A consulting Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) enables organizations to maintain continuity and excellence during times of change or to “level up” the marketing function prior to a more permanent hire.
Many organizations struggle to define what they need from marketing, or they find their current team and systems aren’t a match for rapidly changing conditions. Identifying a new head of marketing, and the right head of marketing, can take a very long time, and in the meantime, opportunities slip by, and issues proliferate.
As a consulting Head of Marketing, we can jump in quickly to execute, strategize, and evolve the marketing function, ensuring that your marketing strategy is deeply integrated into your culture and optimized for your specific goals. We can right-size our allocation to fit your specific needs, and with our exceptional network, we can pull weight, navigate transition, and then seamlessly exit the business when the time’s right.
Our typical responsibilities include:
Marketing
- All outbound marketing
- All inbound marketing + analytics
- Product launches and major campaigns
- Channel strategies
- Agency management
- Long-term planning
- Brand positioning and messaging
- Product positioning and messaging
- Integration of nonprofit marketing, development, and board cultivation functions
Design
- Brand identity design + naming
- Product design
- Digital UX design
- Operations
Tools selection and implementation
- Cross-departmental business process design
- Functional and performance management of internal teams
- Internal training and mentoring
Case Studies
Synopsys Software Integrity
The Next Us worked with the Software Integrity business unit as an embedded team member to help the company position itself successfully in the application security market over a two-year period of rapid growth and expansion. We helped Synopsys integrate its storytelling and visual brand across all marketing and sales touch points and iteratively assimilate the assets of five major acquisitions: Coverity, Codenomicon, Protecode, Seeker, and Cigital.
During this engagement, Synopsys moved from a niche player in the application security space to one of the largest based on revenue, reputation and solution breadth. It also evolved its Software Integrity marketing approach from pure lead gen to a thoughtful mix of demand generation and brand-building at every step of the marketing funnel.
Responsibilities:
- Onsite marketing lead responsible for all aspects of brand strategy and outbound marketing
- Functional manager of all in-house creative resources and outside agencies
- Development and management of all core Synopsys Software Integrity outbound communication tools, including platform and product positioning, messaging architectures, sales decks, tradeshow training materials, visual brand style guides and templates
- Design of Software Integrity cross-channel brand campaigns
- Liaison to Synopsys Corporate Marketing for the year-long redesign of the Synopsys.com corporate website, including referring the final selected design agency and representing all Software Integrity technical, marketing, visual design, and information architecture needs and requirements
Zazzle
The Next Us worked with Zazzle as an embedded team member to help the company navigate a major transformation of its product, external brand, and internal culture.
In 2012, Zazzle was already a one-of-kind maker platform with a stellar track record and a bold vision for the future. The Next Us worked hands-on with the Zazzle leadership team on brand repositioning and served as interim Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) for two quarters.
As part of this project, The Next Us consulted on brand identity redesign and product experience redesign, and led the cross-channel marketing strategy and creative direction for Zazzle’s 2012 holiday campaign, which exceeded revenue and profitability benchmarks.
Nextag
The Next Us worked with Nextag for 4 years as an external brand consultant and embedded team member responsible for all brand strategy and outbound marketing.
Nextag was an early e-commerce pioneer with an incredible track record for profitability and resilience. Since its inception in the late 1990’s, the company used its data science and lead gen capabilities to help thousands of retailers and content providers maximize their revenue across every device and digital ecosystem. During our engagement, the company also managed a network of over a dozen consumer e-commerce sites worldwide.
Major responsibilities:
- Brand strategy, brand identity design, and messaging for all Nextag major consumer brands: Nextag, Wize.com, and Price Machine
- Positioning, rebranding, site design, and launch for the Wize Commerce corporate parent
- UX design consulting and ongoing optimization for all the brands above
- Onsite Brand Director responsible for all aspects of brand strategy and B2C / B2B outbound marketing (1-year appointment)
- Functional manager of all in-house creative resources and outside agencies
Community Youth Center San Francisco
The Next Us has worked with CYC continuously since 2019 as strategic advisor and consulting Head of Development and Marketing. Over the past five years, our key responsibilities have included:
- Leading the rebranding, repositioning, website redesign, and messaging development for the agency’s 50th anniversary
- Leading the design and execution of the Richmond Hub capital campaign
- Creating serial cornerstone content assets, including multiple annual reports, Executive Director and board speeches, annual gala materials, and major donor brochures
- Leading the business requirements, design, and/or configuration of key development and marketing systems: WordPress, Genesis, Classy, Slack, Constant Contact, Salesforce NPSP, iWave