Customer Champions

About Customer Champions

Most B2B companies overlook their biggest growth opportunity: investing in the customers they already have. Yet, customer marketing leaders struggle to secure budget, prove ROI, and drive growth. In a world obsessed with more (more leads, more deals, more revenue), how do you make customer advocacy a non-negotiable growth strategy? This show is for marketers who want to turn customer advocacy into a strategic growth engine. Each episode features customer marketing pioneers, revenue leaders, and industry experts sharing actionable strategies to engage, retain, and expand your client base. And not just through content, but through meaningful connection. Because customers become champions when you make them feel valued first.

Publisher

Jeff Reekers

Category

business · business

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

19 May 2025

Latest episode

18 Feb 2026

Latest episodes

11 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   18 Feb 2026

   Signals Beat Surveys When You Want Real Customer Truth

   Customer marketing can’t run on dashboards alone. It has to run on signals. Danielle Beeken (https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielle-beeken/), Customer marketing + Community Leader, formerly Global Director Customer Marketing and Advocacy at Culture Amp (https://www.cultureamp.com/), breaks down how the best teams spot intent before it shows up in NPS or renewal risk. Instead of blasting the same advocacy asks to everyone, Danielle shares how to read behavior, relationship, and community signals to know who’s ready, what to ask, and when to act. From identifying expansion readiness to building multiple champions inside an account, this episode is a practical playbook for moving from campaign-based advocacy to customer moments that actually convert. What you’ll learn: How to replace “big advocacy campaigns” with signal-based customer moments How community creates peer proof (and why it’s the fastest path to trust) Why relying on a single “superfan” champion is risky, and how to build a wider circle of advocates Episode Outline: (00:00) Meet Danielle Beeken (01:20) Danielle’s path from sales to customer-led growth (03:36) Storytelling that makes customers the hero (05:38) Turning community into advocacy (the right way) (09:11) Bringing community insights into the business (13:11) The “energy shift” that tells you it’s time (13:59) From usage to impact: sparking expansion and advocacy (14:22) Making customer success your advocacy multiplier (16:02) Winning over every stakeholder in the account (22:11) Danielle’s field-tested takeaways for customer marketers

2. 

   7 Jan 2026

   Driving NRR With Customer Marketing

   Net revenue retention doesn’t get fixed at renewal, it’s shaped long before the deal is signed. In this episode, Tyler Calder (https://www.linkedin.com/in/tylercalder/), Chief Marketing Officer at PartnerStack (https://partnerstack.com/), breaks down why NRR starts with marketing and how poor pipeline quality quietly creates churn months later. Drawing from hard-earned lessons across B2B, partnerships, and customer marketing, Tyler explains why targeting the right customers matters more than hitting pipeline numbers, and how ICP discipline can radically change retention, expansion, and CS efficiency. Tyler zooms into the operational backbone behind strong customer marketing: segmentation, enablement, measurement, and saying no when needed. He shares how PartnerStack evolved customer marketing from a reactive support function into a revenue-driving engine, how marketing can influence expansion pipeline and product adoption, and why relationships only scale when paired with rigor. What you’ll learn: Why NRR starts with marketing, not renewals How pipeline quality directly impacts churn and expansion Ways to segment customers to focus on real growth potential Episode Outline: (00:00) Why NRR starts with marketing, not renewals (00:35) Introducing Tyler Calder, CMO at PartnerStack (01:42) Tyler’s path from finance to revenue-driven marketing (04:05) Early lessons from Eloqua, agencies, and partnerships (06:20) Partnerships and customer marketing as operational functions (09:40) Segmentation, focus, and the 80/20 problem (11:01) How pipeline quality impacts churn and NRR (14:05) Defining ICP and fixing retention at the top of the funnel (18:59) Building customer marketing as a revenue engine (24:08) Measuring expansion, adoption, and NRR effectively (29:40) Owning the story: elevating customer marketing’s role

3. 

   26 Nov 2025

   Turning Advocacy into Acquisition with Rodrigo Souto

   Demand gen and customer marketing are often seen as separate. But what happens when they work as one? Rodrigo Souto (https://www.linkedin.com/in/rodrigosoutomarketing/), Senior Director of Demand Generation at Zappi (https://www.zappi.io/web/) and former customer marketing leader at HubSpot, shares lessons from a career leading global programs across advocacy, PLG, and demand. At HubSpot, he built a unique playbook for tying customer marketing to revenue by connecting proof, product, and performance. Now at Zappi, Rodrigo is leading both demand gen and customer marketing together, proving how aligned teams drive faster results. He breaks down why references and expansion are underrated growth levers, how to show impact with limited resources, and where AI helps scale without losing the human touch. What you’ll learn: Why putting customer marketing under demand gen unlocks budget and attribution How to prove the revenue impact of advocacy programs (even with small teams) Why scaling starts with deep customer understanding, not just more content Episode Outline: (00:00) Introducing Rodrigo Souto (00:41) Rodrigo’s path from HubSpot to Zappi (05:29) Lessons from international markets and product-led growth (10:25) Leading demand gen with a customer-first mindset (12:36) Why customer marketing now reports into demand gen (14:54) Breaking down the budget and attribution challenge in customer marketing (19:00) References and referrals as clear revenue levers (23:52) How to use AI to scale output without losing human touch (27:52) Getting started with revenue-backed customer marketing (29:44) Practical advice for growing into a marketing leadership role (33:55) Closing thoughts on strategy, trust, and leadership in customer marketing

4. 

   8 Oct 2025

   Building Customer Advocacy That Lasts Beyond the Funnel with Lauren Turner

   Customer advocacy is often measured like demand gen, but what if it’s closer to brand? Lauren Turner (https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurenturnermba/), CEO and Founder of CustomerCentrx (https://www.customercentrx.com/), explains why advocacy is a long-term play, how communities can unlock retention rates as high as 99%, and why even unhappy customers can become your strongest allies when they feel heard. She also zooms into the importance of breaking down silos between marketing, success, sales, and product so customers experience one cohesive brand, not a fragmented one. Lauren shares practical strategies for proving advocacy’s impact without relying on vanity metrics, plus how to embed advocacy into company culture from day one. And, in a fun twist, she draws lessons from improv comedy on active listening, iteration, and silencing your inner critic, which are skills every customer marketer can use. What you’ll learn: How communities can drive retention rates as high as 99% Ways to turn unhappy customers into loyal advocates Practical strategies to measure advocacy’s impact without vanity metrics Episode Outline: (00:00) Community as advocacy at scale (00:32) Introducing Lauren Turner and CustomerCentrx (01:27) From product to marketing to advocacy (03:11) Why advocacy is more like brand than demand gen (04:34) Long-term relationship plays vs. short-term revenue goals (07:43) Turning unhappy customers into loyal allies (09:36) Where to start when building a customer marketing function (13:12) Breaking silos: aligning CS, marketing, sales, and product (18:08) Measuring advocacy’s impact without vanity metrics (24:25) How AI can support, but not replace, human connection (29:56) Improv, balance, and lessons outside of work

5. 

   1 Oct 2025

   Driving Growth Through Customer Centricity with Emily Cid

   Customer success and customer marketing are often seen as separate functions. But what happens when they work as one? Emily Cid (http://linkedin.com/in/emily-cid), Senior Director of Customer Success at Champion (https://www.championhq.com/), shares her journey from account executive to customer advocacy leader, offering an inside look at what it takes to build human-first, revenue-aligned teams. With experience across sales, success, and marketing, Emily reveals how aligning internal teams around customer outcomes drives both retention and growth. Emily zooms in on practical ways CS and marketing can partner more effectively: from shared KPIs to advocacy programs that actually scale. Plus, she shares how curiosity and empathy power everything from strategy to leadership. What you’ll learn: How to unite customer success and marketing to drive advocacy and impact Why shared KPIs are critical for customer-led growth How to lead with a human-first mindset while delivering business outcomes Episode Outline: (00:00) The power of curiosity in customer relationships (01:05) Introducing Emily Cid and her customer-first career path (03:02) What drew Emily to Champion and the customer-led growth mission (04:35) The common thread across her AE, CS, and marketing roles (06:31) Building empathy across siloed teams (08:18) The missing connection between CS and customer marketing (09:45) What real customer centricity looks like in practice (11:20) Advocacy as a CS metric and force multiplier (13:16) Proving impact through measurable advocacy outcomes (17:06) How multiple champions in an account impact retention (18:16) Making customers successful in the new AI era (20:27) Human-first leadership and career development (23:29) Hot takes on what customer marketers get wrong (24:42) The future of customer marketing as a strategic function (26:20) Final advice for aspiring customer-centric leaders

6. 

   20 Aug 2025

   Turning Customers into Your Best Marketers with Taylor Bogar

   Customer marketing is about turning your happiest customers into your biggest growth engine. Taylor Bogar (https://www.linkedin.com/in/taylorbogar/), founder of Social Animal (https://www.socialanimal.co/), shares how she helps B2B brands build community-driven marketing strategies that generate real revenue. With a wealth of experience leading customer marketing at Apollo and Chili Piper, Taylor explains how to design advocacy programs that go beyond post-sale activities and create value for both customers and prospects. Taylor offers practical advice for building programs that start with truly knowing your customers, making them the hero of your story  and creating social proof that resonates in the market. What you’ll learn: How to design customer marketing programs that drive both community engagement and revenue Why making your customer the hero creates stronger social proof and brand trust How to tie advocacy and social strategies back to tangible business outcomes Episode Outline: (00:00) Introducing Taylor Bogar (01:43) Taylor's journey from Apollo to Social Animal (03:00) The entrepreneurial leap (06:20) Balancing entrepreneurship and family (12:23) Building successful customer advocacy programs (14:27) Revenue attribution in customer marketing (18:30) Mindset shifts for effective customer marketing (21:40) Getting started with customer marketing (24:49) Leveraging social media for customer marketing (25:32) The role of creativity in marketing

7. 

   30 Jul 2025

   Amplifying Advocacy for Lasting Impact with Brittnee Dawson

   Customer marketing is about creating meaningful connections with customers and building advocacy programs that drive business growth. Brittnee Dawson (https://www.linkedin.com/in/brittneedawson/), Director of Customer Marketing at AlphaSense (https://www.alpha-sense.com/), shares her expertise in the world of customer marketing and building impactful advocacy programs. With over a decade of experience, Brittnee discusses her journey from product management to customer marketing and the importance of connecting with customers in a human-centered way. She shares valuable insights on balancing creativity with business metrics, the power of data-driven decision-making, and how to leverage AI to enhance personalized customer connections. What you’ll learn: The importance of balancing creativity with data in customer marketing Tips for building internal alignment and trust across teams How AI is reshaping customer marketing and personalization strategies Episode Outline: (00:00) Introducing Brittnee Dawson (02:59) Defining customer marketing (04:03) Brittnee's career journey (05:04) Building customer marketing programs (06:28) Advocacy programs and success stories (12:04) Balancing human connection and AI (13:40) Internal alignment and communication (21:24) Future of customer marketing (27:45) The power of timing and the right  message

8. 

   16 Jul 2025

   Using Customer Voice to Drive Retention with JoAnne Baldwin

   Customer trust is built through life cycle marketing. JoAnne Baldwin (https://www.linkedin.com/in/baldwinjoanne/), Senior Manager of Customer Lifecycle Marketing at Bitly (https://bitly.com/), shares her journey in customer marketing and how she’s transformed onboarding programs into revenue-driving engines. She discusses the importance of building cross-functional relationships, creating programs that feel human, and the power of truly understanding the customer. JoAnne also explains how we can use empathy and data to drive retention, align teams, and enhance customer experience. What you’ll learn: How to foster cross-functional collaboration between marketing, sales, and customer success Practical tips for using empathy and data to enhance customer experience and communication The importance of listening to the customer voice and how it can shape successful marketing initiatives Episode Outline: (00:00) Introducing JoAnne Baldwin (01:20) Joanne's personal passions (02:33) Defining customer marketing (04:24) Onboarding success at PitchBook (07:15) Building trust with customers (11:36) Onboarding program at Bitly (15:44) Incorporating AI in marketing (23:54) Building internal trust and collaboration (41:17) Data is not clean

9. 

   2 Jul 2025

   Building Revenue Through Customer Advocacy with Taylor Page

   Taylor Page, Director of Customer and Growth Marketing at Kong, discusses building revenue through customer advocacy programs and aligning marketing efforts with customer success in this interview episode.

10. 

    18 Jun 2025

    How to Build Trust Through Customer Education with Shannon Howard

    Shannon Howard, Director at Intellum, discusses how customer education drives growth by delivering content that changes behavior and reaches the right people, in an interview.

11. 

    19 May 2025

    Are You Ready To Champion Your Customers?

    Jeff Reekers introduces the Customer Champions podcast, exploring how marketers transform customers into growth engines through customer advocacy.

Podcast Authority Score: 13 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

25

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

0

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Guest appearances

Does not typically book guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.