When Nike Forgot Who It Was
(And What CEOs Must Never Forget Again)
On this episode of GTM NewsDesk, hosts Nick Bennett and Mark Kilens dive into why customer-led growth (CLG) is emerging as a critical but underutilized revenue channel. They’re joined by Gianna from Champion, who breaks down how customer marketing, community, and advocacy can drive both pre- and post-sale impact—when done right.
Key headlines include Zendesk’s AI-powered CX stack and the launch of “Agency,” a new company helping CS teams scale with agentic AI. Both stories underscore the same theme: the future isn’t just automation—it’s empowerment. Teams need to offload the repetitive to focus on moments that matter.
Gianna outlines how most orgs treat CLG like a disconnected point solution (references, testimonials, case studies) rather than a cohesive growth motion. Her core point? CLG is a channel—just like inbound or outbound—and should be resourced, tracked, and aligned with business outcomes like win rate, time to close, and retention.
They also unpack the org chart question: Should customer marketing roll up under marketing, CS, or CROs? The answer: it depends on company context—but alignment is non-negotiable.
🔑 Key Insight: Influence matters. Customer marketers must become connective tissue between sales and CS—fueling deals, reducing churn, and surfacing insights that drive pipeline and renewals.
👇 Want to go deeper?
In the exclusive segment, Gianna shares how to map CLG to customer journey stages, activate champions, and educate the C-suite on why this strategy unlocks full-funnel impact.
