Level Up: A Marketing Podcast

2023 has been a whirlwind when it comes to marketing, hasn't it? With the adoption of new technologies, such as generative AI, the marketing landscape has rapidly changed, and you need a plan that empowers you to be flexible and adapt your strategy quickly. In this last episode of 2023, our Level Up hosts, Tyler Williams, Laura Madden, and Jordan Kraus discuss the biggest marketing lessons they learned throughout 2023 and how you can apply these insights when crafting your 2024 marketing strategy. Gain deeper insight into how you can build stronger relationships with customers by crafting seamless customer experiences with integrated data, a use-case mindset, and artificial intelligence.

In this Level Up episode, Jordan Kraus and special guests Brian Esham, Director of Technical Services, and Christy Glesing, Sr. Marketing Consultant, explore how AI has evolved throughout 2023 and its future for business applications. Together they discuss topics like building consent and trust into AI models, the steps to prepare your data foundation for successful AI integration, and how you can ensure its marketing use cases align with your company's goals. Listen in for:

In this Level Up episode, listen to Tyler Williams and Jess Endl, Marketing Strategy Manager on Lev's Creative Services team, discuss their favorite holiday campaigns and dissect what makes each unique and successful. In this episode, they explore how to maximize holiday campaign success, from omnichannel campaign strategies to technical considerations like IP warming and data utilization. You'll gain expert insights, tips, and real-world examples that will empower you to thrive during the holiday season and beyond. Listen in for:

In this insightful Level Up episode, join host Jordan Kraus and special guest Angela Ely, a seasoned senior marketing consultant at Lev, as they delve into how to create a customer experience-focused marketing strategy. Learn the four key steps to crafting exceptional customer experiences, including becoming customer-centric, breaking down organizational silos, leveraging technology wisely, gathering valuable customer feedback, and embracing adaptability. By the end, you’ll discover how to create personalized and emotionally resonant experiences that leave a lasting impact on your customers. Whether you're a seasoned marketer or a newcomer to the field, this episode will equip you with actionable strategies to elevate your marketing and boost customer loyalty. Tune in to level up your marketing knowledge! Listen in for: [01:41 - 06:26] 🥲 Great customer experience stories [08:23 - 12:36] 🗝️ Where to begin when building out your experience-focused strategy [14:03 - 16:49] ⚒️ Breaking down the silos between marketing, sales, and service [20:12 - 23:07] 🧩 Is the tech you use actually enhancing customer experiences? [27:28 - 31:24] 🗣 Ask your customers for feedback

Unravel the truth behind personalized marketing. In this enlightening episode of Level Up, Jordan and Laura lay out the truth behind common misconceptions surrounding personalization. They explore the power of data-driven marketing, sharing insights and expert tips to help you navigate the exciting and not-so-scary world of personalized experiences for your customers. From understanding the value of data transparency to embracing small wins and ambitious goals, these two provide actionable advice for marketers of all levels. So tune in and discover how to create meaningful connections with your audience through personalization. Listen in for: [09:01 - 13:55] 💡Personalization Myth #1: Data has to be perfect to be personalized [14:08 - 18:45] Personalization Myth #2: I don't have enough data on my prospects or customers to personalize the customer experience [19:52 - 24:29] 💥 Personalization Myth #3: I need every piece of content ready to deliver a personalized experience [25:08 - 29:07] 🪄 Personalization Myth #4: You don't have a large enough team to focus on personalization [30:28 - 35:52] 🧟 Personalization Myth #5: Personalization can be creepy, I don't want to scare customers away [38:29 - 40:22] 🧩 Personalization Best Practices

Unleash the Art of Storytelling: In this thought-provoking episode of the Level Up podcast, join Laura and Tyler to discover how to differentiate your brand in a sea of competition by crafting compelling narratives. We unravel the secrets behind successful storytelling and explore the power of crafting amazing customer experiences with dynamic stories that put your customers at the center of your brand.

If you’ve been online at any time this past year, you’ve most likely heard of how revolutionary many find generative artificial intelligence (AI) to be. Being able to generate written works and images in distinct styles, it’s easy to see how it can dramatically improve marketers’ productivity. But is AI something you can truly “set and forget?” In this Level Up episode, our hosts, Joe Kaltenthaler (Sr. Manager, Data/Identity Practice) and Laura Madden (Sr. Manager, Marketing Strategy & Services) discuss the current benefits and limitations of generative AI and how marketers can become better AI prompters to help automate the brainstorming process, strengthen the relevancy of their messaging, and personalize the customer experience.

Ensuring your marketing strategy is innovative can feel overwhelming as it can take a massive amount of creativity and problem-solving. But innovations can be small and build on top of each other to craft truly innovative and unique customer experiences. In this Level Up episode, our special guest Jenna Giles (Associate Principal Digital Designer) joins Laura Madden (Sr. Manager of Marketing Strategy and Services) and Jordan Kraus(Client Success Partner) to discuss how Lev and Huber Engineering worked together to use Huber Engineering's dynamic, innovative content to create hyper-personalized email campaigns.

Customers are constantly bombarded with ads and offerings every day, encouraging them to continually buy new products and services. But with so much noise in today's market, how can marketers and sales team increase their understanding of what encourages a customer to make a purchase? In this Level Up episode, join Jordan Kraus (Client Success Partner) and Tyler Williams (Managing Sales Director) as they break down why people make subjective decisions and then find objective reasoning to support their purchases. As well, they provide some best-in-class tips on how marketing and sales teams can ensure they are meeting their customers where they are emotionally throughout their buyer's journey.

As technology has continued to rapidly evolve and enable high-quality experiences, we’ve seen the demand for dynamic customer experiences grow. Still, many marketing teams find themselves using outdated technology and processes that are hindering them from providing more personalized experiences. In this Level Up episode, Jordan Kraus (Client Success Partner) and Joe Kaltenthaler (Senior Manager of Lev's Data/Identity Practice) as they outline five practical tips that can help you stay informed on evolving customer expectations and optimize your marketing operations to empower experiences that exceed these expectations.

Digital transformation: it’s a movement that businesses in every industry have been told they need to undergo. But what does it actually mean for you and your marketing team? In this episode of Level Up, the podcast for marketers by marketers created by Lev that distills best practices and strategies focused on helping marketers 1-up their strategy, Tyler and Joe discuss the common cliches and preconceptions of digital transformation. By breaking these cliches down, they pinpoint:

With changes in consumer preferences, constrained budgets, and a potentially rocky economy, marketers have a lot of challenges to consider and overcome. In this episode of Level Up, the podcast focused on helping marketers 1-UP their strategy and grow personally and professionally, Laura and Jordan discuss the marketing trends they believe are in and out in 2023. Gain insight into how you can make more accurate decisions with first-party data, increase customer loyalty through building more authentic experiences, and find a knowledgeable, strategic partner who will work alongside you to solve your biggest challenges.

It’s time to level up with Lev's new podcast for marketers by marketers that distills best practices and strategies focused on helping you continue to grow personally and professionally. For those of you who’ve been subscribing to us since the very beginning of our In the Clouds podcast, you still can expect to gain strategic and technical best practices, how-to's, and real-life use cases and solutions that you can implement to 1-UP your marketing strategy and overcome any challenge in your way! In our very first episode, learn more about our Level Up co-hosts, Laura Madden (Sr. Manager of Marketing Strategy & Services), Jordan Kraus (Client Success Partner), Joe Kalthenthaler (Sr. Manager of Lev’s MC Personalization and Intelligence), and Tyler Williams (Managing Director of Sales) as they discuss what led them to Lev, the most influential project they’ve worked on, and the best marketing-related advice they’ve ever received.

In this episode, hosts Bobby and Cole are joined by Bo Lowery -- Vice President of Marketing at Wild Birds Unlimited. Wild Birds Unlimited (WBU) is a 41 year old brand with more than 350 retail locations around the U.S. and Canada, with the goal of helping you find joy in your environment by inviting birds into the backyard. Bo has been with WBU for more than 20 years, and has been a part of their digital marketing transformation. In this podcast, you will learn where they started with email marketing (as the first enterprise customer of ExactTarget!), and how they have evolved their marketing strategy and used creativity and personalization to engage with their customers. (Also, be sure to listen for three bird fun facts shared by Bo!)

Lev expert and SVP, Strategy Ryan McCambridge joins Crystal Washington for a deep dive into the future of marketing. As a technology strategist, certified futurist, and author of “One Tech Action and The Social Media Why,” Crystal shares her unique perspective about what marketers might expect to see on the horizon in our ever changing world. Topics of conversation include:

Kara Swisher, a contributing writer to the New York Times Opinion section and podcast host for Sway and Pivot, is described as Silicon Valley's "most powerful tech journalist.” Holly Enneking, Vice President of Marketing at Lev, leads a conversation with Kara about accountability -- both for Big Tech leaders and everyday digital marketers -- as well as being unapologetically yourself. Conversation topics include:

Bobby Jania, SVP, Marketing at Salesforce, is joined by Abbey Sullivan, VP, Client Success at Lev, to discuss the current state of marketing in today’s technology-driven landscape. From data-driven marketing, to the value of video, and the new work-from-anywhere remote culture, they cover everything marketers want to know about the current strategies, priorities, and challenges in the marketing landscape. Topics included in this episode touch on:

What do Marketing Cloud and Saved by the Bell have in common? It turns out, a lot more than you think. In this very special episode of In the Clouds, hosts Bobby and Cole along with special guest Brianne Mullally, do a deep dive on the beloved 90s show Saved by the Bell and what similarities it has to Marketing Cloud. They discuss the Marketing Cloud rebrand, align each Saved by the Bell character to a Marketing Cloud product, and highlight the notable moments and episodes.

You’ve got burning Salesforce Marketing Cloud Questions, and our hosts have answers. This episode is a recording of a live Ultraviolet session where our hosts Bobby Tichy and Cole Fisher, are joined by Salesforce Consultant Stephen Mansfield to answer attendees' technical questions about anything and everything Marketing cloud -- from data models to A/B testing.

Kevin Cuxil joins hosts Bobby and Cole to discuss innovations in marketing technology at Fox Corporation. Topics include Kevin's role as VP of Marketing Technology, having an internal data science team that leverages data science tools outside the organization, and discussions about some of Kevin's favorite tools and Salesforce strategies.