How to Build a Marketing Engine That Drives Revenue with Alan Gonsenhauser (#72)

Do you own a transportation or 3PL business doing $3M or more in revenue? Visit www.bizexitgrow.com to find out how we can help you grow, scale, and exit at maximum value.By the time a buyer calls you, 95% of the decision is already made. In this episode, we break down how to build a marketing engine that drives revenue, why brand gravity wins deals before they start, and how AI is reshaping B2B marketing, with Alan Gonsenhauser, an 11-time chief marketing officer and founder of Demand Revenue.Alan has spent 25 years driving growth in PE-backed B2B SaaS companies, mentored over 150 CMOs, and now serves as a fractional and interim CMO helping growth-stage companies build revenue engines that scale.We cover:– Why most of the buying journey happens before a buyer ever contacts you.– What brand gravity is and how it gets you onto the short list of vendors.– The three growth phases: problem-market fit, product-market fit, and platform-market fit.– The metrics PE firms care about: LTV to CAC, gross and net revenue retention, and win-loss ratio.– Why misaligned teams and silos quietly kill growth, and how aligned companies grow 19% faster.– How to design your website and content for LLMs, not just Google.– How brand equity and recurring revenue increase your company's valuation at exit.– Alan's tip: narrow down, understand your buyer's problems, and stop posting product selfies.Connect with Alan at demandrevenue.com or on LinkedIn (linkedin.com/in/alangonsenhauser ).Ready to grow and plan your exit? Visit www.BizExitGrow.com.Related episodes:– Ep. 71: How to Build a Business That Sells with Steven Pivnik– Ep. 68: Communications Strategy and Brand Building with Joshua Altman00:00 Intro: Meet Alan Gonsenhauser, 11-time CMO and founder of Demand Revenue01:18 From finance to 11 CMO roles and founding Demand Revenue03:58 Why a financial background changes the marketing conversation04:48 How the B2B buying process has changed since 201306:30 Short-term pipeline versus long-term growth08:04 The three growth phases every company moves through11:33 How to build brand gravity13:07 Content cadence and designing for LLMs, not just Google14:24 How to optimize content for AI models with Q&A16:06 How to build a revenue engine and spot churn early17:48 Why alignment beats silos: 19% faster growth19:31 Common marketing mistakes and the will/will-not list21:43 How marketing strategy changes under private equity22:35 How brand gravity affects company valuation at exit23:45 How Alan uses AI, including a virtual board panel26:38 Alan's tip: narrow down and solve your buyer's problems#FractionalCMO #B2BMarketing #BrandGravity #DemandGeneration #RecurringRevenue #MarketingStrategy #PrivateEquity #RevenueGrowth #AIinMarketing #ExitPlanning #ScaleSmarter #SellStronger #ExitAlgorithms #BusinessGrowth