Philip Sanford

Recognizing who your customers are and understanding their affinities, needs, and motivations are critical in marketing. Identity resolution is key to achieving this objective. Read this blog to learn how a Customer Data Platform (CDP) resolves customer identities and creates Golden Customer Records, which help make omnichannel personalization possible: https://bit.ly/42Z2rqr #marketing #customerdataplatform #personalization

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Exciting news to share. Spotlight, A Marketing Company has merged with Mason, an incredible digital marketing firm out of Brooklyn/Charlotte. I decided late last year that we needed to grow & scale our operations to deliver the best outcomes for our clients and team. My initial thought was to go it alone. But then I met Andy Day and he managed to get 45 interested buyers in front of me in 7 days. Our profitability & incredibly high client retention attracted a lot of people to the table. A lot of people I really respected in the agency space. After a gruelling process, I selected Mason because they loved Spotlight for who we were, and don't want to change what makes us special. They didn't just want our clients, they wanted our incredible team, our IP and our unique value proposition. We're still Spotlight, but we're now powered by Mason. We have what you always loved about us, but we also now have data scientists, creative directors, programmatic specialists, SEO specialists and access to venture networks. Wild, right? Underneath their banner, we have access to resources & capability we could have never dreamed of. Our team flew out to meet the Mason team last week to dream of what comes next, and suffice to say, we are super excited about our roadmap ahead. The cultural fit is like magic, honestly. So what's next for me? I'm not going anywhere. I'll be the General Manager of Spotlight, where I'll be narrowing my focus in to the two things I love doing most — sales & marketing strategy. I'll continue coming to my clients' weekly calls, advising on strategy and helping prospects understand how to do digital marketing profitably. This is a personal mission for me, and always will be. (However I look forward to not caring about invoices, financials, HR & operations any more!) Onwards & upwards, and I'll have more to share in the coming weeks as we integrate closer and closer. Few thank you's. It's my first entrepreneurial "exit" and a life-altering one at that, so I would love to thank the following folk: Maxwell Hertan & Asher Rose — best friends, co-founders, irreplaceable humans. Lauren Oakes for her incredible mentorship through my journey Meghan Caiazzo for her coaching, without which I would never be here Brook Llewellyn Shepard Gregory Byrnes & Craig Handleman for being incredible business partners and showing incredibly good faith during the process Andy Day and David Tsutsumi for running a smooth M&A process Pamela Lambert incredible lawyer who had my back the whole time Finally I'd like to thank my clients past, present & future. We are nothing without you, and I appreciate y'all taking this leap of faith with our team. I'm sure I've missed a lot of people here. If you're reading this and know me personally (a lot of you), know that you have had a lot to do with my journey here. LFG!

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Master customer insights with ProFund’s detailed buyer personas. Understand your clients’ needs and preferences, tailor your sales approach, and watch your conversion rates soar. Gain the edge you need to close more deals at https://hubs.ly/Q02HHhnM0.

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Personal-ish rant (errr, story?) but curious if anyone in my professional network + experiences in tech has thoughts. I bought tickets on SeatGeek for Olivia Rodrigo in Philadelphia last night with my niece, Orla. Orla is a huge fan…we regularly blast her songs and sing a long in the car…. and 7/19 happens to be her birthday. It was beshert. We got down to the stadium area ~7:15. We weren’t pressed to see the opener + both needed dinner. we grabbed food at xfinity and were over to Wells Fargo at 8:10 (Olivia on at 8:30). Pulled up the tickets that had been “transferred” on my phone and when they were scanned, door person told me they were reading as already scanned. I needed to go to the box office to resolve. TL;DR, spent next 45 min on phone w/ SeatGeek w/ a teary anxious 6 yr old beside me that did not end with us in seats at the concert. For ~40 of those 45 minutes there were 2 seats available…on SeatGeek no less!…in the section next to where I paid ~$650 a ticket, but we could not have those because they were listed at a value that exceeded 200% of what I paid. Even though the tickets were “there”, I guess SeatGeek felt the chance someone was going to pay $5k (per ticket!) for upper level seats 15 min after the concert had started was worth holding out for vs. resolving a horrendous situation they created that left a 6 yr old in tears on her birthday. At the end of the day, I don’t know if this was a professional/bot led scam or an everyday selfish person that figured out a way to game the platform and get paid for their tickets/but got there ahead and still used them, but as someone with experience in tech I feel like this is all…preventable? in the year 2024. I hold Ticketmaster just as responsible as SeatGeek, FWIW, but realize P&Ls are what the leadership at these companies value most so, although basic infrastructure could be built between their platforms to prevent teary 6 yr old customers stranded outside concerts, they will never pursue it until there is some kind of legislative enforcement or real financial consequences for allowing scammers to thrive more than actual fans of artists whose tickets they sell. I have been told I will be getting a full cash refund + already received a credit to SeatGeek via email as “additional compensation”. Looking into seeing another show and while the credit would in theory help cover the higher than ever ticket prices, all of Olivia’s upcoming tour dates we can make require air travel. Gee thanks, SeatGeek let’s try again post shelling out for flight/hotel? No thanks, unless you are really going to put your money where your mouth is and GUARANTEE future tickets purchased on your platform will get us into the show we travel to. Not seeking opinions re: what I paid for tickets or taking a 6 yr old to a big concert/Olivia Rodrigo. What’s the solution here? Could an investment by Ticketmaster SeatGeek in tech to prevent fraud btwn platforms mitigate effectively or do we need legislation?

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Discover how AI is revolutionizing strategic planning and supercharging marketing effectiveness. Learn how forward-thinking leaders are leveraging AI to gain better strategic alignment, deeper, real-time customer insights, and optimize resource allocation. Our latest article explores how AI transforms strategic planning from an annual exercise into a dynamic, responsive process that drives marketing success, thereby becoming the secret weapon for business growth in today's fast-paced environment. #AI #StrategicPlanning #technology #AIstrategy https://lnkd.in/gPJcHQuc

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Cuebiq's journey to provide actionable insights and analysis is taking a huge step thanks to our awesome new partnership with Attain! Reach out to sales@cuebiq.com to talk about how we can help you optimize your media campaigns to drive store visits and sales!

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AI isn't coming for SE jobs. It's coming for SE's that don't use it as a tool to improve their craft. The jobs will be there, it's just a measure of who will be using it to their advantage and who will be left behind. #presales #solutions #Presalescollective

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🤯 This stat from David Rumsey: 𝗦𝗰𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗲 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗹𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗲 𝗡𝗙𝗟 𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸, 𝗡𝗕𝗔 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝘆𝗯𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗯𝗮𝗹𝗹’𝘀 $𝟳𝟬 𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗻, 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝗵𝗲𝗶 𝗢𝗵𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗶. Read David's full breakdown of the variables that could vault Scheffler’s season-long earnings to $70 million or more: https://lnkd.in/gkBkXhPf

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To all CMOs in transition: You did not wake up and become bad at marketing. It's just a tough market. The transition process can feel demoralizing and, at times, degrading. I was quite surprised to hear that some PE firms are asking CMO candidates to take The Wunderlic Test, a cognitive ability assessment that dates back to 1939. 50 multiple choice questions. 12 minutes. Recognizing this, we’ve revamped the CMO Huddles Transition Team in a significant way, to include: 🐧 2 Transition Team Huddles per month (with a refined agenda) 🐧 A 6-step process 🐧 More resources (i.e. SEO audit, personal brand audit) 🐧 More access to the CMO Huddles community 🐧 More intros and referrals 🐧 More emotional support Our goal is to give you an ongoing support group we’ll call “Huddle Buddies.” With more frequent Huddles, you’ll build closer bonds. You’ll have “buddies” to review resumes, cover letters, and presentations. You can work together on interview techniques and have access to subject matter experts. Importantly, you will never feel alone in your search. And maybe we can make it a little bit of fun while we’re at it (see penguin hat). We have a free 1-month trial if you want to try it out. You can sign up / learn more via cmohuddles.com. 

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Not sure where or how to start your Ai journey with your marketing team? Follow these steps from Carrie Mahon Unanet CMO. (it's not as scary or a daunting as you might think)

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📚 Learn how to transform complex concepts into relatable stories that drive action. Whether you're in marketing, sales, or leadership, these storytelling tips are a game-changer. Check it out now and level up your content strategy! 🚀

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Master customer insights with ProFund’s detailed buyer personas. Understand your clients’ needs and preferences, tailor your sales approach, and watch your conversion rates soar. Gain the edge you need to close more deals at https://hubs.ly/Q02HHmD_0.

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Are you wasting resources on unengaged software buyers? With intent data-driven marketing programs, you can focus on in-market accounts that are ready to buy and streamline targeting efforts throughout the funnel. 👉 Access this interactive infographic to discover 4 key steps to lay the foundation of your ABM strategy and scale over time: https://gtnr.it/43dm5QV #B2Bmarketing #ABM #IntentData

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