Event Marketing, Buyer-First Practices, and Growth Hacking

Demos aren’t discovery calls, dinner isn’t strategy, and “event marketer” isn’t code for planner

The latest GTM NewsDesk episode pulls zero punches: the Novatic Buyer-First Report sparks a firestorm on pricing transparency, broken demo flows, and the difference between personalization and performative AI fluff. Hosts Nick Bennett and Mark Kilens break down what most companies are still getting wrong about buyer journeys — and how most execs are still looking for pipeline without earning attention.

In Segment 2, they dismantle the current state of “growth hacking,” arguing that originality and creator-led community is the only durable moat in an oversaturated digital landscape. It’s not about optimizing channels anymore — it’s about building signal in a sea of spam.

Bethany Murphy from 6sense joins in Segment 3 to deliver a clinic on building people-first events. From ditching status-quo dinners to aligning cross-functional KPIs, she outlines exactly how events must evolve — and why treating them like products is the only way to drive ROI and retention.

Top Takeaways:

• Don’t make buyers sit through a faux discovery just to get pricing

• Growth hacking ≠ copying trends — originality is the new moat

• Field marketers aren’t planners — they’re pipeline architects

• Every event needs its own KPI strategy and ideal audience definition

• Events should feel designed, not default

EXCLUSIVE CONTENT