

• Sticky Flow Mapper

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com
  

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The five tips:

1. Have a clear strategy

2. Provide expertise and education

3. Nurture your community

4. Tell stories that engage and entertain

5. Don’t treat the platform like an advertising channel, but advertise!

Ian then joins Robert Rose in the virtual bar, The Rose & Rockstar, for a classic cocktail and a chat. This week, Robert shares his decision to leave ChatGPT for Anthropic Claude and the research he’s done on all the LLMs that led to his move. 

If you have any comments or thoughts on this topic, we would love to hear them!

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Enshittification: Why Everything Suddenly Got Worse and What to Do About It by Cory Doctorow

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Highlights from their chat:

• The “Data Barf Binder”-  where marketing teams measure activity, not impact.

• Investing in employee communications leads to better outcomes.

• Awareness metrics can only be useful if connected to outcomes.

• Quality and context are more important than quantity in content.

• OKRs help align marketing efforts with business objectives.

They also discuss Cathy’s podcast, Uncharted Journey, which is currently on hiatus, which shares stories of successful women in marketing. 

Ian then joins Robert Rose in the virtual bar, The Rose & Rockstar, for a classic cocktail and a chat, and Robert shares his view on a recent article in AdWeek by Mark Ritson about Anthropic's report on AI’s impact on the labor market. 

If you have any comments or thoughts on this topic, we would love to hear them!

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Cathy McKnight on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Uncharted Journey | Podcast

• Bear Essentials: Your KPIs Are Measuring Activity, Not Impact

• This Old Marketing - AI Can Now Do Marketing. Now What? (523)

• Mark Ritson on AdWeek 65% of Marketing Jobs May Not Survive AI

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

• Making the business case

• Aligning with business goals, outcomes, and stakeholders

• Customer focus

• Building on 4 key foundations

• Proving value and scaling what works

Ian then joins Robert Rose in the virtual bar, The Rose & Rockstar, for a classic cocktail and a chat, and Robert unveils his new Audience Trust Index research that he is publsihing on the Content Marketing Institute blog. 

If you have any comments or thoughts on this topic, we would love to hear them!

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Simon Daniels on LinkedIn 

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• What's Broken in GTM and How to Fix It (podcast)

• B2B Customer Growth | Accenture Song

• Measuring Content Marketing in the AI Age, Part 1: The Audience Trust Index

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Let It Grow - Eric Claptoon

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As is the editorial policy of the show, they pick 5 f’in’ things that jumped out of this work:

• The CMO needs to be the voice of the customer

• Trading authority for influence

• When chaos reigns, stabilize the ship

• The long and the short of it

• The death of the CMO is wildly overstated

Then Ian joins Robert Rose in the virtual bar, The Rose & Rockstar, for a chat about a recent article he published on the Content Marketing Institute blog, part of a series discussing plural brands and earning attention one room at a time.   

If you have any comments or thoughts on this topic, we would love to hear them!

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn 

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Confessions of a CMO

• Uncensored CMO

• Winning B2B Brand Trust Part 2: How To Earn Attention One Room at a Time

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• The Clash - Should I Stay or Should I Go (Official Video)

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lisa Bonanno is a revenue and customer-focused marketing executive with 20+ years of experience optimizing and scaling global pipeline engines from inquiry to advocacy for B2B SaaS businesses.

Ian dives into Lisa’s marketing leadership experience, what drew her to marketing as a profession, her views on getting a marketing education, what we can learn from B2C, and:

• What is on Lisa’s rider when she’s considering a new gig

• Where she starts when starting a new gig

• The advice she gives to young marketers looking to follow in her footsteps

• What she would chuck into our Rockstar CMO Swimming Pool - our portal to marketing hell

• The tune that gets her marketing mojo working

After catching up with Lisa, Ian joins Robert Rose in the virtual bar, The Rose & Rockstar, for a chat about whether business users getting access to AI-generated code, or vide coding, is going to kill SaaS software. 

If you have any comments or thoughts on this topic, we would love to hear them!

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Lisa P. Bonnano on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Tuesday 2¢ - Is The Vibe Killing SaaS?

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Florence + The Machine - Dog Days Are Over (2010 Version)

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ian and Cathy discuss:

• Marketing teams are often organized around outdated models

• The pandemic accelerated the need for digital transformation

• Organizations must focus on outcomes, not just outputs

• Silos in organizations are inevitable, but should be permeable

• AI should enhance human creativity, not replace it

• Organizations waste money on unused technology

Ian shares that B2B tech marketers need to create three types of content to move away from our focus on features and functions, and steps through his 3 D’s of Product Content Marketing: 

• Default

• Distinct

• Direction

If you have any comments or thoughts on this topic, we would love to hear them!

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Cathy McKnight on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Cathy’s weekly blog - Bear Essentials

• Cathy’s firm - Seventh Bear

• Beyond features: the three Ds of product marketing | Startups Magazine

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

They discuss:

• Sales stops trusting marketing when the story is fractured.

• A distinctive story helps avoid the B2B beige trap.

• Buyers make decisions based on emotional connections, not just features.

• Competing solely on price leads to a race to the bottom.

• Content should be treated as a strategic asset, not just a tactic, and needs a proper launch plan to be effective.

In the Rose & Rockstar, our virtual bar, Ian asks Robert Rose, Chief Trouble Maker at Seventh Bear, what he would do today if he were starting from scratch with a content program or a content creator today, in the current environment with social media algorithms and search experiences that seem to discourage organic growth versus paid. 

If you have any comments or thoughts on this topic, we would love to hear them. We welcome your feedback. 

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn 

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• The 5 F’in’ Marketing Fundamentals

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the studio, Dennis shares his experience of growing a content marketing community from a few like-minded bloggers at a local restaurant to an international virtual community with thousands of members and speakers that represent the great and the good of content marketing. 

In the Rose & Rockstar, our virtual bar, Ian and Robert discuss some recent work he’s published on the Content Marketing Institute blog that looks at how we build authority ladders for our AI agents, the work that this takes and some of the risks if we don’t.

If you have any comments or thoughts on this topic, we would love to hear them. We welcome your feedback. 

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Dennis Shiao on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Bay Area Content Marketing Meetup

• From Dennis: Attention Retention and the Content Corner Newsletter

• Robert’s article - Agentic AI in Marketing Part 3: How To Build an Authority Ladder

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the studio this week, Cathy McKnight makes her monthly visit to chat about all things content, asking the question: Do CMOs still care about a CMS when defining their tech stack? 

They also dive into the challenge of disruptive requests within a marketing team, discussing her article Last Week's Crisis Shouldn't Affect This Week’s Work.

Ian then joins Robert in the Rose & Rockstar, our virtual bar, to explore an analogy Robert has made about the railways in his recent article for Content Marketing Institute on deploying AI.  

If you have any comments or thoughts on any of these topics, please get in touch with the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Cathy McKnight on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Cathy’s article - Bear Essentials: Last Week's Crisis Shouldn't Affect This Week’s Work

• Robert’s article - Agentic AI in Marketing for 2026

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we dive back into the obsession marketing commentators seem to have with declaring things as dead. Recently, it seems PR has been getting the “it’s dead” treatment from the cool kids high on social media Kool-Aid, but in an age when networks, human-to-human marketing, and influence are so important, the chaps discuss why PR should be very much alive.

They discuss:

• Modern PR requires building relationships with influencers, not just journalists.

• The skills needed for PR have evolved with the rise of social media.

• Integrating PR into overall marketing is crucial for success.

If this resonates with you or if you have a suggestion for a topic in the bar, please get in touch with us - hello@rockstarcmo.com

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• This Old Marketing Podcast - The Death of Dead Marketing

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The five they discuss:

• Think holistically

• Account-Based Marketing (ABM)

• Get good at AEO (Answer Engine Optimization)

• Leverage the CEO 

• Build first-party audiences

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a hot topic you'd like us to discuss, please contact us using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• How To Navigate the Pipeline Crisis - Kellblog

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• Panic in Detroit (2013 Remaster) - David Bowie

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, there is a story that has been doing the rounds on LinkedIn for the last three weeks, that keeps appearing in Ian’s feed from the Wall Street Journal called Companies Are Desperately Seeking ‘Storytellers’ that has got a lot of commentary, pointing out its flaws. 

As an expert and author of three books on Content Marketing, Ian asks Robert: if he had written the story, what would he have written? 

The answer? As you’ll hear, if he’d have covered the following:

• Storytelling is a crucial skill, but many companies misunderstand what it means

• Effective storytelling requires a blend of strategy and mechanics

• Tension and resolution are key elements of a good story, which marketing content lacks

• Businesses need to recognize existing storytelling skills within their teams.

If this resonates with you or if you have a suggestion for a topic in the bar, please get in touch with us - hello@rockstarcmo.com

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Companies Are Desperately Seeking ‘Storytellers’ - WSJ

• Yes, You Better be a F**king Storyteller - Rockstar CMO

• Ann Handley's take on LinkedIn

• Lyla Rae Hightower

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The fails that Jeff identifies:

• Poor Reputation with internal customers

• Campaigns miss their mark

• Poor sales productivity

• Customer lose trust

• Marketing loses business credibility

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a hot topic you'd like us to discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Rockstar CMO Presents: The 5 F'in' Marketing Fundamentals

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• Prefab Sprout - When Love Breaks Down

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, as they lift their glasses to the new year, Ian and Robert dig into one of Robert’s favorite predictions for 2026, and they discuss:

• AI strategy will be integrated into everyday business and the term 'AI strategy' will be quickly outdated.

• AI tool use will increasingly be driven by personal productivity, rather than by a corporate mandate.

• The business need for human skills augmented by AI.

• Using AI to make work better rather than faster.

Plus, a prediction about crypto, as both Ian and Robert show that they are not crypto experts. 

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• This Old Marketing’s - 2026 Content & Marketing Predictions

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Deciding to narrow down the over 100 conversations to one topic, Ian picked AI, and the five things featured in this podcast are:

#1 - Don’t lose what you learn on the creative or learning journey by pressing the AI easy button

#2 - The jury is out on whether AI saves time for creatives

#3 - The AI froth will dissolve, and we’ll be back to the fundamentals

#4 - AI will disrupt search, organic reach, and engagement

#5 - The impact of AI on the buyer's journey

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.
This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

However, this week, as we ease into the holidays, Ian and Robert are doing something different, not talking directly about marketing but a fascinating AI collaboration project Robert has been working on, as he has unveiled the next country music star - Lyla Rae Hightower.

We learn about the process Robert has gone through over the last six months, using his own music to create a new country-music singer character who has released an EP, using various AI tools to create not just the music, but the images and videos, and how he has launched Lyla Ray on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, and all the channels. 

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• Lyla Rae Hightower - website and music

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Cathy shares her perspective on content operations and management for 2025 and predictions for 2026, and they discuss the importance of human involvement in AI-driven content creation, the challenges of personalization, and the rise of new CMS solutions. 

As they look ahead to 2026, Cathy hopes for a return to fundamentals, emphasizing the need for structured content operations and the importance of effective content intake processes, as the AI froth hopefully dies down.

If you have any comments or thoughts on this topic, we would love to hear them, we welcome your feedback. 

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Cathy McKnight on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Bear Essentials: Content Intake Isn’t Bureaucracy, it’s the Cheapest Form of Sanity

• Cathy’s firm - Seventh Bear

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Inspired by Robert’s post on LinkedIn talking about how marketing tactics go through a cycle of “died.. frankensteined .. re-monetized .. enshittified .. repeat”, they discuss the future of corporate websites with the changes in our behavior with AI and how Google will evolve the search experience. 

They discuss:

• How marketers often ruin nice things.

• Are websites becoming obsolete with the rise of AI visualizations?

• Trust in advertising is linked to how easily information is understood.

• The future of search results may prioritize personalized content.

• Building relationships with audiences is more important than traffic.

• Subscription models may redefine website purposes.

• Content producers face challenges in gaining organic traffic.

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• The wine Robert chose this week - Brunello di Montalcino

• Robert's post on LinkedIn - Same Enshittification, Different Day.

• AI Can’t Kill Websites That Build Connections (Yet) - Robert’s article

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The five things they selected:

#1 - The buyer's AI assistant

#2 - Brand is back

#3 - Unifying marketing and sales as a revenue department

#4 - The rise of fractional

#5 - CMOs need to be the C-suite’s market analyst

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a hot topic you'd like us to discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• This week’s Beat newsletter

• Back to Brand - Rockstar CMO Blog

• What's Broken in GTM and How to Fix It podcast

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• Coldplay - Fix You (Official Video)

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Inspired by an article by Robert - Content Marketing in 2026: Why Your System Matters More Than Your Content - this week, over a modern English cocktail, Ian and Robert look forward to what 2026 will bring for content marketing, which inevitably means chatting about AI.

They discuss:

• The changing role of AI in content creation

• Overcoming the challenges of scale 

• Balancing brand consistency with stifling creativity

• The creation process as part of the thinking process

• The word of 2025 “authenticity”

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• Content Marketing in 2026: Why Your System Matters More Than Your Content

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s an extensive report, running to over 30 pages, and the chaps give it their 5 f’in’ things treatment and pull out 5 points that caught their eye:

1. The evolution of 95-5 rule to 3 states: split 60% out of market, 34% are actively evaluating, and 6% are ready to buy. 

2. There’s a semi-permeable membrane between in-market and out-of-market

3. The new member of the buying group - our buyers' AI assistant

4. Hidden buyers are a challenge

5. The Category-Brand Matrix - Understanding where you are in the category

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a hot topic you'd like us to discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• The Brand-to-Demand Zone Playbook (Gated)

• Post on LinkedIn by Kerrry Cunnigham discussing the report

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• DJ Khaled - All I Do Is Win (Official Video) ft. T-Pain, Ludacris, Rick Ross, Snoop Dogg

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Ian and Robert discuss whether the froth will be blown off AI and we’ll return to the fundamentals in 2026 with AI as a tool, or will the hype continue?

They discuss:

• If AI's frothiness will continue or if reality will set in during 2026.

• A prediction that the marketing landscape is shifting back to fundamentals.

• AI is becoming a personal productivity tool rather than a replacement for jobs.

• The gradual and complex integration of AI into business processes

• The continued importance of understanding customer personas 

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• The AI special on This Old Marketing

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, they discuss:

• Cathy’s industry analyst perspective on Adobe's potential acquisition of Semrush

• Practice vs. Insanity - Cathy’s latest research that shares four pieces of advice for meeting the experience expectations of today’s customer across channels. 

• The “Bear Essentials”, a new content series breaking down content marketing challenges. 

If you have any comments or thoughts on this topic, we would love to hear them, we welcome your feedback. 

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Cathy McKnight on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Adobe to Acquire Semrush (Press Release)

• Practice vs. Insanity, it’s a matter of perspective

• Bear Essentials: You don't have a content problem; you have a decision problem

• Cathy’s firm - Seventh Bear

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, over a splendid seasonal cocktail, Ian and Robert discuss the apparent shift in LinkedIn from a community platform we perceive it to be to an attention-grabbing ad platform, with reported changes in the algorithm and the experience of folks with big audiences not getting the impressions they once did. 

They ask if LinkedIn is still a great platform for organic reach or is now pay-to-play, and Robert shares some advice on how content needs to perform rather than depend on individual follower counts.

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1. B2B buying dynamics shift

2. AI moves from pilot to priority

3. Growth bets consolidate

4. The demand engine rebalances

5. Capability gaps emerge

Which they share in a report and a webinar (links below).

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a hot topic you'd like us to discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Marketing Priorities Survey 2025 - MomentumABM

• 2026 Marketing Reset: Why the Old Playbook Won’t Win - MomentumABM

• Girl You Know It's True - The Latest Beat Newsletter

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• Papa's Got A Brand New Bag - James Brown

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, over a seasonal cocktail with a biscuit rim (yes, it’s a thing), they discuss the idea of being good at AI - and whatever the hell that means. 

They discuss a study by a University in Finland covered by Inc magazine and the Dunning-Kruger effect it found, both in people’s perceptions of their own AI abilities and in the subject matter they are using AI to create.

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• Robert's post on LinkedIn

• New Research Warns That AI Is Causing a 'Reverse Dunning-Kruger Effect' - on Inc.com

• Beware the Robot Yes Man - from Ian’s blog

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that's hot for you that we should discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• The Revenue Department - on Ian’s blog

• Creating ART - on Ian’s website

• Rockstar CMO Presents: The 5 F'in' Marketing Fundamentals

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• Marcus Miller-Come Together

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, over a fancy martini, Ian and Robert discuss a keynote from P&G’s Marc Pritchard at this year’s ANA Masters of Marketing Conference, where he outlined his five marketing fundamentals and Robert’s take in an article for the Content Marketing Institute blog. 

The five points from Pritchard’s keynote that they discuss:

• Know your consumer

• Know your brand

• Fall in love with advertising

• Build memory

• Nurture creativity

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• 5 Marketing Fundamentals That Still Work in 2026

• ​​Marc Pritchard: Why marketing’s old rules still work in a new world | The Drum

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Highlights from this week:

• Cathy shares her experiences from various conferences, highlighting the inspiration gained from Adobe Max and emphasizing that creativity cannot be derived solely from tools like AI or Canva.

• They discuss Cathy’s view on the identity crisis of the CMO role, the challenges they face in balancing short-term metrics with long-term brand-building, and the lack of a clear career path compared to other C-suite roles.

• Cathy shares her client experience, emphasizing the importance of collaboration between marketing and sales teams and the evolving landscape of technology selection and buyer behavior in B2B marketing.

If you have any comments or thoughts on this topic, we would love to hear them, we welcome your feedback. 

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Cathy McKnight on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Cathy’s firm - Seventh Bear

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Ian learns that Robert is re-reading a marketing classic, Different by Youngme Moon, and asks why Robert keeps revisiting this book. They discuss the importance of differentiation, how different is better than better, and how we need to be wrong for some to be right for others.

Plus, the importance of knowing whether your cider is hard or soft. 

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• Different: Escaping the Competitive Herd by Youngme Moon | Goodreads

• Sally Hogshead - Different is Better than Better

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.
This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

They explore if their 5 f’in’ marketing fundamentals are relevant to this sector, and Jeff shares his experience of each of them working within non-profit organizations. 

Highlights from the conversation:

• Marketing for a cause requires understanding multiple audiences.

• The knowledge phase is crucial for nonprofits to identify needs.

• A master plan aligns organizational goals with fundraising efforts.

• Storytelling is essential for emotional engagement in nonprofits.

• Campaigns serve as the product in nonprofit marketing.

• Data management is critical for tracking donor engagement.

• Nonprofits must balance awareness and fundraising objectives.

• B2B marketing skills are transferable to nonprofit marketing.

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that's hot for you that we should discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• Public Enemy - Fight The Power - On YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Robert is a prolific writer, Ian returns to pulling at the thread of Robert’s writing process that they discussed last month. This week, they explore the process that Robert has developed for using ChatGPT as a writing and research assistant.

The discussion includes:

• Robert’s 8-point process for developing content with AI

• Training ChatGPT to interview Robert about a topic

• Creating a 'show Bible' for a topic for a collection of content assets

• Pressure testing an idea with AI and the unexpected insights this can give

• How this process actually takes more work and time, but improves the quality

Robert also shared an excellent point about having ChatGPT create the content, versus following this sort of process that takes you on a creative journey.  

“Constructed content is only loved after it exists, while created content is loved before it exists”.

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• Robert’s podcast with Joe Pulizzi - Atlas Shrugged: Is OpenAI Coming for Google? (503)

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode Ian explores the importance of remaining human, while still benefiting from the efficiency benefits that AI powered marketing automation offers. 

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• The Era of AI-Made Everything (501) - This Old Marketing podcast

• The Rose & Rockstar: Personalization is Still Creepy

• Why AI Generated Content Wont Move You - Nudge podcast

• Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chris Ross, a VP and Analyst at Gartner for CMOs, recently published on LinkedIn that their research found that 45% of consumers find personalization creepy, inspiring Ian and Robert to take a trip down memory lane and discuss the two-decade challenge that personalization has faced and if anything has really changed, even with the rise of AI. 

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• Chris Ross at Gartner 

• Is failing to freak out 52% of our audience the best we can do? - Chris Ross

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

STARS is an acronym for the five common situations marketing leaders may find themselves moving into: Startup, Turnaround, Accelerated growth, Realignment, and Sustaining success. 

In his book The First 90 Days, which is obviously focused on executives entering a business, rather than specifically a marketing leader, Watkins describes these as the characteristics and challenges of, respectively, launching a venture or project; saving a business or initiative that’s in serious trouble; dealing with rapid expansion; reenergizing a once-leading company that’s now facing problems; and following in the footsteps of a highly regarded leader with a strong legacy of success.

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that's hot for you that we should discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Picking the Right Transition Strategy by Michael D Watkins on HBR

• The First 90 Days by Michael D Watkins

• Renegade Marketers Unite Podcast by Drew Neisser

• Ian’s firm Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• OneRepublic - Counting Stars - On YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, over a fierce absinthe cocktail, Ian and Robert discuss the 2026 B2B Content and Marketing Trends Report from the Content Marketing Institute, based on a survey of 1000 marketers and research that Robert was the lead analyst for this year. 

Some key points they discuss from the research:

• AI should enhance creativity, not replace it.

• Budget priorities in marketing are shifting towards technology.

• Quality content strategy is more important than quantity.

• Creativity in marketing needs to be prioritized.

• The importance of human investment in marketing teams.

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn and on Threads

Mentioned this week

• B2B Content and Marketing Trends: Insights for 2026

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.
This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Their 5 F’in’ Marketing Fundamentals are the Masterplan, Knowledge, Story, Campaign, and Machine, and they step through each one to explain how it helps you engage the buyer throughout the buyer's journey. 

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that's hot for you that we should discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Rockstar CMO Presents: The 5 F'in' Marketing Fundamentals

• Kerry Cunningham’s LinkedIn post about his buying journey

• Get Your Buyers AMPED with our Customer Journey

• Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• Talking Heads - Road to Nowhere (Official Video)

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, with a nod toward the Dude of the Big Lebowski, Robert keeps his Russian dark, and Ian asks what Robert makes of the trend for fractional marketing leadership.

Key talking points this week:

• The term 'fractional' may be more of a sell-side term than a buy-side term.

• Independent consultants are increasingly preferred over large agencies.

• AI is disrupting traditional consulting roles, emphasizing the need for individual expertise.

• Understanding the job to be done is crucial.

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

• This Old Marketing - Robert and Joe’s podcast

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens, his websites, robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.
This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

They discuss:

1. Strategic thinking

2. Creative direction

3. AI literacy

4. Ethical judgment

5. Orchestration and collaboration

If you have any comments or thoughts on this topic, we would love to hear them, we welcome your feedback. 

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn 

• Cathy McKnight on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Cathy’s article on Salesforce.com: 5 Agentic AI Marketing Skills You Need Right Now

• Cathy’s firm - Seventh Bear

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, over a classic cocktail, Ian congratulates Robert on 500 episodes of his podcast “This Old Marketing” that he hosts with his chum Joe Pulizzi. 

They discuss what he’s learned, some of the enduring themes that have continued to resonate since they started the podcast in 2013, and some of the hot trends that may not have stuck. 

Finally, they catch up on Robert’s experience at Content Marketing World.  

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• This Old Marketing - Robert and Joe’s podcast

• Ian’s shiny new website: iantruscott.com

• Ian’s Tuesday rant All the Gear, No Idea

• Content Marketing World

• Robert’s newsletter: Lens

• Robert’s websites: robertrose.net and seventhbear.com

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, over a classic cocktail, having just published his fifth book and maintained his prolific writing for Content Marketing Institute and his newsletter, Ian asks Robert about his writing habit.  

Some key points from the discussion:

• Writing is a process of storytelling, not just output

• Using AI to assist in research and idea generation

• Consider writing shorter books 

• Using video content to complement written articles 

• Attracting subscribers to your newsletter

• Timeliness and relevance

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• Robert’s Weekly Articles on Content Marketing Institute, the Lens Newsletter, his website, and his firm Seventh Bear

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a reminder, our 5 F’in’ Marketing Fundamentals are:

1. The Masterplan

2. The Knowledge

3. The Story

4. The Campaign

5. The Machine

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that's hot for you that we should discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Rockstar CMO Presents: The 5 F'in' Marketing Fundamentals

• Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• Are 'Friends' Electric? - Tubeway Army / Gary Numan

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, over a classic cocktail, Ian and Robert discuss Reddit, how it is informing search results, generative AI, and how we should engage with it to support our B2B content marketing.

Some key points from the discussion:

• The culture of Reddit

• Building credibility on Reddit takes time and effort

• Using Reddit for audience research.

• Niche markets and topics are well served by Reddit 

• Engaging on Reddit as a different channel from other social platforms

• Experimentation is key, like any social media

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• Why Reddit Marketing Should Be Your Next Big Business Move

• Robert’s Lens Newsletter

• Robert’s new relaunched website: Robertrose.net

• Robert’s firm - Seventh Bear

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.
This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The five f’in’ things this week:

1. The "safest choice" isn't always the winning one

2. Develop the extended personas

3. Define tactics that attract the hidden buyer

4. Why thought leadership works when other tactics don't

5. Setting up your CRM to identify hidden buyers

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that's hot for you that we should discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• The Rise of the Hidden Buyer: Rethinking B2B Influence Beyond the Obvious | Edelman

• Map your Buying Groups and Stakeholder Committees in your CRM — Squivr

• Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• The Rasmus - In the Shadows (Official Music Video)

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, over a refreshing cocktail, Ian and Robert discuss an idea Robert shared about losing creativity in B2B marketing on Goldenhour, a LinkedIn Live event with Anthony Kennada, founder of Audience Plus and three-time CMO.

Some key points from the discussion:

• Data and processes are overshadowing creativity in marketing.

• Many marketers are leaving the profession due to a lack of creativity.

• AI is not solving the problem.

• Precision in marketing can lead to mediocrity.

• Marketers are focusing on efficiency rather than emotional connection.

If you have a question for the bar or an opinion on this week's discussion, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week

• LinkedIn live event - Goldenhour: The Paradox of Content Marketing in the AI Age: Humanity Over Speed

• Robert’s Lens Newsletter

• Valuable Friction - Robert Rose

• Robert’s new relaunched website: Robertrose.net

• Robert’s firm - Seventh Bear

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Some talking points from this week:

• With the advances in page builder solutions to deliver multi-channel and multi-language websites, do organizations need enterprise solutions?

• What needs must enterprises have to justify an enterprise solution (like Adobe or Sitecore) versus a simpler solution?

• Do organizations handle workflow and orchestration within the CMS?

• Is Headless the natural successor to the content management principles of old?

As usual, when Ian and Cathy get together, they dive into their inner content geeks, and as always, we welcome your feedback. 

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Cathy McKnight on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• LinkedIn post by Gartner Analyst, Irina Guseva

• Cathy’s firm - Seventh Bear

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, over a refreshing cocktail, Ian and Robert discuss an idea Robert shared on the CMI blog, that real beats perfect in content marketing. 

Some key points from the discussion:

• AI is dominating marketing conversations, overshadowing fundamentals.

• Brands are chasing automation at the expense of relationships.

• The classic marketing equation of reach and frequency still applies.

• Marketing should focus on building trust and engagement.

• High-quality content minimizes the need for frequent messaging.

• Provocative content can detract from brand integrity.

If you have a question for the bar, or maybe an opinion on what was shared this week, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn and Bluesky

Mentioned this week

• CMI Blog post: Move Over "Authentic AI," Real Beats Perfect in Content and Marketing

• Robert’s LinkedIn Post - Forgetting the fundamentals of marketing: AI, trust, and relationships

• Valuable Friction - Robert Rose

• Robert’s new relaunched website: Robertrose.net

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The five discussion points:

1. Sales cycles are getting longer

2. The pressure for buyer urgency

3. Teach your AEs well

4. The pressure is on product marketing

5. The AI revolution is here

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that's hot for you that we should discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• B2B Sales & Marketing Benchmark Report: Results Revealed - Norwest

• Ian’s column - Tuesday 2¢ - Why Now?

• Jeff’s firm - Cleantech Insiders

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• Remember The Name (Official Video) - Fort Minor

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, over a refreshing cocktail, Ian and Robert discuss Robert’s new book, being launched this week: Valuable Friction, an idea that they first discussed on this podcast back on episode 248.

Some key points from the discussion:

• Speed has become a foundational value in business culture

• How relationships suffer due to our focus on speed and convenience

• AI may invite us to slow down rather than speed up

• Slowing down could differentiate you

• Creative friction can enhance our output and decision-making

If you have a question for the bar, or maybe an opinion on what was shared this week, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn and Bluesky

Mentioned this week

• Valuable Friction - Robert Rose

• Robert’s new relaunched website: Robertrose.net

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ian covers:

• The dark funnel and changing buyer behavior

• The decline of traditional influencers

• The power of useful data and research

• Content that builds trust

• The role of real people and internal thought leaders

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

Mentioned this week:

• Rockstar CMO Presents: The 5 F'in' Marketing Fundamentals

• Previous episodes discussing a CMO's first 90 days

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back
  You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, over a refreshing cocktail, Ian and Robert quote Drucker and wonder if AI will solve our zombie process. 

Key points from their discussion:

• AI is automating inefficient processes.

• Understanding the entire marketing process is crucial before implementing AI.

• Curiosity and asking 'why' are essential in the AI experimentation phase.

• Business users often prefer to delegate tasks rather than engage with complex systems.

• Experimentation with AI is important

• AI can add complexity and cost if not applied thoughtfully.

If you have a question for the bar, or maybe an opinion on what was shared this week, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn and Bluesky

Mentioned this week

• AI Won't Fix Your Zombie Marketing Processes

• Robert’s new relaunched website: Robertrose.net

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As is the editorial policy of the show, they pull 5 f’in’ things from the report that caught their eye:

1. Investing in Customer Understanding

2. Budgeting Challenges for CMOs

3. Maximizing ROI through Technology and Process

4. CMOs and Growth Strategy

5. Advanced Budgeting Techniques

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that's hot for you that we should discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• The Chief Marketing Officer Journal | Gartner

• Jeff’s firm - Cleantech Insiders

• Ian’s new firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• Nina Simone - Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood 

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, over a refreshing cocktail, we discover more about Robert’s latest content marketing strategy - The Mullet. 

They discuss:

• The debate around what content we should share with the LLMs

• Robert’s research into answer engine optimization

• Robert suggests we need to be business at the front with the structure for informing the robots, and then party at the back where the humans can access the good stuff.

If you have a question for the bar, or maybe an opinion on what was shared this week, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn and Bluesky

Mentioned this week

• This Old Marketing - The Mullet Content Strategy [Special Episode] (490)

• What's Broken in GTM and How to Fix It ep22: David Meyer

• Robert’s new relaunched website: Robertrose.net

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.
This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Some talking points from this week:

• CMSs are still valid and necessary for digital experiences, but digital experience platforms (DXPs) are not a thing.

• The death of the website is bullshit, and the CMS plays a key role in management and orchestration across all channels. 

• Artificial intelligence is obviously a hot topic, and there are some interesting use cases in content workflows, governance, and approval. 

• Composability and headless remain a hot technical trend, but not much is changing in terms of what buyers are asking for. 

• Accessibility was a surprisingly hot topic, and it’s often overlooked.

• People, process, governance, and operations remain a technology-agnostic challenge regardless of the acronym used to describe them (DAM, MAM, MRM, WCM, etc).

A dive into indulging our inner content geeks, and ss always, we welcome your feedback. 

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Cathy McKnight on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• The story of Boye & Co

• CMS Connect 25 - Boye & Company

• Seventh Bear

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, over a Michelada, Ian asks Robert’s advice about providing 90-day plans during a recruitment process, and Robert shares the relaunch of his website robertrose.net.

They discuss: 

• Making assumptions before you can do proper discovery

• Whether it’s reasonable to ask for this level of effort

• The benefit of the process to both the candidate and the hirer

• Boxing these requests into scenarios and limited projects

• Avoiding sounding generic

If you have a question for the bar, or maybe an opinion on what was shared this week, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn and Bluesky

Mentioned this week

• Robert’s new relaunched website: Robertrose.net

• Robert’s podcast – This Old Marketing

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.
This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Using the framework he and Jeff created - The 5 F’in’ Marketing Fundamentals - Ian shares how he then built the plan, the structure of the deck, and some tips on what to include. 

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

Mentioned this week:

• Rockstar CMO Presents: The 5 F'in' Marketing Fundamentals

• Previous episodes discussing a CMO's first 90 days

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, the topic is culture jacking, as Robert wrote a very timely piece on the Content Marketing Institute's blog: How B2B Brands Capitalize on Meme-Worthy Moments, as our LinkedIn feeds are filled with images of a kisscam from a Coldplay concert. 

Key points from the chat:

• Less “newsjacking” as politics becomes so divisive, and humor has become difficult. 

• Memes and culture jacking are filling the gap, but can be a double-edged sword 

• Understanding cultural references is crucial for effective engagement.

• Not all memes resonate with every audience.

• Authenticity is key.

If you have a question for the bar, or maybe an opinion on what was shared this week, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn and Bluesky

Mentioned this week

• Robert’s post: How B2B Brands Capitalize on Meme-Worthy Moments

• Robert’s Lens newsletter 

• Rose Colored Glasses - Robert Rose on the Content Marketing Institute

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

• Robert’s firm: Seventh Bear

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

However, this week, we have a slightly different episode as Robert couldn’t make our regular virtual bar recording, so to get our Robert Rose fix, we share something he recorded for the Content Marketing Institute and his Rose-Colored Glasses blog, titled “Old Content, New Risk: What’s AI Learning About Your Brand?”

We hope you enjoy this last-minute change. Robert will be back in the bar next week, and if you have a question for the bar, or maybe an opinion on what was shared this week, please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn and Bluesky

Mentioned this week

• Full post: Old Content, New Risk: What's AI Learning About Your Brand?

• Rose Colored Glasses - Robert Rose on the Content Marketing Institute

• Ian’s firm - Velocity B

• Robert’s firm: Seventh Bear

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Yes, SIX, completely ignoring the editorial policy of 5 f’in’ things. 

The six highlights they discuss:

1. Marketing budgets are in decline (or are they?)

2. Comparing apples with apples

3. Expectations management

4. Martech is down, paid media up

5. Data & analytics is marketing’s biggest challenge

6. The mandatory mention of AI

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that's hot for you that we should discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Gartner: Marketing Budgets: How Much Should Your Team Spend in 2024 | Gartner 

• The CMO Survey: Spring 2025 - The CMO Survey with Deloitte, Duke Fuqua School of Business, AMA

• Insight Partners: Insight's SaaS Marketing Spend Benchmarks 

• Norwest: B2B Sales & Marketing Benchmark Report

• LinkedIn - 2024 - The B2B Marketing Organization of Tomorrow (page 29 discusses budget) 

• Forrester blog post referring to their 2025 budget planning guide. European Leaders: Align Budget Planning To Accelerate Performance In 2025

• Jeff’s firm - Cleantech Insiders

• Ian’s new firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• Cyndi Lauper - Money Changes Everything (1983)

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, the chaps discuss the complexities of marketing budgets, the importance of setting pragmatic marketing strategies, and the concept of lean marketing teams. 

They explore various budgeting methods, the challenges of aligning marketing goals with financial realities, and the need for marketing to be viewed as a strategic investment rather than a cost center, the perceptions of marketing within organizations, and the implications of these views on budget allocation and strategic decision-making.

Do you have a question for the bar? Or maybe an opinion on what we’ve discussed? Please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn and Bluesky

Mentioned this week

• Ian’s new advisory firm - Velocity B

• Robert’s podcast - This Old Marketing

• Robert’s newsletter - Lens on Substack

• Robert’s firm: Seventh Bear

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is it more inside baseball wordy word bullshit, a technology platform or something that organizations really care about?

Some talking points from their conversation:

• Understanding content operations and orchestration

• The role of technology in content operations

• Content strategy and audience engagement

• Overcoming resistance to change in content operations

• Generative AI and its impact on content operations and orchestration

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that is hot for you, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Cathy McKnight on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Seventh Bear

• Velocity B

• CMS Connect 25 - Boye & Company

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, on Ian’s mind is whether we should be educating LLMs with our content, and Robert suggests that there might be lessons to be learned from Google’s rise two decades ago.

They discuss:

• How our content gets served, aggregated, and we don’t pick the experience

• What is the purpose and value of educating LLMs with our content? 

• Will users click through? Is it an impression? 

• Will the content consumer behavior change?

• Is there a first mover advantage?

Do you have a question for the bar? Or maybe an opinion on what we’ve discussed? Please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn and Bluesky

Mentioned this week

• Ian’s new advisory firm - Velocity B

• Robert’s podcast - This Old Marketing

• Robert’s newsletter - Lens on Substack

• Robert’s firm: Seventh Bear

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

They discuss Jeff’s 5 tips:

• Why is benchmarking important?

• Don’t confuse a peer set with your competitive landscape

• Comparing apples with apples - STARS model

• Understand what the benchmark considers to be marketing budget

• Determine the timeframe to align with benchmarks and goals

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that's hot for you that we should discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• The CMO Survey

• Jeff’s firm - Cleantech Insiders

• Ian’s new firm - Velocity B

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• Cee Lo Green - Forget You (2010)

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, on Ian’s mind is is the importance of individual credibility vs brands in content marketing and what this means for B2B. Should we worry about creating thought leaders, and they leave? 

They discuss:

• AI is influencing how we perceive content authenticity.

• The 'from line' in emails is more important than the subject line.

• B2B brands need to invest in promoting their employees as thought leaders.

• Social media is shifting from brand-centric to individual-centric content.

• Trust is being built more around individuals than brands.

• Navigating employee influence requires trust and motivation.

Do you have a question for the bar? Or maybe an opinion on what we’ve discussed? Please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn and Bluesky

Mentioned this week

• Ian’s new advisory firm - Velocity B

• Ann Handley’s LinkedIn Post Someone asked me: "What's the point of a writer in the age of AI content?"

• Robert’s podcast - This Old Marketing

• Robert’s newsletter - Lens on Substack

• Robert’s firm: Seventh Bear

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Recently, Simon has attended the 6Sense Inspire event in London and in keeping with the editorial policy of the show, Simon shares 5 F’in’ key takeaways from the event, and it’s not all about intent data, as the chaps discuss:

• Adoption of buying groups and ditching the MQL

• Gating content

• Throwing AI at everything

• Revenue as a marketing metric

• Brand and demand generation

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that's hot for you that we should discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

 Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

• Simon Daniels on LinkedIn 

Mentioned this week:

• Simon's LinkedIn post that got this party started

• What's Broken in GTM and How To Fix It Podcast

• 6sense Inspire UK 2025

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• Brown Eyed Girls Sixth Sense Video on LinkedIn

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Mary Meeker, who some describe as the queen of the internet, has published a 340-page report called Trends – Artificial Intelligence, that Robert has some thoughts on, so that’s this week’s topic, discussed over a cocktail blended especially for Father's Day tomorrow. 

They discuss:

• The challenge of reporting on AI, as while the report is excellent, some points feel dated due to the fast pace of AI development. 

• AI should be viewed as a tool rather than a replacement for human workers.

• People describe themselves as  AI-enhanced, but no one ever said they are “spreadsheet-enhanced”.

• There's skepticism about AI's capabilities compared to human intelligence and the need for diverse human input. 

• AI is “free puppies”, not “free beer”; it’s not saving as much human work as has been predicted.

Do you have a question for the bar? Or maybe an opinion on what we’ve discussed? Please get in touch - just search “rockstar cmo” on the interwebs or LinkedIn.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Robert Rose on LinkedIn and Bluesky

Mentioned this week

• Trends – Artificial Intelligence (AI) - Mary Meeker / Bond 

• Robert’s newsletter - Lens on Substack

• Robert’s firm: Seventh Bear

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Piano Music is by Johnny Easton, shared under a Creative Commons license

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon and Spotify.

This podcast is part of the Marketing Podcast Network

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Inspired by a recently published report from Forester that shared that, for the second consecutive year, budgets are flat or down for two-thirds of event teams.

In this episode, they discuss:

• Make each event part of an existing campaign

• Defining the event goals

• Determine who can deliver your audience

• Considering the audience spread across events

• Planning and execution cross functional collaboration

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that's hot for you that we should discuss, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Jeff Clark on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Events Are Under Pressure — Six Findings From Forrester’s Q1 2025 State Of B2B Events Survey

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

• P!nk - Get The Party Started (Official Video)

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For this last-minute solo, Ian picks a topic he recently shared in a webinar for Marketing Profs - “The ART of Content Marketing” - where he shares the role content marketing plays in creating Awareness, Revenue, and Trust. 

The main points Ian makes this week:

• Marketing should focus on creating ART, not just content.

• Content marketing targets the 'dark funnel' of potential buyers.

• Building brand trust is crucial for long-term marketing success.

• Content should be useful and address the needs of the audience.

• Content should be launched and marketed like a product.

• Regular audits of content strategy are necessary for effectiveness.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

Mentioned this week:

• Content Marketing Friday Forum Webinar - The ART of Content Marketing

• A Deep Dive Into The Dark Funnel | 6sense

• B2B go-to-market benchmarks | Dreamdata

• Tuesday 2¢: Everybody is FOFU Fighting – Ian Truscott

• The Greatest Sales Deck I’ve Ever Seen | by Andy Raskin | Mission.org | Medium

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Some talking points from this week:

• Salesforce's acquisition of Informatica aims to enhance Salesforce's data management and AI capabilities, but the company has a mixed track record. 

• The need to understand the different motivations for an acquisition and what has driven the transactions.  

• Some examples of good Martech acquisitions, and what makes a good acquisition for both the team, financially, and the clients.  

• Some things to look out for if you are on either side of the acquisition, working for the acquirer or the company being acquired

• Customers must be aware of and delve into the details of the plans, and engage with other people in the ecosystem.  

• The importance of a great story that ties together the acquisition, positioning it internally and in the market.

As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that is hot for you, please get in touch using the links below.

Enjoy!

—

The Links

The people:

• Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky

• Cathy McKnight on LinkedIn

Mentioned this week:

• Seventh Bear

• Salesforce acquires Informatica for $8 billion | TechCrunch

Rockstar CMO:

• The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday

• Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn

• Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM.

Track List:

• We’ll be right back by Stienski & Mass Media on YouTube

You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices