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Keep Building with Matt Cretzman
Welcome to Keep Building – the podcast for entrepreneurs, leaders, and innovators who refuse to settle. I'm Matt Cretzman, founder of Stormbreaker Digital, LinkedIn marketing expert, and author of "The LinkedIn Advantage."
In a world where AI is reshaping everything we know about business, I believe the magic happens at the intersection of cutting-edge technology and authentic human connection. Each week, we explore how to leverage AI, automation, and strategic marketing to accelerate growth while staying true to what makes us uniquely human.
Whether you're scaling a startup, leading a team, or building your personal brand, this show is for those with an unrelenting passion to build better, faster, and smarter – no matter what obstacles come your way. We'll dive deep into LinkedIn strategies that actually work, AI tools that amplify your impact, sales automation that feels personal, and the mindset shifts that separate those who merely survive from those who thrive.
From my own journey of rebuilding after devastating personal loss to helping clients generate millions in revenue through strategic networking, I've learned that success isn't about perfection – it's about persistence. It's about choosing to keep building when everything falls apart.
Join me as we unpack real strategies, share authentic stories, and explore how technology can enhance (not replace) the human elements that drive lasting business success. Because in the end, it's not just about building a business – it's about building a life worth living and a legacy worth leaving.
Ready to keep building? Let's go! 🚀
Keep Building with Matt Cretzman
Matt's Podcast
Hey everyone, it's Matt Kretzmann, and welcome back to another episode of Keep Building with Matt Kretzmann. We are officially on episode 12 today yes, 12. And I wanted to kick things off by sharing some valuable insights I found after watching a recent video by Italo Viale, who's dissecting the hottest trends in SaaS marketing automation strategy for 2024. I knew these lessons were too good to keep to myself, so today we'll dive into the latest and biggest shifts driving SaaS marketing automation this year how AI tools are turbocharging, personalized outreach and campaign orchestration, best practices for building scalable relationship-driven funnels that still keep the human touch. A deep dive success story showcasing a SaaS founder's journey to doubling activation rates with AI-powered automation, and practical takeaways you can apply immediately to supercharge your pipeline. This episode is particularly timely because, as I've recently read on LinkedIn and through some of my trusted sources, the marketing automation landscape isn't just evolving, it's accelerating at breakneck speed, according to some fresh insights from the 2024 marketing automation trends coverage by the CMO and other experts.
Speaker 1:To win in 2024, you need systems that do much more than send emails. They have to orchestrate multi-channel touchpoints, personalize at scale dynamically and blend human creativity with AI precision. Let's kick things off with the first big idea AI-powered marketing automation In 2024, it's less about spray and pray campaigns and more about intelligent ecosystems. Platforms like LeadStormAI, claycom and GoHighLevel are creating environments where LinkedIn outreach emails, content marketing and even ad targeting all communicate and coordinate seamlessly. The goal is to move prospects thoughtfully, content marketing and even ad targeting all communicate and coordinate seamlessly. The goal is to move prospects thoughtfully through your funnel with a precision and authenticity that feels deeply human. The exciting part, nithya and I love this is that these tools don't replace you. Nope, they automate the repetitive grunt work while empowering you to craft messages that sound exactly like you wrote them personally work while empowering you to craft messages that sound exactly like you wrote them personally. So that automated LinkedIn sequence. It's tailored by data, but has your authentic voice baked right in Now. A standout gem from Italo's video and other 2024 trend reports.
Speaker 1:Linkedin newsletters are massively underrated in building pipeline and trust. When you launch a newsletter on LinkedIn, every connection automatically receives an invite a built-in opt-in powerhouse. Combine that with push notifications, multimedia content like YouTube videos, bite-sized podcast clips and gated offerings and you've suddenly got a pipeline building engine that works 24-7 with minimal manual effort. Quick pro tip for you repurpose your content. If you've got a podcast, a video or a blog post, chop it into multiple formats and spread it across these channels to keep your brand top of mind without working yourself into the ground All right.
Speaker 1:Now on to something that's often overlooked reactivating dormant email lists. If you've got a list that's been silent for six to 12 months or longer, blasting generic emails risks killing your sender reputation faster than you can say Unsubscribe. Instead, you want to engage with surgical precision the segment your list, warm up your sending domains with multiple micro mailboxes and run value first gentle re-engagement sequences that ask contacts to opt back in If they don't bite after a few attempts. It's kinder and smarter to quietly remove them to safeguard your deliverability. One cool example I found from a SaaS founder's playbook involves a combination of tools like Entreport for list segmentation and Luma for targeted campaign orchestration. The result Tens of thousands of sleeping contacts revived and get this inbox reputations kept squeaky clean.
Speaker 1:Speaking of success stories, let me share a deep dive that really shows the power of strategic marketing automation. A SaaS startup stretched thin on sales resources and sitting on a 120,000 contact dormant email list Combined AI, powered outbound virtual sales agents with dynamic multi-channel outreach. They orchestrated LinkedIn messaging, personalized video emails and cold outreach, all while enriching contact profiles using tools similar to LeadStorm, ai and claycom and carefully warming up multiple mailboxes to avoid deliverability pitfalls. The outcome activation rates more than doubled within a year, hitting a $5 million ARR milestone, while their sales team finally got time back to focus on the highest impact conversations. Now that's a win-win. And just for a laugh, the team had to engineer multi-platform two-factor authentications using Telegram bots and automate email code retrieval to keep their workflows humming smoothly.
Speaker 1:The lengths you'll go to automate your pipeline Ha. So what can you walk away with from today's episode? Here's the quick hit listener value. One AI-driven marketing automation in 2024 is your relationship-building backbone. It's about authenticity at scale, not just efficiency. Two LinkedIn newsletters are a powerhouse for organic reach, especially when you layer in multimedia and gated content. Three reactivating dormant email lists requires surgical segmentation, warming and value-first sequences. Don't just blast and pray. A four multi-channel outreach powered by AI lets you hyper-personalize campaigns without the burnout. Five hiring a versatile, ai savvy marketer who blends creativity with technology automation can be a game changer.
Speaker 1:Before I sign off, here's my call to action. No matter what business or role you're in, whether SaaS, marketing or growth leadership. Always remember my guiding philosophy your pipeline is your lifeline. But pipelines aren't just data and systems. It's the authentic relationships you build, powered by smart, ethical automation, that truly drive sustained growth. If you want to unpack your automation strategy or get feedback on your LinkedIn newsletters and reactivation campaigns, hit me up on LinkedIn. I love swapping stories and helping build pipelines and brands that stand the test of time. All right, that's a wrap for episode 12 of Keep Building with Matt Kretzmann. Huge thanks to Italo Viale for sparking today's insights and to all the SaaS founders and marketers out there hustling to build smarter, not just harder. Keep building that pipeline and your brand, take care.