[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":4309},["ShallowReactive",2],{"podcast-marketing-leaders-marketing-isn-t-a-commodity-lee-moskowitz-on-fixing-pipeline-thinking":3,"header-articles":838,"updatesSection-all":2576,"updatesSection-all-team":3322},{"_path":4,"_dir":5,"_draft":6,"_partial":6,"_locale":7,"title":8,"description":9,"_schema":10,"authors":11,"series":13,"date":14,"seotitle":15,"iframe":16,"audio":17,"episode":20,"guest":21,"guesturl":22,"guestimg":23,"guestabout":24,"minutes":25,"body":26,"_type":832,"_id":833,"_source":834,"_file":835,"_stem":836,"_extension":837,"category":5},"/podcasts/marketing-leaders/marketing-isn-t-a-commodity-lee-moskowitz-on-fixing-pipeline-thinking","marketing-leaders",false,"","Marketing Isn’t a Commodity -  Lee Moskowitz on Fixing Pipeline Thinking","Lee Moskowitz explains why treating marketing as a cost rather than an investment breaks the pipeline. From over-reliance on demand gen to ignoring brand and post-sale growth, Lee shares how short-term tactics lead to long-term slowdowns—and what needs to change.","default",[12],"Kerry Guard","Back on T-R-A-C-K","2026-03-26T00:00:00Z","Marketing Isn’t a Commodity - Lee Moskowitz on Fixing Pipeline Thinking","https://share.transistor.fm/e/fb717dbc",{"url":18,"length":19},"https://share.transistor.fm/s/fb717dbc",68613711,214,"Lee Moskowitz","https://www.linkedin.com/in/leemoskowitz/","/images/podcast/Lee Moskowitz.webp","Lee Moskowitz is a data-informed growth marketing expert specializing in demand generation, brand awareness, and scalable B2B SaaS growth.",57,{"type":27,"children":28,"toc":827},"root",[29,42,48,57,62,67,72,77,82,87,92,97,102,107,112,117,122,127,132,137,142,147,152,157,162,167,172,177,182,187,192,197,202,207,212,217,222,227,232,237,242,247,252,257,262,267,272,277,282,287,292,297,302,307,312,317,322,327,332,337,342,347,352,357,362,367,372,377,382,387,392,397,402,407,412,417,422,427,432,437,442,447,452,457,462,467,472,477,482,487,492,497,502,507,512,517,522,527,532,537,542,547,552,557,562,567,572,577,582,587,592,597,602,607,612,617,622,627,632,637,642,647,652,657,662,667,672,677,682,687,692,697,702,707,712,717,722,727,732,737,742,747,752,757,762,767,772,777,782,787,792,797,802,807,812,817],{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":32,"children":34},"element","h2",{"id":33},"overview",[35],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":37,"children":38},"strong",{},[39],{"type":40,"value":41},"text","Overview:",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":44,"children":45},"p",{},[46],{"type":40,"value":47},"Lee Moskowitz joins the show to break down the difference between demand generation and growth marketing, and why confusing the two creates gaps across the funnel. They cover the risks of focusing only on pipeline, how brand impacts conversion more than most teams realize, and why marketing’s job doesn’t stop at lead capture. Lee also shares how intent data, lead scoring, and prioritization should actually support sales—not overwhelm it. If your team is stuck chasing leads without sustainable growth, this episode offers a clearer way forward.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":49,"children":51},{"id":50},"transcript",[52],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":53,"children":54},{},[55],{"type":40,"value":56},"Transcript:",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":58,"children":59},{},[60],{"type":40,"value":61},"Kerry Guard 0:10",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":63,"children":64},{},[65],{"type":40,"value":66},"Kerry, hello. I'm Kerry Guard. Welcome to Tea Time with tech marketing leaders. Welcome back to the show. I love a good life because that means that we have listeners who have questions, and we are here for it. So if you have joined us on LinkedIn or YouTube, please say hello. We'd love to know you are here, and then we look forward to all of your Burning Questions. I'm sure you have many. I know I do, so if you know, I'll be asking tons. And if you want to drop yours in, that's great. And if we get to them, we will, and if we can't, we will address them asynchronously. If you watch this after the show, because it's the beauty of LinkedIn live, like we will have this live, and then it'll live on. It'll live on. It's wonderful. I'm a fan. I'm a fan. This week, I have Lee Moskowitz. Lee is a data-driven growth marketing expert specializing in generating awareness, engagement, leads, and revenue. He has helped a wide range of organizations, ranging from SMBs to enterprise companies, to innovate startups' growth through an impactful digital marketing experience. He's passionate about B2B and SaaS marketing, CRM, and data hygiene, paid media content strategy, rev ops, and inbound marketing experience in growth marketing and digital marketing strategy, management, and execution. Right now, he is a fractional growth marketing consultant and advisor, as well as a podcast host on the sassiest podcast that, if you haven't tuned in, you definitely, definitely should. And sassiest by design. I love that so much. I love telling people about it. I just it's the best. It's the best. Lee, welcome to the show.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":68,"children":69},{},[70],{"type":40,"value":71},"Lee Moscowitz 1:54",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":73,"children":74},{},[75],{"type":40,"value":76},"Hey, Kerry, thanks so much for having me. I'm so excited to be here and spill the tea. You're I like how your show is dedicated to the tea. I have a segment on Spill the Tea called \"on leader B,\" called \"Spill the Tea with Lee\"-exactly what it sounds like. So, so excited to have tea time with you.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":78,"children":79},{},[80],{"type":40,"value":81},"Kerry Guard 2:13",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":83,"children":84},{},[85],{"type":40,"value":86},"Oh, we're going to spill all of the tea. Every segment is about some tea spillage. So yes to yes to that. I love that you have a little hat tip in your own show, because it is fun to, you know, get down to it right, like no holds bar. Let's really share with each other our journeys and what's in our way, and, most importantly, how we can learn from one another. I think that's one of the most the things that I've really loved about podcasting the last four years. I don't know about you, Lee, but especially in sort of these industries, these complex audience industries, like cybersecurity and data management platforms and those sort of things, where marketers aren't afraid to share what's working, we always feel so scared. We're like, oh, our secret sauce, and we can't share the secret sauce. It's like, no, like, let's figure this out together. And it's been, it's been a wonderful journey that way for me. How about how about you? You've been podcasting for a while now. Are you getting the same experience?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":88,"children":89},{},[90],{"type":40,"value":91},"Lee Moscowitz 3:11",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":93,"children":94},{},[95],{"type":40,"value":96},"Yeah. So I haven't been doing it quite as long as you, by the way. What's up? Trevor, thanks for joining us today. I've been doing it for a few months now. And I think just one of the beautiful things about marketing is marketers are always, I mean, maybe not all marketers, but most marketers are so willing to share with each other what works, what doesn't, even if, even if you're kind of quasi competitors, like people are very willing. And I think it just speaks to marketers, because there are always places to find inspiration. There's different things that keep us up at night, but also there are so many components of marketing, and I know that's what we're going to get into, that one person isn't going to know every single thing about it, so I'm a firm believer shows like this podcast, there's no better way to build a relationship with somebody while also learning a lot.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":98,"children":99},{},[100],{"type":40,"value":101},"Kerry Guard 4:00",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":103,"children":104},{},[105],{"type":40,"value":106},"And one of the great things for me having having done it for a bit now, is I feel like I've been able to be on, like, the cutting edge of it, because I could sort of feel the trends of like, what was coming, which is going to be beautiful for this conversation today, of how we really lean into where where we are, and how We got there before we get there, though. Lee, you know, sprinkle a little little trail there for people to hang on to. Trevor, always lovely to see you. Thank you for joining us before we get into the heart of our conversation. What's your story where you know you have a podcast, now you're helping out from a demand gen standpoint, for some consulting? But how did you get there?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":108,"children":109},{},[110],{"type":40,"value":111},"Lee Moscowitz 4:43",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":113,"children":114},{},[115],{"type":40,"value":116},"That is a great question. And I think again, speaking to the different aspects in marketing, it's a matter of kind of falling into digital marketing is what I did. First, I fell into digital marketing. Like most people, you're like, I'm going to be a man. Man. Work on commercials. I'm. And everyone's working, you know, working on digital. So fell into digital. Realized that was it. And each time I worked on things and spent more time doing things, I fell into something else. So it's like, oh, digital marketing, oh, digital ads, and HubSpot, oh, demand gen, oh, growth marketing. So, really doing that, like I got my career started by being at a really small, out-of-home and digital marketing agency, and I literally learned by doing. And I think that's exactly what it sounds like. So learning by doing, failing, learning from your failures, and then leading from that. So my story, Taylor told us, time agency marketer worked on more campaigns than hairstyles I've had, and after I built marketing teams at my agencies, led marketing ops and paid media teams, I knew I needed to go in house, and that's where I really fell in love with the whole startup be one model to vibe, but also just like the work culture and the output, and that is what brings me here today with you. And then I started leading the sassiest podcast for B to B and beyond. You have to say it every time, because you have to. And yeah, it's really just, you know, a conversation like this, where I have guests who I find are interesting or smarter than me, or funny, or all the above. And we talk about different issues that mostly impact B-to-B marketing, but I also go into DEI recruiting, things like that, and it's really just a place where I'm somebody who likes to listen, but I also just can't listen to ABM all day. I can't listen to email marketing all day. And, like, I also need to have some fun in the mix. Like, I need to talk about pop culture and fun. And so I make this podcast for me, but obviously for everyone else, I would make it if nobody else was listening.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":118,"children":119},{},[120],{"type":40,"value":121},"Kerry Guard 6:58",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":123,"children":124},{},[125],{"type":40,"value":126},"I love that because I've sort of, like, struggled with, you know, do I just have tech marketing leaders on the show? But then I've run into really interesting people. Actually, had me and a friend were talking right before a client joined, and we were having this really fun conversation, and the client joined, and they were like, This is, like, the best podcast ever. And I was like, I turned to my friend and was like, \"You should come on my podcast.\" So, like, that's happening next week, because sometimes you just need to have a great conversation in the realm of the thing versus, like, exactly about the thing. So I totally love that. And you had a really great guest last week. Peter Wheeler, what a great show. Oh, so good.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":128,"children":129},{},[130],{"type":40,"value":131},"Lee Moscowitz 7:43",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":133,"children":134},{},[135],{"type":40,"value":136},"Did you know Peter worked with Kanye? Like, literally, that's what I love about doing these podcasts, talking to these guests. Like, if you don't know Peter Wheeler, Peter led growth, product-led growth. Most of us know him as this awesome product-led growth marketer, but then he's like, Oh, by the way, like he just casually listed Kanye with his other brands. And I'm like, Hold on hold on hold on I got to talk about this, and that's what my smoke the tea segments for. But he did this kick ass experiential shit, and, yeah, and, like, that's just part of the fun about having that, like talking about things that don't normally get spoken about.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":138,"children":139},{},[140],{"type":40,"value":141},"Kerry Guard 8:17",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":143,"children":144},{},[145],{"type":40,"value":146},"Yes, and people's backgrounds. Like, that's why I love hearing people's stories, and your story is so fascinating because I grew up in a similar realm. I'm still in the agency world. I haven't left. But I do love this aspect for you, of like, it sounds like there was, we're gonna go on a tangent here, people, welcome to the show. This is what I do. There's this lovely dichotomy of like you growing up in the agency world, but then you sort of like adulting in the brand world, like getting to join a startup and a brand and being in-house, and you said that the culture was really important to you there. I'd love to understand what the difference in culture was for you and why you're like, Ah, I found my home brand side, and that's where I want to be.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":148,"children":149},{},[150],{"type":40,"value":151},"Lee Moscowitz 9:04",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":153,"children":154},{},[155],{"type":40,"value":156},"Yeah. I mean, I think there are a few things. One is just the accountability aspect, in terms of a startup, like there is that complete ownership, and you see things through to through agencies, you can do this as well, especially as you build long-lasting relationships with clients. But many times on the agency side, you are in reactive mode, or you're restricted to whatever that retainer is, or you're working on 20 different accounts that are kind of similar, but maybe different, and stuff like that. Biggest thing, though, is I think calls, though, like the amount that I can, I just I'm able to manage my energy so much better in these in these environments, than I kind of was at an agency, meaning I was on calls all day. Everyone wanted to talk to me. I was on client, sales, and internal calls. And it's not that I'm anti-call, it's that I'm also pro doing work, which can be hard to be when you're always just on call.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":158,"children":159},{},[160],{"type":40,"value":161},"Kerry Guard 10:08",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":163,"children":164},{},[165],{"type":40,"value":166},"Yes, especially if you're managing 20 accounts, which isn't productive for anyone, even if you run an agency, and I limit. We're, like, on the three-to-five plan per person. That's about as much context switching as anyone would.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":168,"children":169},{},[170],{"type":40,"value":171},"Lee Moscowitz 10:24",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":173,"children":174},{},[175],{"type":40,"value":176},"I mean the positive stuff, because I don't, I don't want to come across like, because, like, I've learned so much. That's where I spent my career. I don't think there's a better place you can pick up so many different skills than an agency. Again, not every agency is the same, but when you're at an agency and there's someone who's good at SEO and good at paying media, and then good at PR, and then there's all these different departments and people, you see other people work, you pick up all these skills, and it's like, it's a great way to learn things and be immersed. But, yeah, that's a drawback.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":178,"children":179},{},[180],{"type":40,"value":181},"Kerry Guard 10:57",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":183,"children":184},{},[185],{"type":40,"value":186},"Yeah, no. I mean, there are pros and cons to both. And I also, having grown up, it was in a similar vein, right? Like you're working long hours, you're on multiple accounts, and you're learning from other departments. It is definitely a grind. But it's also like, where you want to be in your 20s, like you want to be, you want to be soaking it all up. It's like the best place to be. And then you get to adult later and take all those skills elsewhere. And yes, it's a wonderful journey, and I am totally here for it. Let's talk about where you are right now in terms of, like, a challenge you're currently facing. We're all human. This is hard. It's an interesting, it's an interesting, it's an interesting. Like, in just, I don't say like, world out there, in terms of, you know, there's tons of layoffs that are happening right now. There's the site concept of doing less, doing more, more, more, with a lot less. There are resource challenges, for sure. What is it for you? What's your biggest challenge right now?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":188,"children":189},{},[190],{"type":40,"value":191},"Lee Moscowitz 12:00",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":193,"children":194},{},[195],{"type":40,"value":196},"So I think, like, obviously, when talking about, like, the state of marketing and the job market and all those things, but I think as a marketer, and speaking from the marketing industry, I think the most dangerous thing and the biggest challenge is the commoditization of marketing, meaning marketing is now a commodity. It's not an investment. It's just we're sinking money into this, or we're going to be super transactional about it. And what I again meaning by that, it's like marketing should have that seat at the table, and CMOs and marketing leaders shouldn't just be task takers or button pushers and things like that. These are people who have ideas and are growth-oriented, but as costs go down, as people don't buy net new software, as everyone's worried about the economy, marketing costs money, and there's especially in digital and demand, there is such scrutiny on every single dollar spent. So I think this also shows with the rise of fractional too. And again, there are so many great fractional people. I'm not I'm not saying anything bad about that, but I think that's why there are more fractional people than ever, because these organizations maybe view marketing more as that commodity than less as that investment and long-term commitment.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":198,"children":199},{},[200],{"type":40,"value":201},"Kerry Guard 13:21",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":203,"children":204},{},[205],{"type":40,"value":206},"Yeah, it's really tricky. When they see the price tag you have, like, what marketing really costs to make it really effective, and it's a much harder story. What I feel like I hearing you say is, it's like a harder sell. It's a harder story to tell these days, given the uncertainty of, like, where everybody's jobs are, to where the economy might or might not go. It's that is definitely a, I don't say downfall, but, you know, like a happenstance of where we are.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":208,"children":209},{},[210],{"type":40,"value":211},"Lee Moscowitz 13:55",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":213,"children":214},{},[215],{"type":40,"value":216},"I think that's just why a lot of marketers, too, are out of work. Because there are all of these. There's this viewpoint of marketing as a commodity. There are more fractions than ever now because of that, and again, there are also reasons why there are more fractional tons of people who love it. There's more freedom. Also, if you're a startup, there are tons of great reasons to work with freelancers, because you don't need full-time positions for everything, especially if you're scrappy or bootstrapped, like working with freelancers. Yeah, working with freelancers is very much a part of that. But like, the best time to work with the best way you work with a freelancer, especially in marketing, is when there's that marketing point of contact, at least. So just around that, and going back to more of marketing, is a fun Brand Builder as well as a revenue generator.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":218,"children":219},{},[220],{"type":40,"value":221},"Kerry Guard 14:48",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":223,"children":224},{},[225],{"type":40,"value":226},"Well, that leads perfectly to our conversation, because it's this concept of yes, and you need",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":228,"children":229},{},[230],{"type":40,"value":231},"Lee Moscowitz 14:57",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":233,"children":234},{},[235],{"type":40,"value":236},"Hashtag, Ariana Grande, hashtag. Like, improv rules.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":238,"children":239},{},[240],{"type":40,"value":241},"Kerry Guard 15:01",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":243,"children":244},{},[245],{"type":40,"value":246},"Yes, improv does rule, and you need, oh, sorry, guys, you need both. I know that brand, like, took a back seat for a while there, and was like hanging out in, you know, backstage and chilling while lead sort of took, took the front stage to build that revenue and that bottom of the funnel. And then all of a sudden, we looked up and said, Where'd all of our leads go? It's because the brand has been in the green room. We forgot about it, so need to bring that front and center. Let's, let's unpack this, though, for folks who are skipping to the end, it has been like this interesting trans, you know, flow, for the last 10 years, in terms of, like, hacks, right? We need to grow. We need to grow now. What are the hacks we can do between, like, putting things in the emails, to cold calling, or to whatever, to them being like, okay, cool. We could just, like, get leads in all day, we got white papers, download, download, download, download. And now this shift is sort of happening to demand from your point of view. What does demand gen mean, and what has been the evolution of it in the last few years?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":248,"children":249},{},[250],{"type":40,"value":251},"Lee Moscowitz 16:16",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":253,"children":254},{},[255],{"type":40,"value":256},"Yeah, and so one, I think in general, there has been that evolution of demand generation, and now more than ever, you see demand generation. To me, a demand gen specialist is the new associate marketer or marketing coordinator. Like you look at jobs, you look at job positions out there. There could be a demand gen specialist, that's like an entry-level job, but should be like a director, and then vice versa. So demand gen is in a state. But I think one the reasons why demand gen is so popular now is because when people say demand gen, they're like, Oh, well, this this is more about pipeline and it's more about revenue than other tactics and strategies. So that's where demand gen comes in. And I think the other part of it is a lot of people use ABM and demand gen interchangeably, interchangeably, I think so, yeah, because, like, they're parts of they're parts of one another. And like, if you look, if you look at a demand gen job position, too, like the first thing is, like, running ABM campaigns a lot of times too. So I think that is part of that rise. But to me, demand gen like it's literally, it's filling the pipeline. It's funnel-focused. There is that growth aspect and awareness aspect, but it's typically a bit more campaign-focused. And a lot of times, there are more targeted towns, and that's why ABM comes into play. But to me, demand gen is more of that, campaign type focused, failing, pipeline, awareness, acquisition, not necessarily the other aspects of a of a customer journey, of a buyer's journey, demand gen is really more on the tactics to drive those MQLs and accepted meetings and pipeline, it's the blogging, it's the ads. It's all these different tactics to get people to fill things out, and it's just very, very pipeline-focused.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":258,"children":259},{},[260],{"type":40,"value":261},"Kerry Guard 18:25",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":263,"children":264},{},[265],{"type":40,"value":266},"So the goal at the end of the day is pipeline and it's thinking about all the tactics you need throughout the funnel to ultimately capture those people in the long run. In the long run.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":268,"children":269},{},[270],{"type":40,"value":271},"Lee Moscowitz 18:40",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":273,"children":274},{},[275],{"type":40,"value":276},"Like, to me, demand gen is very much something now synonymous with, like, marketing focused on pipeline, which means marketing focused on filling the first few stages in our deal pipeline. And I'll be focused on the pipeline. Well, yeah, so one customer success should be focused on customers. I mean, engineering should be focused on that. But yes, we all should be in every, every, every real marketing concept should be related to pipeline. And there always should be the why about it? Now, sometimes people will take that don't be like, Oh, well, this won't immediately lead to a meeting. So why should we invest in this for six months? And that falls away with some of those demand-gen parts of it. So that's where I come in, and that's where other marketing parts come in. And I think that's also why, you know, growth marketing, it's also pipeline-focused, product-led. Growth product marketing, it's also pipeline focused, because at that it should be, it should be pipeline focused, but there are those other areas. And to me, it's kind of like, obviously, pipeline is the focus, but it's not necessarily the only thing your marketing team can be doing, because sooner or later, whatever demand gen actions you've been doing, if you've only been doing that. That it's going to start drying up, and you don't want to put all your chickens and what eggs or chickens in one basket. I don't know either one of them.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":278,"children":279},{},[280],{"type":40,"value":281},"Kerry Guard 20:06",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":283,"children":284},{},[285],{"type":40,"value":286},"One of them at the same time, because that's you don't know which one's first. I think this is important because Trevor says it so fondly here, around demand, Gen without good brand building doesn't do well, and the market is barely starting to wake up to that. And the implications of that, I think, I think some brands have caught on simply because their pipeline is straight up, and they're like, trying to catch up. I think this is interesting. So my understanding, and this is why you're the expert here, and I'm just taking my understanding based off of all the podcasts I've done and everyone else's points of view. So this is why your point of view is so important, because it's different. My understanding is that demand gen is a framework around how we get to pipeline. And then there are different approaches and tactics we can take within that, whether it's plg, whether it's sales led, whether it's name this lead thing here, and then the tactics that meet best with that, whether it's blogging or SEO, SEO should be and everything. But you know, whether it's paid or getting social or influencer, apparently, is like, make it a huge B to be in flux here. I don't say, I don't know that it was ever a thing, but, like, it's Forbes, just an article about it. So I think it's a it's sort of these things that you start, you start starting very, very high level demand gen being sort of the umbrella, and then how you want to go after it. And then the tactics that fall under that approach is sort of like how I've come to understand it.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":288,"children":289},{},[290],{"type":40,"value":291},"Lee Moscowitz 21:46",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":293,"children":294},{},[295],{"type":40,"value":296},"I think, I mean, I think going off of Trevor's point here in the Commons is the going thing. Demand Jam without brand building doesn't do well. And breaking that down is, if your brand's not known and you're only trying to get a meeting, a very, you know, transactional thing. It's harder, like imagine getting an email from a salesperson from a company you've never heard of before, asking for a meeting, which people do all the time. But then imagine, imagine getting an email from a company you do know really well, or that you actually went to yourself, and the reason that works and why a lot of and the reason why a lot of large or big brand organizations do really well with demand gen is because they already have that Brand established. So with that, you can really just go into those demand gen tactics of, you know, ads, blogging, webinars, all of that stuff. And you mentioned, it's a framework. Yeah, it's a framework to strategy. Demand gen is a tactic that has other tactics. The Way Partners talk so that brand, that brand component, is really what we're talking about here. Where, like, if nobody knows you, if the market's super saturated, if you have zero market share, demand gen can do a whole lot for you, but we also need some of that other aspects here, those more holistic aspects that help get that meeting all the more easily.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":298,"children":299},{},[300],{"type":40,"value":301},"Kerry Guard 23:25",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":303,"children":304},{},[305],{"type":40,"value":306},"Yeah, I do think there's nothing worse. I think I got one earlier this week where somebody showed my LinkedIn, not on, like the, you know, how you have the you have your DMS and LinkedIn, there's like two sides of it now. There's like your direction side and then your other side. I got something in my direct connection side that was, like, a straight-up pitch slap. I was like, Dude, I don't know you. Why is this even happening? Unfollow, on, on all of the things, right? Like, that's my initial visceral reaction to that, because I have no idea who you are. Let's talk about this from a growth standpoint, because I think that's like, where the rubber meets the road on this and where demand, demand falls down, if you're not thinking about it, from that initial I feel like what I'm hearing you say, Lee, which I I really love, is like demand gen is about building pipeline and that sort of like mid to bottom funnel. But those won't work unless you add to the top, which is the brand and the growth aspect, am I?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":308,"children":309},{},[310],{"type":40,"value":311},"Lee Moscowitz 24:27",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":313,"children":314},{},[315],{"type":40,"value":316},"Yes, so add to the top, but also add to the bottom, so it's making it so let's say like, I'm talking about sandwiches here, right? Demand gen could be like the meat in the sandwich, and like that, we're filling the pipeline, but a slice of bread. Up top, here is your tofu. It's, I shouldn't say tofu, because Robert sandwich. So it's your top-of-funnel tofu sandwich. Why not? And it's all that stuff. It's the brand-building stuff. It's, well, I'm a vegetarian, so tofu literally isn't my sandwich. I just meant for confusing stuff. But like so bread here, this is your top. Funnel stuff. It's your brand building. Meat is in demand, Gen, pipeline stuff, and then on the other side. And why I call myself a growth market with the holistic thing is, all right, we have them in here, but marketing's job isn't done because there are nurtures that come into play. There is Peter. Peter said a great quote. He was quoting somebody else, so I'll just give him the quote. But on my episode with him, he was like, \" You don't have a customer until they renew. And he said something like that, so true. So it's working with the, you know, CS, and making sure there's the right resources for customers, and keeping one like your, your job as a marketer isn't done, because some of your customers might not even know your, your brand name. They just know it's a tool they use and stuff. So there is that element, and that's, that's where I add those other parts to it.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":318,"children":319},{},[320],{"type":40,"value":321},"Kerry Guard 25:55",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":323,"children":324},{},[325],{"type":40,"value":326},"Oh my gosh, that's so interesting. Because when you think about growth, you don't necessarily think about it from, I mean, obviously you have the chart, right? You have the hockey stick, sort of going from, you know, nothing, to, you know, good, you know, strong pipeline. And it's a bend, right? It's not linear. It's not like you're just gonna slowly make your way up. It's like, slow, slow, slow, and then bam, like you're hitting that flywheel. And so that's what growth has always meant in my mind, but I never thought about it, which is so obvious now that it would start at that place where you already have the lead. You just got to figure out what to do with them, which I think is where so much of marketing falls down these days. Trevor and I have had this conversation so many times about just because marketing gets a lead does not mean that you should immediately call them as sales and start pitching to them like yesterday. It's that growth element that needs to come in and play a really important part towards that, like helping them feel like they're ready to make a decision. People don't want to talk to sales until they're ready. I'm sorry, guys, like I. The days of cold calling. I said this on a podcast that comes out on March 13, whether you know I'm going to live and die by now, because it's going to be out there in the world. But like, cold calling is dead in my eyes, and this is where growth becomes so important. And if we think about it this way, is huge. It's huge. So talk to me. You mentioned customer success, you mentioned email. But what of those makes it feel like it's, it's the thing that makes the thing grow, like it just feels like, Okay, we have a lead, so we're gonna email them and then like, we'll close the deal, right?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":328,"children":329},{},[330],{"type":40,"value":331},"Lee Moscowitz 27:41",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":333,"children":334},{},[335],{"type":40,"value":336},"So I think, a better way, and we're kind of talking around this, and I know you were waiting to get there, but like, a better way to answer this is really the growth marketing versus demand gen type of, sorry, if I'm cutting there, get to it. That's the real answer. That's the real answer with those other components. So step one for me, sometimes literally, growth marketing and demand gen are the same thing, and it's just semantics, and it's a buzzword thing. And fine, whatever you can call me. I've been called the Social Media kid, the HubSpot guy, the demand gen marketer, the growth marketer, whatever, semantics sometimes, and that's fine, whatever, if we're focused on results, semantics, sure, yeah, that's one scenario. The other scenario is really understanding what those differences are. And honestly, like, there's more similarities than there are differences, but I think that's where we go in with this holistic approach. So like, like, Oprah, let's, let's take Oprah. Let's take, let's take book clubs, for example. Like, to me, like, growth marketing is like a book club. And maybe you have different books coming in, you're promoting, maybe you have, like, different authors coming in, maybe you have the best snacks now. So people keep coming back, and like, that's growth marketing. But then we got Oprah here with her book list, her recommended list, whatever she does every year. And if you're on that, like you're golden. Yeah. So demand gen is kind of like we're going to do everything to be on Oprah's list and really focus on on that, because that's going to lead to so many sales, and we're going to put our efforts there and and that's that's more of the demand, Gen and growth marketing is like that, book club, community, everything, and then we're testing which book to like, and we're doing stuff like that. Yeah, that's where I say. I don't know, Oprah came into my head.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":338,"children":339},{},[340],{"type":40,"value":341},"Kerry Guard 29:41",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":343,"children":344},{},[345],{"type":40,"value":346},"I mean, we could talk about Oprah all day. Should talk about brand building. Oh my gosh, the epitome, right there, her and Taylor Swift, right now. Taylor is another one.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":348,"children":349},{},[350],{"type":40,"value":351},"Lee Moscowitz 29:52",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":353,"children":354},{},[355],{"type":40,"value":356},"The economy, right there. Taylor Swift.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":358,"children":359},{},[360],{"type":40,"value":361},"Kerry Guard 29:56",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":363,"children":364},{},[365],{"type":40,"value":366},"So it's still coming up to me. I'm. I love that we're talking about semantics, and I think that's important. And I actually prefer pulling these things apart, because I do think that they get cobbled together, and it's bad. They should not be cobbled together. I also think growth got kind of a bad name, a bad rap, these last, like, 10 years, because it felt like, and I mentioned this earlier, when you mentioned growth marketing, it feels like, how you're going to hack your way there. Like, what's that? It's kind of like the Oprah scenario, of, like, well, if I can just get on Oprah's book club, then, like, I've made it right, not counting all the ways you have to, sort of, like, work your way into Oprah's sphere to, like, make that happen. And the huge lift that that is, but growth hacking, like, one example that always comes up, I think, is for Google, right? When Google, early days of Google, when they wanted to get their email out there and get more people into their email system, it was that they just added this stupid link at the bottom of your email that said, email from Google, right? And then people wanted to know what this Google thing was, and then they clicked on it, and they signed up, and now they had an account, right? Like, that's a hack, and unfortunately, I don't say those days are done. They're just harder to come up with and harder to find and harder to, like, figure out. And so I think growth got a bit of a bad name, because it got tied into you having to hack your way there. Where are the shortcuts? It's like Zoom info lists, right? Like, you know, there was a time where you could just download a list and then go cold call these people, and then you would end up with a bunch of leads that actually wanted to buy, and that was great for like, a hot second. But those days are, like, gone because buyers figured out that they're big.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":368,"children":369},{},[370],{"type":40,"value":371},"Lee Moscowitz 31:32",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":373,"children":374},{},[375],{"type":40,"value":376},"I still think you can cold call the right way for the right people. I still think you can.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":378,"children":379},{},[380],{"type":40,"value":381},"Kerry Guard 31:36",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":383,"children":384},{},[385],{"type":40,"value":386},"We might need to circle back on that, but I do, I do think that growth and hack sort of got tangled up together. And I also feel like, from what you're saying, demand gen and growth, I think they're two different things.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":388,"children":389},{},[390],{"type":40,"value":391},"Lee Moscowitz 31:54",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":393,"children":394},{},[395],{"type":40,"value":396},"I 100% they are, they are. They're different things. Because, to me, like that is, and again, like demand gen is more of that strategy tactic, where I see growth marketing more as a strategy or methodology or approach type thing, and to me, demand gen is a part of growth marketing, and there is that distinction. But we can go even further. I mean, let's go back to the textbook. Marketing is an umbrella term. There are so many things under marketing. It's not just it's not just ads, public relations is its own category, but that's marketing, and it's under that umbrella. So that's why there are so many of these breakdowns, that there is growth marketing and product-led growth and demand gen and ABM managers, because like, like, all things, as more technologies come out, and as people have gotten better with certain skills we've had that need to really differentiate ourselves. Marketers. To mark, I'll make one last point, sir, I'm talking over you. I'll make one last like. So I think marketers have a tendency to over-architect and over-analyze and really put things in buckets. And to me, sometimes I'm like, I don't care if we call this a demand gen campaign. You call me a growth marketer, demand gen as long as we get the results, yeah, that's what focus other times I'm like, okay, though we have to be really, really, like, focused on you, or where are we putting our efforts? Because to me, that growth marketing strategy again, is you're splitting yourself a bit more. Yes, you're pipeline-focused, but you're also on the right brand, building the right acquisition and then the right nurturing, or the right referral program afterward, or things like that.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":398,"children":399},{},[400],{"type":40,"value":401},"Kerry Guard 33:50",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":403,"children":404},{},[405],{"type":40,"value":406},"Yeah, you do need to have what's going to work for you, right? Every brand is a little different in terms of what recipe you sort of need to bring it together and not do random acts of marketing, right? That's really, I think that's why we all sort of need, like, a framework, give me a strategy, give me an approach, give me a thing that, like, I can hang my tactics on, and make sure we're all driving towards the ultimate goal of revenue. Let's talk about I'm really want to sit here on the growth side of it, though, because I feel like we all got the lead, and then we don't know what to do with them, and it sounds like that's where the magic sort of happens, whether we call it growth or the car demand or both. What is that for you, in you mentioned customer success, is that is there tactics under Customer Success? Or break this apart for me, from a nurture standpoint, versus a customer success standpoint.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":408,"children":409},{},[410],{"type":40,"value":411},"Lee Moscowitz 34:43",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":413,"children":414},{},[415],{"type":40,"value":416},"Before we get to, like, the CS, there is that part where, like, one, it's like, the talking to the sales and AES, and that obvious stuff about, okay, have we gotten them the right lead? So there's, that's that obvious element. You can do the same, you can do the same thing with CS. It's like, okay. Like, yes, they're onboarded. But are they happy customers? Did? Did? Did they understand the product and the website properly? From the website, from the marketing, are certain customers churning for a certain reason that we should make adjustments on the marketing side to either back up on or clarify? Are there certain things that customers are complaining about or loving? So, joining calls is amazing. Obviously, you can listen to Gong calls and recordings, but literally, like sometimes your customers and your CS, people will explain things in a way that marketers just didn't and, like, sometimes it's awesome, and you really just do that. The others, the other thing, like CS, is just the unsung heroes of everything. So they're so busy, I try not to bother them. But like, I want to make sure that when we do have them these customers, they're not just going to churn in six months, because all we cared about was getting anybody here. And marketing works somehow, but they weren't right, and not that that would, but, I mean, it could.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":418,"children":419},{},[420],{"type":40,"value":421},"Kerry Guard 36:09",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":423,"children":424},{},[425],{"type":40,"value":426},"It has no for sure. Let's talk about that. So let's talk about the sales side of it, first, like before they're actually a customer, and the tactics from a growth standpoint of like, you have all of these leads sitting in your CRM that you did a great job through demand getting, but like, now, what do you honestly do? You send them directly to sales and let sales vet them and then tell you whether a good lead or not, or do you have a system that vets them up front? Like, what's sort of your approach to figuring out how to get somebody from a lead over to sales appropriately?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":428,"children":429},{},[430],{"type":40,"value":431},"Lee Moscowitz 36:43",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":433,"children":434},{},[435],{"type":40,"value":436},"So, figuring out when they should get their part of it honestly depends on how busy sales are. So if you're in a scenario where they're not fully packed schedules and on calls all day, you know, it could be worth being a bit more lenient upfront on who we're sending sales if they're not as busy. But let's say we're in a situation where, you know, they're already pretty busy, with enough calls, yeah, there is room for more, but they have, they have a good amount. That's that's the situation where we don't necessarily want to send them everyone because they're already busy. But I also don't. I want them to believe in marketing, trust me, as their teammate, as their marketer. So I only want to be sending them a lead when that lead is ready. I don't want them to be like, Why are you calling me? And this really varies, because, like, I know companies that they literally call people after downloading ebooks, and it worked great for them. I know other companies were like, \" Don't do that, obviously. So there is that part of it. But like, I'd say, all right, we have too many, we have a lot of leads here. We're doing great. Who do we prioritize? That's where your lead scoring comes into play.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":438,"children":439},{},[440],{"type":40,"value":441},"Kerry Guard 37:55",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":443,"children":444},{},[445],{"type":40,"value":446},"The lead scoring. Okay, great.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":448,"children":449},{},[450],{"type":40,"value":451},"Lee Moscowitz 37:56",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":453,"children":454},{},[455],{"type":40,"value":456},"I believe, do people not believe in lead score?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":458,"children":459},{},[460],{"type":40,"value":461},"Kerry Guard 37:59",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":463,"children":464},{},[465],{"type":40,"value":466},"I think everybody just approaches it differently.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":468,"children":469},{},[470],{"type":40,"value":471},"Lee Moscowitz 38:02",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":473,"children":474},{},[475],{"type":40,"value":476},"LEAD SCORING isn't Jesus people. It's not a religion thing. You can, you don't get this, like, lead score is a thing.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":478,"children":479},{},[480],{"type":40,"value":481},"Kerry Guard 38:07",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":483,"children":484},{},[485],{"type":40,"value":486},"Lead scoring is a thing. I think it's just, it's just that everybody approaches it differently. So, for you, how do you lead score? Do you use, like, a certain system, like lattice, or do you just do it based off of, like, how many opens and engages? Yeah, sort of your approach.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":488,"children":489},{},[490],{"type":40,"value":491},"Lee Moscowitz 38:20",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":493,"children":494},{},[495],{"type":40,"value":496},"So again, it really depends on how complex and how many actions are going on. But I think this really talks to, again, going back to marketers over architecting things, it doesn't always need to be crazy. It could literally just be like, hey, these people opened three emails, viewed these pages. Let's give them additive scores. They viewed the pricing page or did a product tour. Let's give them another score. Oh, they unsubscribe, negative, whatever. So it doesn't always need to be like this big, massive thing that makes everybody nervous. In fact, it shouldn't be, because then it gets even harder to change, because you should be changing as you go along, that maybe we're getting too many points here, and everybody opens up tons of emails. It's not a good thing. Yeah, so that's where lead routing really comes into play. The other is intent data. So again, another thing that people over are over architect tons of great intent data tools that will tell you everything from what the person had to breakfast to their mother's maiden name to, like, how they're shopping, like so again, so many good, good things out there. You want to know if that person's in market, but you don't also need to go overboard with that data. So sometimes just knowing if they've been to your website or certain pages is enough, other times, yes, we do want to have them. Yes, they're an in-market audience because of something else they did and yada yada yada. But again, it's using all that data points to inform and then push the sales.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":498,"children":499},{},[500],{"type":40,"value":501},"Kerry Guard 39:58",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":503,"children":504},{},[505],{"type":40,"value":506},"This leads kind of nicely into AB. Am for a hot second, because we talked about how ABM and demand sort of get tangled together. I'll put my stake in the ground. ABM is a is a tactic, slash-like approach to demand, kind of like you could sort of use ABM to help PLG, but it's, it's not the only thing in demand that you can be doing, it's a part of demand. Yes, agree, disagree, agree.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":508,"children":509},{},[510],{"type":40,"value":511},"Lee Moscowitz 40:31",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":513,"children":514},{},[515],{"type":40,"value":516},"I agree again. I think it's like ABM is part of that demand gen, which can be part of growth marketing, but it is demand gen isn't necessarily you're doing that account part of it. It's not saying you're getting specific. Demand gen doesn't have to be account-specific. It just, again, focused more on getting the actual demand for that product, so creating it. We're doing everything like that. That's that's where that comes in.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":518,"children":519},{},[520],{"type":40,"value":521},"Kerry Guard 41:02",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":523,"children":524},{},[525],{"type":40,"value":526},"Oh, Trevor says it so nicely here. Intent should inform all phases of sales readiness. ABM shouldn't be based on intent, and intent should inform how you treat a target account at any given time. Yes, I agree that ABM is really about what accounts you want to go after, of like, who's in your ideal customer profile and but intent can inform whether they who within the account is the ones that are actually investigating this thing, and who you might want to be talking to, and how you market to, to the to all the people involved. So intent plays a role, but it shouldn't be the thing that tells you what accounts you should be going after.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":528,"children":529},{},[530],{"type":40,"value":531},"Lee Moscowitz 41:43",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":533,"children":534},{},[535],{"type":40,"value":536},"Yeah, that's the point, like your intent shouldn't change your ICP criteria until, unless it's some crazy situation where nobody in your ICP ever has, like you have your ICP wrong and your persona wrong. I think where intent does come into play, it's more of that prior prioritization. So if things are going awesome, if we are getting all these leads, how do I help my sales people do spend their day on the most effective things that are most likely to add value?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":538,"children":539},{},[540],{"type":40,"value":541},"Kerry Guard 42:16",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":543,"children":544},{},[545],{"type":40,"value":546},"I totally agree with that. I think that's, man, if we could all get that right. It would be, it would be magical.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":548,"children":549},{},[550],{"type":40,"value":551},"Lee Moscowitz 42:24",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":553,"children":554},{},[555],{"type":40,"value":556},"Sometimes it is literally as simple as we have, like this, AE, or this, SDR is focused on these, this long list, because we have our ICP right. We've got our target accounts. It could be as simple as, hey, this person viewed our website or the pricing page delay, let's bump them to the top of the list, or something like that. It could be that simple, like changes like that, that just help your sales people prior prioritize who to talk to first, can make all the difference, and then that's why people get crazy with intent data.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":558,"children":559},{},[560],{"type":40,"value":561},"Kerry Guard 42:59",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":563,"children":564},{},[565],{"type":40,"value":566},"It's easy to do, especially if your website's really big. But I think just bucketing it in terms of the funnel, top funnel, consideration, purchase.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":568,"children":569},{},[570],{"type":40,"value":571},"Lee Moscowitz 43:08",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":573,"children":574},{},[575],{"type":40,"value":576},"Intent data tools have also done a great job of FOMO, where it's like, if you're not using our intent data, then you're reaching the wrong people. And I am when I see, like, a 30k line item in any tool, and they're saying, Oh, our match rate for your ads is going to be better. Like, I'm like, okay, like, what do you do differently from me? Why can't I just upload the list myself? And, like, a lot of times they can't answer it, or they're like, Oh, well, we have, like, their personal email address too, or something like that, so like that. That's why intent data has gotten some of that rap because people were obsessed with it for a hot minute.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":578,"children":579},{},[580],{"type":40,"value":581},"Kerry Guard 43:46",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":583,"children":584},{},[585],{"type":40,"value":586},"It seems like I generally only work because I'm on the agency side. I generally don't get to, like, hang out within all the CRMs that I would love to. I was marked certified, like, a million years ago, and I've dabbled in HubSpot. I use Active Campaign. I'm for my own agency, and for some of my clients, I'm a hub spotter. Yeah, so, but I do feel like CRMs have stepped up their game in terms of being able to create some of that scoring pretty easily without needing to buy more martech tools to weigh us down.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":588,"children":589},{},[590],{"type":40,"value":591},"Lee Moscowitz 44:22",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":593,"children":594},{},[595],{"type":40,"value":596},"That said, those CRMs really just like, if you do need some kind of intent, they don't do it like, you need another tool with it.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":598,"children":599},{},[600],{"type":40,"value":601},"Kerry Guard 44:29",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":603,"children":604},{},[605],{"type":40,"value":606},"For HubSpot specifically, you need another tool.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":608,"children":609},{},[610],{"type":40,"value":611},"Lee Moscowitz 44:32",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":613,"children":614},{},[615],{"type":40,"value":616},"I mean, like, it sure again, like you can if you really want intent, like HubSpot, for example, like they have, like, a prospecting thing that they bury. But like, like, it's not, it's not as useful. Like, if you're really trying to, like, especially if you're working in a SAS motion where there's long sales cycle, which is pretty much everyone in B to B, yeah. Prioritization just comes into play, like crazy. So if you have a target account. List, and your salespeople are just reaching out. And then when you add intent data, and if their rates start increasing, which they should, that means intent data is doing a good job. If it stays the same, it just means you're making everyone's life harder.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":618,"children":619},{},[620],{"type":40,"value":621},"Kerry Guard 45:16",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":623,"children":624},{},[625],{"type":40,"value":626},"Well, let's just talk about this for a second, because we've sort of bounced around to topics, which I think is awesome, and I'm here, I mean, you've met me, like, that's hilarious. It's the best.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":628,"children":629},{},[630],{"type":40,"value":631},"Kerry Guard 45:24",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":633,"children":634},{},[635],{"type":40,"value":636},"I think there are so many nuggets here that people are going to walk away with. Let's give them one thing to really chomp down on, which is what we've liked, really laid out here around intent data, and what intent data really is. So in terms of, like, how you quantify when you're saying intent, data, what I'm hearing you say, Lee is, it comes down to basically website I'm oversimplifying, of course, but basically website interaction, what pages they visited. Maybe you could go by channel, in terms of, like, organic, social, versus SEO that helps, versus a paid ad, right in terms of like, how you grade those.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":638,"children":639},{},[640],{"type":40,"value":641},"Lee Moscowitz 46:05",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":643,"children":644},{},[645],{"type":40,"value":646},"Websites are like website view is like, the easy like, that's like the basic intent data, like another, another good one that, like a lot of tools use, is intent data, as in, all right, this person is viewing Ji Cho and trust radius, like all these places for a certain category. And it should be, right, that's another huge play, knowing that people are like, bum bores, like, you know, another tool like that, does it? So it's like taking intent. Data is just other things, other pieces of information that indicate these people are more likely to buy for some reason. So it's typically like these people have indicated, by some way, that they're more interested in your category, in your product category, they're looking for that solution, and that's where all these tools have it. They visited G2, or they're searching for this stuff, or all these different motions. And again, the more intent data there is, the more it gets complicated. But that's why people go really ham on it, because it's like, why reach out to everybody when I can only be reaching out to the people that are ready to buy again? The problem is, just because intent data says they're ready to buy might not mean that they actually are, but that's typically why it I do encourage some kind of intent data when you're you're really trying to help sales figure out what to focus on and marketing what to focus on.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":648,"children":649},{},[650],{"type":40,"value":651},"Kerry Guard 47:49",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":653,"children":654},{},[655],{"type":40,"value":656},"It sounds like there are different layers of how you can go about intent. Because, like you said, marketers love to over-engineer everything. How many tools can we throw out on this thing, and how much can we wire them up, and how much can we automate, and how much can we like not touch this and then let it do its thing until it hits sales. I think there are different layers of that. So it sounds like there are some aspects within your CRM that you could wire up to get some intent data, like, depending on how big you are, right?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":658,"children":659},{},[660],{"type":40,"value":661},"Lee Moscowitz 48:14",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":663,"children":664},{},[665],{"type":40,"value":666},"What you're saying is about the first-party versus third-party intent data differences. So first party, your website, your CRM, that stuff, third party, that's where all those other tools come into play, where these buyers are doing all these actions that we are tracking, because our tool is amazing, and we know that they're they're engaging with your product or your your category, and that's, that's what it is.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":668,"children":669},{},[670],{"type":40,"value":671},"Kerry Guard 48:39",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":673,"children":674},{},[675],{"type":40,"value":676},"Yes, and I think what I'm trying to get to is to help people figure out when they need which thing, right? So to your point, if you should hire me, if they need that, one thing that you said, I think is really important is that if you are a SAS, and you have multiple layers in which people have to go through your buying cycle, and if you're and especially if you're trying to do plg, where it is very hands off, right, you do want this thing to basically scale itself. That's the whole point of product line growth. Then having these extra tools is going to be huge, because you're probably not investing as much in potentially a sales team. So putting that money and effort into that intent data, that's third-party, is awesome. But if you're more heavy on sales, if you're more heavy on not on them, needing to call a salesperson, and your website is, you know, more around that engagement piece of telling people what they need and why they need it, then you starting off in a place of first party is probably a great place to start. You might need third-party data later, and that would be great to layer in. But I know all of these martech tools can get over daunting, so knowing like where to begin, I think, is really helpful, and that's why I was trying to pull them apart.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":678,"children":679},{},[680],{"type":40,"value":681},"Lee Moscowitz 49:51",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":683,"children":684},{},[685],{"type":40,"value":686},"Yeah, always, always, always begin with anything first party you can, you can do, and it. If your SaaS, again, doesn't always need all these extra steps, but if you are a larger organization, or if you're more complex, or if the tool is a pretty high ticket item, which, again, a lot of SaaS are, that's where this comes into play, and putting all that in, yeah.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":688,"children":689},{},[690],{"type":40,"value":691},"Kerry Guard 50:19",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":693,"children":694},{},[695],{"type":40,"value":696},"I mean, that third-party data is like, sounds totally magical, especially if you get into the G2 stuff to really understand, like, what people are searching for. That's wild. That's wild. We went through quite a few topics here, really, from defining demand gen to understanding how growth fits in or around to getting into the to the meat of it, the of the sandwich, in terms of talking about Oprah because, I mean, can't not have a conversation about Oprah or Taylor Swift right now. I sneak Kerry wherever I can, and how you can really bring in that intent, data that ABM, those channels to help you cultivate your audience to and really help sale at the end of the day, pipeline and sales folks, so like, how can we support our sales teams to get to that pipeline and make everyone's jobs easier all around?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":698,"children":699},{},[700],{"type":40,"value":701},"Lee Moscowitz 51:13",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":703,"children":704},{},[705],{"type":40,"value":706},"Right? Yes. And these marketing distinctions are important. They exist for a reason: because, like, it becomes very helpful, especially when a marketing leader is building their team. Do I need a demand gen person who is really going to be focusing on those tactics specifically? Or maybe, do we want to put more into growth marketing, which has that pipeline focus as well, but also comes into play with the brand building, with customer referral, parts of it, success, parts of it, and things like that. So I get, if you're not sure, feel free to hit me up on it. But I'd like always go back to what your goal is and what the results you want to be, and where you also want to be in not just a month from now, but next quarter, and the quarter after that, and next year.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":708,"children":709},{},[710],{"type":40,"value":711},"Kerry Guard 52:11",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":713,"children":714},{},[715],{"type":40,"value":716},"And how your product is built, it's going to play, you know, play a part, especially if it's SAS. And if you need more tips and tricks from the sassiest podcast. Be sure to check out Lee to be. The link is in the show notes. Lee, you and I met on LinkedIn. Is that the best place to find you?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":718,"children":719},{},[720],{"type":40,"value":721},"Lee Moscowitz 52:31",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":723,"children":724},{},[725],{"type":40,"value":726},"Yeah, message me on LinkedIn. That's, that's really the only one. People should contact me again, Google. Lead to be, it'll come up. Listen to me on Spotify, Apple, anywhere. I have a bunch of ABM-specific episodes that, if you're interested, we can go in further with Mason, Cosby, Karina Owens, it's the plg episode. Have some sales ones as well, because I always like talking to salespeople, but, but, yeah. Thank you so, so much, Kerry, for letting me come on and spew demand, Gen, and growth marketing at your audience.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":728,"children":729},{},[730],{"type":40,"value":731},"Kerry Guard 53:06",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":733,"children":734},{},[735],{"type":40,"value":736},"I loved every minute. I do want to say, closing on here. Lee, you are more than a marketer. So, 2024, I feel like this is the year where we're coming out of this smog, the fog that was COVID. We're living with it. We're figuring it out. But like, what are you most looking forward to this year, now that that dust has settled?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":738,"children":739},{},[740],{"type":40,"value":741},"Lee Moscowitz 53:25",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":743,"children":744},{},[745],{"type":40,"value":746},"Well, I don't know. Like, I feel like I've gotten past the part of, like, looking forward to things and just hoping more bad things don't happen. I mean, I'm kind of kidding, but like, this is an election year, so like, this is an election year?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":748,"children":749},{},[750],{"type":40,"value":751},"Kerry Guard 53:40",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":753,"children":754},{},[755],{"type":40,"value":756},"It is. It's definitely a tough year. I'm on the edge of my seat. I have registered. I'm across seas. But don't you worry.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":758,"children":759},{},[760],{"type":40,"value":761},"Lee Moscowitz 53:46",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":763,"children":764},{},[765],{"type":40,"value":766},"I should say something more positive, though, at the end, though, I shouldn't just say what your question was? I just went negative.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":768,"children":769},{},[770],{"type":40,"value":771},"Kerry Guard 53:51",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":773,"children":774},{},[775],{"type":40,"value":776},"Why don't you tell me my other favorite question, asking people is coming out of COVID? What is a hobby you've picked up over the last few years? What have you learned? What are you totally doing?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":778,"children":779},{},[780],{"type":40,"value":781},"Lee Moscowitz 54:03",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":783,"children":784},{},[785],{"type":40,"value":786},"Oh, yes, perfect answer for this. That's much I'm a homebody, so perfect answer for me. So covid, COVID, The Queen's Gambit came out on Netflix. Amazing show, amazing show. I played chess, you know, as a kid, like, like many people did, but like, I stopped. So we watched Queen's Gambit, my boyfriend and I, like, episode one. And then, like, played, played some games of chess, horrible, horrible games of chess. We didn't really know it. Then we finished Queen's Gambit. And then, like, we kind of just, you know, I started playing online with different people. He went crazy into it, like I used to be better. He studied and knows lines and all this stuff with chess. But yeah, like, literally went from like never really playing chess as an adult or in years, to like I play, I play at least one game of chess a day, like you can if you want, if you're not. If you're on chess.com, feel free to play me. I also think it's very much like digital marketing. I'm not going to do a cheesy analogy, like, I want to, but like, one of the reasons I also like it is because it's, like, it involves some kind of brain stimulation, but it's not like, overpowering where, like, I have to, like, I'm not a big video game person because, like, I don't want to learn all like, the rules and controls and like, it feels like work, like, I don't know how people like, play some of these games. Like, like, so, yeah.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":788,"children":789},{},[790],{"type":40,"value":791},"Kerry Guard 55:31",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":793,"children":794},{},[795],{"type":40,"value":796},"Yeah, I totally feel you. The only video game I play these days is with my son. It's called fall guys, and it's because you basically tried running a straight line from point to point B and not get knocked over.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":798,"children":799},{},[800],{"type":40,"value":801},"Lee Moscowitz 55:42",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":803,"children":804},{},[805],{"type":40,"value":806},"Yes, I will always play Smash Bros with somebody who likes that. Yeah, yes,",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":808,"children":809},{},[810],{"type":40,"value":811},"Kerry Guard 55:48",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":813,"children":814},{},[815],{"type":40,"value":816},"Yes, very simple. I'm here for it. Lee, this was amazing. I'm so grateful. Thank you for joining me. If you enjoyed the episode, please like, subscribe, and share. This episode is brought to you by mkg marketing, the digital marketing agency that helps complex brands get found via SEO and digital ads. The show is hosted by me, Kerry Guard, CEO and co-founder of MKG Marketing. And if you'd like to be a guest, I love to have you hit me up on LinkedIn, and we'll hang out. But Trevor, so grateful for you, Lee. Thank you again. You you.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":818,"children":819},{},[820,824],{"type":30,"tag":821,"props":822,"children":823},"br",{},[],{"type":30,"tag":821,"props":825,"children":826},{},[],{"title":7,"searchDepth":828,"depth":828,"links":829},2,[830,831],{"id":33,"depth":828,"text":41},{"id":50,"depth":828,"text":56},"markdown","content:podcasts:marketing-leaders:marketing-isn-t-a-commodity-lee-moskowitz-on-fixing-pipeline-thinking.md","content","podcasts/marketing-leaders/marketing-isn-t-a-commodity-lee-moskowitz-on-fixing-pipeline-thinking.md","podcasts/marketing-leaders/marketing-isn-t-a-commodity-lee-moskowitz-on-fixing-pipeline-thinking","md",[839,1140,1448,1807,2233],{"_path":840,"_dir":841,"_draft":6,"_partial":6,"_locale":7,"title":842,"description":843,"date":844,"img":845,"imgAlt":846,"body":847,"_type":832,"_id":1136,"_source":834,"_file":1137,"_stem":1138,"_extension":837,"category":841,"minutes":1139},"/blog/seo/the-2026-brand-visibility-audit-is-your-icp-finding-your-competitors-in-the-llm","seo","The 2026 Brand Visibility Audit: Is Your ICP Finding Your Competitors in the LLM?","When your target accounts use AI search to shortlist vendors, do you exist? Here is how to audit your brand presence and reverse competitive displacement.","2026-05-27T14:44:51.901Z","https://assets.mkgmarketinginc.com/1ebdbd36-b81a-40c3-b8d6-528986294139-mkg-blog-the-2026-brand-visibility-audit-hero-image.webp","Brand Visibility Audit",{"type":27,"children":848,"toc":1127},[849,854,859,881,886,894,903,908,913,918,923,932,937,942,962,967,974,983,988,993,998,1003,1012,1017,1022,1035,1040,1047,1056,1061,1066,1084,1089,1098,1103,1108,1113,1122],{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":850,"children":851},{},[852],{"type":40,"value":853},"For years, B2B marketing operated on a straightforward logic: win the search engine results page, win the pipeline. Teams engineered content to capture specific keywords, mapped backlinks to boost domain authority, and celebrated when landing pages claimed the top spots on Google. If a prospective customer in your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) looked for a solution, your site appeared.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":855,"children":856},{},[857],{"type":40,"value":858},"That logic no longer holds. A complete decoupling has occurred between traditional website traffic and the actual vendor shortlisting process. B2B buyers are bypassing the endless lists of blue links entirely. Instead of clicking through five different websites to read corporate marketing copy, they are leveraging large language models (LLMs) to perform the heavy lifting of vendor evaluation.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":860,"children":861},{},[862,864,879],{"type":40,"value":863},"This behavior is a structural reality. Data from",{"type":30,"tag":865,"props":866,"children":870},"a",{"href":867,"rel":868},"https://company.g2.com/news/g2-research-the-answer-economy",[869],"nofollow",[871,873],{"type":40,"value":872}," ",{"type":30,"tag":874,"props":875,"children":876},"u",{},[877],{"type":40,"value":878},"G2’s 2026 Answer Economy Report",{"type":40,"value":880}," reveals that 51% of B2B software buyers now begin their vendor research inside an AI chatbot rather than a traditional search engine. Buyers are leaning into a centralized discovery model in which they issue a single, structured prompt to an LLM to compare market options. The model synthesizes data from across the web, evaluates capabilities, and surfaces a definitive recommendation.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":882,"children":883},{},[884],{"type":40,"value":885},"The challenge arises when your target accounts run these prompts, and your competitors are consistently cited as the preferred solution while your brand is completely left out of the answer. It is a highly efficient form of Competitive Displacement. If your organization does not appear in the model's synthesized output, you are filtered out before a sales representative is even considered. Reclaiming your place in the funnel requires moving past traditional SEO and mastering Brand Visibility Optimization (BVO).",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":887,"children":888},{},[889],{"type":30,"tag":890,"props":891,"children":893},"img",{"alt":7,"src":892},"https://assets.mkgmarketinginc.com/15431b64-54bd-447a-b57e-c64f2f7b9398-mkg-blog-the-2026-brand-visibility-audit-image-1.png",[],{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":895,"children":897},{"id":896},"the-reality-of-llm-synthetic-vetting",[898],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":899,"children":900},{},[901],{"type":40,"value":902},"The Reality of LLM Synthetic Vetting",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":904,"children":905},{},[906],{"type":40,"value":907},"When an LLM builds a B2B vendor shortlist, it doesn’t scan the web like a human. It isn’t impressed by a sleek homepage or polished brand copy. Instead, it treats the digital landscape as a single, connected dataset and assesses vendors based on entity clarity, semantic relevance, and pattern recognition.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":909,"children":910},{},[911],{"type":40,"value":912},"If an enterprise software buyer asks an LLM for platforms that meet specific compliance standards, deployment models, and pricing structures, the model goes back to its processed data layers for hard evidence. It searches for alignment across technical documentation, community conversations, and independent sources before producing an answer.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":914,"children":915},{},[916],{"type":40,"value":917},"That creates a serious blind spot for teams still operating on legacy marketing assumptions. You might own the top spot on a traditional search engine for a high-intent keyword, but if the model can’t confidently interpret your product architecture or validate your customer satisfaction, you’ll be excluded from its comparison set. Instead, it will surface competitors whose data is clean, structured, and consistently verified across the web.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":919,"children":920},{},[921],{"type":40,"value":922},"In this new reality, visibility is less about acquisition and more about indexation and structure. To influence how models evaluate your company, you must deliberately manage the information they ingest. Treat the public web as your LLM training data layer—and consider audited, third-party environments as your core competitive arena.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":924,"children":926},{"id":925},"executing-a-diagnostic-brand-visibility-audit",[927],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":928,"children":929},{},[930],{"type":40,"value":931},"Executing a Diagnostic Brand Visibility Audit",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":933,"children":934},{},[935],{"type":40,"value":936},"To correct a deficit in AI search visibility, an enterprise cannot rely on guesswork. You need a systematic, repeatable diagnostic protocol to discover exactly where the models are pulling their information, why they favor alternative solutions, and how they perceive your overall Search Sentiment.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":938,"children":939},{},[940],{"type":40,"value":941},"This diagnostic process requires three foundational execution phases:",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":944,"children":945},"ul",{},[946,952,957],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":948,"children":949},"li",{},[950],{"type":40,"value":951},"Intent-Based Prompt Baselining: Test a standardized matrix of procurement prompts across major models like Gemini, Claude, and ChatGPT. Document the exact terminology used to describe your category, track which competitors populate the shortlists, and analyze the specific source citations generated by the engines to back up their recommendations.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":953,"children":954},{},[955],{"type":40,"value":956},"Review Ecosystem Quantification: Assess the volume, recency, and detailed text sentiment of your third-party evaluation profiles. Models rely heavily on independent customer validation to verify brand claims; a stagnation in your review pipeline signals a high risk of model omission.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":958,"children":959},{},[960],{"type":40,"value":961},"Entity Verification and Mapping: Inspect how consistently your core capabilities, naming structures, and integrations are stated across public channels. Inconsistent nomenclature across your website, product registries, and press releases dilutes the LLM's pattern-matching capability, causing it to bypass your brand due to data uncertainty.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":963,"children":964},{},[965],{"type":40,"value":966},"By treating this audit as a precise engineering diagnostic rather than a creative exercise, you reveal the specific technical gaps that are causing your competitive omission. You shift the conversation from a vague discussion about brand awareness to a concrete roadmap for structural data optimization.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":968,"children":969},{},[970],{"type":30,"tag":890,"props":971,"children":973},{"alt":7,"src":972},"https://assets.mkgmarketinginc.com/7ff92deb-11ff-4c70-acaa-433b513eeac0-mkg-blog-the-2026-brand-visibility-audit-image-2.png",[],{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":975,"children":977},{"id":976},"establishing-narrative-control-via-consistency",[978],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":979,"children":980},{},[981],{"type":40,"value":982},"Establishing Narrative Control via Consistency",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":984,"children":985},{},[986],{"type":40,"value":987},"The definitive solution to an AI visibility deficit is a relentless dedication to operational Consistency. In a marketing landscape that changes every quarter, consistency is the operational framework that turns sporadic actions into a predictable, compounding authority engine. For a language model to confidently output your brand name as a trusted option, it must recognize a steady, unfragmented pattern of authoritative data over time.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":989,"children":990},{},[991],{"type":40,"value":992},"This operational rhythm applies directly to how you structure and distribute your subject matter expertise. Language models prioritize information that is backed by verified experts, deep industry use cases, and recurring, high-value concepts. When your technical leaders contribute regular, deep-dive insights to reputable public engineering repositories, trusted community hubs, and authoritative industry spaces, you continuously feed the exact data pools that models crawl.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":994,"children":995},{},[996],{"type":40,"value":997},"A short-term, campaign-driven approach fails completely under this model. You cannot run a one-time push to force your way into an LLM's next update cycle. The models are designed to identify long-term consensus and verified domain expertise.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":999,"children":1000},{},[1001],{"type":40,"value":1002},"Maintaining a disciplined, predictable cadence of technical data output ensures your company is recognized as an immutable category leader. This approach hardcodes your product capabilities into the data layers that models rely on to construct competitive matrix responses, thereby protecting your pipeline from displacement.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1004,"children":1006},{"id":1005},"why-structured-data-ingestion-wins-the-funnel",[1007],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1008,"children":1009},{},[1010],{"type":40,"value":1011},"Why Structured Data Ingestion Wins the Funnel",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1013,"children":1014},{},[1015],{"type":40,"value":1016},"The primary advantage of a fully optimized brand footprint is the velocity at which you can capture modern buyer intent. When an AI search engine is tasked with compiling an urgent vendor shortlist, it favors the path of least risk and highest data integrity.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1018,"children":1019},{},[1020],{"type":40,"value":1021},"Consider the contrasting outcomes between two distinct structural approaches:",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":1023,"children":1024},{},[1025,1030],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1026,"children":1027},{},[1028],{"type":40,"value":1029},"The Unstructured Site: A company relies on creative, stylized copywriting buried inside static image layouts or gated PDF forms. The LLM cannot confidently extract technical metrics, security protocols, or API pricing structures. Fearing a hallucination, the model excludes the company from the generated answer.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1031,"children":1032},{},[1033],{"type":40,"value":1034},"The Structured Knowledge Base: A company deploys an advanced technical semantic layer that utilizes clean schemas, verified review pipelines, and consistent cross-platform definitions. The model instantly extracts, categorizes, and validates the company's compliance credentials, placing them at the top of the recommended shortlist with explicit trust citations.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1036,"children":1037},{},[1038],{"type":40,"value":1039},"This dynamic demonstrates why modern technical documentation is an essential component of a mid-funnel conversion strategy. API tables, security registries, and integration matrices are no longer just assets for post-sale implementation; they are high-value entry points for automated procurement discovery. By making this information perfectly machine-readable, you eliminate the friction that keeps your brand from being detected by automated evaluation systems.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1041,"children":1042},{},[1043],{"type":30,"tag":890,"props":1044,"children":1046},{"alt":7,"src":1045},"https://assets.mkgmarketinginc.com/80069c1b-7cc2-44cd-abe9-bc52ca56473f-mkg-blog-the-2026-brand-visibility-audit-image-3.png",[],{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1048,"children":1050},{"id":1049},"systematized-brand-visibility-optimization",[1051],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1052,"children":1053},{},[1054],{"type":40,"value":1055},"Systematized Brand Visibility Optimization",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1057,"children":1058},{},[1059],{"type":40,"value":1060},"Succeeding in this decentralized landscape requires moving past ad-hoc optimization tactics and installing a repeatable, unified operational system. Marketing programs must stop acting like creative experimental centers and begin running like structured technical operations.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1062,"children":1063},{},[1064],{"type":40,"value":1065},"This requires aligning your cross-functional execution around three operational areas:",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":1067,"children":1068},{},[1069,1074,1079],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1070,"children":1071},{},[1072],{"type":40,"value":1073},"Citations and Authority Share: Track how frequently major models cite your domain or your trusted third-party profiles relative to your primary competitors during category-focused prompts.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1075,"children":1076},{},[1077],{"type":40,"value":1078},"Data Pattern Uniformity: Enforce a strict internal governance model to ensure that every public reference to your product capabilities, pricing architectures, and compliance standards matches perfectly across the web.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1080,"children":1081},{},[1082],{"type":40,"value":1083},"Review Ingestion Velocity: Build an automated customer feedback mechanism that continuously streams fresh, high-context review text into independent directories, keeping the models supplied with recent trust signals.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1085,"children":1086},{},[1087],{"type":40,"value":1088},"When these operations run on a fixed, uninterrupted schedule, your organization builds an enduring market advantage. You stop chasing shifting search engine algorithms and start managing the foundational data infrastructure that governs all automated business decisions.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1090,"children":1092},{"id":1091},"reclaiming-the-initiative-in-the-era-of-inference",[1093],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1094,"children":1095},{},[1096],{"type":40,"value":1097},"Reclaiming the Initiative in the Era of Inference",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1099,"children":1100},{},[1101],{"type":40,"value":1102},"The emergence of the AI-driven buyer is not an existential threat to organizations that lead with deep expertise, operational clarity, and strict engineering discipline. It is a threat to organizations that rely on high-volume, generic content inflation and unverified marketing claims. If your digital presence reads like an un-indexed corporate brochure, automated systems will drop you from consideration.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1104,"children":1105},{},[1106],{"type":40,"value":1107},"We specialize in designing and implementing the technical architectures and operating cadences that keep organizations highly visible across the entire modern discovery funnel. By combining technical semantic layer engineering with disciplined execution rhythms, we ensure your brand authority is clear, verifiable, and undeniable to both human buyers and machine-learning algorithms.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1109,"children":1110},{},[1111],{"type":40,"value":1112},"Do not allow your company to be quietly displaced from your ideal market segments by an information structure failure. Audit your digital footprint, structure your institutional knowledge, and implement a brand-visibility operating model built to dominate the modern synthesis.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1114,"children":1116},{"id":1115},"summary",[1117],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1118,"children":1119},{},[1120],{"type":40,"value":1121},"Summary",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1123,"children":1124},{},[1125],{"type":40,"value":1126},"The B2B purchasing journey has undergone a dramatic structural shift, with 51% of software buyers now launching vendor research inside AI chatbots rather than traditional search engines. This behavioral change introduces a major risk of Competitive Displacement for brands that are missing from model outputs or excluded from automatic shortlist synthesis. To protect your pipeline, enterprises must deploy a rigorous Brand Visibility Optimization (BVO) strategy. By running systematic prompt diagnostics to audit Search Sentiment, maintaining a regular schedule for publishing expert content, and ensuring that all product capabilities are cleanly embedded in LLM Training Data, organizations can secure automated market discovery and reclaim narrative control across every AI search interface.",{"title":7,"searchDepth":828,"depth":828,"links":1128},[1129,1130,1131,1132,1133,1134,1135],{"id":896,"depth":828,"text":902},{"id":925,"depth":828,"text":931},{"id":976,"depth":828,"text":982},{"id":1005,"depth":828,"text":1011},{"id":1049,"depth":828,"text":1055},{"id":1091,"depth":828,"text":1097},{"id":1115,"depth":828,"text":1121},"content:blog:seo:the-2026-brand-visibility-audit-is-your-icp-finding-your-competitors-in-the-llm.md","blog/seo/the-2026-brand-visibility-audit-is-your-icp-finding-your-competitors-in-the-llm.md","blog/seo/the-2026-brand-visibility-audit-is-your-icp-finding-your-competitors-in-the-llm",8,{"_path":1141,"_dir":841,"_draft":6,"_partial":6,"_locale":7,"title":1142,"description":1143,"date":1144,"img":1145,"imgAlt":1146,"body":1147,"_type":832,"_id":1445,"_source":834,"_file":1446,"_stem":1447,"_extension":837,"category":841,"minutes":1139},"/blog/seo/escaping-the-black-box-installing-an-svo-operating-system-that-runs-without-you","Escaping the Black Box - Installing an SVO Operating System That Runs Without You","When marketing feels like a high-priced experiment you have to babysit, it's time to build a system that captures AI demand autonomously.","2026-05-20T16:17:50.900Z","https://assets.mkgmarketinginc.com/24970ef5-a49e-4a91-b5fd-c8c55d107084-mkg-blog-escaping-the-black-box-hero-image.webp","Thought leadership workspace with AI strategy planning.",{"type":27,"children":1148,"toc":1437},[1149,1154,1159,1164,1178,1183,1188,1195,1201,1206,1211,1244,1249,1254,1260,1265,1270,1303,1308,1315,1321,1326,1331,1364,1369,1375,1380,1385,1390,1397,1403,1408,1413,1418,1423,1427,1432],{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1150,"children":1151},{},[1152],{"type":40,"value":1153},"Many founders eventually hit a point where marketing feels less like a predictable growth engine and more like an expensive experiment. Budgets get spent, campaigns go live, and specialized agencies share intricate dashboards full of surface-level metrics. But despite all that activity, what's actually happening inside the operation remains unclear. Pipeline swings up and down, and the real drivers stay hidden in a \"black box\" of technical jargon, fragmented reports, and assumptions no one can confidently prove.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1155,"children":1156},{},[1157],{"type":40,"value":1158},"When marketing runs this way, the burden shifts back onto leadership. You're pulled into weekly status calls to fix strategy on the fly, interpret conflicting channel data, and manually translate between siloed teams. Instead of guiding the company's growth, you're stuck overseeing execution. You effectively become the project manager of your own growth engine—a role that drains your attention and pulls you away from running the business.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1160,"children":1161},{},[1162],{"type":40,"value":1163},"As the digital landscape continues to evolve, this model simply doesn't hold. The old approach, buying traffic and sending it to a static landing page to collect a form fill, is breaking down under new buyer behavior. The customer journey has split into multiple paths, and traditional search alone can no longer capture every qualified prospect who raises their hand.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1165,"children":1166},{},[1167,1169,1176],{"type":40,"value":1168},"According to",{"type":30,"tag":865,"props":1170,"children":1173},{"href":1171,"rel":1172},"https://learn.g2.com/g2-2026-ai-search-insight-report",[869],[1174],{"type":40,"value":1175}," G2's 2026 Answer Economy Insight Report",{"type":40,"value":1177},", 51% of B2B software buyers now begin their purchasing research inside an AI chatbot rather than a traditional search engine. These buyers are bypassing search results entirely, using structured prompts to command large language models (LLMs) to synthesize vendor shortlists on their behalf. They are looking for direct, synthesized comparisons rather than an endless list of blue links to open individually.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1179,"children":1180},{},[1181],{"type":40,"value":1182},"If your marketing program only works when you're personally involved, it isn't built for a world where machines are increasingly evaluating other machines. When a large language model scans the web to build a vendor shortlist for an enterprise buyer, it's not admiring your branding or clicking on your clever CTAs; it's processing data.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1184,"children":1185},{},[1186],{"type":40,"value":1187},"Breaking out of this pattern requires moving away from one-off tactics and toward Systematized Growth. That means putting a true operational structure in place, a Search Visibility Optimization (SVO) framework, designed to automatically capture demand from generative search, so your company can scale without constant founder oversight.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1189,"children":1190},{},[1191],{"type":30,"tag":890,"props":1192,"children":1194},{"alt":7,"src":1193},"https://assets.mkgmarketinginc.com/01d3c7af-7410-4a50-8d1c-d1ed6728438d-mkg-blog-escaping-the-black-box-image-1.png",[],{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1196,"children":1198},{"id":1197},"the-operational-breakdown-of-gated-marketing",[1199],{"type":40,"value":1200},"The Operational Breakdown of Gated Marketing",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1202,"children":1203},{},[1204],{"type":40,"value":1205},"When marketing turns into an unmanaged black box, it's often because the company has grown on random acts of marketing. One contractor runs ads, an agency owns organic search, and someone in-house is responsible for content. Each group uses its own tools, cadence, and success metrics—leaving the founder to play interpreter and enforcer, tying everything together by hand.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1207,"children":1208},{},[1209],{"type":40,"value":1210},"This manual oversight introduces severe structural vulnerabilities across the organization:",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":1212,"children":1213},{},[1214,1224,1234],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1215,"children":1216},{},[1217,1222],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1218,"children":1219},{},[1220],{"type":40,"value":1221},"Fragmented Data Layers:",{"type":40,"value":1223}," The advertising team measures cost per click, while the content team tracks page views. Neither team can tell you how their efforts affect the AI models actively shaping your industry's vendor shortlists, leaving a massive gap in your overall pipeline attribution.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1225,"children":1226},{},[1227,1232],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1228,"children":1229},{},[1230],{"type":40,"value":1231},"Wasted Executive Energy:",{"type":40,"value":1233}," You spend critical leadership hours in meetings that read updates out loud, rather than making strategic adjustments based on data trends. Instead of reviewing outcomes, you are tracking tasks.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1235,"children":1236},{},[1237,1242],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1238,"children":1239},{},[1240],{"type":40,"value":1241},"Invisible Funnel Leaks:",{"type":40,"value":1243}," When a buyer asks an LLM to compare your product to a competitor, and the model misrepresents your pricing or ignores your core security features, your team doesn't catch it. The loss happens in private, untrackable environments before a lead is ever generated.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1245,"children":1246},{},[1247],{"type":40,"value":1248},"To remove this friction, marketing needs to run on a repeatable, transparent operating system. Work can't live in someone's inbox or on a personal drive—it has to move through a shared workspace where priorities, blockers, and owners are immediately clear.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1250,"children":1251},{},[1252],{"type":40,"value":1253},"With this kind of systemic visibility in place, you can achieve true off-my-plate execution. The founder can quickly check progress at any time, without chasing down updates or pulling the team into extra status meetings.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1255,"children":1257},{"id":1256},"structuring-the-svo-operating-system",[1258],{"type":40,"value":1259},"Structuring the SVO Operating System",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1261,"children":1262},{},[1263],{"type":40,"value":1264},"A scalable marketing engine cannot rely on human vigilance; it must rely on a closed-loop infrastructure. We apply a standardized architecture that aligns strategy, processes, and people into a singular operating rhythm. This framework ensures that your technical authority is structured correctly for both the human prospect and the LLM crawler, operating entirely without founder hand-holding.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1266,"children":1267},{},[1268],{"type":40,"value":1269},"This structural shift requires executing three distinct operational deployment steps:",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":1271,"children":1272},{},[1273,1283,1293],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1274,"children":1275},{},[1276,1281],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1277,"children":1278},{},[1279],{"type":40,"value":1280},"Funnel Bottleneck Diagnosis:",{"type":40,"value":1282}," Strip away channel-specific commentary to analyze exactly where pipeline value is stalling—whether it is an attribution deficit in your digital advertising or a visibility failure inside AI search databases. We locate the single point of failure rather than spreading focus across twenty different minor metrics.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1284,"children":1285},{},[1286,1291],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1287,"children":1288},{},[1289],{"type":40,"value":1290},"Weekly Sprint Cadence:",{"type":40,"value":1292}," Shift execution from monolithic quarterly goals to predictable weekly sprint cycles. Each sprint must assign clear deliverables, explicit ownership, and measurable output criteria to eliminate execution drift and keep the team focused on high-priority tasks.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1294,"children":1295},{},[1296,1301],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1297,"children":1298},{},[1299],{"type":40,"value":1300},"Semantic Layer Integration:",{"type":40,"value":1302}," Map your product specifications, technical case studies, and compliance data into clean, structured schemas that LLMs use to validate brand capabilities, turning your website into an authoritative knowledge base that can be indexed programmatically.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1304,"children":1305},{},[1306],{"type":40,"value":1307},"When these components run in harmony, marketing ceases to feel like a series of disconnected bets. It becomes a predictable workflow that converts institutional knowledge into structured data, ensuring your business is automatically indexed wherever buyers are conducting research. The machine does the heavy lifting of discovery, freeing up your team to focus on conversion and retention.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1309,"children":1310},{},[1311],{"type":30,"tag":890,"props":1312,"children":1314},{"alt":7,"src":1313},"https://assets.mkgmarketinginc.com/0d285696-fa87-49eb-8fb7-497be4070be7-mkg-blog-escaping-the-black-box-image-2.png",[],{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1316,"children":1318},{"id":1317},"why-a-systematized-infrastructure-always-wins",[1319],{"type":40,"value":1320},"Why a Systematized Infrastructure Always Wins",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1322,"children":1323},{},[1324],{"type":40,"value":1325},"The primary benefit of removing the founder from the daily execution loop is speed and consistency. When your marketing is run through a rigorous operating system, it builds a compounding data advantage that ad-hoc campaigns cannot match. It shifts the organization from a reactive posture to a proactive, predictable model of demand generation.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1327,"children":1328},{},[1329],{"type":40,"value":1330},"Consider the operational differences between an ad-hoc marketing structure and a systematized environment:",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":1332,"children":1333},{},[1334,1344,1354],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1335,"children":1336},{},[1337,1342],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1338,"children":1339},{},[1340],{"type":40,"value":1341},"Continuous Market Alignment:",{"type":40,"value":1343}," While an unmanaged team waits for a monthly review to pivot strategy, a sprint-based system adjusts execution every seven days based on real-world data signals and performance trends.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1345,"children":1346},{},[1347,1352],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1348,"children":1349},{},[1350],{"type":40,"value":1351},"Automated Authority Building:",{"type":40,"value":1353}," Instead of treating executive thought leadership as a sporadic task dependent on free time, a systematized cadence turns your team's subject-matter expertise into machine-readable assets on a fixed schedule.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1355,"children":1356},{},[1357,1362],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1358,"children":1359},{},[1360],{"type":40,"value":1361},"Predictable Scaling:",{"type":40,"value":1363}," By isolating the exact variables that drive discovery—such as peer review frequency, schema deployment, or technical documentation clarity—you can scale your program based on operational data rather than guesswork or creative intuition.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1365,"children":1366},{},[1367],{"type":40,"value":1368},"This infrastructure turns your digital footprint into an automated sales engine. When an AI search engine crawls the web to construct a head-to-head comparison table for a prospective buyer, a systematized site provides unambiguous, verified criteria that force the model to rank your brand as a low-risk option. The competitor relying on creative, un-indexed copywriting is filtered out before a sales call is ever booked, giving your sales pipeline an unfair advantage.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1370,"children":1372},{"id":1371},"shifting-from-babysitting-to-strategic-calibration",[1373],{"type":40,"value":1374},"Shifting from Babysitting to Strategic Calibration",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1376,"children":1377},{},[1378],{"type":40,"value":1379},"Stepping out of the marketing black box doesn't mean giving up visibility into your growth metrics. Real operational control doesn't come from micromanaging tasks or personally reviewing every headline; it comes from having a single, reliable source of truth where progress is obvious, data is unfiltered, and accountability is built in.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1381,"children":1382},{},[1383],{"type":40,"value":1384},"Your job as an executive is to tune the engine, not to crank the gears yourself. Once you have an operating system that runs on its own, your relationship with marketing changes. Weekly status calls full of personal updates give way to focused working sessions aimed at clearing technical roadblocks, improving conversion performance, and removing friction for your execution team.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1386,"children":1387},{},[1388],{"type":40,"value":1389},"That level of clarity also reshapes how you invest in growth. You stop betting on scattered channel experiments and start funding specific data advantages. If your analytics show that buyers are discovering you through technical reviews cited in AI tools, you can allocate budget precisely to strengthening that part of your digital footprint. The guesswork disappears from your spending, and every dollar is tied to a clear, system-driven objective.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1391,"children":1392},{},[1393],{"type":30,"tag":890,"props":1394,"children":1396},{"alt":7,"src":1395},"https://assets.mkgmarketinginc.com/88f64901-fbdc-41f1-ae77-6a2cee60417f-mkg-blog-escaping-the-black-box-image-3.png",[],{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1398,"children":1400},{"id":1399},"building-the-off-my-plate-reality",[1401],{"type":40,"value":1402},"Building the Off-My-Plate Reality",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1404,"children":1405},{},[1406],{"type":40,"value":1407},"For a growing company, marketing maturity means moving past a reliance on individual heroics or founder oversight. A business that depends on the founder's daily cognitive energy to execute its visibility strategy cannot scale its pipeline, build predictable equity, or achieve true operational freedom.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1409,"children":1410},{},[1411],{"type":40,"value":1412},"Establishing this maturity requires an intentional investment in your company's operational skeleton. It means rejecting vague performance summaries, dismantling uncoordinated team structures, and installing a unified system that operates systematically across every channel, platform, and automated interface.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1414,"children":1415},{},[1416],{"type":40,"value":1417},"We design and implement the technical architecture and operating rhythms that allow business leaders to confidently step away from daily campaign execution. By replacing the black box with radical visibility and a closed-loop sprint cycle, we ensure your growth engine compounds value every single week, building one that automatically captures modern demand.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1419,"children":1420},{},[1421],{"type":40,"value":1422},"Do not let your company's market visibility remain tethered to your personal schedule or individual oversight. Systematize your expertise, build a structured digital footprint, and install an operating system designed for the future of automated discovery.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1424,"children":1425},{"id":1115},[1426],{"type":40,"value":1121},{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1428,"children":1429},{},[1430],{"type":40,"value":1431},"Many B2B founders find themselves stuck babysitting their marketing because teams are fragmented and reporting is hard to trust. That level of dependency poses a serious risk as the market shifts into the Answer Economy, where more than half of software buyers now rely on AI chat tools rather than traditional search engines to build their vendor shortlists.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1433,"children":1434},{},[1435],{"type":40,"value":1436},"To get out of this bottleneck, you have to move beyond disconnected tactics and adopt a Systematized Growth model built on a disciplined Search Visibility Optimization (SVO) framework. By putting an operating system in place, one that runs on weekly sprints, full task transparency, and machine-readable technical architecture, lean teams can achieve true \"off-my-plate\" execution, capturing AI-driven demand without constant founder involvement.",{"title":7,"searchDepth":828,"depth":828,"links":1438},[1439,1440,1441,1442,1443,1444],{"id":1197,"depth":828,"text":1200},{"id":1256,"depth":828,"text":1259},{"id":1317,"depth":828,"text":1320},{"id":1371,"depth":828,"text":1374},{"id":1399,"depth":828,"text":1402},{"id":1115,"depth":828,"text":1121},"content:blog:seo:escaping-the-black-box-installing-an-svo-operating-system-that-runs-without-you.md","blog/seo/escaping-the-black-box-installing-an-svo-operating-system-that-runs-without-you.md","blog/seo/escaping-the-black-box-installing-an-svo-operating-system-that-runs-without-you",{"_path":1449,"_dir":841,"_draft":6,"_partial":6,"_locale":7,"title":1450,"description":1451,"img":1452,"date":1453,"body":1454,"_type":832,"_id":1803,"_source":834,"_file":1804,"_stem":1805,"_extension":837,"category":841,"minutes":1806},"/blog/seo/the-synthesized-buyer-mastering-the-2026-brand-visibility-audit-for-llms","The Synthesized Buyer - Mastering the 2026 Brand Visibility Audit for LLMs","If you aren’t in the training data, you aren’t on the shortlist. Here is how to master Brand Visibility Optimization (BVO) for the AI-driven buyer.","https://assets.mkgmarketinginc.com/73b38499-1c0a-46c3-aaaf-a824ff083005-mkg-blog-the-synthesized-buyer-hero-image.webp","2026-05-06T15:28:34.835Z",{"type":27,"children":1455,"toc":1793},[1456,1461,1485,1490,1495,1505,1510,1515,1520,1525,1530,1536,1548,1560,1565,1575,1580,1585,1619,1624,1630,1642,1647,1652,1662,1667,1672,1705,1710,1716,1721,1726,1731,1737,1742,1760,1765,1769],{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1457,"children":1458},{},[1459],{"type":40,"value":1460},"The B2B buying journey isn’t happening on search results pages anymore. For a long time, marketing success basically meant winning on Google: rank in the top organic spots, pick the right keywords, watch the clicks, and call more traffic “more authority.” But in 2026, something else is quietly running the show in procurement: large language models (LLMs).",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1462,"children":1463},{},[1464,1466,1476,1478,1483],{"type":40,"value":1465},"This isn’t a distant trend; it is the current reality of B2B procurement. New research from",{"type":30,"tag":865,"props":1467,"children":1469},{"href":867,"rel":1468},[869],[1470,1472],{"type":40,"value":1471},"  ",{"type":30,"tag":874,"props":1473,"children":1474},{},[1475],{"type":40,"value":878},{"type":40,"value":1477}," shows that ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1479,"children":1480},{},[1481],{"type":40,"value":1482},"51% of B2B software buyers",{"type":40,"value":1484}," now begin their research in an AI chatbot rather than a traditional search engine. These buyers aren’t paging through search results. They are using single prompts to ask AI tools to compare enterprise platforms based on specific needs. In that moment, the AI synthesizes an answer from the data it has already processed, effectively \"one-shotting\" the shortlist before a vendor is ever contacted. ",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1486,"children":1487},{},[1488],{"type":40,"value":1489},"If your brand isn’t in that data, if you’re missing from high-authority industry conversations, technical communities, or archives of executive thought leadership, you’re effectively shut out of that synthesis. Buyers don’t see you, long before they even think about visiting your website. That means we need to rethink what brand authority actually looks like and how we measure it.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1491,"children":1492},{},[1493],{"type":40,"value":1494},"To stay in the game, traditional SEO alone isn’t enough. You need to focus on Brand Visibility Optimization (BVO). BVO isn’t about gaming an algorithm; it’s about becoming a stable, trustworthy source of information that automated systems consistently recognize and surface. In practice, that means ensuring your brand appears in the internet’s most trusted and widely referenced data sources.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1496,"children":1498},{"id":1497},"the-transition-of-the-procurement-funnel",[1499,1503],{"type":30,"tag":890,"props":1500,"children":1502},{"alt":7,"src":1501},"https://assets.mkgmarketinginc.com/accd88f6-f3c6-4b91-bb0e-bb9642914996-mkg-blog-the-synthesized-buyer-image-1.png",[],{"type":40,"value":1504},"The Transition of the Procurement Funnel",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1506,"children":1507},{},[1508],{"type":40,"value":1509},"For years, traditional marketing treated visibility like a straight line: push out enough content and ads, and sooner or later, buyers would notice you. But that’s not how people actually buy today.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1511,"children":1512},{},[1513],{"type":40,"value":1514},"Modern buyers lean on what’s often called \"dark social\"—recommendations, peer reviews, and technical back-and-forth that live in private Slack channels, Discord servers, group DMs, and niche community forums. None of this shows up in your typical analytics, but it heavily shapes who makes the shortlist.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1516,"children":1517},{},[1518],{"type":40,"value":1519},"AI models are being trained on this messy, decentralized ecosystem. When they generate a recommendation, they’re effectively scanning for patterns: where is there consensus, and which brands keep getting mentioned in these communities?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1521,"children":1522},{},[1523],{"type":40,"value":1524},"That creates a real risk for lean B2B teams: cranking out large volumes of generic content that adds nothing new. If what you publish reads like a generic brochure, the model will treat it as background noise rather than a signal.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1526,"children":1527},{},[1528],{"type":40,"value":1529},"To be surfaced and cited by an AI, your brand needs to contribute something specific and useful—unique, field-tested insight that helps the model justify its answer. In other words, you have to publish the kind of information the model relies on to feel confident that it’s right.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1531,"children":1533},{"id":1532},"establishing-the-pattern-the-consistency-cadence",[1534],{"type":40,"value":1535},"Establishing the Pattern: The Consistency Cadence",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1537,"children":1538},{},[1539,1541,1546],{"type":40,"value":1540},"At the core of Brand Visibility Optimization is the concept of ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1542,"children":1543},{},[1544],{"type":40,"value":1545},"Consistency",{"type":40,"value":1547},". This is the factor that separates a single campaign from a reliable growth system. For a model to recognize your brand as an authority, it needs to see a persistent, high-quality pattern of information over time.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1549,"children":1550},{},[1551,1553,1558],{"type":40,"value":1552},"Executive thought leadership is a critical technical asset in this process. Models prioritize data linked to verifiable experts and recurring themes. When your leadership team maintains a consistent cadence and regularly contributes technical insights to industry forums and reputable publications, you establish your brand as a primary source in the ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1554,"children":1555},{},[1556],{"type":40,"value":1557},"LLM Training Data for Brands",{"type":40,"value":1559},".",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1561,"children":1562},{},[1563],{"type":40,"value":1564},"A short-term approach does not work here. You cannot establish authority in a training set with a single project. You must show up regularly and deliver a steady stream of professional insights. This approach ensures that when models are updated, your brand is a core component of the system's understanding of your category.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1566,"children":1568},{"id":1567},"the-brand-visibility-audit-where-do-you-exist",[1569,1573],{"type":30,"tag":890,"props":1570,"children":1572},{"alt":7,"src":1571},"https://assets.mkgmarketinginc.com/9639ded1-86f0-4500-bb1a-c2ad511e205b-mkg-blog-the-synthesized-buyer-image-2.png",[],{"type":40,"value":1574},"The Brand Visibility Audit: Where Do You Exist?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1576,"children":1577},{},[1578],{"type":40,"value":1579},"Mastering BVO begins with a technical audit of your brand's digital footprint. You must ask: if an automated agent were vetting this company, what evidence would it find?",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1581,"children":1582},{},[1583],{"type":40,"value":1584},"The audit should focus on three primary areas:",{"type":30,"tag":1586,"props":1587,"children":1588},"ol",{},[1589,1599,1609],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1590,"children":1591},{},[1592,1597],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1593,"children":1594},{},[1595],{"type":40,"value":1596},"Community Mentions:",{"type":40,"value":1598}," AI models place a heavy weight on community-driven platforms like Reddit and technical forums. Are practitioners discussing your product or solving problems using your documentation? Without community discussion, the model is unlikely to recommend you.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1600,"children":1601},{},[1602,1607],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1603,"children":1604},{},[1605],{"type":40,"value":1606},"Expert Proximity:",{"type":40,"value":1608}," Is your brand associated with recognized experts in your field? When your team is cited in third-party research or technical interviews, it creates a link that models use to determine authority.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1610,"children":1611},{},[1612,1617],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1613,"children":1614},{},[1615],{"type":40,"value":1616},"Technical Transparency:",{"type":40,"value":1618}," Models require structured, accurate data. If your technical specifications, API documentation, and pricing structures are inconsistent or difficult to access, the system cannot build an accurate profile of your business.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1620,"children":1621},{},[1622],{"type":40,"value":1623},"Many brands are currently failing this audit because they are invisible in the places where information is synthesized. To fix this, stop treating social media as just a distribution channel and start treating it as a space to establish your brand’s technical authority.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1625,"children":1627},{"id":1626},"navigating-dark-social-attribution",[1628],{"type":40,"value":1629},"Navigating Dark Social Attribution",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1631,"children":1632},{},[1633,1635,1640],{"type":40,"value":1634},"A significant challenge of the BVO era is that the most valuable interactions are difficult to track. ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1636,"children":1637},{},[1638],{"type":40,"value":1639},"Dark Social Attribution",{"type":40,"value":1641}," is often invisible to those who rely only on dashboards. A lead might appear as a direct search, but the reality is that the buyer spent months seeing your name in private communities and reading summaries of your executive's insights.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1643,"children":1644},{},[1645],{"type":40,"value":1646},"Because you cannot track every touchpoint, you must optimize the environment where the buyer spends time. This means providing human, relatable, and technical content that people want to share in private channels.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1648,"children":1649},{},[1650],{"type":40,"value":1651},"When your content is shared in a private group, it eventually reaches the public web through summaries and community archives. This is the long-term goal of BVO. You are establishing authority in private spaces that eventually informs the data models used in public searches.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1653,"children":1655},{"id":1654},"systematizing-authority-moving-from-reactive-to-rhythmic",[1656,1660],{"type":30,"tag":890,"props":1657,"children":1659},{"alt":7,"src":1658},"https://assets.mkgmarketinginc.com/fdbe942b-e9d7-4a74-8829-9e9587fdd7b6-mkg-blog-the-synthesized-buyer-image-3.png",[],{"type":40,"value":1661},"Systematizing Authority: Moving from Reactive to Rhythmic",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1663,"children":1664},{},[1665],{"type":40,"value":1666},"The transition to a BVO-focused strategy requires moving from reactive marketing to a systematic operation. A \"launch and leave\" mentality is no longer effective. You need a system that ensures your brand's data is constantly updated and reinforced.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1668,"children":1669},{},[1670],{"type":40,"value":1671},"This involves:",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":1673,"children":1674},{},[1675,1685,1695],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1676,"children":1677},{},[1678,1683],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1679,"children":1680},{},[1681],{"type":40,"value":1682},"Executive Cadence:",{"type":40,"value":1684}," A strict schedule for your leadership team to contribute to external platforms.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1686,"children":1687},{},[1688,1693],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1689,"children":1690},{},[1691],{"type":40,"value":1692},"Structured Knowledge:",{"type":40,"value":1694}," A website that acts as a hub of structured data that is easy for agents to crawl and understand.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1696,"children":1697},{},[1698,1703],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1699,"children":1700},{},[1701],{"type":40,"value":1702},"Community Engagement:",{"type":40,"value":1704}," Participating in the spaces where your buyers live and providing value without expecting an immediate click.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1706,"children":1707},{},[1708],{"type":40,"value":1709},"When these elements are connected, marketing moves from disconnected tactics to a reliable system. You stop spending budget on ads that are ignored and start building brand authority that models are required to cite.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1711,"children":1713},{"id":1712},"the-future-of-b2b-visibility",[1714],{"type":40,"value":1715},"The Future of B2B Visibility",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1717,"children":1718},{},[1719],{"type":40,"value":1720},"The rise of the modern buyer is not a threat to brands that prioritize accuracy and consistency. It is a threat to brands that rely on generic, high-volume content. If your content sounds like a brochure, the AI will summarize the basic points and move on. But if your content contains specific tactics and operational honesty, you add value that the system recognizes.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1722,"children":1723},{},[1724],{"type":40,"value":1725},"We show personality through accuracy and tone, not through forced branding. In the world of generative search, being clear and authoritative is what gets your brand cited. It is about being professional and direct.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1727,"children":1728},{},[1729],{"type":40,"value":1730},"Recalibrating for 2026 is about returning to the fundamentals of building a brand that matters to both people and the systems they use. It is about moving away from short-term shortcuts and focusing on lasting authority.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1732,"children":1734},{"id":1733},"final-thoughts-the-path-to-synthesis",[1735],{"type":40,"value":1736},"Final Thoughts: The Path to Synthesis",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1738,"children":1739},{},[1740],{"type":40,"value":1741},"The B2B measurement gap is widening, and the ways we prove marketing value are changing. However, the goal remains the same: to be the most trusted and visible option for the buyer.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1743,"children":1744},{},[1745,1747,1752,1754,1758],{"type":40,"value":1746},"In 2026, that buyer is assisted by an LLM. By mastering ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1748,"children":1749},{},[1750],{"type":40,"value":1751},"Brand Visibility Optimization",{"type":40,"value":1753},", addressing the ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1755,"children":1756},{},[1757],{"type":40,"value":1639},{"type":40,"value":1759}," gap, and maintaining a consistent output of expertise, you ensure that your brand is recognized.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1761,"children":1762},{},[1763],{"type":40,"value":1764},"Do not be the brand that is missing from the synthesis. Build the authority that makes your presence clear. The success of your growth depends on this systematic approach.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1766,"children":1767},{"id":1115},[1768],{"type":40,"value":1121},{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1770,"children":1771},{},[1772,1774,1779,1781,1785,1787,1791],{"type":40,"value":1773},"The 2026 B2B buyer journey has changed: 35% use AI tools for vendor selection. To remain visible, brands must adopt ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1775,"children":1776},{},[1777],{"type":40,"value":1778},"Brand Visibility Optimization (BVO)",{"type":40,"value":1780}," to ensure they are present in ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1782,"children":1783},{},[1784],{"type":40,"value":1557},{"type":40,"value":1786},". Success requires navigating ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1788,"children":1789},{},[1790],{"type":40,"value":1639},{"type":40,"value":1792},", the private channels where peer consensus is formed. By implementing a consistent cadence for executive thought leadership and treating the digital footprint as a data pattern for AI recognition, B2B teams can overcome inefficiencies and build authority in an AI-driven marketplace.",{"title":7,"searchDepth":828,"depth":828,"links":1794},[1795,1796,1797,1798,1799,1800,1801,1802],{"id":1497,"depth":828,"text":1504},{"id":1532,"depth":828,"text":1535},{"id":1567,"depth":828,"text":1574},{"id":1626,"depth":828,"text":1629},{"id":1654,"depth":828,"text":1661},{"id":1712,"depth":828,"text":1715},{"id":1733,"depth":828,"text":1736},{"id":1115,"depth":828,"text":1121},"content:blog:seo:the-synthesized-buyer-mastering-the-2026-brand-visibility-audit-for-llms.md","blog/seo/the-synthesized-buyer-mastering-the-2026-brand-visibility-audit-for-llms.md","blog/seo/the-synthesized-buyer-mastering-the-2026-brand-visibility-audit-for-llms",7,{"_path":1808,"_dir":841,"_draft":6,"_partial":6,"_locale":7,"title":1809,"description":1810,"_schema":10,"authors":1811,"date":1812,"img":1813,"imgAlt":1814,"body":1815,"_type":832,"_id":2229,"_source":834,"_file":2230,"_stem":2231,"_extension":837,"category":841,"minutes":2232},"/blog/seo/monthly-search-industry-report-april-2026","Monthly Search Industry Report - April 2026","Stay updated with the April 2026 search landscape: core update impacts, back button crackdown, task-driven search, and the rise of agent-powered visibility.",[],"2026-05-05T16:25:00Z","/images/blog/mkg-blog-search-industry-overview-april.webp","Monthly Search Industry Report",{"type":27,"children":1816,"toc":2222},[1817,1826,1869,1878,1883,1967,1976,1981,2047,2056,2066,2079,2088,2122,2131,2141,2150,2155,2160,2193,2201,2219],{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1818,"children":1820},{"id":1819},"executive-summary-the-tldr",[1821],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1822,"children":1823},{},[1824],{"type":40,"value":1825},"Executive Summary (The TL;DR)",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":1827,"children":1828},{},[1829,1839,1849,1859],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1830,"children":1831},{},[1832,1837],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1833,"children":1834},{},[1835],{"type":40,"value":1836},"March Core Update Completion:",{"type":40,"value":1838}," The major ranking update that began in March finished on April 8. It shifted traffic toward specialist sites and away from general content aggregators.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1840,"children":1841},{},[1842,1847],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1843,"children":1844},{},[1845],{"type":40,"value":1846},"The \"Back Button\" Ban:",{"type":40,"value":1848}," Google officially labeled \"back button hijacking\" as spam. Sites that trap users by blocking their ability to return to search results will face penalties starting June 15.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1850,"children":1851},{},[1852,1857],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1853,"children":1854},{},[1855],{"type":40,"value":1856},"Search as a \"Task Engine\":",{"type":40,"value":1858}," Google is adding agentic features, like AI that can call stores to check inventory or build travel itineraries, shifting the focus from clicks to completed actions.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1860,"children":1861},{},[1862,1867],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1863,"children":1864},{},[1865],{"type":40,"value":1866},"GPT-5.5 Launch:",{"type":40,"value":1868}," OpenAI released its most capable agentic model yet, designed to perform multi-step work independently, further changing how users find professional information.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1870,"children":1872},{"id":1871},"algorithm-technical-seo-updates",[1873],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1874,"children":1875},{},[1876],{"type":40,"value":1877},"Algorithm & Technical SEO Updates",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1879,"children":1880},{},[1881],{"type":40,"value":1882},"The focus this month shifted from ranking keywords to punishing deceptive user experiences and rewarding technical efficiency.",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":1884,"children":1885},{},[1886,1905,1927,1948],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1887,"children":1888},{},[1889,1894,1896,1903],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1890,"children":1891},{},[1892],{"type":40,"value":1893},"March Core Update Wraps:",{"type":40,"value":1895}," Google confirmed the March 2026 Core Update ended on April 8. Analysis from ",{"type":30,"tag":865,"props":1897,"children":1900},{"href":1898,"rel":1899},"https://searchengineland.com/march-2026-google-core-update-what-changed-474397",[869],[1901],{"type":40,"value":1902},"Search Engine Land",{"type":40,"value":1904}," indicates that niche, authoritative brands saw the most growth, while broad comparison sites lost ground.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1906,"children":1907},{},[1908,1913,1915,1925],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1909,"children":1910},{},[1911],{"type":40,"value":1912},"Back Button Hijacking Policy:",{"type":40,"value":1914}," On April 13, Google introduced a ",{"type":30,"tag":865,"props":1916,"children":1919},{"href":1917,"rel":1918},"https://developers.google.com/search/blog/2026/04/back-button-hijacking?authuser=2",[869],[1920],{"type":30,"tag":874,"props":1921,"children":1922},{},[1923],{"type":40,"value":1924},"new spam policy",{"type":40,"value":1926}," targeting sites that interfere with browser navigation. If your site uses scripts to trap users or redirect them when they try to leave, you face automated demotions.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1928,"children":1929},{},[1930,1935,1936,1946],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1931,"children":1932},{},[1933],{"type":40,"value":1934},"The 2MB Fetch Limit:",{"type":40,"value":872},{"type":30,"tag":865,"props":1937,"children":1940},{"href":1938,"rel":1939},"https://www.searchenginejournal.com/technical-seo-audit-new-layer/571583/",[869],[1941],{"type":30,"tag":874,"props":1942,"children":1943},{},[1944],{"type":40,"value":1945},"Search Engine Journal",{"type":40,"value":1947}," highlighted a critical technical threshold: Googlebot generally stops reading a page after the first 2MB. For tech companies with heavy code or long documentation, this makes code efficiency a direct ranking factor.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1949,"children":1950},{},[1951,1956,1958,1965],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1952,"children":1953},{},[1954],{"type":40,"value":1955},"\"Read More\" Optimization:",{"type":40,"value":1957}," There’s now ",{"type":30,"tag":865,"props":1959,"children":1962},{"href":1960,"rel":1961},"https://searchengineland.com/google-adds-read-more-links-best-practices-474807",[869],[1963],{"type":40,"value":1964},"new guidance",{"type":40,"value":1966}," for content hidden behind \"Read More\" buttons. Google now recommends keeping key information visible on page load to ensure it is indexed for AI answers.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":1968,"children":1970},{"id":1969},"the-geoaeo-frontier",[1971],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1972,"children":1973},{},[1974],{"type":40,"value":1975},"The GEO/AEO Frontier",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":1977,"children":1978},{},[1979],{"type":40,"value":1980},"Search Visibility Optimization (SVO) is moving into the \"Agentic Era,\" where AI doesn't just find information, it performs tasks.",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":1982,"children":1983},{},[1984,2006,2028],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":1985,"children":1986},{},[1987,1992,1994,2004],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":1988,"children":1989},{},[1990],{"type":40,"value":1991},"Google's \"Task Assistant\":",{"type":40,"value":1993}," Google launched new features that allow ",{"type":30,"tag":865,"props":1995,"children":1998},{"href":1996,"rel":1997},"https://www.lumar.io/blog/industry-news/seo-ai-search-industry-news-april-2026/",[869],[1999],{"type":30,"tag":874,"props":2000,"children":2001},{},[2002],{"type":40,"value":2003},"AI to call stores",{"type":40,"value":2005}," to check product availability and manage complex travel bookings directly in the SERP. This prioritizes structured data (Schema) over traditional blog content.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":2007,"children":2008},{},[2009,2014,2016,2026],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2010,"children":2011},{},[2012],{"type":40,"value":2013},"GPT-5.5 Agentic Workflows:",{"type":40,"value":2015}," Released on April 23, ",{"type":30,"tag":865,"props":2017,"children":2020},{"href":2018,"rel":2019},"https://www.artificialintelligence-news.com/news/gpt-5-5-is-openais-most-capable-agentic-ai-model-yet-at-twice-the-api-price/",[869],[2021],{"type":30,"tag":874,"props":2022,"children":2023},{},[2024],{"type":40,"value":2025},"GPT-5.5",{"type":40,"value":2027}," is built to handle real work, such as planning and tool coordination. 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This allows the browser to answer questions by reading the user's open tabs, making on-page context more valuable than ever for brand visibility.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":2048,"children":2050},{"id":2049},"strategic-implications-for-leaders",[2051],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2052,"children":2053},{},[2054],{"type":40,"value":2055},"Strategic Implications for Leaders",{"type":30,"tag":2057,"props":2058,"children":2060},"h4",{"id":2059},"what-to-ignore",[2061],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2062,"children":2063},{},[2064],{"type":40,"value":2065},"What to ignore:",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":2067,"children":2068},{},[2069],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":2070,"children":2071},{},[2072,2077],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2073,"children":2074},{},[2075],{"type":40,"value":2076},"Vanity Link Building:",{"type":40,"value":2078}," With Google's new focus on \"Experience\" and \"Task Completion,\" old-school guest posting for links is yielding diminishing returns. Focus on being the answer-first resource, ** ** the domain AI chooses to complete a user's task.",{"type":30,"tag":2057,"props":2080,"children":2082},{"id":2081},"where-to-pivot",[2083],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2084,"children":2085},{},[2086],{"type":40,"value":2087},"Where to pivot:",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":2089,"children":2090},{},[2091,2112],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":2092,"children":2093},{},[2094,2099,2101,2110],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2095,"children":2096},{},[2097],{"type":40,"value":2098},"Audit for \"History Hijacking\":",{"type":40,"value":2100}," Ensure your marketing or ad scripts aren't accidentally violating the new ",{"type":30,"tag":865,"props":2102,"children":2104},{"href":1917,"rel":2103},[869],[2105],{"type":30,"tag":874,"props":2106,"children":2107},{},[2108],{"type":40,"value":2109},"Back Button policy",{"type":40,"value":2111},". Even vignette ads can sometimes trigger these penalties.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":2113,"children":2114},{},[2115,2120],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2116,"children":2117},{},[2118],{"type":40,"value":2119},"Structure for Agents:",{"type":40,"value":2121}," To be hired by a Google or OpenAI agent, your business data (pricing, features, availability) must be in a machine-readable format, such as JSON-LD. If an agent can’t \"read\" your inventory, it will recommend a competitor with better-structured data.",{"type":30,"tag":2057,"props":2123,"children":2125},{"id":2124},"looking-ahead",[2126],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2127,"children":2128},{},[2129],{"type":40,"value":2130},"Looking Ahead:",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2132,"children":2133},{},[2134,2139],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2135,"children":2136},{},[2137],{"type":40,"value":2138},"The \"Side-Panel\" Habit:",{"type":40,"value":2140}," Watch how Google's new side-by-side view in Chrome changes click behavior. Users are now staying on your site while chatting with an AI on the side. In May, we expect to see \"Time on Page\" metrics rise, but \"Internal Clicks\" fall as the AI does the navigating for them.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":2142,"children":2144},{"id":2143},"call-to-action-optimize-for-the-future",[2145],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2146,"children":2147},{},[2148],{"type":40,"value":2149},"Call to Action: Optimize for the Future",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2151,"children":2152},{},[2153],{"type":40,"value":2154},"The April updates signal a shift from a \"web of pages\" to a \"web of actions.\" For B2B and SaaS leaders, being found is no longer enough; your site must be optimized to help AI agents complete their work.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2156,"children":2157},{},[2158],{"type":40,"value":2159},"MKG helps VC-backed companies dominate this new landscape via:",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":2161,"children":2162},{},[2163,2173,2183],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":2164,"children":2165},{},[2166,2171],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2167,"children":2168},{},[2169],{"type":40,"value":2170},"GEO/AEO Gap Analysis:",{"type":40,"value":2172}," Identifying where AI agents are failing to \"see\" your core product data.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":2174,"children":2175},{},[2176,2181],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2177,"children":2178},{},[2179],{"type":40,"value":2180},"SVO Focus:",{"type":40,"value":2182}," Incorporating all areas of search into one, holistic and coherent strategy.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":2184,"children":2185},{},[2186,2191],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2187,"children":2188},{},[2189],{"type":40,"value":2190},"Full-Funnel Attribution:",{"type":40,"value":2192}," Measuring how AI Mode interactions contribute to your bottom line, even without a traditional click.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2194,"children":2195},{},[2196],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2197,"children":2198},{},[2199],{"type":40,"value":2200},"Don't get trapped by the old playbook.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2202,"children":2203},{},[2204,2217],{"type":30,"tag":865,"props":2205,"children":2208},{"href":2206,"rel":2207},"https://mkgmarketinginc.com/book-a-call/",[869],[2209],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2210,"children":2211},{},[2212],{"type":30,"tag":874,"props":2213,"children":2214},{},[2215],{"type":40,"value":2216},"Book a Discovery Call",{"type":40,"value":2218}," to secure your visibility in the agentic search era.",{"type":30,"tag":821,"props":2220,"children":2221},{},[],{"title":7,"searchDepth":828,"depth":828,"links":2223},[2224,2225,2226,2227,2228],{"id":1819,"depth":828,"text":1825},{"id":1871,"depth":828,"text":1877},{"id":1969,"depth":828,"text":1975},{"id":2049,"depth":828,"text":2055},{"id":2143,"depth":828,"text":2149},"content:blog:seo:monthly-search-industry-report-april-2026.md","blog/seo/monthly-search-industry-report-april-2026.md","blog/seo/monthly-search-industry-report-april-2026",4,{"_path":2234,"_dir":841,"_draft":6,"_partial":6,"_locale":7,"title":2235,"description":2236,"img":2237,"date":2238,"imgAlt":2239,"_schema":10,"authors":2240,"body":2241,"_type":832,"_id":2573,"_source":834,"_file":2574,"_stem":2575,"_extension":837,"category":841,"minutes":1139},"/blog/seo/agentic-procurement-is-your-website-machine-readable-or-just-human-centric","Agentic Procurement - Is Your Website Machine-Readable or Just Human-Centric?","Procurement is moving to AI agents. If your site isn't optimized for agent readiness, you are invisible to the new buyer.","/images/blog/mkg-blog-agentic-procurement-hero-image.webp","2026-04-29T17:59:00Z","Agentic Procurement",[],{"type":27,"children":2242,"toc":2563},[2243,2248,2253,2258,2263,2270,2279,2284,2289,2294,2299,2308,2313,2318,2323,2328,2335,2344,2349,2354,2359,2392,2397,2402,2411,2416,2421,2454,2459,2466,2475,2480,2485,2490,2495,2504,2509,2514,2519,2524,2533,2538,2543,2548,2555,2560],{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2244,"children":2245},{},[2246],{"type":40,"value":2247},"B2B procurement is undergoing a fundamental restructuring. For the past twenty years, the B2B buying process has been defined by human-to-human interaction. Marketing teams built websites to persuade, inform, and nurture human prospects. Companies focused on mobile design, conversion paths, and lead forms.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2249,"children":2250},{},[2251],{"type":40,"value":2252},"That era of human-centric commerce is ending. By 2026, a massive portion of B2B spend will be mediated by AI agents. This is a shift in the fundamental infrastructure of the global economy.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2254,"children":2255},{},[2256],{"type":40,"value":2257},"In this environment, a website is no longer just a digital brochure for a human audience. It is a data source for an automated vetting process. When an AI agent is tasked with finding a vendor that meets specific security, price, and capability criteria, it does not analyze copy in a traditional sense. It does not assess branding or testimonials. It evaluates the site as machine-readable data. If a digital presence cannot be parsed, validated, and structured by an agent, the company does not exist in the procurement funnel.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2259,"children":2260},{},[2261],{"type":40,"value":2262},"This transition is the emergence of Agent Readiness Optimization (ARO). The winners in 2026 are the companies that stop treating their websites as destinations for humans and start treating them as dynamic, structured knowledge bases that AI agents can use to provide direct answers and make procurement decisions.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2264,"children":2265},{},[2266],{"type":30,"tag":890,"props":2267,"children":2269},{"alt":7,"src":2268},"https://assets.mkgmarketinginc.com/f48096ed-38dd-417b-a905-819c2602bc6e-mkg-blog-agentic-procurement-image-1.jpg",[],{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":2271,"children":2273},{"id":2272},"the-reality-of-agentic-procurement",[2274],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2275,"children":2276},{},[2277],{"type":40,"value":2278},"The Reality of Agentic Procurement",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2280,"children":2281},{},[2282],{"type":40,"value":2283},"Agentic procurement is the process of delegating the vendor selection and vetting phase to an AI agent. Instead of a procurement manager spending weeks issuing requests for proposals and scanning websites, they provide an AI agent with a set of constraints and objectives. The agent scans the web, analyzes the technical capabilities of potential vendors, assesses compliance, compares pricing, and shortlists candidates.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2285,"children":2286},{},[2287],{"type":40,"value":2288},"This process is objective and data-driven. It removes the friction of subjective marketing claims and replaces them with an audit of the technical layer of a web presence. When an AI agent visits a site, it looks for specific, unambiguous data points to synthesize an answer. It needs to know API capabilities, pricing, uptime guarantees, and security certifications.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2290,"children":2291},{},[2292],{"type":40,"value":2293},"If this information is trapped inside an image file, buried in a document, or obscured by marketing copy designed for humans, the agent ignores it. It does not include instructions for inferring meaning from general articles. It needs structured, machine-readable data to provide a direct answer.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2295,"children":2296},{},[2297],{"type":40,"value":2298},"Many B2B companies have a disconnect. They have invested in high-end design, video, and storytelling. While these elements have value for human stakeholders, they are often invisible or confusing to an AI agent. The technical architecture of most corporate websites is designed for visual display, not for programmatic extraction. To succeed in the era of AI-mediated spend, companies must implement a strategy that prioritizes machine-readability.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":2300,"children":2302},{"id":2301},"moving-beyond-seo-to-agent-readiness-optimization-aro",[2303],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2304,"children":2305},{},[2306],{"type":40,"value":2307},"Moving Beyond SEO to Agent Readiness Optimization (ARO)",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2309,"children":2310},{},[2311],{"type":40,"value":2312},"For years, SEO was the primary discipline for increasing visibility. Teams focused on keywords, search intent, and ranking in search results. Agent Readiness Optimization (ARO) is a different discipline. ARO is not about ranking for a search term; it is about providing the definitive, structured data that an AI agent requires to vet a vendor and provide a direct answer.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2314,"children":2315},{},[2316],{"type":40,"value":2317},"ARO requires a shift in how digital assets are structured. It requires implementing a technical semantic layer. A semantic layer acts as a translator between raw data and the AI agents that need to consume it. It ensures that when an agent asks, \"What are the core technical capabilities of this platform?\", it receives a direct, unambiguous answer, not a marketing description.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2319,"children":2320},{},[2321],{"type":40,"value":2322},"This involves several components. First, it requires using standardized schemas, such as Schema.org, to define the entities on a page. By marking up content, a company tells the AI exactly what each piece of information represents. Second, it requires that data be accessible and consistent across the entire web presence.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2324,"children":2325},{},[2326],{"type":40,"value":2327},"When a company treats its website as a knowledge graph, it maps the relationships between products, technical specifications, and organizational data. It creates a clear, interconnected structure that an AI agent can navigate to build its response. It moves from unstructured content to structured knowledge. This allows an AI agent to build a profile of a company without needing human intervention.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2329,"children":2330},{},[2331],{"type":30,"tag":890,"props":2332,"children":2334},{"alt":7,"src":2333},"https://assets.mkgmarketinginc.com/d42946f6-7f69-4eed-853f-c8f845347ce1-mkg-blog-agentic-procurement-image-2.png",[],{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":2336,"children":2338},{"id":2337},"the-systematic-approach-treating-your-site-as-a-knowledge-graph",[2339],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2340,"children":2341},{},[2342],{"type":40,"value":2343},"The Systematic Approach: Treating Your Site as a Knowledge Graph",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2345,"children":2346},{},[2347],{"type":40,"value":2348},"The approach to this challenge is to move beyond the page-by-page content strategy and view the website as a comprehensive data system. It is necessary to focus on integrating services and technical architecture to create a resilient knowledge graph.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2350,"children":2351},{},[2352],{"type":40,"value":2353},"Superficial fixes are not effective. Instead, a technical audit of a site’s ability to communicate with AI agents is required. A company must analyze its ability to output structured data and ensure that technical documentation, pricing structures, and capability matrices are fully indexable.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2355,"children":2356},{},[2357],{"type":40,"value":2358},"This involves specific operational steps:",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":2360,"children":2361},{},[2362,2372,2382],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":2363,"children":2364},{},[2365,2370],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2366,"children":2367},{},[2368],{"type":40,"value":2369},"Intent-Based Categorization:",{"type":40,"value":2371}," Structure your content based on how an agent classifies information, rather than how a human visitor navigates a menu.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":2373,"children":2374},{},[2375,2380],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2376,"children":2377},{},[2378],{"type":40,"value":2379},"Data Prominence:",{"type":40,"value":2381}," Surface your most critical technical and commercial specifications within your structured data to ensure they are instantly discoverable during an automated audit.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":2383,"children":2384},{},[2385,2390],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2386,"children":2387},{},[2388],{"type":40,"value":2389},"Machine-Ready Compliance:",{"type":40,"value":2391}," Format your compliance documentation—including security protocols, certifications, and uptime logs—for machine-learning ingestion, so automated systems can verify your credentials without human intervention.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2393,"children":2394},{},[2395],{"type":40,"value":2396},"This approach requires collaboration between your technical and marketing teams. The marketing team provides the strategic narrative, while the technical team ensures it is translated into a language agents understand. By combining these perspectives, a brand ensures its authority is reflected in its machine-readable data.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2398,"children":2399},{},[2400],{"type":40,"value":2401},"When a company treats its site as a knowledge graph, it prepares the business for the future. It moves from a model in which it hopes marketing materials influence the buyer to one in which it actively supplies the data the agent uses to confirm fitness as a vendor.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":2403,"children":2405},{"id":2404},"why-machine-readable-content-wins",[2406],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2407,"children":2408},{},[2409],{"type":40,"value":2410},"Why Machine-Readable Content Wins",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2412,"children":2413},{},[2414],{"type":40,"value":2415},"The primary advantage of having a machine-readable website is the velocity of the procurement process. An AI agent is not slowed by human schedules or traditional sales bottlenecks. When a site provides the answers a company needs immediately, that site becomes the direct, verifiable option.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2417,"children":2418},{},[2419],{"type":40,"value":2420},"Key advantages of machine-readability include:",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":2422,"children":2423},{},[2424,2434,2444],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":2425,"children":2426},{},[2427,2432],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2428,"children":2429},{},[2430],{"type":40,"value":2431},"Always-On Availability:",{"type":40,"value":2433}," Unlike human sales teams, AI agents operate 24/7. Your site is being vetted for procurement regardless of time zone or office hours.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":2435,"children":2436},{},[2437,2442],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2438,"children":2439},{},[2440],{"type":40,"value":2441},"Removal of Friction:",{"type":40,"value":2443}," AI agents do not wait for sales representatives to respond to emails or demo requests. They require immediate, self-service access to technical data to complete their vetting process.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":2445,"children":2446},{},[2447,2452],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2448,"children":2449},{},[2450],{"type":40,"value":2451},"Instant Verification:",{"type":40,"value":2453}," By surfacing specs, security protocols, and pricing in a machine-readable format, you allow an agent to confirm requirements in seconds, positioning your company as the most efficient and low-risk choice.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2455,"children":2456},{},[2457],{"type":40,"value":2458},"Contrast this with a competitor whose site is visually polished but lacks the technical structure required for indexing. That competitor is filtered out by the agent before a human ever sees their brand. This is an automated process of elimination. A company may not even know it was considered for a procurement mandate, nor why it was passed over.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2460,"children":2461},{},[2462],{"type":30,"tag":890,"props":2463,"children":2465},{"alt":7,"src":2464},"https://assets.mkgmarketinginc.com/4840c7d2-ba0e-4ce6-a9f7-3eb021a8fb44-mkg-blog-agentic-procurement-image-3.jpg",[],{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":2467,"children":2469},{"id":2468},"the-competitive-advantage-of-structured-data",[2470],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2471,"children":2472},{},[2473],{"type":40,"value":2474},"The Competitive Advantage of Structured Data",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2476,"children":2477},{},[2478],{"type":40,"value":2479},"The transition to ARO is a competitive advantage. Companies that understand how to present data in a structured, semantic format will have an advantage in the automated B2B marketplace.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2481,"children":2482},{},[2483],{"type":40,"value":2484},"Consider the difference in how two companies present service levels. One company uses an infographic with text that an agent cannot parse. The agent cannot process the information, which creates a high level of risk. The company is filtered out. The second company uses a structured data table that clearly maps service levels to technical specifications, accompanied by schema markup that validates those claims. The agent ingests this data instantly, verifies it against the procurement requirements, and flags the company as a candidate with high confidence.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2486,"children":2487},{},[2488],{"type":40,"value":2489},"This second company wins because it made the task easier for the agent. It demonstrated operational maturity. In the era of AI-mediated spend, technical documentation is sales collateral. API references are landing pages. Compliance data is the brand story.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2491,"children":2492},{},[2493],{"type":40,"value":2494},"Organizations must build this infrastructure. They must move from a focus on brochures to a data-driven model. A website should act as a sales engineer, providing the data agents need to select a company as their preferred partner.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":2496,"children":2498},{"id":2497},"recalibrating-your-digital-strategy",[2499],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2500,"children":2501},{},[2502],{"type":40,"value":2503},"Recalibrating Your Digital Strategy",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2505,"children":2506},{},[2507],{"type":40,"value":2508},"If a digital strategy is currently too human-centric, now is the time to recalibrate. This is not about sacrificing brand voice or the experience provided to human visitors. It is about adding a layer of technical rigor that makes the site work for both the human buyer and the procurement agent.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2510,"children":2511},{},[2512],{"type":40,"value":2513},"A structured approach to ARO involves a technical audit of the existing infrastructure. Companies must analyze where data is hidden, where structures are brittle, and where opportunities are lost because information is not parsable. They then implement a structured data strategy that enables knowledge to flow into the systems that drive the majority of B2B procurement decisions.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2515,"children":2516},{},[2517],{"type":40,"value":2518},"This is not a project that can be delegated to a generic agency. It requires a combination of technical capability, strategic oversight, and an understanding of how AI models consume information. It requires the discipline to treat information as a system.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2520,"children":2521},{},[2522],{"type":40,"value":2523},"By controlling the technical semantic layer, a company controls its future in the B2B market. It ensures it is not left behind as spend shifts to vendors who have built the infrastructure to support AI-driven answers.",{"type":30,"tag":31,"props":2525,"children":2527},{"id":2526},"final-thoughts-the-new-era-of-visibility",[2528],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":2529,"children":2530},{},[2531],{"type":40,"value":2532},"Final Thoughts: The New Era of Visibility",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2534,"children":2535},{},[2536],{"type":40,"value":2537},"The transition to AI-mediated procurement is a significant shift in the business environment. It requires a change in mindset—from how to persuade the buyer, to how to provide the data the agent needs to select a vendor.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2539,"children":2540},{},[2541],{"type":40,"value":2542},"We specialize in the intersection of services and technical architecture. We help clients navigate this shift by building websites that are robust, structured, and intelligent. We provide the technical backbone that allows a business to thrive in a world of automated decision-making.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":2544,"children":2545},{},[2546],{"type":40,"value":2547},"Do not let a brand fall into the gap between traditional marketing and AI-driven procurement. Organize expertise, structure data, and build a digital presence that's future-ready. The era of the agent is here. 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In addition to gaining a deep understanding of paid media and analytics, this peaked his interest in cybersecurity and tech in general. He then transitioned to agency life where he specialized in SaaS marketing.\n",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3488,"children":3489},{},[3490],{"type":40,"value":3491},"Over the years, Avery has touched a variety of verticals including health and beauty, eCommerce, medical/pharma, education, and more. He is drawn to agency life because of the variety of clients he is able to work with and, in turn, learn from.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3493,"children":3494},{},[3495],{"type":40,"value":3496},"Although he’s touched several areas of digital marketing, Avery feels most at home when doing Account/ Project Management as well as Copywriting.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3498,"children":3499},{},[3500],{"type":40,"value":3501},"As is the theme with many of our staff, Avery was drawn to MKG because of our culture. In Avery’s words “MKG shares the same values as I do in both my professional and my personal life. When I saw that we meshed so well, this was an opportunity I couldn’t refuse!”",{"type":30,"tag":3363,"props":3503,"children":3504},{"id":3365},[3505],{"type":40,"value":3368},{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":3507,"children":3508},{},[3509,3514,3519],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":3510,"children":3511},{},[3512],{"type":40,"value":3513},"Avery is an avid racquetball player. Having first gotten into the sport in college, he’s had lots of fun playing over the years. He tries to get to the court at least once a week.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":3515,"children":3516},{},[3517],{"type":40,"value":3518},"Avery is a hobby bartender and enjoys making, tasting, and learning about different drinks. He’s mainly a Kentucky bourbon guy but also loves Japanese whisky!",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":3520,"children":3521},{},[3522],{"type":40,"value":3523},"Avery is a black belt in Pasaryu. This is a Korean mixed martial art which includes karate, kung fu, and Taekwondo. He has also trained and competed with weapons: nunchucks and samurai sword just to name a couple!",{"title":7,"searchDepth":828,"depth":828,"links":3525},[3526],{"id":3365,"depth":3336,"text":3368},"content:team:avery-davis.md","team/avery-davis.md","team/avery-davis",{"_path":3531,"_dir":3325,"_draft":6,"_partial":6,"_locale":7,"title":3532,"description":3533,"name":3532,"ref":3534,"jobTitle":3535,"team":3536,"images":3537,"linkedIn":3539,"quote":3540,"quoteCite":3541,"sequence":3542,"body":3543,"_type":832,"_id":3590,"_source":834,"_file":3591,"_stem":3592,"_extension":837,"category":3325,"minutes":828},"/team/jared-gerling","Jared Gerling","Meet Jared Gerling, one of MKG Marketing’s thoughtful SEO Experts, bringing 10+ years of experience, intentionality, and creativity to the team.","jared-gerling","SEO Expert","SEO Experts",{"landscape":3538},"jared-gerling.webp","jaredgerling","The truth is, most of us discover where we are heading when we arrive.","Calvin (Calvin and Hobbes)",55,{"type":27,"children":3544,"toc":3588},[3545,3550,3555,3560,3565,3570],{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3546,"children":3547},{},[3548],{"type":40,"value":3549},"Jared's journey into digital marketing started with answering a classified ad for a company looking for people with writing backgrounds for a position in SEO. As a graduate of Michigan State University with a degree in Creative Writing, this sounded like the perfect opportunity.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3551,"children":3552},{},[3553],{"type":40,"value":3554},"This small agency taught him SEO from the ground up, and, after taking a break from digital marketing to receive his MA from DePaul University, Jared jumped back into the field at a medium-sized agency out of Chicago as an SEO analyst.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3556,"children":3557},{},[3558],{"type":40,"value":3559},"Since then, Jared has worked for large and small marketing agencies for over a decade, providing expert SEO services in almost every industry that has a website on the internet. And with his background in writing, Jared feels most at home in the content and customer facing side of SEO and digital marketing.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3561,"children":3562},{},[3563],{"type":40,"value":3564},"It was first and foremost the people that drew Jared to MKG. Everyone at MKG has been so in tune with his values and his personality, and they've made his time at MKG easily the best experience of his career.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3566,"children":3567},{},[3568],{"type":40,"value":3569},"Fun Facts:",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":3571,"children":3572},{},[3573,3578,3583],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":3574,"children":3575},{},[3576],{"type":40,"value":3577},"I love to travel with my wife. We've been to many incredible places over the years, and are always on the lookout for our next destination.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":3579,"children":3580},{},[3581],{"type":40,"value":3582},"I was a college rower in my younger days. I rowed mostly eights as a port, and competed against some of the best schools in the nation...and lost to most of them.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":3584,"children":3585},{},[3586],{"type":40,"value":3587},"I love a really good French Martini.",{"title":7,"searchDepth":828,"depth":828,"links":3589},[],"content:team:jared-gerling.md","team/jared-gerling.md","team/jared-gerling",{"_path":3594,"_dir":3325,"_draft":6,"_partial":6,"_locale":7,"title":3595,"description":3596,"name":3597,"jobTitle":3598,"images":3599,"ref":3601,"sequence":3602,"imageDescription":3603,"body":3604,"_type":832,"_id":3656,"_source":834,"_file":3657,"_stem":3658,"_extension":837,"category":3325,"minutes":828},"/team/kathy-obrien","Kathy Obrien","Meet Kathy O’Brien, MKG Marketing’s amazing executive assistant who consistently supports all of MKG across the many needs of the company.","Kathy O'Brien","Executive Assistant",{"landscape":3600},"kathy-obrien.webp","kathy-obrien",80,"Kathy O’Brien, MKG Marketing’s Executive Assistant, in front of a gray background | MKG Marketing",{"type":27,"children":3605,"toc":3653},[3606,3612,3617,3626,3631,3635],{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3607,"children":3609},{"className":3608},[3343],[3610],{"type":40,"value":3611},"\nKathy loves details and has managed the finer details of business her entire career.  She started her career in Center City, Philadelphia working for several law firms.  After she was married and had her first son, she left the bustling city to work closer to home at an international publishing company.  In 1994, Kathy and her husband Bill moved with their two sons to Charlotte, North Carolina.  They eventually completed their family with two more boys born in Charlotte.\n",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3613,"children":3614},{},[3615],{"type":40,"value":3616},"In 2000 they relocated to Chester County, a suburb of Philadelphia. After a hiatus and four sons, Kathy returned to work in Chester County. This time, she gave retail a whirl so that she could be home when her school age boys were home. She quickly found out Ann Taylor was employing one of their best customers. Kathy then spent the following 10+ years in the Non-Profit arena where she did whatever needed to be done to further the mission. No job was too big, small, or unimportant to tackle.",{"type":30,"tag":3618,"props":3619,"children":3620},"blockquote",{},[3621],{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3622,"children":3623},{},[3624],{"type":40,"value":3625},"Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.\nMother Teresa",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3627,"children":3628},{},[3629],{"type":40,"value":3630},"By February 2020, Kathy was eager to build something for herself and her family. She set off on a new adventure of starting her own business when she was connected with Kerry, Mike, and MKG. Having commuted and worked outside of the home for 10+ years, she was ready to work from home and have a better life balance. She followed the rainbow and found MKG in her pot of gold. MKG is like no other firm or organization for which Kathy has worked. Their standard of people first is evident in every team member, every decision, every meeting, every interaction. They live their standard.",{"type":30,"tag":3363,"props":3632,"children":3633},{"id":3365},[3634],{"type":40,"value":3368},{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":3636,"children":3637},{},[3638,3643,3648],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":3639,"children":3640},{},[3641],{"type":40,"value":3642},"Kathy’s dislikes: fruit & chocolate together and Tuesday.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":3644,"children":3645},{},[3646],{"type":40,"value":3647},"Family: Kathy met her husband Bill in Wildwood, New Jersey after their high school graduations during “Senior Week”. They have 4 sons and 2 grandsons. There hasn’t been a girl born in the O’Brien family in 32 years! You will often hear Kathy saying her boys are the best 4 gifts she’s ever been given.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":3649,"children":3650},{},[3651],{"type":40,"value":3652},"Special talent: Baking. Her boys’ (Bill included) favorites are Spritz Cookies and Chocolate Chip Cookies. There is a running family debate as to whether Ricotta Cookies are cookies or biscuits. At Christmas time, Kathy has been known to hide cookies to save some for guests.",{"title":7,"searchDepth":828,"depth":828,"links":3654},[3655],{"id":3365,"depth":3336,"text":3368},"content:team:kathy-obrien.md","team/kathy-obrien.md","team/kathy-obrien",{"_path":3660,"_dir":3325,"_draft":6,"_partial":6,"_locale":7,"title":12,"description":3661,"ref":3662,"name":12,"team":3330,"quote":3663,"images":3664,"twitter":3666,"isLeader":3334,"jobTitle":3667,"linkedIn":3666,"sequence":3467,"quoteCite":3668,"imageDescription":3669,"body":3670,"_type":832,"_id":3718,"_source":834,"_file":3719,"_stem":3720,"_extension":837,"category":3325,"minutes":3467},"/team/kerry-guard","Meet Kerry Guard, one of MKG Marketing’s founders. She currently fills the role of CEO of MKG as well as hosting the podcast, Back on T-R-A-C-K.","kerry-guard","I don’t have to chase extraordinary moments to find happiness — it’s right in front of me if I’m paying attention and practicing gratitude.",{"landscape":3665},"kerry-guard.webp","kerryguard","Founder & CEO","Brené Brown","Kerry Guard, MKG Marketing’s Owner/CEO, stands on a street in Guernsey with the Town Church behind her | MKG Marketing",{"type":27,"children":3671,"toc":3715},[3672,3678,3690,3703,3707],{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3673,"children":3675},{"className":3674},[3343],[3676],{"type":40,"value":3677},"Kerry Guard (she/her) is a mom of twins - boy and a girl. She understands what work life balance really looks like and is on a mission to build a company that honors parents having a career and a life. She’s out to prove you really can have both with policies like ensuring 20 days of vacation each year, no client emails after 6PM or weekends, unlimited sick days, and everyday flexibility.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3679,"children":3680},{},[3681,3683,3688],{"type":40,"value":3682},"She also hosts our podcast, ",{"type":30,"tag":865,"props":3684,"children":3686},{"href":3685},"/podcasts/marketing-leaders/",[3687],{"type":40,"value":13},{"type":40,"value":3689},", which brings eight digital marketing experts to your ears every quarter.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3691,"children":3692},{},[3693,3695,3701],{"type":40,"value":3694},"Kerry is responsible for HR. If you’d like to join MKG where people are first and your expertise matter, Kerry will be with you through the entire interview process ensuring each candidate meets the necessary requirements and gets a fair shot. Want to join MKG and Kerry’s mission of bringing People First to as many people as possible? Check out our ",{"type":30,"tag":865,"props":3696,"children":3698},{"href":3697},"/about/jobs/",[3699],{"type":40,"value":3700},"Jobs page",{"type":40,"value":3702}," and see if we have a position right for you!",{"type":30,"tag":3363,"props":3704,"children":3705},{"id":3365},[3706],{"type":40,"value":3368},{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":3708,"children":3709},{},[3710],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":3711,"children":3712},{},[3713],{"type":40,"value":3714},"Kerry now lives in Guernsey — a tiny nook in the world between England and France. Come visit for a spot of tea any time!",{"title":7,"searchDepth":828,"depth":828,"links":3716},[3717],{"id":3365,"depth":3336,"text":3368},"content:team:kerry-guard.md","team/kerry-guard.md","team/kerry-guard",{"_path":3722,"_dir":3325,"_draft":6,"_partial":6,"_locale":7,"title":3723,"description":3724,"name":3723,"ref":3725,"jobTitle":3726,"team":3398,"images":3727,"linkedIn":3729,"sequence":3730,"body":3731,"_type":832,"_id":3782,"_source":834,"_file":3783,"_stem":3784,"_extension":837,"category":3325,"minutes":828},"/team/leigh-snyder","Leigh Snyder","Meet Leigh Snyder, one of MKG Marketing’s amazing digital advertising experts, bringing 15 plus years of experience to the team","leigh-snyder","Digital Advertising Expert",{"landscape":3728},"leigh-snyder.webp","leighasnyder",50,{"type":27,"children":3732,"toc":3779},[3733,3739,3744,3749,3754,3759,3764,3769,3774],{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3734,"children":3736},{"className":3735},[3343],[3737],{"type":40,"value":3738},"\nLeigh has over 15 years of experience of managing Paid Search campaigns. She started her career at Solid Cactus, a full service eCommerce agency in Wilkes Barre Pennsylvania. Having no experience in Paid Search, she learned as she went, starting out in the earlier days of Google Adwords, when Adwords Editor wasn't even being used yet.\n",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3740,"children":3741},{},[3742],{"type":40,"value":3743},"Leigh loves to create accounts and watch them grow, even more she loves to take a poorly performing account and turn it around. Watching the KPIs increase from changes she has made or new ideas she implements, keeps her career exciting.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3745,"children":3746},{},[3747],{"type":40,"value":3748},"Managing a wide variety of accounts that include local car dealerships, worldwide clothing stores, online supplement shops to plastic surgeons and much much more, Leigh brings a vast knowledge of creative ways in managing accounts.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3750,"children":3751},{},[3752],{"type":40,"value":3753},"While working the majority of her career in local offices, the options for expanding her career were becoming less and less. She decided to apply for a remote job (before it was the norm) and was able to get experience that wasn't as prevalent in the smaller area in which she resides.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3755,"children":3756},{},[3757],{"type":40,"value":3758},"After working from home for the past 6 years the opportunities kept coming and when MKG reached out to her, she knew that there was something special about them and decided to take the leap. The people first environment is not just talked about here, but it is practiced everyday. MKG Marketing is unlike anywhere she has ever worked.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3760,"children":3761},{},[3762],{"type":40,"value":3763},"Outside of work, Leigh enjoys spending time with her husband Dustin, their blended family (Emma, Casey, Jake & Brayden) and their dog Millie.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3765,"children":3766},{},[3767],{"type":40,"value":3768},"The kitchen is where you will always find her, she loves to cook and bake all things Gluten Free and no one ever knows. When they are not at a swim meet or a baseball game they love swimming in their pool, long walks on the local trails, renovating their house and binging shows.",{"type":30,"tag":3363,"props":3770,"children":3771},{"id":3365},[3772],{"type":40,"value":3773},"Fun Facts",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3775,"children":3776},{},[3777],{"type":40,"value":3778},"Although it was just was a short time, at age 19 Leigh drove cross country from a small town in PA and moved to Hollywood Hills, CA. Her view from her kitchen window was the Hollywood sign. Not a bad first apartment.",{"title":7,"searchDepth":828,"depth":828,"links":3780},[3781],{"id":3365,"depth":3336,"text":3773},"content:team:leigh-snyder.md","team/leigh-snyder.md","team/leigh-snyder",{"_path":3786,"_dir":3787,"_draft":6,"_partial":6,"_locale":7,"title":3788,"description":3789,"name":3788,"imageDescription":3790,"ref":3791,"jobTitle":3792,"images":3793,"linkedIn":3791,"quote":3795,"quoteCite":3788,"sequence":1806,"body":3796,"_type":832,"_id":3870,"_source":834,"_file":3871,"_stem":3872,"_extension":837,"category":3787,"minutes":3467},"/team/marketing-leadership/celeste-jacroux","marketing-leadership","Celeste Jacroux","Meet Celeste Jacroux, a strategic GTM partner to MKG and Founder of Sweel Marketing Advisors. She leads Go-to-Market strategy for high-growth companies.","Celeste Jacroux, Founder of Swell Marketing Advisors and MKG Partner","celeste-jacroux","Fractional GTM Leader | Founder, Swell Marketing Advisors",{"landscape":3794},"celeste-jacroux.webp","A great product doesn't win on its own. It wins when the story, the strategy, and the sales motion all pull in the exact same direction.",{"type":27,"children":3797,"toc":3867},[3798,3811,3816,3828,3834],{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3799,"children":3801},{"className":3800},[3343],[3802,3804,3809],{"type":40,"value":3803},"\nCeleste Jacroux is a Go-to-Market architect for companies ready to graduate from \"random acts of marketing\" to a predictable revenue engine. As the Founder of ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":3805,"children":3806},{},[3807],{"type":40,"value":3808},"Swell Marketing Advisors",{"type":40,"value":3810}," and a strategic partner to MKG, she brings deep expertise in aligning product, sales, and marketing into a cohesive GTM strategy.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3812,"children":3813},{},[3814],{"type":40,"value":3815},"Celeste understands that for founders, the hardest phase is often bridging the gap between a great product and the market that needs it. She specializes in clarifying positioning, defining ideal customer profiles (ICPs), and building the strategic roadmap that turns vision into traction.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3817,"children":3818},{},[3819,3821,3826],{"type":40,"value":3820},"At MKG, Celeste steps in as a Marketing Leader for our ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":3822,"children":3823},{},[3824],{"type":40,"value":3825},"Marketing Leadership + Activation",{"type":40,"value":3827}," clients. She provides the senior-level direction and GTM rigor, working hand-in-hand with MKG’s activation teams to ensure that strategy doesn't just sit in a deck—it gets executed, measured, and optimized for growth.",{"type":30,"tag":3363,"props":3829,"children":3831},{"id":3830},"expertise",[3832],{"type":40,"value":3833},"Expertise",{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":3835,"children":3836},{},[3837,3847,3857],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":3838,"children":3839},{},[3840,3845],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":3841,"children":3842},{},[3843],{"type":40,"value":3844},"Go-to-Market Strategy:",{"type":40,"value":3846}," Launching new products and entering new markets with precision.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":3848,"children":3849},{},[3850,3855],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":3851,"children":3852},{},[3853],{"type":40,"value":3854},"Positioning & Messaging:",{"type":40,"value":3856}," Translating complex tech into clear customer value.",{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":3858,"children":3859},{},[3860,3865],{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":3861,"children":3862},{},[3863],{"type":40,"value":3864},"Sales & Marketing Alignment:",{"type":40,"value":3866}," Ensuring the revenue team is fighting the same battle.",{"title":7,"searchDepth":828,"depth":828,"links":3868},[3869],{"id":3830,"depth":3336,"text":3833},"content:team:marketing-leadership:celeste-jacroux.md","team/marketing-leadership/celeste-jacroux.md","team/marketing-leadership/celeste-jacroux",{"_path":3874,"_dir":3787,"_draft":6,"_partial":6,"_locale":7,"title":12,"description":3875,"name":12,"imageDescription":3669,"ref":3662,"jobTitle":3876,"images":3877,"twitter":3666,"linkedIn":3666,"quote":3663,"quoteCite":3668,"sequence":3878,"body":3879,"_type":832,"_id":3957,"_source":834,"_file":3958,"_stem":3959,"_extension":837,"category":3787,"minutes":828},"/team/marketing-leadership/kerry-guard","Meet Kerry Guard, MKG Marketing’s CEO and Principal Strategist. She works directly with founders to build scalable marketing engines while hosting the podcast, Back on T-R-A-C-K.","Fractional Marketing Leaders",{"landscape":3665},5,{"type":27,"children":3880,"toc":3954},[3881,3887,3927,3938,3943,3947],{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3882,"children":3884},{"className":3883},[3343],[3885],{"type":40,"value":3886},"\nKerry Guard (she/her) is the strategist founders call when they are tired of guessing. As the CEO of MKG Marketing, she doesn’t just run the agency; she steps into the trenches with clients as a Fractional Marketing Leader. She specializes in helping founders navigate the \"Growth Valley\"—building the systems, strategy, and teams required to scale from traction to expansion.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3888,"children":3889},{},[3890,3892,3897,3899,3904,3906,3911,3913,3918,3920,3925],{"type":40,"value":3891},"Her recent work focuses on bringing enterprise-level rigor to growing businesses. She serves as the strategic marketing engine for a diverse portfolio, including ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":3893,"children":3894},{},[3895],{"type":40,"value":3896},"Rutkowski Law Firm",{"type":40,"value":3898},", ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":3900,"children":3901},{},[3902],{"type":40,"value":3903},"Fulcrum Enterprise Group",{"type":40,"value":3905},", and ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":3907,"children":3908},{},[3909],{"type":40,"value":3910},"Premier Office Movers",{"type":40,"value":3912},", where she aligns revenue goals with marketing execution. Whether she is translating complex tech into a go-to-market narrative for ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":3914,"children":3915},{},[3916],{"type":40,"value":3917},"Avalanche Fusion",{"type":40,"value":3919},", or helping ",{"type":30,"tag":36,"props":3921,"children":3922},{},[3923],{"type":40,"value":3924},"Extraordinary Advisors",{"type":40,"value":3926}," amplify their message, Kerry brings clarity and momentum to every leadership team she joins.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3928,"children":3929},{},[3930,3932,3936],{"type":40,"value":3931},"She is also the host of ",{"type":30,"tag":865,"props":3933,"children":3934},{"href":3685},[3935],{"type":40,"value":13},{"type":40,"value":3937},", where she interviews CMOs and Founders to uncover the human stories behind high-growth companies.",{"type":30,"tag":43,"props":3939,"children":3940},{},[3941],{"type":40,"value":3942},"Kerry proves that high performance doesn't require burnout. As a mom of twins, she built MKG on a \"People First\" methodology—championing policies like 20 vacation days and zero after-hours emails—because she knows that rested, respected experts drive the best ROI.",{"type":30,"tag":3363,"props":3944,"children":3945},{"id":3365},[3946],{"type":40,"value":3368},{"type":30,"tag":943,"props":3948,"children":3949},{},[3950],{"type":30,"tag":947,"props":3951,"children":3952},{},[3953],{"type":40,"value":3714},{"title":7,"searchDepth":828,"depth":828,"links":3955},[3956],{"id":3365,"depth":3336,"text":3368},"content:team:marketing-leadership:kerry-guard.md","team/marketing-leadership/kerry-guard.md","team/marketing-leadership/kerry-guard",{"_path":3961,"_dir":3787,"_draft":6,"_partial":6,"_locale":7,"title":3962,"description":3963,"name":3964,"imageDescription":3965,"ref":3966,"jobTitle":3967,"images":3968,"linkedIn":3966,"quote":3970,"quoteCite":3964,"sequence":3971,"body":3972,"_type":832,"_id":4055,"_source":834,"_file":4056,"_stem":4057,"_extension":837,"category":3787,"minutes":3467},"/team/marketing-leadership/laura-mcaliley","Laura Mcaliley","Meet Laura McAliley, a strategic partner to MKG and Founder of Pebble Marketing. 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