Corinne Sklar
DEMAND GEN VISIONARIES
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EPISODE
4
Why Global Sales and Marketing Alignment is Key to IBM’s Success
Corinne talks about growth at IBM, how to create a culture where marketing leads, and her best tips for becoming a demand gen leader.
International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) is an American multinational technology company headquartered in Armonk, New York, with operations in over 170 countries. IBM produces and sells computer hardware, middleware and software, and provides hosting and consulting services in areas ranging from mainframe computers to nanotechnology. IBM is also a major research organization, holding the record for most U.S. patents generated by a business (as of 2020) for 27 consecutive years.
INDUSTRY
Tech
FOUNDED
1911
WEBSITE
www.ibm.com

Corinne Sklar is the Global Chief Marketing Officer for IBM iX, the business design agency and AdWeek’s largest digital marketing agency, with over 10,000 business designers across 60 global studios. IBM iX is a division of IBM Services, the world's largest services business. Corinne also served as the World Wide Marketing Leader of Customer Experience for IBM.

Episode Summary

Corinne Sklar, CMO of IBM, shares with host Ian Faison how demand gen influences their marketing strategies, and vice versa. She dives into the partnership her team shares with sales to ensure seamless execution of their acquisition strategy. On this episode of Demand Gen Visionaries, Corinne talks about growth at IBM and how companies, big and small, can implement consistent marketing strategies to generate a successful sales experience.

Key Takeaways

  • When brand marketing and demand gen work closely together to bring awareness to prospects, revenue follows
  • Timeless content is the key to providing a seamless and reliable customer experience that continues to deliver value — even years down the road
  • Transparency and clear communication with teammates is the secret to a healthy, productive, and conflict-free work environment

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Quotes

"Content marketing has to stand out. It either has to be super provocative, or it has to be super detailed in regards to a problem we know needs to be solved."
"People are people. I have resolved conflicts more by just simply picking up the phone and calling someone than any other tactic that I've ever used."
“The company needs to be thought of as a marketing- and sales-driven organization, not just sales.”
“Look for digital clues around what products and services customers are interested in — what engagement they're having across your business to be able to tailor outreach to them. Marketing plays a huge role in providing those digital footprints right into the place that sellers work every day. And that should be their CRM or on their mobile device. I think that's a critical aspect of driving demand gen in a B2B world.”
“We’d look at the integrated needs of our sellers — whether it was about tools, whether it was about training, whether it was about compensation — and really develop programs together as a team. All of those things are so important for a marketing organization.”

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Episode Transcript