Heidi Bullock
CMO, Engagio

A woman MarTech champion and CMO of Engagio, Heidi Bullock, attended the ABM Innovation Summit 2018.  We caught up with her to dive deeper into her role as CMO and insights on marketing and sales automation technology, and the key takeaways from the event.

What’s the most exciting part of being an influential woman CMO in martech? How easy or hard is it for a woman CMO to manage a Tech company?

Well, that is very nice of you to say. I feel a responsibility to help other women – and people in general –  and to provide a vision of what is possible. I think women need to see other women leaders that are real, take risks, and keep going.

It is hard for everyone to manage at Tech companies! You have to be strong, bold, and persistent. That is true for everyone.

How is SF’s tech ecosystem different from when you first started here?

There are so many more companies. The tech ecosystem has just exploded. SF is incredible because there are a lot of talented people and there is a lot of openness to change. It creates a dynamic environment that fosters new ideas. I see more diversity and flexibility at companies and that is a positive. Traffic is worse.

What were the key takeaways for you from the ABM Innovation Summit 2018?

It was an incredible event. The takeaways for me were:

• Having your systems and data set up to support ABM is critical
• ABM is not just a ‘marketing thing’ – for it to work, account-based plays need to be orchestrated with sales
• How you measure needs to change – it’s not about volume
• ABM has secret hidden values! It helps you focus, it supports cross-functional efforts, and it works equally as well for customers – which is an area that needs more focus.

What makes the ABM Innovation Summit, a must-attend event for B2B marketers?

It is very well curated.  The speakers and the content were top notch and provided very actionable advice for companies interested in ABM. All of the speakers were honest about what they have learned and pitfalls to avoid.

What is the biggest drive for you and your team to amplify your sales productivity every quarter? What percentage of that success would you attribute to automation and technology?  

The team really thinks about sales productivity daily. The internal sales team reports to me and part of how I am paid is based on our pipeline achievement. I track our number closely and meet with Sales weekly to make sure they have the right tools to be successful (training, content, etc.). A big part of our success is technology. As we grow and get larger I need to ensure sales has the right information on their accounts and they know how to prioritize activities. Engagio helps the reps identify engaged accounts, find the best people to contact next, and see the most impactful activities in the time frame that they care about. 

How should businesses ensure sales productivity in an AI-driven world?

Technology (including AI) is great and can really help with scale – but it is dependent on having a thoughtful strategy and process that is already in place. It’s similar to “Autopia” at Disneyland. You still need the track to keep the cars from spiraling out of control. I am a big believer that marketing can help sales by ensuring they see the right deals faster and once they are in the deal, it feels ‘easier’. A big part of this is developing a clear ICP (even for inbound – who are you NOT going to sell to), a revenue model with stages, and clear handoff points.

How should young sales and marketing professionals train themselves to master automation and sales intelligence tools? How could attending events like ABM Innovation Summit help such sales teams? 

The best way for young professionals to learn is to first understand the bigger picture and the reasons for what they are doing. There are many ways to get better at using technology (certification, user meetings, internal training, etc.), but I have found that the people that end up being the best have an understanding of the larger goal. I spend time with teams to make sure that is clear and it makes learning more exciting. The ABM innovation Summit is particularly good because marketing and sales can learn from other teams what is working and also what is not. I enjoyed Elle Woulfe and John Hurley’s sessions.  They offer real advice and folks early in their career can learn tons from their content.

Tag the one person/company at the ABM Innovation Summit 2018, that made the loudest buzz –

There were many great companies and talks. ITSMA stands out to me. They thoroughly understand ABM they have pioneered a lot of the seminal ideas that were discussed and cited at the conference. Tagging David Munn, ITSMA.

Thanks for chatting with us, Heidi.
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