121: B2B mktg's next chapter, caution from Acquia founder, WeWork + fraud, Supreme Court case re: LGBTQ, banks + private prisons
Happy Saturday! We're in Chicago for the USWNT game Sunday (watch it 1 p.m. CT on ESPN). It'll be the final match for legendary head coach Jill Ellis after her extremely successful run at the helm of the U.S. team.
In this edition of The World's Best Newsletter:
1. The next chapter of B2B marketing from someone who built the last one
2. Banks say no to the private prison sector
3. Don't be afraid to take a stand
4. This week in being LGBTQ at work
5. This week in being a woman at work
6. WeWork: Fraud?
7. Jay Batson's reflections after Acquia's Vista $1B acquisition
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1. The next chapter of B2B marketing from someone who built the last one
A new piece from Engagio's Jon Miller is making serious rounds on LinkedIn this week in which he warns:
...the B2B marketing that you know today is heading towards a shipwreck in 2020 and beyond. It’s time for marketers to adjust the sails.
Read the full article -- disclosure: client.
2. Banks say no to the private prison sector
Demonstrating the result of pressure from grassroots activists (#FamiliesBelongTogether coalition representing 10M people), shareholders, policymakers and investors:
"...Major banks supporting the private prisons behind mass incarceration and immigrant detention have now committed to not renew $2.4B in credit lines and term loans to industry giants GEO Group and CoreCivic."
Read more in Forbes.
The business model itself, when exposed, was a major factor in the public's outrage.
As a brief historical recap: the American private prison industry is a relatively new phenomenon, with the first private prison opening in 1984.
Given their business model depends on keeping a consistent and increasing number of people incarcerated, it's been speculated and critiqued that this is why GEO Group and CoreCivic have spent $25M on lobbying over the past three decades to push for harsher criminal justice and immigration laws.
A cycle emerges when one follows the money: everyday people put their money in banks, banks lend that money out to the private prison industry, the private prison industry uses that financing for their day to day work including lobbying, which successfully funnels more detainees into their facilities, and banks reap a payoff from their loans.
Sunlight, disinfectant, etc etc.
3. Don't be afraid to take a stand
This was not necessarily a principled move by banks, but rather made in response to public outcry and reputational risk - major threats and, luckily, still something we can leverage as consumers.
Knowing this, all brands need to be smart about the risks, and benefits, of taking a stand on societal issues.
My new piece for Chief Marketer digs into this. Give it a read?
4. This week in being LGBTQ at work
On Tuesday next week, the Supreme Court will consider whether someone can be fired for being gay. Specifically, they're looking at:
an existing federal law, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, [which] guarantees nationwide protection from workplace discrimination to gay and transgender people, even in states that offer no protections right now...
...The question for the justices is whether the landmark 1964 law’s prohibition of sex discrimination encompasses discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Lawyers for the gay and transgender plaintiffs say it does. Lawyers for the defendants and the Trump administration, which has filed briefs supporting the employers, say it does not.
5. This week in being a woman at work
Melinda Gates has committed $1 billion to "expanding women’s power and influence in the United States" over the next decade. Her reasoning:
Here’s what keeps me up at night: I imagine waking up one morning to find that the country has moved on. That the media has stopped reporting on systemic inequalities. That diversity remains something companies talk about instead of prioritizing. That all of this energy and attention has amounted to a temporary swell instead of a sea change.
That’s why, over the next ten years, I am committing $1 billion to expanding women’s power and influence in the United States.
I want to see more women in the position to make decisions, control resources, and shape policies and perspectives. I believe that women’s potential is worth investing in—and the people and organizations working to improve women’s lives are, too.
6. WeWork: Fraud?
On Monday, WeWork officially pulled its IPO in the face of alarming levels of negative public sentiment after details of its business came to light. (Sunlight... disinfectant...)
WeWork had recently filed paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission describing its business — a flexible office provider with a stated mission to “elevate the world’s consciousness” and $1.6 billion in losses last year — and had almost immediately become a punching bag at which seemingly anyone felt free to throw a jab.
Scott Galloway, professor of marketing at NYU Stern School of Business, asked an important question about WeWork: "at what point does malfeasance become fraud?"
7. Jay Batson's reflections after Acquia's Vista $1B acquisition
Jay Batson is the co-founder of Acquia which Vista Equity Partners made a move for last week at $1B. His reflection post is worth reading, especially this caution to startup founders:
We founders are repeatedly told to “validate” our businesses. But remember that it is just as (more?) likely you might *invalidate* the beliefs / assumptions you had about your opportunity. Think about that for a moment. You could be discovering that you do not have a business opportunity; what does that mean to you and potential investors? Are you digging the grave for your business?
Have a great weekend, and thank you as always for reading.
Katie
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The MarketingProfs B2B Forum is October 16-18 just outside of Washington DC. Check out the great lineup here and save $100 with code B2BFriend19.
Rising Stars 2019 is for women sales leaders (and future leaders). Join 100+ of your peers for a day of networking, connection, and learning. October 23 in Waltham, MA. I'm thrilled to be emceeing this important event!
West Coast! I'll be back in December for the Growth Marketing Conference, December 10-11 in San Francisco.