Marketing Ops Tips No One Tells You, The Right Years of Experience, And The Importance of Trust

In this edition:

1. Marketing Ops Tips No One Tells You

2. Ideal Years of Experience for MOPs Managers

3. What to Do About Analysis Paralysis

4. Lessons Learned From My First Job

5. The Real Speed of Trust

6. For Paid Subscribers: Darrell Answers Tough Career Questions

New Podcast: Jeff and I talk with Mike Rizzo of MarketingOps.com on OKRs and how to deal with tough teams - check it out here.

Friends of the Newsletter: The Humans of Martech podcast is one of my favorites. Check them out on Spotify or Apple podcasts.

Plan Ahead! The world’s best in-person marketing ops conference is back - get your early bird tickets here.

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Marketing Ops Tips No One Tells You

1. One of the best ways to convince someone is - “We did a small test and it worked”.

2. Speed up and scale up when you know your marketing is working. Slow down and make changes when you know it is not working.

3. Use this framework for planning: Where are we today? (current state) Where do we want to be tomorrow? (goals) How will we get there? (strategies and roadmap) How will we know we got there? (measurement)

4. Get clear on your strategy and outcomes first. Then, figure out which tools and platforms you need to get there.

5. The important question isn’t “what CAN be done?” The important question is “what SHOULD be done?”

6. You should try to measure everything, even if it’s hard. The “practice” of trying to measure and manage will help you become more intentional and strategic.

7. While you should always advocate for marketing ops internally, there are times when it’s better to let go and move on, even if that means moving to a different company.

8. You need to update everyone on a regular basis. Schedule QBRs for marketing ops and create a biweekly newsletter.

9. Documentation is the gift that keeps on giving. It will force you to think clearly, help you remember, and serve as training material for others.

10. Network early and often. Unfortunately, most of the best advice isn’t documented but exists in the minds of really busy experts. Make friends now.

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Poll of the Day

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Analysis Paralysis

One of the biggest problems in marketing and ops?

Analysis paralysis.

We get consumed trying to develop the perfect solution, trying to get 100% consensus, trying to anticipate every possible problem that we stay frozen in place.

The reality is - there is no perfect option.

You’ll learn more and progress more by making a good decision (based on the data) and then learning quickly from the result.

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Lessons Learned from My First Job

One of my first jobs? Catering Server.

I set up parties and served the food. And I don’t regret it.

Looking back, I learned key lessons that would serve me well through my sales and marketing career:

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸
You got called back to more gigs if you were reliable and hard-working. Kind words are nice, but…real validation is when customers ask for you back. Don’t get distracted by the minutia; remember that customers vote with their wallets.

𝗡𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝘂𝗽 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗿
I was once scolded for keeping bread rolls in a box under the table. Guests never want to see food being stored on the floor, even if it is in a sanitary container. It’s all about customer experience. Customers don’t care about your internal process problems or your sales and marketing drama. Get your work in order and serve the customer.

𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁
Regardless of how we felt about each other, if I called out, “We’re running out of vegetables!” I knew a teammate would come running with an extra serving. When team members know the goal and play their part, they earn trust.

𝗣𝗿𝗲𝗽-𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗵𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗹𝗲 = 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀
Prepping for a catering event is a non-stop sprint. But the stress is worth it – an excellent setup means a smooth sailing event once guests arrive. Spend time planning out projects and securing the resources and buy-in that you need. Prior preparation prevents poor performance.

𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝘀, 𝘀𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿
There’s always that rude customer that insults your service. But that doesn’t mean the next one in line feels the same. Don’t let haters ruin your relationship with the rest of your fans. Be kind to the next customer you see…and that includes internal customers.

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The Real Speed of Trust

When I started working at my current job, I was nervous about my first meeting with my boss.

Before I could say anything, she said, “I want you to know - you already have my trust.”

She said, “You went through a tough interview process, and we selected you. I don’t need you to show me 50-page slide decks to prove yourself.”

“You are here to lead and solve problems. When we meet, I want to know how I can help you do that.”

I took that to heart and never looked back.

I was amazed to see how quickly teams could drive results when they operated with the SPEED OF TRUST.

I also saw firsthand how much work slowed down when trust was lacking and how much extra, unnecessary work was created because people doubted each other’s motives.

So whenever I get the opportunity, I tell my people, “I trust you to make the right decision. I’m going to share my perspective because I think it will make you successful, but know that you have my support in how you think we can best achieve our mission.”

Many people try to drive efficiencies by saving time or automating processes (which is great) - but they often forget that demonstrating and keeping trust is probably the biggest productivity hack of all.