#161: Strategy | How to Enter New International Markets, Hiring Locally, and the Content Approval Trap with Max Van Den Ingh

Dave sits down with Max Van Den Ingh, founder and CEO of Unmuted, a B2B SaaS marketing agency based in Amsterdam. Max shares his insights from his background in Sales, sharing how his approach of building relationships has translated to a successful marketing agency.Max and Dave Cover:His high-touch approach to entering new markets by focusing on understanding the landscape and building relationshipsChallenges and advice for hiring in international marketsThe shift towards scrappier, more authentic content in B2B Marketing and the case against multiple layers of content approvalTimestamps(00:00) - - Intro (04:39) - - The US Approach to Marketing (07:27) - - Max’s Initial Agency Skepticism (10:38) - - B2B Marketing Strategies for Dutch Tech Companies (12:37) - - Challenges of Expanding SaaS in EU Markets (16:53) - - How to Effectively Use Local Expertise (19:35) - - Building Your First Customer Playbook (23:19) - - Creating a Long-Term Strategy for New Markets (25:59) - - Branding and International Expansion (32:16) - - Challenges of Hierarchy in Large Organizations (33:42) - - Multiple Layers of Approval and In-authentic Content Join 50,0000 people who get Dave's Newsletter here: https://www.exitfive.com/newsletterLearn more about Exit Five's private marketing community: https://www.exitfive.com/***Brought to you by:Zoom Webinars & Events – The virtual event platform built to help B2B marketers run webinars that actually drive pipeline, with branded registration pages, live engagement features, and built-in tools to repurpose sessions into clips and content. Learn more at zoom.com/exitfive.Customer.io - An AI powered customer engagement platform that help marketers turn first-party data into engaging customer experiences across email, SMS, and push. Learn more at customer.io/exitfive.Vector - A contact-level ads platform that lets you build audiences from actual people on your site, clicking your ads, and checking out your competitors. Learn how to build an ABM program that scales at vector.co/exitfive.Join us in Stowe, Vermont for Drive 2026 - three days away from your desk to learn what's working in B2B marketing from the people who are actually doing it. Grab your ticket at exitfive.com/drive.Walker Sands - An integrated B2B marketing and growth services agency that helps marketing leaders turn strategy into measurable business impact through their Outcome-based Marketing model. Learn more at walkersands.com/exitfive.***Thanks to my friends at hatch.fm for producing this episode and handling all of the Exit Five podcast production.They give you unlimited podcast editing and strategy for your B2B podcast.Get unlimited podcast editing and on-demand strategy for one low monthly cost. Just upload your episode, and they take care of the rest.Visit hatch.fm to learn more