AMA: Snow Software Director of Field & Partner Marketing - Americas, Liz Bernardo on Demand Generation Career Path

My favorite question to ask during an interview is “If you could spend an extra $100k on demand generation in your current role, what would you spend it on and why?” I really like this question because it helps me understand a variety of things about how the candidate thinks. Dependent on the response, I can learn which type of marketing campaigns they tend to prefer to work with and how they budget and plan. The answer I look for is typically something with a multi-channel approach. Throughout ...Read More

In the Demand Generation world, KPI's are ever-evolving but one always remains consistent - "to drive marketing pipeline for the business." When starting out your career in DG, KPI's will be decided by your MLT team and assigned dependent on the annual, bi-annual or quarterly goals. Some of the most common may be dependent on: - a low performing product line needing a boost - a regional team needing pipeline assistance - or a channel needing support As you grow into DG leadership, additional KPI ...Read More

Where do I see Demand Generation heading? That's an interesting question. Like most DG roles I am see them being converted to Field Marketing. In my humble opinion, a traditional Demand Generation role is much more than just Field Marketing. With Demand Generation you basically sit with one foot in marketing and one foot in sales. You not only strategize and run campaigns, but you track the metrics, ROI, leads and conversation rates/success metrics all the way to closed won. Those skills are the ...Read More

Personally, I don't think there is a one single path for Demand Generation. I came into the role by surprise. I was interviewing for a Marketing Manager role at a company, almost 10 years ago and during the interview we were whiteboarding out pipeline funnels. I was talking through waterfall metrics and which type of assets I would place at each stage in the funnel. Then we went on to discuss global digital strategies and then lastly, my favorite, events and the campaigns that surround them. I h ...Read More

My biggest tip for gaining influence as a new member of an organization is a two-parter - Work creatively and know your numbers. As cliché as it sounds, thinking on your toes & thinking outside the box will constantly give you a leg up. Failing fast and pivoting to a new program or idea is something I learned quick in my career. Try everything! The second part of this tip recommendation would be to know your numbers. Dig into the details. When you think you know everything, review the number ...Read More