Devin Bramhall

Co-host: Don't Say Content. Marketing Advisor. Agency Growth Strategist. Former CEO of Animalz.

Your CEO doesn't hate marketing. They hate that you can't prove that it works.

I know because I've been the marketer pitching brilliant strategies that get shelved and the CEO wondering why marketing feels like an expensive black box.

After 15+ years building content strategies as a marketer and tripling Animalz to nearly $12M ARR as CEO, I realized the real problem:

We're optimizing for activities instead of outcomes. Checking boxes instead of driving growth.

The dirty secret? Most "content marketing strategies" are just glorified to-do lists.

My book "B2B Content Marketing Strategy" shows why "do more marketing" is killing growth and what to do instead.

Now I help companies stop doing marketing and start growing businesses as a fractional Chief Growth Officer.

If you're tired of: 
→ Defending your work instead of leading with it 
→ Following frameworks that feel like busy work 
→ Watching brilliant ideas die in committee

You're in the right place.

I help marketers ask better questions. Not “what content do we need?” but “what does the business need to grow?'"

Get weekly no-BS takes on growth: devinbramhall.com/newsletter

Chief Executive Officer

I used to think being a good marketing leader meant I had to be the smartest person in the room.

Spoiler: I wasn't. And trying to be made me worse at my job.

Here's what no one tells you about the shift from doing to leading, it's not about working harder or knowing more. It's about letting go of being right.

When I first moved into leadership, I apologized constantly. "Sorry, I don't have that data yet." "Sorry, let me circle back on that." I thought humility meant admitting what I didn't know.

Turns out, that just made everyone nervous.

The shift happened when I stopped apologizing and started owning my stance—even when I couldn't prove it yet. "Here's what I'm seeing. Here's the direction. Let's course-correct if we're wrong."

(Confidence isn't about being right. It's about having a POV and moving forward.)

But here's the part that actually broke me: letting go of execution.

I was still writing the copy. Still building the decks. Still the one "who could just do it faster." Classic Cinderella syndrome, if you're scrubbing the floors, you're not running the house.

And leadership? That's selling the strategy internally. Pitching to the CEO. Shaping the narrative before anyone else does. Your team can execute. You need to build the conditions for them to win.

The hardest lesson: You're not an IC anymore. Stop asking permission.

Don't say "I'd like to try this approach." Say "Here's what we're doing and why it's going to work."

Your CEO doesn't ask permission to make calls on incomplete data. Neither should you.

Marketing leadership isn't about having answers. It's about having conviction when no one else does.

Chief Growth Officer [Fractional]. Author: “B2B Content Marketing Strategy” out now on Amazon

Your CEO is asking you to "do more content" because they don't know what else to tell you.

They don't understand demand generation. Or brand positioning. And they definitely don't understand why the leads aren't converting.

So they default to: "We need more content."

And you? You're drowning in a backlog of blog posts no one will read, social posts that get 12 likes, and webinars with 3 attendees.

This is a leadership problem.

When leadership can't articulate strategy, they ask for activity. When they can't measure what matters, they count outputs. When they can't defend marketing to the board, they ask you to "do more" and hope something sticks.

I've watched this destroy marketing teams. The CEO who demanded 50 blog posts a quarter but couldn't tell me what outcome we were driving. The VP who obsessed over social followers while pipeline sat at zero. The board that wanted "more brand awareness" with zero patience for how long that actually takes.

When executives don't know how to evaluate marketing, they measure what's easy to count.

Stop asking for permission to do less. Defend focus instead.

The next time someone asks for "more content," I ask them:

More content to achieve what outcome? What are we trying to change about the business?

If they can't answer that, you have a strategy problem. No amount of content will fix it.

Ask me to be on your podcast, and I'll say yes.

Here’s why I’m saying that out loud.

I’ve been thinking a lot about the conversations I actually want to have this year and the rooms I want to be in. And when I look at most marketing podcasts, there’s a gap.

A lot of them talk about the work without ever having had to own it. Same advice, different guest. And most of it has never had to survive a CEO, a board, or a real budget.

I’ve been a marketer, then a CEO, and now I work as a fractional CGO. I helped grow a content business from $1.8M to $12M. I’ve had to explain why things failed, not just why they should work. I’ve had to decide what to stop doing when the math didn’t work.

And that changes how you talk about growth.

I know why leadership doesn’t trust marketing. I know why good strategies get shut down. And I know what actually changes those conversations. It’s not more activity, and it’s not better decks.

I’m not interested in checklist episodes or framework tours. I care about how growth actually works inside companies. Where it breaks. Where marketing loses credibility. What it’s like when you’re responsible for the outcome.

So yeah. That’s the ask.

If you run a podcast for B2B marketers or founders who want a real conversation and not another playbook recap, I’d love to join.

DM me if it makes sense.

For B2B marketers feeling overwhelmed...

Don't do more.  
Do less.  
That's strategy.

I was on IN CLEAR FOCUS with Adrian Tennant talking about my book, and this keeps coming up. Marketers asking what to do with shrinking budgets, impossible timelines, and pressure from all sides.

My answer pisses people off: Stop.

Don't add one more thing. Don't optimize one more channel. Don't layer on one more tactic because some newsletter said you should.

Think for yourself.

Look at what's actually in front of you. The resources you already have, the people inside your company, the relationships you've already built.

Work with that.

When I was CEO, I turned "outcomes over activities" into our operating mantra. When clients said "I want thought leadership," I'd ask: "Why? What outcome are you trying to achieve?"

Sounds obvious. But most marketers skip this because they're too busy executing someone else's playbook.

Here's what I know after growing a company from $1.8M to $12M:

The smartest strategy is the fewest actions that deliver the greatest results.

Not the longest content calendar.  
Or the most channels.  
And not the busiest team.

The question isn't "What should I be doing?"

It's "What outcome am I trying to drive? And what's the simplest path there?"

Keyword-based content plans? Those worked when you had growth-at-all-costs funding and could throw money at ranking.

That model died in 2023.

But most marketing teams are still operating like it's 2019. Writing more articles. Posting more content. Cranking the wheel harder.

And wondering why nothing's moving.

Because activity doesn't equal impact.

Your CEO doesn't care how many blog posts you published. They care whether those posts influenced pipeline, shortened sales cycles, or reduced CAC.

So if you're drowning right now, here's your permission slip:

Do less. Think more. Start with what works.

Don't go to playbooks. Don't look at what anyone else has done.

Look at what's physically in front of you and build a strategy to do less and accomplish more.

That's the shift I cover in 𝘉𝟚𝘉 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘨𝘺 (you can find it on Amazon). Moving from predictable, exhausting activity loops to strategies that actually create leverage.

If you're tired of running in circles, maybe it's time to stop running.

Full episode is linked below if you're curious.

(Thanks to the Bigeye team for having me on.)

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Here's everything I'm using to build my business.

People keep asking how I'm managing the consulting, the newsletter, the courses, the membership I'm launching.

The answer: eight tools and a clear hypothesis about what you need.

What I'm testing:

Courses on Maven using the frameworks I use with clients (how to get C-suite buy-in, how to build a growth strategy, that kind of thing). A newsletter. And advisory sprints for people who need focused help right now. A membership for marketing leaders who want strategic coaching without agency pricing. 

I'm not guessing. I'm testing with real people and iterating based on what I learn.

The 8 tools:

-Zoom – client calls, meetings
-Granola – meeting notes (I know Zoom does this, but the UI is better)
-Squarespace - for my core website 
-beehiiv – newsletter, courses, membership platform
-Stripe – cuz payments
-Ordinal – where I collaborate and schedule my LinkedIn content
-PhantomBuster – LinkedIn growth
-Alertmouse – tracks when people mention my name or key phrases

That's it. No complex funnels. Just what I need to get products in front of people and learn what resonates.

Most people spend months planning in private, then launch to crickets because they built what they 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 people wanted.

I'd rather build fast, test real demand, and adjust based on what works.
That's what building in public gets you: immediate feedback instead of assumptions.

I'll share what I learn as I go.

Anything you're curious about?

Here I am reading Glassdoor reviews about me out loud.

Yes, really.

From 2020-2022, when I was CEO of a content marketing agency, my former employees had *opinions* about me.

So I pulled out the meanest ones and decided to read them on camera.

At the time? I was devastated. Rookie CEO. Didn't know this was normal.

Now? I can giggle about them.

Some of these were harsh but fair. Others... well, you can decide for yourself.

If you've ever been the villain in someone else's work story, you'll get it.

Stay tuned for part 2.

Ashley Faus

Director of Integrated Product Marketing, Atlassian

Marketer, writer, speaker by day... singer, actor, fitness fiend by night!

I've handled all aspects of marketing strategy and execution, from product marketing, to demand-gen, to content and events. I love telling the high-level stories that resonate with an audience and connecting the dots between types of assets and distribution channels.

My writing has been published on TIME, Forbes, The Journal of Brand Strategy, and The Muse, and I've spoken on various marketing topics for INBOUND, Harvard Business Review, and MarketingProfs.

Visit https://ashleyfaus.com/ for more information about my book, "Human-Centered Marketing: How to Connect with Audiences in the Age of AI".

(Views are my own)

Head of Lifecycle Marketing, Portfolio

"A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one."

Funny how we only ever hear the first part of that^^ quote, often said with a derisive tone.

Nobody wants the "master of none" 😬

And yet... I proudly claim the moniker of "marketing generalist"!

My superpower is connecting the dots, working across multiple teams, and integrating across channels.

If you need someone who sits at the intersection, I gotchu.

And this is why I'm always slightly surprised but delighted when I'm recognized in a specific marketing discipline.

My current title is "Lifecycle Marketing", but I contributed enough PMM-related content to earn a spot on the 2025 Product Marketing Influencer list.

And Alt Marketing School offers courses across allllll the marketing disciplines, including trendier topics, like the creator economy.

Personally, I think we're in a generalists' economy right now.

With teams running lean, leaders looking to bring in more AI and automation, and the rise of the fractional or solopreneur, generalists are making a comeback!

So cheers to all the folks who are making their mark in each (or every) discipline 🎉 

See the Alt Marketing School list: https://amschool.click/top

See the Product Marketing Alliance list: https://lnkd.in/dTmpNtJ5

Buy my book, "Human-Centered Marketing: How to Connect with Audiences in the Age of AI": https://amzn.to/4jqaKDW

Head of Lifecycle Marketing, Portfolio at Atlassian

I almost ended up naked onstage 😳

I was playing a bride, wearing this ridiculous '80s-style dress (pictured below), with a dropped waist, heavy beading, and a ridiculous train.

And on opening night, the zipper down the back of the dress started coming undone...

Inching.
Down.
My. 
Back.

And no one could help me 😬

I felt the sleeves start to slide towards the edge of my shoulders.

I felt an unpleasant breeze on my lower back.

And I realized that I'm just hoping I don't end up naked in front of the audience.

So... when I tell you that I've had things go wrong onstage, I'm not talking about a momentary hiccup with the slides or stuttering over a few words or going blank on my next sentence 😅

What this means for you, as a professional sharing your knowledge at a conference or Town Hall or QBR: it's gonna be ok.

YOU CAN DO IT!

At minimum, you won't end up naked onstage.
And the audience probably won't even notice a flub!

I get a lot of questions about how to overcome the fear, swallow the nerves, and feel confident stepping onstage.

One of my counterintuitive exercises is to catastrophize.

What's the WORST thing that could happen?

How would you react (and recover) if it happens?

Thinking through the worst-case scenario takes the surprise and sting out of it, because usually, it's not that bad.

And now you know how to react 😎

I said I ALMOST ended up naked onstage... handily, I've had a lot of practice reacting to things going wrong.

I straightened my posture to widen my shoulders, put my hands on my hips and across my chest to keep the dress from slipping off completely, and angled my back away from the audience to maintain a little dignity.

And then I asked the costumer to secure the zipper before the next performance, 'cuz we're not trying to have things go wrong twice 💃

Wanna be on a podcast? 

Drop your name and topics in the comments 👇👇

What hosts want to know:

💡 What's your expertise and unique angle?
🎤 Can you speak in an engaging way?
📣 Will you help bring in listeners?

Don't have prior appearances? 

I gotchu:

--> Go live on LinkedIn or post a short clip to share your advice

--> Confirm that you'll share about your episode on LinkedIn (and any other channels where you are active, like a newsletter, website, etc.)

Let's connect some hosts and guests!

(Full disclosure: I'm trying to streamline my inbox a bit, so my goal is to make this an easy place for folks to connect without a middleman 😀)

AI can be the epitome of a productivity mirage.

It FEELS productive to craft the perfect prompt, thinking of all the details that an LLM might need to tailor its response to your specific use case.

It FEELS like progress to refine and refine again and refine just once more for perfection.

It FEELS like insight to ask, "But what about _____?" over and over again.

And. Yet.

Blathering on with the chatbot is not, in fact, DOING anything.

Did you actually use all that research that it pumped out for you to take action?

Did you make the updates to the slide deck or blog post, based on the recommendations?

Did you go to the event and see for yourself whether your ICP actually attends?

I've been struggling with this mirage over the last few weeks 😳

In particular, I'm sparring with Claude to improve my talk track and slides, based on session scores and audience comments from my fall speaking engagements.

I feel like I've been so productive!
I spent so much time typing!
I considered so many angles!

My slide deck has not changed.
My speaker notes are not updated.

And as I go back through the chat history, I'm left feeling a bit overwhelmed, annoyed, and generally unmotivated to take the necessary action to ACTUALLY IMPROVE.

AI is only as good as the action it enables.

You can "doom scroll" and "water cooler chat" and "push pixels" around in an LLM just as easily as any other tool (maybe more so 😅).

Don't fall prey to the productivity mirage.

There are MANY smart marketers in the world.

They have great ideas, they've executed impactful programs, and they've written useful books.

The difference between what they share and what I share is literally THEM and ME.

It's not just about the idea.
It's about the person sharing the idea.

WHO says it is just as important as WHAT they say.

People trust people like themselves.
People resonate with different people.

So using your authentic voice, talking about your lived experience, and sharing your unique expertise is the reason someone trusts you, follows you, and listens to you.

If you're looking to be more visible, get more opportunities, and accelerate your success in 2026, you gotta listen to this episode 😀

Thanks for hosting a great conversation Wednesday Women!

Hear the full conversation: https://lnkd.in/e-BwQmxb

Join my Stanford class, starting on Jan. 26: https://lnkd.in/eCe697Zx

Buy "Human-Centered Marketing: How to Connect with Audiences in the Age of AI": https://amzn.to/4jqaKDW

Got big goals in 2026? 

I joined Erica Anderson Rooney to talk about my career journey, and I gave some SPICY takes:

♟️Chess vs. Checkers promotion advice

☑️ Minimum Viable Action (MVA)

💡The trouble with "bright" girls

✨ The real pitfalls of perfection

This episode tackles a few more personal issues than my usual fare, so if you want a candid conversation to kick off the New Year, I gotchu 😎

Listen to the full episode: https://lnkd.in/eMp-UCs5

Exercises to help you speak confidently: https://lnkd.in/e8wvrZpD

Grab my book, "Human-Centered Marketing: How to Connect with Audiences in the Age of AI": https://amzn.to/3YjquAk

"But what if they build a personal brand and then leave!?!"

🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

This is common pushback on not only allowing employees to share their insights, speak on podcasts, build a following on LinkedIn, etc., but encouraging and enabling them to do this.

The ironic part is that these statements are usually sitting alongside a mandate to "get the employees sharing company content on social media"!

Here's the thing: NOBODY wants the soulless company content 😬

Not the employee you're nagging to share it.
Not the viewer scrolling the feed.
And frankly, not even most of your users.

People want to hear from people, which means helping your employees share in their unique voice is a much better approach, all the way around.

And yes, some employees will attract recruiters and brand collabs and advisor offers, such that they might just decide to leave your company.

But the valley is small, and careers are long!

These former employees might become customers, partners, investors, or brand champions... there's so many ways to exchange value 🙌

And in the age of AI?
HUMANS are even MORE important!

I covered several related topics in my conversation with Finn Thormeier on The Executive Brand podcast, tune in for more details on:

- Why and how to build internal influencers
- The 4 pillars of thought leadership
- Choosing the "best" B2B creator

Rant: Freakin' LinkedIn, you are BUGGY!! Pull yourself together!!

I've noticed that when I schedule posts, they often show up wonky.

It un-tags accounts that I at-mention.

It replaces images and videos with link previews.

The formatting in generally is just not what it looks like in the preview.

But apparently, now it's DOUBLE POSTING content?!?!

I schedule a post, went to "post now" and fixed the issues noted above, and then published... only to find that it apparently posted the same content, but with the mistakes, later in the day.

WHHHHYYYY!?!?

I didn't catch it in time to delete the rogue post, so I figured I'd ask if anyone else is seeing this janky behavior.

It's VERY frustrating.

I'm using native features and trying to follow whatever stupid rules the algorithm randomly enforces.

But good grief.

FIX THE BUGS.

/rant

"All effective marketing is human-centered. While we're busy being distracted with shortcuts, Faus helps us refocus on what matters." ― Seth Godin, Author “This is Marketing”

"Trust is under siege from nearly every angle. Yet marketers like you and me want (need!) to build trust with our audiences. The question is... How? Ashley draws you a map." ― Ann Handley, best-selling author and Chief Content Officer, MarketingProfs

"Most of the go-to playbooks are outdated, but it's hard to find a replacement for stale marketing practices. Ashley constructed a powerful new set of frameworks, along with practical advice and real-world examples. "Human-Centered Marketing" brings us back to what actually matters: the people behind the screen." ― Nancy Duarte, best-selling author and CEO of Duarte, Inc.

If you've been on the fence about grabbing a copy of my award-winning book, "Human-Centered Marketing: How to Connect with Audiences in the Age of AI", this is the perfect time to buy 😀

On Wednesdays, we keynote 💃

Honored to present keynote session at B2B Marketing Exchange with ADWEEK, talking about human-centered marketing!

Grab your tickets with special pricing through Feb. 16, and yes, you CAN sit with us 😎

"Don't panic, bring a towel."

We're going on an adventure!

Join me on January 14 to talk about the B2B creators you need in your galaxy this year.

I'm talking with Nadia Davis, MBA from CaliberMind about how to:

👩‍🚀 Find the RIGHT voices for your marketing mix

🚀 Build a thought leadership program that delivers the RIGHT outcomes

💫 Measure the RIGHT metrics across B2B creators

Register for free: https://lnkd.in/eYsKtvYN

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Devin Bramhall

Ashley Faus

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taplio

The Battle

Devin Bramhall

Ashley Faus

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Devin Bramhall's LinkedIn Performance

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Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreDevin Bramhall's LinkedIn Performance