Hello again,

I’m not offering a B2B marketing insight this time around – instead I just thought I’d share a nice little work moment that made me feel good this week. Two moments in fact…

Simply, I had a couple of instances this week when I spotted a telling little look on the faces of two of my B2B marketing team members. It’s that special little look, when it dawns on a marketer that ‘this big, brave idea I just had is actually going to fly‘. When a marketer realises that they’ve got a campaign idea that no-one in their industry has had the guts to try before, and that they’ve managed to convince internal stakeholders to actually go for it. That awesome moment when you bring something ambitious to the table and realise, ‘holy shit, I can actually make this happen.’ Of course that moment is accompanied by a stark sense of realisation that you’ve got to go deliver the sucker and turn it into results, but that little tickle of nerves is just adrenalin. And that’s the thing that makes delivering big, brave, result-generating, award-winning B2B marketing campaigns so addictive. (To geeks like me).

Those little, telling looks are the part of my role as a B2B marketing leader that I probably enjoy the most. Because I think the role of B2B marketing leaders is to create an environment where marketers are encouraged to come up with brave ideas, and where there is no fear of failure. Because brave ideas are typically the only ones that cut-through the noise of a customer’s inbox. And failure is the only way we A) learn and B) know we’re pushing the boundaries. As the old adage goes, take risks – because if you win you’ll be happy, and if you lose you’ll be wise.

Saying that another way, exceptional marketing returns only normally stem from exceptional marketing ideas, and exceptional marketing ideas only normally come from marketers that are encouraged and supported to come up with them.

I, for one, hope I continue to see (and will do my absolute best to facilitate) that little telling look on the face of brave B2B marketers when they think big and make big happen. Because its a look I love.

#GroupHug