Ep. 37 – Marketing to audience intent instead of the funnel w/ Ashley Faus

Ep. 38 – The state of omnichannel in financial services w/ Robyn Eastlake

Noz Urbina and Robyn Eastlake discussed the current state of omnichannel in the financial services sector, emphasizing its crucial role in meeting users' needs and staying connected with businesses. They highlighted the importance of content efforts being connected and omnichannel, and offered tips on how to implement successful omnichannel strategies. They discussed the challenges of creating a successful content strategy in the financial services industry, including balancing short-term goals with long-term thinking and leveraging AI in content design and automated experience design. They also explored the potential of AI in content production while maintaining the value of human creativity, and emphasized the need for a hybrid approach that leverages the strengths of both AI and human creativity.

"The challenge is always how do you remind everybody in the day to day that [long-term relationship building] is the goal. You have your setup where you have your manufacturing side of the business deciding lending policy and then you have your distribution, still pretty much set up by channel. They're not usually pretty well connected... Making sure that users feel valued, they feel safe, they're protected, and that the things that are being served to them are appropriate to them is hugely valuable for businesses." – Robyn Eastlake Listen now What you'll learn

• Omnichannel Mastery: Insights on navigating omnichannel strategy in financial services.
• Content Meets AI: How AI is shaping content strategies and what pitfalls to avoid.
• User-Centric Design: The importance of aligning content with user needs and expectations.
• Navigating Challenges: Key strategies for overcoming common obstacles in financial services.
• Future Trends: Predictions on the evolution of content and digital experiences.

Ep. 37 – Marketing to audience intent instead of the funnel w/ Ashley Faus

Our guest today isAshley Faus, whose work has been featured in TIME, Forbes, and The Journal of Brand Strategy. She currently works at Atlassian as a Head of Lifecycle Marketing.

In this episode, Ashley andNoz Urbinaunpack the power of content intent in boosting demand, dissecting learn vs. use intent, funnel phases in intent-focused strategies, and AI’s role in content creation. They offer expert insights and tips on streamlining content roles for team synergy, ensuring message harmony, and aligning marketing with audience needs.

“I actually think the funnel is a retrospective measurement tool, not a forward-looking strategy tool. Nobody wakes up in the morning and says, ‘Today I shall be in the awareness phase.’ People don’t behave that way. So, I like to frame up the audience journey in terms of a playground, where people can go up, down, sideways; they can chart their own journey.”– Ashley Faus By the end of the episode, you’ll learn:

• The Importance of Content Intent:Understand the difference between learn intent and use intent, and how this knowledge can dramatically improve demand generation and pipeline generation.
• Redefining the Funnel:Learn how the traditional top-of-funnel, middle-of-funnel, and bottom-of-funnel model is evolving to accommodate content by intent, and why a mindset shift is necessary for effective marketing.
• AI in Content Creation:Discover the spectrum of content creation from 100% human to 100% AI, and learn how to match the intent with the appropriate approach for creating meaningful content.
• Audience Intent Mapping:Gain insights into mapping the customer journey to a “playground” model where consumers can chart their own path, moving beyond the linear funnel model to understand consumer behavior more accurately.
• Content Planning and Strategy:Find out how breaking down content into actionable steps and clear CTAs can guide users more effectively towards their goals.
• Effective Marketing through Understanding:Learn the importance of tailoring marketing messages to individual preferences and interests, and how understanding the job or message behind each piece of content can lead to more successful engagement.
• Collaboration and Strategy in Content Marketing:Discover the critical role of collaboration across teams to create consistent messaging, the importance of a multichannel approach, and how to scale content marketing strategies effectively.

Ep. 36 – Think again: Untapping AI opportunities w/ Noz Urbina

In today's episode of the Omnichannel Podcast, we're joined by AI expert Noz Urbina, alongside our host Larry Swanson, to go deeper into the transformative power of artificial intelligence across business, creativity, and more.

This discussion will uncover how AI is revolutionizing our methods of problem-solving, content creation, and decision-making.

Join us as Noz shares his journey through the evolution of AI, highlighting its potential to enhance human creativity and challenge our understanding of technology's role in society. Tune in to explore the complexities, opportunities, and future directions of AI in our rapidly evolving digital landscape.

"AI enables us all to be programmers without being coders. It's about understanding the problem, its context, its constraints, and the intended results, and being able to express that logically and clearly, understanding both your own bias and the AI's bias. That's what lets us win the future." - Noz Urbina

Ep. 35 – Fixing the fundamentals of the web: Sharing 55 years of omnichannel experience w/ Steven Pemberton

Our guest today is Steven Pemberton, a renowned researcher in the field of computer science and information technology.

Pemberton is best known for his contributions to the development of the World Wide Web, particularly in the areas of markup languages and web standards.

In this podcast episode, Steven and Noz discuss the future of web development and content strategy. This discussion untangles the complexities of web technologies, emphasising the pivotal role of structured content and the innovative approaches shaping digital experiences.

"My fundamental point of view is that if it works, you should do it... My problems with AI is that firstly, there's no I in there yet, that it's machine learning but it's not artificial intelligence. So that you can't trust it." - Steven Pemberton

Ep. 34 – Focus, leverage, and build habits with ex-Spotify leadership coach w/ Cliff Hazell

Omnichannel is the unification of engagement and communication strategies so that they complement each other – rather than run in parallel – to give the audience what they really need. That means orchestrating experiences across multiple touchpoints and aligning content, design, governance, and systems around people's journeys.

Our guest today is Cliff Hazell. He's a founder, manager, and coach.

Over the last two decades, Cliff has built a career dedicated to dismantling the barriers that impede exceptional work.

He seeks to cultivate the appropriate culture and systems necessary for the development of outstanding companies and product and says he’s trying to show brands the benefit of integrating everything you do, not just fixing one part. Omnichannel for the win, baby!

He’s now based in Sweden, where he spent four years leading a team of coaches at Spotify during a period of significant growth, as the company expanded its workforce from 700 to 5000 employees before moving on to coaching private clients, particularly those experiencing rapid scaling.

His guidance is focused on helping them develop focus, leverage, and sustainable habits. We’re going to talk about what that exactly means and how you can do it during this episode.

"If you automate stuff that is the wrong idea. You now have the bad things automated." - Cliff Hazell