B2B Category Creators with Gil Allouche

In our final episode, Gil talks category creation with Josh Lowman, Founder of Gold Front. Josh has worked with leading startups such as Uber, Robinhood, and Newsela to build category-defining brands. 

You’ll walk away from this episode with an understanding of the process involved in creating a new category, from strategy to implementation.

BONUS! Josh tells what questions you should ask before creating a new category.

In our 36th episode, Gil talks category creation with two B2B leaders from the digital adoption and data detection categories. 

Panelists for this episode include Wayne McCulloch, Chief Customer Officer of WalkMe and leader behind the digital adoption category, and Howard Ting, CEO of Cyberhaven and leader behind the data detection and response category. 

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of brand positioning, leadership, and strategy. 

BONUS! Howard shares a framework you can use to differentiate your startup.

In our 35th episode, Olivier talks category creation with two B2B leaders from the sales commission software and performance marketing categories.

Panelists for this episode include Anna Fisher, CMO of Spiff and leader behind the sales commission software category, and Garrett Mehrguth, CEO of Directive and leader behind the performance marketing agency category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of demand generation, inbound marketing, and analyst relationships.

BONUS! Garrett tells us why he wants to learn how to code.

In our 34th episode, Gil talks category creation with two B2B leaders from the software review and customer marketing categories.

Panelists for this episode include Vinay Bhagat, CEO of TrustRadius and leader behind the software review site category, and Jeff Ernst, CEO of SlapFive and leader behind the customer marketing software category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of fundraising, customer feedback, and educational content.

BONUS! Jeff explains why entrepreneurs are born, not made.

In our 33rd episode, Olivier talks category creation with two B2B leaders from the customer success platform and go-to-market consulting categories.

Panelists for this episode include Edward Chiu, CEO of Catalyst Software and leader behind the customer success platform category, and Dominique Levin, CEO of Winning by Design and leader behind the go-to-market consulting category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of how to create a community and build out your go-to-market strategy.

BONUS! Edward explains why hiring employees based on skillset is the wrong way of building a company.

In our 32nd episode, Jason Widup, VP of Marketing at Metadata, talks category creation with two B2B leaders from the digital presales and B2B revenue attribution categories.

Panelists for this episode include Garin Hess, CEO and Founder of Consensus and leader behind the digital presales category, and Lars Grønnegaard, Co-founder and CEO of Dreamdata and leader behind the B2B revenue attribution category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of how to build analyst relationships, position your brand, and create a go-to-market strategy.

BONUS! Garin explains why you should introduce your customers to analysts.

In our 31st episode, Olivier talks category creation with two B2B leaders from the global HR and visual collaboration software categories.

Panelists for this episode include Jack Mardack, Cofounder of Oyster and leader behind the global HR software category, and Mariano Suarez-Batta, CEO of Mural and leader behind the visual collaboration category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of content strategy, strategic narratives, and product use cases.

BONUS! Jack explains why every executive should work at a hotel at least once in their lives.

In our 30th episode of category creators, Gil talks category creation with Kevin Maney, Author of Play Bigger and Partner at Category Design Advisors. 

This episode covers key concepts about category creation from one of the people who invented the term. You'll walk away with an understanding of how to build a company that makes an impact.

BONUS! Kevin shares his advice on selecting a category name.

In our 29th episode, Olivier L'Abbé, President at Metadata, talks category creation with two B2B leaders from the customer data platform and continuous integration categories.

Panelists for this episode include Jascha Kaykas-Wolff, President of Lytics and leader behind the customer data platform category, and Erich Ziegler, CMO of CircleCI and leader behind the continuous integration category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of leadership, decision-making, and analyst relationships.

BONUS! Jascha tells us the strategy he uses to hire the best marketers.

In our 28th episode, Gil talks category creation with two B2B leaders from the cloud data and document workflow categories.

Panelists for this episode include Lars Nilsson, VP of Global Sales Development at Snowflake and leader behind the cloud data category, and Mikita Mikado, CEO of Pandadoc and leader behind the document workflow category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of team alignment, feature releases, and support networks.

BONUS! Lars explains why you don't always need to have the best product to create a category.

In our 27th episode, Gil talks category creation with two B2B leaders from the cloud security and revenue acceleration categories.

Panelists for this episode include David Spitz, CMO of Egnyte and leader behind the cloud content security category, and Armando Biondi, CEO and Co-founder of Breadcrumbs.io and leader behind the revenue acceleration category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of hiring best practices, product innovation, and demand generation.

BONUS! Armando explains the importance of timing when creating a new category.

In our 26th episode, Olivier L'Abbé, President at Metadata, talks category creation with two B2B leaders from the data security and travel expense management categories.

Panelists for this episode include Alex Poulos, VP of Marketing at Securiti and leader behind the AI data security category, and Meagen Eisenberg, CMO of TripActions and leader behind the corporate travel and expense management category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of value propositions, content creation, and keyword optimization.

BONUS! Meagen shares a strategy for generating effective customer reviews.

In our 25th episode, Olivier L'Abbé, President at Metadata, talks category creation with two B2B leaders from the financial modeling and digital adoption categories.

Panelists for this episode include Rami Essaid, CEO of Finmark and leader behind the financial modeling and planning category, and Melanie Fellay, CEO of Spekit and leader behind the digital adoption and enablement category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of leadership hiring, customer reviews, and keyword research.

BONUS! Melanie explains the steps involved in developing a differentiation strategy for category creation.

In our 24th episode, Gil talks category creation with two B2B leaders from the talent optimization and software review categories.

Panelists for this episode include Mike Zani, CEO of The Predictive Index and leader behind the talent optimization category, and Allyson Havener, VP of Marketing at TrustRadius and leader behind the software review category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of branding, customer advocacy, and building a successful company culture. 

BONUS! Allyson explains why it's essential to collaborate with coworkers from different departments.

In our 23rd episode, Gil talks category creation with two B2B leaders from the IT lifecycle management and remote employee management categories.

Panelists for this episode include Rhonda Walker, CMO of ITRenew and leader behind the IT lifecycle management category, and Doug Camplejohn, CEO of Airspeed and leader behind the remote employee management category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of market research, innovation, and strategic thinking.

BONUS! Doug shares the litmus test he uses when making hard decisions.

In our 22nd episode, Olivier L'Abbé, President at Metadata, talks category creation with two B2B leaders from the sales and account engagement categories.

Panelists for this episode include Sydney Sloan, CMO of SalesLoft and leader behind the sales engagement category, and Latane Conant, CMO of 6Sense and leader behind the AI account engagement category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of B2B review sites, customer experience, and KPI alignment.

BONUS! Sydney shares her predictions on how ABM will converge with sales engagement within the next few years.

In our 21st episode, Jason Widup, VP of Marketing at Metadata, talks category creation with the founding members of Women in Revenue, a community focused on the education and awareness of diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

Panelists for this episode include Shari Johnston, Lauren Goldstein, and Cristina Saunders.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of online communities, job description best practices, and employee mentorship. 

BONUS! Shari describes some of the operational challenges of managing an all-volunteer organization.

In our 20th episode, Gil talks category creation with two leaders from the customer experience performance and sports media categories.

Panelists for this episode include Macario Namie, CMO of ASAPP and leader behind the customer experience performance category, and Bryan Goodwin, President of TorchPro and leader behind the digital sports media category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of customer research, thought leadership, and fundraising.

BONUS! Macario explains why patience is the best quality a leader can have.

In our 19th episode, Gil talks category creation with two B2B leaders from the cybersecurity training and asset operations management categories.

Panelists for this episode include Paul Sebastien, CMO of Offensive Security and leader behind the cybersecurity training category, and Dan Frohnen, CMO of Upkeep and leader behind the asset operations management category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of qualitative marketing, startup playbooks, and category competition.

BONUS! Dan tells us why you should take the difficult path when creating a new category.

In our 18th episode, Olivier L'Abbé, President at Metadata, discusses category creation with two experienced leaders who played pivotal roles in developing the sales and training enablement categories.

Panelists for this episode include Kyle Lacy, CMO of Lessonly and leader behind the training enablement category, and Max Altschuler, VP of Sales Engagement of Outreach and leader behind the sales enablement category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of how to define your category name, build relationships with analysts, and measure market growth.

BONUS! Max explains why everything doesn’t need attribution, especially in category creation.

In our 17th episode, Gil discusses category creation with two experienced B2B leaders from the product management and supply chain categories.

Panelists for this episode include Todd Olson, CEO of Pendo and one of the influencers behind the product experience management category, and Andrew Waitman, CEO of Assent Compliance and creator of the supply chain transparency category.

You'll walk away from this episode with insights about branding, content strategy, and measuring product-market fit.

BONUS! Andrew tells us how being an introvert helped him become a better leader.

In our 16th episode, Gil talks about category creation with two B2B leaders who have shaped the data privacy management and strategic narrative categories.

Panelists for this episode include Daniel Barber, CEO & Co-founder at DataGrail and one of the influencers behind the integrated privacy solution category, and Andy Raskin, Strategic Narrative Consultant to CEOs.

You'll walk away from this episode with a greater understanding of storytelling, market research, and product development.

BONUS! Andy shares a strategy you can use to transform complicated product messaging into simple stories.

In our 15th episode, Gil talks about category creation with two experienced B2B operators in the retail operations management and creative intelligence categories. 

Panelists for this episode include Melissa Wong, CEO of Retail Zipline and one of the influencers in the retail operations management category, and Alex Collmer, CEO of VidMob and one of the pioneers in the creative intelligence category.

You'll walk away from this episode with great insights around hiring your first employees, building a culture, and managing risk.

BONUS! Alex Collmer shares some life lessons he learned from starting his first business at 19 years old.

In our 14th episode, Gil talks about category creation with two founders in the personalized gift-giving and employee engagement categories. 

Panelists for this episode include Brendan Kamm, CEO of Thnks and one of the creators of the personalized gift-giving category, and David Cherrie, CEO of Arcade and one of the innovators behind the employee engagement category.

Tune in to learn how to implement customer feedback, validate your newly created category, and find your ideal customer profile.

BONUS! Brendan explains why you shouldn’t measure success by how much money you raise or the valuation of your company.

In our 13th episode, Gil talks about category creation with two B2B leaders who have influenced the media automation and virtual application delivery categories.

Panelists for this episode include Shawn Riegsecker, CEO of Centro and one of the creators of the media automation category, and Robb Henshaw, CMO of Cameyo and one of the influencers behind the virtual application delivery category.

You’ll walk away from this episode with an understanding of how to improve your brand positioning, customer relationships, and hiring process.

BONUS! Shawn explains why he spent five years rebuilding his company from scratch after its initial launch.

In our 12th episode, Gil talks about category creation with two leaders from the sales community and talent intelligence categories.  

Panelists for this episode include Sahil Mansuri, CEO of Bravado and one of the influencers behind the sales community category, and Kamal Ahluwalia, CEO of Eightfold and one of the pioneers in the talent intelligence category.  

You’ll walk away from this episode with an understanding of the stages of category creation, the importance of positioning, and why most startups fail. 

BONUS! Sahil recounts how a common problem he faced during his sales career led to creating a new category.

In our eleventh episode of category creators, Gil talks about category creation with two leaders who played a key role in the next-gen internet network performance management and cybersecurity intelligence categories.   

Panelists for this episode include Kyle York, CEO of York IE and pioneer of the next-gen internet network performance management category, and Tom Wentworth, CMO of Recorded Future and innovator in the cybersecurity intelligence category.   

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of why technical founders struggle with market models, the importance of creating multi-year plans, and the compounding effect of branding.   

BONUS! Tom shares a story about how trying to be cool at South by Southwest led to one of the most obnoxious press releases that's ever been written. 

In our tenth episode, Gil talks about category creation with two people that are making waves in the desktop cloud computing and business gift giving categories. 

Panelists for this episode include Kris Rudeegraap, CEO of Sendoso and one of the pioneers in creating the corporate gifting / direct mail automation categories, and Amitabh Sinha, CEO of Workspot, and one of the pioneers in the remote desktop category.

You’ll walk away from this episode with an understanding of: The benefits of focusing on category creation from day one; How to pitch a new category to investors by using an anchor or proxy; The different metrics for measuring the success of a newly created category. 

BONUS! Kris tells us why he decided to travel to 30 different countries while founding Sendoso.

In our ninth episode, Gil Allouche talks startup building and category creation with two experienced B2B operators who made huge impacts on the cloud communication and product/feature management categories.

Panelists for this episode include Dan O'Connell, CRO of Dialpad and influencer of the Conversational Intelligence category, and Keith Messick, SVP of Marketing at LaunchDarkly and influential in the Feature Management Platform category.  

You'll walk away from this episode with great insights around: Why it's a bigger risk to not swing for the fences than it is to even work at a startup, which is risky to begin with; When, why, and how to ignore advice from your VC, and how even the most mundane estimates in a forecasting model can throw you completely off.

BONUS! Dan recounts one of his biggest missed opportunities when it came to owning a movement before everyone started working from home: #workfromanywhere.

In our eighth episode, Gil Allouche talks category creation with two B2B pioneers who changed the game when it comes to the Customer Data Platform (CDP) category, and product-led growth approach.Panelists for this episode include James McDermott, CEO of Lytics and creator of the CDP category, and Mickey Alon, CTO of Gainsight PX and influential in the Product-Led Growth movement.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of the the pros and cons of category disruption vs category creation, why most companies don’t survive to the ten-year mark, and how to avoid common early mistakes when finding an investor.

BONUS! James tells Gil about a time during fundraising when his rental car got towed and he had to run clear across downtown SF to make his next pitch! It was the worst impression he had ever made on a potential investor, but he was still able to convince them to believe enough to invest!

In our seventh episode, Gil Allouche talks category creation with two B2B pioneers who changed the game when it comes to product management and conversation intelligence categories.

Panelists for this episode include Dee Anna McPherson, CMO of Invoca and influencer of the Enterprise Social Networking category, and Joe Chernov, CMO of Pendo and influential in growing several MarTech categories.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of the importance of community-led growth in creating a category, two hacks you can use to move into the upper right of the MQ, and how to handle critical failures.

BONUS! Dee Anna recalls how, very early in her career, she learned that small mistakes can have huge consequences, and Joe tells Gil about one of his most brutal speaking engagements. 

In our sixth episode, Gil Allouche talks category creation with three B2B pioneers who changed the game when it comes to customer success, inbound marketing, and journey orchestration.

Panelists for this episode include Michel Feaster, CEO of Usermind and instrumental in creating the Journey Orchestration category, Nick Mehta, CEO of Gainsight and the primary creator behind the customer success management software category, and Mike Volpe, CEO of Lola.com and CMO of Hubspot from 2007 to 2015, who was responsible for bringing the term "inbound marketing" into the mainstream.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of what to do when the market finally starts converging to validate your product, why sincerity and vulnerability are some of your most powerful tools as an evangelist, and how Gainsight's early investment in CS leaders shaped how tech companies approach customer relationships today.

BONUS! Mike Volpe recalls why the county fair might not have been the best location for a first date, and Michel recounts how she inadvertently made a unique impression on the CEO within her first three weeks working at Mercury Interactive.

In our fifth episode, Jason Widup, Metadata's VP of Marketing and today's guest host, talks category creation with one of the marketers responsible for seeing Tableau through the company's most dramatic period of growth, and another who led Gong to category dominance.

Panelists for this episode include Elissa Fink, former CMO of Tableau and CMO advisor, and instrumental in creating the Business Analytics category, and Udi Ledergor, CMO of Gong and instrumental in creating the Revenue Intelligence category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of how Gong leveraged its own pain to make the lives of marketers everywhere a whole lot less painful; the surprising reality of what it means for your revenue when competitors pop up in your space; and why sometimes being ranked last in your current category isn't a bad thing.

BONUS! The first big category creation success wasn't a story of a startup--it was De Beers diamonds back in the 1950s. Find out how, 70 years later, marketers can still learn from their wildly successful "unbranded" category promotion.

In our fourth episode, Gil talks category creation with one of the marketers responsible for Drift's category domination, and another who led Zoominfo through a successful IPO. 

Panelists for this episode include David Cancel, CEO of Drift and instrumental in creating the Conversational Marketing category, and Henry Schuck, founder and CEO of Zoominfo and instrumental in creating the Sales Intelligence category.

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of how a focus on operational excellence, rather than skill, lead Zoominfo to dominate the Sales Intelligence category; the "dating dynamics" of finding a supportive investor; and why marketers embrace people calling their product "stupid".

BONUS! Find out how Gil kicked off his entrepreneurship journey as a kid illegally selling fireworks to his classmates. 

Panelists for this episode include:

• Dave Gerhardt, CMO of Privy and Instrumental in creating the Conversational Marketing category
• Guillaume Cabane, Growth Advisor to startups and instrumental in creating the CDP Category

You'll walk away from this episode with an understanding of:

• How the combination of a strong focus on brand and creativity, plus deep technical and data expertise was the golden marketing combination during Drift's rise
• The importance of building an audience for your product before you ever try to sell anything
• Why marketing based off of a feature chart is a losing proposition

BONUS! Find out why Guillaume has spent over 18 months sleeping in a tent and how Dave got through the worst stomach bug of his life the night before a huge New York Times feature article interview with his CEO!