Q&A: Meet... Dial Up Speaker Kimmah Shah

Kimmah Shah

Meet Kimmah Shah! She's the Head of Digital & Demand Generation at Actian, and all round marketing genius. From Digital Strategy & Transformation to Data-Driven Storytelling, she knows it all. A passionate marketer from Texas, her state might be the second largest, but she is solidly no.1.

If this isn't enough K.S for you, check out her session 'The MOPs playbook - Crawl, walk, run', at our upcoming #MarTechFest Dial Up.

Take it away, Kimmah!

We want to hear about you, you marketing legend. Give us a quick overview of what your company does and your roles and responsibilities there!

I am the Head of Digital & Demand Generation. So basically, if it touches the internet and that touches the customer I own it or have a hand it it. Everything from Paid Search to Email Marketing to SEO. My job is to help create an end-to-end experience for the customer as they learn more about our brand and how we can help them grow their business with a data-driven strategy.

Now summarise that in 3 words!

I acquire customers!

What advice would you give to your younger self to drive your career?

Honestly, none. I think I learned what I needed to learn at the phase in my career where it was most useful. I never took no for an answer and I have always been ready to pivot when necessary. Failure was never an option so I have always been laser focused on success and evolving as a marketer and leader.

 

What bull$hit marketing advice do you hear too often?

Not so much advice, so much the lack of. I am always gobsmacked when someone recommends something without having data to back up their recommendation. Like, let's just spend 1 Million dollars and see how it works. OR let's do it because that's how we've always done it (even though it doesn't work the way we wish it had.)

 

What’s your biggest martech/ marketing ops gripe? Don’t hold back!

This is easy. DIRTY DATA. I could go on and on about this one. How can I personalize emails based on lead source, or campaign attribution, or GEO without standardization of data and basic protocols in place to ensure clean data stays clean. Going into a CRM for the first time is always the bane of my existence and requires a whiskey (or two.)

 

We’ve all read about Mark Wahlberg’s insane 2:30am morning routine, filled with golf and cryo-chambers. What’s your personal morning routine?

I am not a morning person, but I am working on it. I work from home, like most folks, so I wake up (at the last possible moment) and work out. It's the one thing I get to do for me before my day starts. After that a quick shower and hot cup of tea and I make my way to my home office and don't emerge until its dark out. LOL!

How do you keep motivated, and stop binge watching Netflix and eating crisps all the time? Asking for a friend.

When you find out, tell me! LOL! No seriously, I have two boys at home that are watching. We come from VERY humble beginnings and I took it upon myself to be the LAST generation in my family that needs to say that. So I grind because they are watching and whatever I show them must be excellent!

What up-and-coming trend do you predict will take the industry by storm?

Revenue Optimization & Operations. We know how to find customers and we know how to personalize their experience, but the missing gap is how do I do more of what is working but faster. I think marketing is going to be even more closely aligned with sales and there are going to need to be more collaborative tools that bridge the silo between both teams to assist with faster insights, faster go to markets and faster realization of ROI.

 

If you could recommend one book, podcast, tv show, magazine, piece of bathroom stall graffiti etc. etc. what would it be?

It's not marketing related but if it were one book it would be Gary Zukav. It was life changing for me. Work and the world can be so intense and overwhelming at times and if you allow yourself you can easily get wrapped up in things that do not matter. This book helped me dial in to my inner voice and ensures I am always in balance. Or at the very least aware when I am out of balance so I can work to get my $hit together!

What is your favourite marketing campaign of all time?

The one that got the best results, to be honest. I don't have a favourite. I learned from a previous mentor, do NOT be married to anything. As a creative it's hard to not be married to your idea. But once I did that it gave me the freedom to create, be objective and be open to improvements. So, my favourite is the one that delivered the most value for my employer.

 

Can our audience expect any future projects on the horizon, personal or professional?

I am relaunching my blog, www.bepurposelyfearless.com soon. I want to find ways to channel all of my learnings and experiences to encourage and empower others.

What else should we know about you? (Something unique, funny, exciting and/or original that's not in the bio!)

I dropped out of high school. YUP! Total bad ass. Literally. You don't see or hear a lot of people make it to the executive level who didn't complete high school. I eventually went back to get my degree YEARS later but based on statistics there were no expectations for me to succeed. Luckily, I rarely listen to those things (except to benchmark performance...lol) and I was determined to shatter any stereotype about me. And I did!

 

You'll be speaking at our #MarTechFest Dial Up - can we get a sneak peek of your sesh? What's it all about, and what can't be missed?

Coming into a new role and inheriting someone else's programs can be a nightmare. Actually, starting from scratch can be pretty daunting as well. I will walk you through a full proof strategy to go from Crawling to Walking to Running Circles around your MOP's!

Hear more from Kimmah at her Sesh 'The MOPs playbook - Crawl, walk, run'! She'll be giving the inside scoop on all things Mops, including:

  • Developing your foundations
  • Mops Fundamentals
  • Optimisation
  • Attribution

Click Here to find out more and yes; signing up and attending #MarTech Fest Dial-Up is completely free!!!!

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