Welcome to another episode of Category Visionaries — the show that explores GTM stories from tech's most innovative B2B founders. In today's episode, we're speaking with Chris Golec, CEO & Founder of Channel99, a B2B marketing platform that has raised $5 Million in funding.
Here are the most interesting points from our conversation:
- Early Career Shifts: Chris transitioned from chemical engineering to tech entrepreneurship, starting with his first company in 1996, Supplybase, focusing on B2B supply chain software.
- Birth of Account-Based Marketing (ABM): Chris was instrumental in coining and pioneering the ABM category with his company Demandbase, addressing the frustration of B2B marketers lacking targeted marketing technologies.
- Challenges of ABM: Chris discusses the initial struggles of gaining traction for ABM and how it eventually grew into a significant category in B2B marketing.
- Founding Channel99: After leaving Demandbase, Chris founded Channel99 to help B2B marketers measure the efficiency of their marketing spend and business outcomes.
- Remote Work Challenges: Chris expresses concerns about building a strong company culture remotely and the benefits of in-office collaboration for innovation and team bonding.
- Silicon Valley's Future: Despite some narratives about the decline of Silicon Valley, Chris believes the region's ecosystem of innovation and venture capital will remain strong.
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Sponsors:
Front Lines — We help B2B tech companies launch, manage, and grow podcasts that drive demand, awareness, and thought leadership.
The Global Talent Co. — We help tech startups find, vet, hire, pay, and retain amazing marketing talent that costs 50-70% less than the US & Europe.