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October 11, 2023

Andrea Tarrell Talks Marketing and AI Trends at the Qualified Pipeline Summit

Ambre Juryea-Amole

Sercante and Qualified both went big at Dreamforce 2023. And then they made it even more interesting by teaming up. Qualified joined Sercante at the Home for Marketers at Dreamforce, and Sercante joined Qualified for the Pipeline Summit at Dreamforce.

The result was a whole lot of sales + marketer happy vibes along with a live recording of Sercante Founder & CEO Andrea Tarell on the Qualified Pipeline Visionaries podcast.

Here’s a quick preview of the podcast recording along with all the info you need to listen for yourself. Or you can click here to watch the full podcast or listen using your favorite streaming service.

Tasty morsels Andrea Tarrell shared with Qualified at Dreamforce 2023

Andrea Tarrell met with Ian Faison at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art at the Qualified B2B Marketer’s Lounge on September 13, 2023. Here are the big things the pair talked about during the podcast session.

Key trend in automation: Conquering personalization and finding the right use cases for AI

When asked the question “What do you feel is next for marketing automation? What are the trends you see coming?” Andrea said:

“I still think personalization is a frontier that we haven’t quite conquered yet. You see some of the use cases on stage at Dreamforce about some of the ways big brands are using personalization, and I look at much of the market who’s still struggling to even do first name, company name, much less more sophisticated use cases than that.

But I think things like serving up the next best piece of content, the next big action for somebody to take, related products, I think there’s a lot of potential there that continues to be untapped. And I think this is also kinda going back to the AI piece that we were talking about. This is gonna be a big separation of humans in the robots.

I’ve been on the receiving end of a few emails lately that were very clearly written by AI. Yep. And it’s like they just scraped random facts off the internet to stuff a new email. It’s like, okay, that’s not personalization. Like, I know what press release you grabbed that from, and like that third fact is completely unrelated to my business.

So, that’s where I think the human element will still be preserved. Maybe we can get AI to make the first draft for us, but we still need people to make the magic happen.”

Maybe we can get AI to make the first draft for us, but we still need people to make the magic happen.

What are the main reasons people reach out to Sercante for guidance?

Ian asked the question “What is the burning desire customers come to Sercante with?”

Andrea listed these three things that are usually top of mind for customers when they contact us. Here they are:

Marketing ROI
“Being able to report on what they’re doing that’s actually contributing to revenue.”
Helping sales teams prioritize
“Marketing’s working really hard to generate leads, but how does sales know who’s qualified, and who should they call first?”

What’s next? AI, automation, industry trends, using generative AI for things like lead routing, segmentation, and content.
“What is the non-value part that we can start having the machine do for us so that humans have the role of finessing, spending time on the highest potential items, and really doing what they’d be best at?”

How a marketing-focused Salesforce consulting firm approaches its own marketing strategy

When Ian asked the question “How do you think about your marketing strategy and how you acquire customers?” Andrea listed three marketing strategy areas. They are:

Email marketing
Event marketing
Content marketing

She said, “We’ve created a huge culture around information sharing. One of our core values is generosity. It’s the idea that, if you’re getting something or achieving something, how do you share that with other people and bring other people along for the journey?”

How do you think about speed as a currency?

Andrea said, “Speed is huge. We know that as individual customers are bopping around online, looking for something, attention spans are so short. Like, what if you don’t find what you’re looking for? You don’t get the answer you need? You’re on to the next thing.

So, trying to help people find what they’re looking for is challenge number one. And then challenge number two is if they don’t get the answer, making sure that they get pushed to a human as quickly as possible.”

What is the Qualified Pipeline Summit Podcast?

Every quarter, Qualified brings together the best and brightest in B2B sales, marketing, and operations to share the tactics and strategies helping them drive growth in their business.

Learn more and watch all the episodes here.

Cheekiest social ads ever and we’re here for it

We’re in love with these social graphics the Qualified team posted to promote the Pipeline Summit at Dreamforce. Sharing here cuz they’re friggin amazing.

Watch the Pipeline Visionaries Podcast – The AI Conversation: What Marketers Should Be Thinking About

Lucky for you, these were just a few highlights from the podcast episode. You can watch the full video here and get all the juicy details Andrea and Ian shared during their conversation.

And remember to reach out to Sercante when you’re ready to take your sales and marketing efforts further.

Career Development, Community, Community Spotlight, To export
September 28, 2023

Winner Spotlight: Sercante Dreamforce 2023 Ticket Giveaway

Ambre Juryea-Amole

Going to Dreamforce can completely change the course of someone’s career. Whether it’s while soaking in the session content and learning how to take on bigger responsibilities at work. Or through the parties where they meet new people and then stay in touch on Slack and LinkedIn. Or by leading sessions and getting a confidence boost that makes them reach for bigger goals.

That was the whole idea behind the 2023 Dreamforce ticket giveaway contest. We wanted to give that opportunity to one lucky person. And that’s exactly what we did.

After receiving an overwhelming response from the Salesforce community that included entries from people living in 19 countries, we were pleased to announce the winner of the contest.

Our 2023 Dreamforce ticket giveaway contest winner was Amanda Martini, digital marketing manager at ISSA.

Amanda got the full works for Dreamforce. She traveled from her home state of New York to San Francisco for the conference. Sercante covered the cost of her airfare as well as her hotel stay and coveted Dreamforce conference pass. She was also the official queen of The Home for Marketers at Dreamforce, which is where the Sercante team hosted events all week.

Trip Reflection from Dreamforce Ticket Giveaway Winner, Amanda Martini

We asked Amanda to tell us about her trip in her own words. Here’s what she had to say about the whole thing.

Dreamforce Ticket Giveaway Winner Amanda Martini with Sercante Founder & CEO Andrea Tarrell

“Winning the Dreamforce ticket giveaway was an absolute honor. Working for a smaller organization, it can be difficult to budget for larger conferences, as pricing can often be an issue. Winning the ticket, and therefore being able to experience Dreamforce in person, has given me so much.

Our organization is what I would call ‘Salesforce lite’ for the moment, but being surrounded by so many people who live and breathe the ecosystem really rejuvenated me; not only for my role but for where our organization can go when we are fully on the system.”

Amanda’s Dreamforce Takeaways

“One of my big takeaways, that I am sharing with everyone in our organization, is simply to jump right into the ecosystem and immerse yourself.

There are so many resources and so many like minded people who are more than willing to share their knowledge, to troubleshoot, to just chat about anything Salesforce related. Becoming a part of that community, while not a requirement for using a piece of technology, does seem like it benefits the user and the company a great deal.

I think seeing that firsthand was one of the more surprising things that I experienced. When you’re on the periphery, you SEE the interaction and you know the big names, but being surrounded by it was really something else. It makes you want to get more involved.”

Finding your people is a great feeling

“For a while now, I’ve felt like I am on an island as I am the person most involved in the Salesforce ecosystem due to my daily use of Pardot, with the rest of the organization still to get onto our Salesforce instance.

Attending Dreamforce allowed me to see that you’re only as alone as you allow yourself to be. The community is vast, and really quite welcoming. Even just one week removed from the event, I have RSVP’d for two Trailblazer community group sessions to keep my learning and understanding going. They’re virtual, but that doesn’t matter! It’s just as valuable to listen to other folks ask their questions (until you’re ready to ask your own!).”

Attending Dreamforce allowed me to see that you’re only as alone as you allow yourself to be.

All questions are good questions

“I also got a really good piece of advice: I tend to be a self-deprecating person, always prefacing a question by acknowledging it might be stupid. But I was told to stop that!

As the admin/leader for my system in my organization, I have to be confident with what I present. If I don’t seem to trust myself, my stakeholders are not necessarily going to trust or listen to what I am suggesting. And in the end, I’m the one that really knows what’s best for my system. I need to own my place in this space and project confidence (even if there’s still that little voice inside that says you’re gonna sound stupid). Fake it ‘til you make it really does work most of the time.”

Go see Salesforce releases in action

“Honestly, all of the sessions I managed to attend were so informative. And while I pay attention to release notes and the releases, I felt like having that information right at my fingertips, so to speak, really hit home the ways Salesforce is heading into the future and the ways in which my organization can utilize that future.

Seeing demos of the new releases at work was so helpful and it got me immediately thinking about ways that our marketing managers (MMs) will be able to have their hands in the systems more, and how to help us work smarter.

As a department that “reports to” many stakeholders as well as our members, it’s important that our MMs have the tools to help them work more efficiently. Being able to check in with technologies that we don’t use but I’ve wondered about was an incredible opportunity as well. From the conversations I had at Dreamforce, I now have a better understanding of how to help our organization increase efficiency.

I learned I have a lot of work to do going into 2024 to get our Pardot instance cleaned up and ready for the new year and when we’re truly connected with our Salesforce org in production. But I am looking forward to that challenge because I’ve felt there was work to do, Dreamforce just reinforced what needs to be done. It’s all for the good of the organization.

Dreamforce also has had me looking at our marketing and tech stack and asking the hard questions: Are we using the correct technology? Are we using it correctly or to the best of its ability? Stay tuned!”

Final thoughts about the Dreamforce ticket giveaway

“As for the coolest thing that happened to me… there were so many, but I have to say that learning last minute about the first-ever Dreamforce Comedy Hour was a dream come true.

Seth Meyers is MY FAVORITE and to have the opportunity to see him perform in person… pretty much took the cake. Of course, the entire event was at the top of the list of the coolest things that has EVER happened to me, but Seth takes a close second place.”

Thank you so much to everyone who entered the Sercante 2023 Dreamforce Ticket Giveaway Contest and to Amanda for sharing her thoughts about the experience. Stay tuned next year to see what we have in store for Dreamforce 2024.

Community, Events, Industry News, To export
September 28, 2023

Recap: The Big Things Marketers Did at Dreamforce ‘23

Ambre Juryea-Amole

I’ve been to Dreamforce twice. Once as an attendee. Another time as a Campfire speaker. And both times as a marketer.

Going to Dreamforce as a marketer is probably a different experience than, say, attending as an IT professional. I got so excited at Dreamforce whenever I saw a session geared toward marketers. Or when I randomly met other marketing people.

That’s actually how I found out about Sercante. I was watching my colleague present a session and saw that the next person presenting had a marketing-focused session. So, I stuck around to watch the presentation. The next presenter happened to be Sercante Founder & CEO Andrea Tarrell, and the rest is history.

The Sercante Home for Marketers at Dreamforce

Being a marketer herself, Andrea knows what it’s like to be a marketer at Salesforce conferences. So, she created the Sercante Home for Marketers with that idea in mind. The goal was to build a space where marketers could go and find their people at Dreamforce while supplementing all the things they’re learning at Dreamforce with even more marketing insights and strategies. And it has been super successful.

Now in its second year, The Home for Marketers welcomed more than 2,700 people across 16 events in 2023. Visitors represented a range of marketing hats, which included marketing managers, CMOs, marketing operations professionals, content marketers, and marketing consultants, among others.

Here’s a few things that went on there:

Event Marketers Panel | read about it
EDU Panel | read about it
Salesforce Career Show Podcast | listen
Welcome Bash Party | see photos
Dreamforce Party: An Intergalactic Night | see photos
Visit from our Dreamforce ticket giveaway winner | read about it

Dreamforce 2023 Session Highlights

It’s awesome that all the marketers at Dreamforce had a place to hang out in between sessions and find their people. After all of the marketers filled up on grub and made new friends, they went down to Moscone to catch a few sessions.

Here are a few that our friends were there to see:

The Future of Trusted AI with Marc Benioff and Sam Altman

Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff had a candid conversation with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman about the future of business and how AI is affecting it.

The biggest takeaway from the conversation was the idea that in the coming years, every new product will incorporate AI in some way. It may even become unthinkable to use technology that doesn’t use AI to complete tasks. The pair also talked about the process OpenAI went through to develop ChatGPT and the direction the company is taking to make sure it continues to be a revolutionary product moving forward.

Watch the replay here.

Marketing Keynote: Marketing in Generation AI

The Marketing Keynote at Dreamforce ’23, titled “Marketing in Generation AI,” unveiled innovations from the Marketing Cloud engineering teams. Salesforce Marketing Cloud GM Steve Hammond emphasized efficiency and the role of AI in scaling personalization. The session introduced prompt engineering and grounding, emphasizing that AI’s effectiveness depends on data quality.

Watch the replay here.

Winter ‘24 Marketing Cloud Release Highlights

This was a big one for all the marketers who attended Dreamforce 2023. That’s because it highlighted all the major enhancements coming to Marketing Cloud this winter.

Sercante Salesforce Product Director Heather Rinke had the honor of co-presenting the Marketing Cloud Release Highlights session with two members of the Salesforce product team: Ruth Bolster, product marketing manager, and Whitni Freeman, lead solution engineer.

Read the recap here.

Empowering Nonprofits in Times of Change with Data + AI + CRM + Trust

This session introduced Einstein, Salesforce’s proprietary AI, for Nonprofit Cloud, promising nonprofits the ability to leverage predictive and generative AI to enhance donor engagement and data management. It focused on how these tools can simplify the creation of annual reports, segment and standardize donor data, and craft compelling donation appeals.

Overall, the combination of Einstein for Nonprofit Cloud and Data Cloud is seen as a potential game-changer, offering nonprofits automation and insights to better communicate with donors and fulfill their core missions.

Read the recap here.

Biggest Dreamforce 2023 Takeaway: AI is the Future of Business

As we saw in the sessions highlighted in this blog post, AI truly is infiltrating all aspects of business. And Salesforce is investing deeply in the tools.

Have any other big takeaways from the conference? Tell us about them in the comments. And make sure to sign up for MarDreamin’ 2023, a marketing-focused Salesforce community conference held virtually in November, to keep the AI conversation going.

Career Development, Community, Events, To export
August 17, 2023

Find Sercante at These Dreamforce ‘23 Sessions and Events

Christina Anderson

We are less than a month away from the tech conference unlike any other where trailblazers will “experience the magic of AI + Data + CRM!” There will be 1500+ sessions to choose from for Dreamforce 2023 and 75+ AI thought leaders jam packed into 3 days.

Whether you are attending virtually or in person, it can be overwhelming to sort through all the options as you make your schedule. To help make it a little easier, we have highlighted a few sessions and events where you can find Sercante at Dreamforce to build the ultimate Dreamforce 2023 agenda!

Join us in person at any of the events listed in this blog post. Or sign up here for any of the Sercante-hosted Dreamforce events listed in this post. Also, keep watching this space when we announce details for our virtual Dreamforce networking party, which we’re hosting along with community friends during Dreamforce (Sept. 12-14).

Dreamforce ‘23 Sessions Featuring Sercante Experts

As you create your agenda this year, Salesforce MVP, Marketing Champion, and Golden Hoodie recipient, Ben LaMothe, encourages marketers to consider sessions that are outside of their typical concentration.

An example of that this year is all of the AI and Data Cloud sessions there will be. With all the features coming out, marketers should continue to explore new ways they can leverage them for their daily operations to make processes more efficient, solve challenges, and reach new heights.

With this in mind, here are the sessions to have on your radar to find Sercante at Dreamforce ‘23.

Leverage AI Across the Salesforce Platform

Bookmark
Tuesday, Sep 12 l 12:30 – 12:50 PM PDT

This session is relevant for all trailblazers across all levels and product focus. From core to marketing, the experts are going to share how AI can help make all users more impactful in their day-to-day roles.

Role: All trailblazers
Industry: All
Product: All
Session Type: Campfire
Room Location Details: Einstein Community Campfire

Speakers

Marcos Duran
Marketing Operations Manager, Sercante

Marketing Cloud Release Highlights

Bookmark
Tuesday, Sep 12 l 1:00 pm PDT
Thursday, Sep 14 l 9:00 am PDT

Salesforce announced Marketing GPT earlier this year at Connections. Now, you can attend this session to understand how the latest features can help you and your team save time with AI, understand your data, and leverage it in your customer journeys.

Role: Marketing, Sales
Product: Marketing Cloud
Session Type: Theater
Session Level: Intermediate
Room Location Details: Moscone West, Level 2

Speakers

Heather Rinke
Salesforce Product Director, Sercante

Whitni Freeman
Lead Solution Engineer, Salesforce

Ruth Bolster
Product Marketing Manager, Salesforce

How Marketers Can Create Their Own Tribe at Dreamforce (And Beyond!)

Tuesday, Sep 12 l 4:30 – 5:00 pm PDT

Role: Marketing
Room Location Details: Community Networking Area

This is a session for ALL marketers! Attendees will get to share insights with their fellow marketing trailblazers, exchange war stories, and build deeper connections within the community that will lead to success.

Speaker

Marcos Duran, Marketing Operations Manager, Sercante

5 Tips for Getting Started with Data Cloud

Bookmark

Wednesday, Sep 13 l 12:30 – 12:50 pm PDT
Thursday, Sep 14 l 12:00 – 12:20 pm PDT

Role: Marketing, Sales
Product: Marketing Cloud
Session Type: Theater
Session Level: Intermediate
Room Location Details: Data Cloud Theater (Moscone West, Level 2)

Are you wondering if Data Cloud is right for you or has your team discussed implementing Data Cloud and you are searching for the best path forward? Then this session is perfect for you. Experts will discuss five realistic tips and takeaways that you and your team can use for implementing Data Cloud successfully. Covering the use cases, data ingestion, modeling, harmonization, and more, this session will help you kickstart your Data Cloud journey and advance with some best practices.

Speakers

Adam Erstelle
VP of Technology, Sercante

Joyce Avila
Program Lead, Data Cloud, Sercante

Arvind Raman
Director, Partner Delivery Success (Data Cloud)

Dreamforce Agenda Building – Words of Wisdom from Marketing Champions

As you are building the ultimate Dreamforce 2023 agenda, a piece of advice to keep in mind as you plan your schedule is to not overload yourself. Marketing Champions on the Road to the Home for Marketers series shared:

“Don’t overdo your schedule. Give yourself time in between sessions to absorb all the information.” – Shonica Mitchell, Global Marketing Automation & Community Manager at BrightDrop

“Don’t pack your schedule with 30 things. Pick your top sessions and leave room for the magic to happen.” – Jaime López

“Plan for the transition time in between sessions. It could take you almost 20 minutes to get from one session to the next. Also plan backups just in case.” – Pato Sapir

Therefore, make sure you have your goals set, so you know what you want to accomplish at Dreamforce this year and then prioritize the sessions you want to attend based on your goals, but still leave room for transition periods and spontaneous connections.

Sercante Dreamforce ‘23 Events (Just outside of the conference)

On Ben LaMothe’s Road to the Home for Marketers Interview he shared that he wished he would have attended more off-site events at a previous Dreamforce conference. He exclaimed, “There is so much going on outside of Dreamforce proper.”

While the unforgettable tech conference is THE MAIN focus, the streets surrounding the Moscone Center will be filled with events, meetups, panels, roundtables, and festivities where trailblazers can enjoy more intimate spaces to network, form deeper connections, refuel, recharge, and advance their skills.

Here are just a few of the many events happening where you can find Sercante at Dreamforce ‘23:

Sercante Presents: The Home for Marketers

Where: Pink Elephant Alibi l 142 Minna Street, San Francisco, CA 94105
When: Sep 12 – 14
Register Here

In collaboration with Stensul, Print For Less, Gridmate, Appinium, Goldcast, and The Spot, Sercante hosts The Home for Marketers, where marketers meet at Dreamforce. Located just around the corner from the Moscone Center, it’s the spot to create deeper connections away from the crowd, network and meet someone new or see a familiar face and reunite with friends. The team is hosting electric events and meetups all week designed specifically for marketers and all trailblazers alike!

As Kelli Meador, Senior Manager Marketing Operations at Grammarly said in her Road to the Home for Marketers interview, “It was the in-person connections with the other marketers that really made it be The Home for Marketers. All marketers are welcome.”

The Home for Marketers also has you covered with learning opportunities and solutioning sessions. You can sign up for a time slot at the Genius Bar and receive recommendations and best practices from Sercante experts. Located in the Learning Lodge, attendees can also discover the latest in marketing technology solutions to advance their operations and achieve their goals.

In addition to the invaluable connections and great learning opportunities, the Home for Marketers will also have complimentary food and beverages to keep you fueled and a lounge where you can recharge and either rest or have some fun!

Marketer’s Welcome Bash

Where: Pink Elephant Alibi l 142 Minna Street, San Francisco, CA 94105
When: Monday Sep 11 | 6:00 – 9:00 pm PDT
Register Here

This is THE EVENT for marketers to kick off their Dreamforce experience. The ultimate Welcome Bash blowout, attendees will get to meet and be reunited with Salesforce MVPs, Marketing Champions, User Group Leaders, and hundreds of marketing trailblazers from around the world! Accompanied with your favorite beverages and delectable food stations, be sure to sign up and add this one to your calendar!

An Intergalactic Night

Where: 715 Harrison (formerly City Nights) 715 Harrison St, San Francisco, CA 94107
When: Tuesday Sep 12 | 7:00 pm – 12:00 am PDT
Register Here

The celestial soriée like no other, this cosmic celebration will take trailblazers on an exciting journey through the galaxy with stellar beats from a live band and spectacular DJ. Attendees will be dazzled by jaw dropping entertainment and sparkling decor as they indulge in out-of-this-world specialty cocktails and mouth-watering hors d’oeuvres.

Dreamfest Pump Up Party

Where: Pink Elephant Alibi l 142 Minna Street, San Francisco, CA 94105
When: Wednesday, Sep 13 l 4:30 – 6:30 pm PDT
Register Here

There is only one concert that will have trailblazers talking for decades… it’s Dreamfest! Join the ultimate pregame event and get hyped for all the excitement. Enjoy upbeat tunes from the DJ, make a toast with your favorite beverage, and fuel up with delicious snacks. Make one more cheers and meet up with your fellow marketing trailblazers before everyone heads in to experience the tech conference entertainment of the season!

Marketer’s Afterglow Party

Where: Pink Elephant Alibi l 142 Minna Street, San Francisco, CA 94105
When: Thursday, Sep 14 l 4:00 – 6:00 pm PDT
Register Here

It’s the Dreamforce wrap up networking event designed exclusively for marketers. Get to see your fellow marketing trailblazers one last time as we prepare to say farewell to all the meaningful connections that we made. Enjoy complimentary food and drinks and raise a glass to an incredible conference and the trailblazer community until we all gather again next year.

See You At Dreamforce ‘23

The Sercante team is counting the days until Dreamforce! We cannot wait to connect with our fellow trailblazers and this amazing marketing community.

We’ll have several members from our team there in person including Andrea Tarrell, Erin Duncan, Marcos Duran, Adam Erstelle, Joyce Avila, Adam Berry, Heather Rinke, and Jordyn Jaffer just to name a few.
You now know our sessions, about the Home for Marketers, and where we’ll be. Come find Sercante at Dreamforce ‘23!

Career Development, Community, Community Spotlight, To export
June 10, 2023

Introducing the 2023 Salesforce Marketing Champions: Dragon Edition

Kelly Ryan

Congratulations to the 2023 class of Salesforce Marketing Champions! We are honored that some of our own Sercante dragons were selected as part of this prestigious group this year.

Let’s get to know them.

The Program: Salesforce Marketing Champions

First! What even is a Salesforce Marketing Champion?

Salesforce knows a career as a marketer can be a hectic, fire-emergency-filled job. You are communicating across departments, across the globe, and in large amounts of acronyms.

We truly enjoy our work, but sometimes it can be thankless. Salesforce provides this program as a way to recognize champions in the Salesforce marketing space and help amplify the marketing voice, both in and outside the Trailblazer Community.

Champions are nominated through the community and have a wealth of knowledge in marketing and the Salesforce platform. Each champion is a #MomentMarketer, Googling their way to success, always learning and improving their skills through certifications, and truly demonstrating their strategic love through training sessions, speaking events, and content creation.

We want to send another big congratulations to the entire Salesforce Marketing Champion class of 2023! See the complete list here.

Don’t forget to check out the 2023 Salesforce MVPs, too — Congrats to The Salesforce MVP Class of 2023!

MVPs are similar to the marketing champions. According to the Salesforce MVP Code of Conduct, MVPs are “lifelong learners who go above and beyond to share their expertise and help the entire community succeed… [and] leaders in the Trailblazer Community who encourage each other, celebrate others’ successes, work collaboratively to make our community and the world a better place, and have a lot of fun along the way!”

The People: Meet The New Sercante Marketing Champions

Let’s meet the Sercante dragons who worked hard in their communities and made it into the Salesforce Marketing Champions class of 2023.

New Marketing Champion #1. Cara Weese

The Spot author page
LinkedIn
Location – Lincoln, NE

Thoughts about joining the program

“It is an honor to be named among such an esteemed group of professionals. I have been working in the Salesforce community for 10 years now, and I am excited to combine my passions for Salesforce and Marketing to help drive growth for organizations and fellow community members who are learning the Marketing Cloud platforms or looking to up their marketing game to the next level by providing advice, best practices, and through networking events.”

Fav tool!

“I don’t know that I can choose just one. I guess I would have to go with Salesforce Analytics and bucket all of the reports, dashboards, Intelligence, and B2BMA in one umbrella. I have a great passion for analytics!”

Something fun!

“I love books! Whenever I have downtime, whether that be traveling, sitting outside, or even working at my desk, I have to be listening to an audiobook. I also pick up books from time to time, but as a busy working mom, it’s often easier to listen. I love Fantasy, Mystery, YA Fiction, and Historical Fiction, but honestly, I could read just about anything.”

New Marketing Champion #2. Cate Godley

The Spot author page
LinkedIn
Location – Marietta, GA

Thoughts about joining the program

“I’m excited to join the Marketing Champions program and connect with other marketers in the Salesforce community. I’m passionate about education and can’t wait to help more people learn how to effectively use and manage Account Engagement.”

Fav tool!

“Salesforce Reports/Dashboards. I love data and getting to create my own reports and dashboards to display that data is one of my favorite things.”

Something fun!

“I love going to concerts, house plants, dogs, and playing board games. If I’m not doing something related to Salesforce I’m most likely doing something related to one of those things.”

New Marketing Champion #3. Jacob Catalano

LinkedIn
Location – Dallas, TX

Thoughts about joining the program

“I’m extremely excited to be a part of the 2023 class of Marketing Champions with so many of my colleagues in the Salesforce community. Being included in such a brilliant group of marketers is a dream come true and I can not wait to learn and grow alongside some of the brightest minds in the Salesforce community.”

Fav tool!

“Flows is one of the most powerful automation tools out there and I love when I can just take an hour or two and find new ways to use Flow.”

Something fun!

“I spend most of my time performing in musicals locally and playing golf. These two things are totally different but give me the most joy and let me step away from things going on and relax.”

New Marketing Champion #4. Julian Janssen

The Spot author page
LinkedIn
Location – Fort Worth, TX

Thoughts about joining the program

“I’m really excited to be named to the 2023 class of #MarketingChampions alongside some of my amazing colleagues at Sercante, and be more involved in the community around Salesforce’s amazing marketing automation tools! This ecosystem has provided me amazing opportunities in my own career, so I am excited to give back and guide others in this space.”

Fav tool!

“Campaign Influence: I love the Campaign Influence reporting models available in Salesforce. It’s an amazing tool to help marketing departments recognize and validate the value of how their campaigns help affect pipeline and realize revenue — a massive impact on most businesses that often goes overlooked.”

Something fun!

“I spend most of my time not working being a music nerd — going to concerts, browsing through records, playing guitar, or running to carefully curated playlists I have put together.”

New Marketing Champion #5. Kelly Ryan

The Spot author page
LinkedIn
Location – Denver, CO

Thoughts about joining the program

“I am so excited to be here! I have relied on this marketing community since day one in my digital marketing role, trying to connect all the backend dots across channels and platforms. I am honored to be a part of the Marketing Champions and share my knowledge with the next round of accidental admins and one-person teams!”

Fav tool!

“Creuz Your Data! Long lists of data are the daily pain of Pardot and Salesforce admins. So why not make your life easier? Just copy paste the data, select if you need a comma or semicolon, and you are good to go!”

Something fun!

“I really enjoy reading, especially historical fiction because I also love facts. I love getting literally lost in all the little local bookshops when I travel, too. I’ve been known to just sit on the floor and sift through huge stacks of old books until I found the ones with the most ridiculous titles.”

New Marketing Champion #6. Mike Morris

The Spot author page
LinkedIn
Location – Apex, NC

Thoughts about joining the program

“Since joining the Salesforce ecosystem, I’ve learned so much from members of the community, the team at Sercante, and the Marketing Champions. I’m looking forward to the opportunity to share my knowledge and help inspire the next class of Marketing Champions.”

Fav tool!

“I’ve got to go with Kelly on this one. Creuz Your Data is an awesome little app and has saved me countless hours. If you are building dynamic lists in Account Engagement or reports in Salesforce, check it out! I’m also very partial to the Protected Campaign Member Statuses app as a way to manage campaign members’ statuses in Salesforce.”

Something fun!

“I spend a lot of time in my office, so when I’m not working, I prefer to be outside. I enjoy hiking, kayaking, and running. I’m not very good at relaxing and prefer to be active.”

New Marketing Champion #7. Rich Feist

The Spot author page
LinkedIn
Location – Brighton, United Kingdom

Thoughts about joining the program

“I can’t wait to continue my learning about all things Salesforce. I’m really looking forward to attending more events! I honestly still can’t believe I get to be a part of this amazing program!”

Fav tool!

“My favourite Salesforce tool is Flows, I love what you can do with them. My favourite other tool is Pomodoro Marinara which is a great time-keeping app to keep you focused.”

Something fun!

“Favourite holiday location is a tie between Oaxaca and Sicily, the food and drink is insane!”

New Marketing Champion #8. Kirsten Schlau

The Spot author page
LinkedIn
Location – Atlanta, GA

New Marketing Champion #9. Laura Curtis

The Spot author page
LinkedIn
Location – Northampton, UK

Thoughts about joining the program

“I’m so excited and honored to be part of this program. I’m excited to meet so many passionate and like-minded marketers. I’ve been part of the Salesforce community for almost 5 years and being recognised as a Marketing Champion is amazing. I’m looking forward to using the platform to build upon my knowledge and experience, and continuing to share my passion for Marketing Cloud with the world!”

Fav tool!

“Oh this is tough! First off, another vote for Creuz Your Data! I’ve spent far too many hours in the past formatting long lists of data for Marketing Cloud. This tool is an absolute MUST for everyone in the Salesforce ecosystem. Secondly, I love any tool around personalisation, whether that’s Marketing Cloud Personalization or dynamic content, the results you get from often simple personalisation tactics are awesome and every marketer should be maximizing their use of personalisation tools! Finally, creating different Chrome profiles is a great tip for testing and keeping data separate!”

Something fun!

“When I’m not in the Salesforce world having fun, I hate to say it but, I’m a fan of TikTok (I always said I wouldn’t download it, but as soon as I did I was hooked!). There’s something about switching off and scrolling relatable content for hours! I also love taking holidays, my fav destination would have to be either Bruges or somewhere hot where cocktails are readily available! I also love getting creative with my nail designs. No one gets to see them working from home, but having a nice set makes me smile :)”

Repeat Sercante Marketing Champions

We’re super proud of our new Salesforce Marketing Champions. But let’s all take a moment to recognize members of the Sercante team who were named Marketing Champions in the past (once you’re in, you’re in for good) and are already seasoned pros when it comes to championing marketing for Salesforce.

Connect with the Marketing Champion Community

So what should you do with all this information? Definitely connect with this group so they can help you out!

Salesforce Marketing Champions put themselves out there so they can be helpful to people in the community like you. They all write blogs, present sessions at Salesforce events, lead user groups, or answer questions online.

Consider this your invitation to hit them up!

Follow Marketing Cloud on Twitter and LinkedIn and the terms Marketing Champions (Twitter) #MarketingChampions (LinkedIn) and #MomentMarketer (Twitter) #MomentMarketer (LinkedIn)
Marketing Champions answer questions, share resources, and updates, and provide strategic insights in the Trailblazer Community and in the Pardashians community on Slack
Check for Trailblazer Community Groups in your area (many run virtual events, too) and Community Conferences, like the Dreamin’ events.
Save the date for MarDreamin’ 2023!
Take advantage of free tools people from this group helped to build.

Do you need help from a marketing champion? Are you the next champion?

Ready to become the next Salesforce Marketing Champion? Keep an eye out for the call for nominations and applications here.

And as always, leave us a comment with your favorite tools and apps! Or let us know when you need help with something only a marketing champion can solve.

Career Development, Community, Community Spotlight, Industry News, To export
March 18, 2023

Congrats to The Salesforce MVP Class of 2023

Ambre Juryea-Amole

Like many big software companies, Salesforce has an honor they bestow to most influential supporters. They call this the Salesforce MVP program. The Trailblazer Community team recently announced the 2023 Salesforce MVP program inductees, and we were thrilled to see many of our favorite marketing voices on the list.

Marketers don’t always get the recognition they deserve, which is why we’re on a mission to showcase all of the amazing things marketers do. We’re especially excited to highlight the people who are shining the limelight on Salesforce marketing tools for a change.

Background of the program

If you haven’t already noticed, there’s a whole lot to learn about using marketing automation and CRM tools. Salesforce does everything they can to make resources available to customers so the tools are easier to use and customize, but everyone learns in their own way.

Sometimes we need real people who have been working closely with these tools to teach us what’s possible with them. (You know, like, other customers and people with an outsider’s perspective)

That’s where the Salesforce MVP program comes in. These are all people who share what they know about the platform and personally connect with others who are still learning.

According to the Salesforce MVP Code of Conduct, MVPs are “lifelong learners who go above and beyond to share their expertise and help the entire community succeed… [and] leaders in the Trailblazer Community who encourage each other, celebrate others’ successes, work collaboratively to make our community and the world a better place, and have a lot of fun along the way!”

Here’s the MVP Hall of Fame and Member Directory, which goes into complete detail about the program.

How Salesforce MVPs are Selected

Wondering how people get a spot in the program? Here’s how the process works:

Salesforce opens nominations for MVPs around November each year.
Community members either self nominate or can share stories to nominate others.
- Current MVPs do not need to take action, they are automatically reviewed for renewal.
The Trailblazer Community team completes the first round of nomination reviews.
Then, the nominations go through a second round of reviews from a team of Salesforce employees who are active in the Trailblazer Community
After that, current Salesforce MVPs provide feedback to new nominations and nomination renewals.
The Trailblazer Community team completes a final review before the Salesforce leadership team makes final calls and approvals.

The 2023 Salesforce MVP Class

Congratulations to everyone who was selected to join the 2023 Salesforce MVP Class!

MVP Name	MVP Name
Aaron Crosman	Michael A. Grandel
Andy Engin Utkan	Mihoko Yamashita
Ankit Taneja	Oleh Mykytyn
Asterisk Loftis	Patricio Sapir
Ben LaMothe	Phaneendra Arigachetta
Gian Piere Vallejos Bardales	Rachel Park Brayboy
Johann Furmann	Samantha Shain
Kannan Narayanan	Skye Tyler
Kristi Brown	Swati Taunk
Kristin Hubbard	Thomas Theunen
Lilith Van Biesen	Vicki Moritz-Henry
Maham Hassan	Warren Walters

Marketers Who Made the New 2023 Salesforce MVP List

We were thrilled to see two people we know from the Salesforce marketing community who made the list. Special congratulations to Ben Lamothe and Vicki Moritz-Henry and thanks for all the work you do for the community!

In fact, we know these two MVPs thanks to their work with the MarDreamin’ conference. Both have presented at MarDreamin’ in past years and have contributed in other ways.

Our team reached out to them to get their thoughts on their new Salesforce MVP honors. Here’s what they had to say:

Ben Lamothe

“Being selected as a Salesforce MVP is an honor and is truly humbling. Giving back to the Salesforce and Account Engagement (Pardot) Trailblazer community that has changed my life and given me so much, is so important to me.”

Vicki Moritz-Henry

“When I transitioned careers into Salesforce, I was astounded by how supportive the community was. There were so many people who encouraged, mentored and taught me over the years. I honestly wouldn’t be where I am now if it wasn’t for them. My motivation is to spread that impact and be that same person for others.”

Andrea Tarrell Added to the Salesforce MVP Hall of Fame

Last but most certainly not least, we wanna send a huge congratulations to the person who started this whole blog (and Sercante) in the first place. Andrea Tarrell has been an influential voice in the Salesforce community for close to a decade, and she’s served as a Salesforce MVP enough years for Salesforce to add her to the MVP Hall of Fame in 2023.

Launching The Spot for Pardot blog is only a small fraction of everything Andrea has contributed to Salesforce Trailblazer Community through the years. She’s spoken at countless events including Dreamforce, Connections, Dreamin’ conferences and user group meetings. Andrea even launched the first virtual conference for marketers on Salesforce in 2020 — MarDreamin’ (formerly ParDreamin’).

Keep being helpful and the rest will fall into place

The Trailblazer Community team received over 2,400 MVP nominations in 2023, so of course some people were disappointed to learn they weren’t among the 24 new MVPs who were selected. The most important takeaway though is to keep going! While the MVP program brings inherent benefits along with it (i.e. free entry to conferences, getting asked to participate in high-profile marketing content), the true benefit is that helping others helps you, too.

When the community grows, we all grow together. And there’s room for us all to be successful in the community. So, keep sharing what you know. Start a Salesforce blog (or you can write for this one!). Apply to speak at community events. Volunteer with a Salesforce mentorship program, like Merivis, for instance.

The possibilities to give back are endless. Tell us how giving back to the tech community has enriched your life in the comments section.