April 9, 2025 • 36 mins
TMSA’s On the Move Podcast – Featuring Mariana Vieth, Marketing Director at Kase and WSI
In this episode of TMSA’s On the Move, we sit down with Mariana Vieth, Marketing Director at Kase and WSI, to discuss the exciting launch of Kase and what it means for the logistics industry. Mariana shares insights into the brand’s vision, marketing strategies, and how it’s positioned to make an impact.
Beyond her work in marketing, Mariana is a passionate advocate for professional volunteering, actively contributing to both TMSA and IWLA. She shares how volunteering has helped her build connections, sharpen her skills, and elevate her career—proving that giving back can be just as rewarding professionally as it is personally. Tune in for an inspiring conversation about branding, leadership, and the power of getting involved in your industry.
Check out the Transportation Sales and Marketing Association (TMSA) website or engage with us on LinkedIn.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Hello everyone, welcome to On the Move, a show
where we share transportation,sales and marketing success
stories.
I am Jennifer Purpose Romain,executive Director at the
Transportation Marketing andSales Association, which is a
trade nonprofit educating andconnecting marketing and sales
professionals in transportationand logistics, and today on the
(00:45):
show I have Mariana Vieth,marketing Director at Case and
WSI, really excited to have youon the show.
We were just laughing before wewent live that we are doing
this interview in between yourvacation and my vacation.
So, but you know transportationnever sleeps, so here we are
doing our interview in the smallpocket of time.
(01:05):
But welcome to the show.
How are you doing today?
Speaker 2 (01:08):
Thank you.
Thank you, I'm great.
I'm happy to be back and wellrested and bright eyed and bushy
tailed for this interview.
Speaker 1 (01:17):
Awesome.
I do want to talk about yourexperience in transportation,
kind of what landed you here andwhat's kept you in the space.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
So that's a great question to start, because it's
part of the reason that I joinedthe TMSA at all is because I
don't have a ton oftransportation experience.
I've been in the supply chainspace and marketing for a little
over four years, focusingprimarily on warehousing and
(01:45):
fulfillment, and then there wasa transportation portion of the
business.
But about a year, year and ahalf ago, we made an acquisition
in the transportation space.
We, you know, kind of raisedsome of our goals and so I knew
I needed to step up my game.
So joining TMSA was part of mytrying to get more exposure,
trying to connect with morepeople.
(02:06):
But my actual background haslike nothing to do with
logistics.
Which I've recently found is alot of people's stories Like
they didn't go to school forsupply chain but they somehow
landed here, and that's whathappened to me too.
Speaker 1 (02:22):
Yes, I feel like people either are lifers their
families did it and so they didit or you happened into it.
You are slowly seeing morepeople going to supply chain,
yes, and in school, which iscool, like the the people coming
in, but I like that.
It's a good mix.
Everybody has their own story,which is, which is pretty
awesome and especially in salesand marketing.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
Like how many people went to school for like B2B
sales and marketing?
Just not really like a degreepeople are going to get.
So it's a unique and excitingspace to be in.
I'm actually I like to jokethat I'm a classically trained
social worker who became a notclassically trained
(03:07):
choreographer, dance instructorfor a decade running a small
business with my friends andthen a non classically trained
supply chain B2B marketer.
So it's like I go to school forone thing and then I'm like
this looks fun.
Speaker 1 (03:24):
Yes, I, it's always an interesting path.
I think about that a lot.
I started, I went to school forjournalism and I did that for a
long time, Still do that on theside.
I always did gravitate more tothe industrial spaces and things
like that.
So, like I'm not totallyshocked, I ended up in
transportation.
But I mean, the dream of courseI feel like for many
(03:45):
journalists is to like write forthe New York Times.
But once you like get out ofcollege you realize that that's
not going to actually happen formost everybody.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
So then what's the next dream, yeah, or that
there's like 10 other thingsthat could make you that happy
and fulfilled right.
I think for me, I kind of tendto be.
I gravitate towards wherethere's like a vacuum of like oh
, there's an opportunity here,this could really be something,
and it's just sitting there, noone's doing anything with it.
(04:16):
Like I will snag thatopportunity.
It's just like in my nature.
So even when I started at WSI,I was doing project management,
supporting sales and marketingand the pricing team.
Well, there was really not amarketing team at the time, but
sales and pricing, I guess ingetting a better proposal
process together, being able toturn them around faster, create
(04:38):
better materials, and thenrealized we could be doing a lot
more with marketing here.
There isn't really a fullybuilt out marketing department
or program and the supply chainspace.
It's not like we have a ton ofreally talented marketers in
this space.
A lot of them end up in thelike you know, the consumer
(05:01):
marketing side of things, and soI'm like I see an opportunity
here and I sagged it.
Speaker 1 (05:07):
I love that that's.
That's kind of how I've lived.
My life is I don't know what'sgoing to come next.
I don't really want to knowwhat's going to come next.
All I know is I want to beprepared for the opportunity so
that I can take it, and that'sjust how.
I've gone and so like it's beena very crazy path and I
wouldn't know what, I definitelywould have never anticipated
(05:29):
what my steps would have beenthroughout that, but I just knew
like.
That's like, if I'm unhappy in ajob or something like that, I'd
always be like, okay, how do Iabsorb every single thing I can
from this role, this position,this company, so that when I
take the next step it's a stepsomewhere else that will make me
happier, but I'll be morequalified, or I'll have more
skills or whatever that lookslike.
And so it seems that you kindof navigate that way too.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
Yeah, yeah, I mean coming from a totally different
field into this one.
I really didn't know what toexpect.
Like, am I going to like this,am I going to want to stick with
this long term?
But I also have this philosophythat, like everything I do, I
do it big.
You see the referenceEverything I do, I do it big.
(06:18):
So if I'm going to try this andtake a risk and like, take this
opportunity, I'm going to gohard.
So, four years later, I'm stillpretty committed and, like
having a great time building anawesome team.
I feel really, really fortunateto have landed where I am for
sure.
Speaker 1 (06:35):
Awesome and WSI recently launched Case, so now
you're director of marketing forboth and Case is a new order
fulfillment brand and I wouldlove to hear more about it and
what that means for your teamand the whole team at WSI and
Case.
Speaker 2 (06:49):
Yes, I'm so pumped, so pumped.
This has been a huge projectfor us and I'm extremely excited
for all of the opportunities itwill give for us in the future.
So when I started, WSI had doneorder fulfillment for years
like going way, way back but,like many other 3PLs, really
(07:10):
stepped it up.
In the e-commerce space rightaround the you know pandemic, it
was like everyone was like wehave an opportunity here.
We already had things set up.
So we're like, okay, let'sreally commit and invest some of
our resources in the space andmake our marketing actually
match the investments we'remaking in technology and all of
these other areas.
(07:31):
So I already knew from thebeginning it was a little bit of
a challenge and I know that WSIis not the only one facing this
.
Where you're trying to markete-commerce fulfillment services
while you had, for the lastseveral decades, really focused
on that, like industrial spaceand like the larger warehousing,
(07:52):
bulk storage, freight brokerage, small parcel and e-commerce
fulfillment is a bit of adifferent beast and definitely a
different audience and adifferent way you're going to
need to market to them.
So when WSI acquired ShippingTree and then we made the
decision to rebrand it, I waslike this is a great opportunity
(08:13):
for us to try some things withthis brand that the WSI voice
wouldn't have quite been able todo as well.
So we can have a unifiedcompany.
We have, you know, unifiedservices, shared services, that
we can leverage a unifiednetwork, but tailor our
messaging with the differentbrands based on what the
(08:35):
customer really wants and needsto hear.
So very customer focusedproject, which it should be, and
fun, fun for me and my team.
Speaker 1 (08:49):
And it can be a challenge.
I love that.
You think it's fun, but part ofthat is is the intrigue of the
challenge to do it, I'm sure,because doing new branding,
launching a new brand,especially under a bigger brand,
can present all kinds ofchallenges.
So what are some of the biggestthings you've learned through
the process?
Speaker 2 (09:09):
good question.
Yeah, of course it was.
It was stressful.
I'm not saying it was fun andeasy, it was fun and hard.
Would be cool to not do itagain for a while.
Like it's fine, but I thinkwhat's exciting about it is the
getting to like create something.
I've definitely always been acreative person, so being able
(09:30):
to create something from scratchbeen a creative person, so
being able to create somethingfrom scratch and I'm also like
an extreme extrovert and arebrand project is a very like
collaborative project, likeyou're not going to do it in a
vacuum and have it be successful.
Like you have to have thebuy-in from the full senior
leadership team you get to.
You have to get the buy-in ofthe rest of the employees.
(09:51):
You want to build pride aroundthe brand.
You want to communicate thebrand to your employees and your
customers and your prospects ina smart way.
And that challenge to me is funand exciting One, and I already
knew this, but it was like nowI'm really never going to forget
(10:12):
it that a brand is so much morethan a name, and I bring this
up because we had a list of like50 different names we could
have used for this company andif anyone's gone through this
process before, you'll know,like trademark is kind of a
(10:32):
nightmare.
Like buying the domain that likeexactly fits the name of your
company and is affordable, likethat's a whole process and you
know that was a little stressful, I'm not going to lie.
Like there were those momentswhere we're like, oh my gosh, we
got so far with one concept andthen it like falls through on
the legal side, but realizingthat we built so much of the
(10:53):
brand without a name and thenwe're able to find the name that
was like this is perfect, likethis fits and it all came
together but the name alonewasn't all of it.
The other thing I made notesdon't underestimate the time it
takes to project manage stuff.
(11:15):
And I think people a lot oftimes will say, well, I'm not a
project manager, but whether ornot you have that title, like as
a leader managing a projectlike this, like you have to
project manage it.
And it's not a nuisance, it's apriority.
So making sure that all of thepeople are doing the things that
they're supposed to be doing,managing the timelines, managing
(11:36):
expectations, really puttingthe time is key.
It should not be anafterthought, it needs to be a
(11:57):
priority but I'm also a littlebiased because, in addition to
being marketing director, myrole includes corporate
communications, internal comms,so I'm passionate about both.
Speaker 1 (12:09):
I think that's really important and I was just
thinking about it is so muchmore than a name and it has to
fit in with the other things too.
Like I remember, so I've beenexecutive director since
November of 2021.
And since then, like, tmsa hashad its brand but we rebranded
(12:31):
like the Elevate conference.
That was always just annualconference and so then it was
like Elevate and then I was like, okay, we want to do a podcast.
So now that's on the move andwe have our newsletter.
That's moving forward.
And our, we rebranded the awardprogram and that's Rising Stars,
mountain Movers, trailblazersand all of those.
They all are different, theyall have movement in them.
(12:53):
I don't know if people haveactually realized that to the
degree that I have sat andthought about it.
Like it there, everything hassome type of movement, even like
our DEI committee that youserve on the tree.
Like the committee, the name isjust a name, right, it may
evolve, it may change orwhatever, but our, our icon of
the tree the roots are buildingdown and the tree is building up
(13:17):
.
There's movement.
That's why I proved that therewas like multiple iterations of
that logo when we went throughthat.
I'm like I want the tree,because the tree represents
movement up and down, groundingyourself in a community and
building yourself up.
Like it it is.
There's so much thought behindit and it's more than just a
name.
But how does it stand alone,how can it incorporate itself in
all of the pieces?
Speaker 2 (13:38):
yeah, well, even the awards, like I couldn't name all
of them from memory, but Iremember they have the same logo
in the background.
You just changed the colors torepresent the different
categories, right, like thatkind of thing, yeah.
Speaker 1 (13:53):
And I mean you'll.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
You'll notice too, if you look at the case website
and the case logo mark and allof that, that the co-branded
identity of WSI and case likethey're not the same but they
look like they belong together.
They you know signify thatunity for sure.
Speaker 1 (14:11):
Yeah, I think that's so important both.
Like you said, internal commsis also a passion, I feel like.
Then your teams, like ifthere's people that are just at
wsi, just that case, oroverlapping, they need to know
how these these things playtogether too.
And so I love when those visualrepresentations match that,
because I think there gets to bea lot of confusion, both
internally and externally, whenthey don't.
(14:32):
And you see that a lot withacquisitions that acquire over
and over and over and over, andthen they don't work on any of
the blending portions of that,which can get really tricky.
Speaker 2 (14:42):
For sure, and I think I have to give a big shout out
to our HR and organizationaldevelopment teams at WSI because
they were incrediblycollaborative with the marketing
team and our president, oursenior leadership, in really
thinking about how does thisrebrand help us meet our goals
(15:03):
right, like our growth and likeour revenue goals, and how are
we going to win new customerswith this branding.
But also, how is this going tomake our employees feel about
the merging of the companiestogether under one culture.
How does this represent who weare internally and how we the
values that we live by and howrooting for this?
(15:23):
You know like it's going to behard to get that externally, so
I'm super proud of, internally,the work that we've done to
(15:44):
really collaborate with alldepartments.
Speaker 1 (15:47):
I think that's fantastic.
I think too often the brandconversation only sits in
marketing.
But you have to have thatbuy-in.
You have to.
The senior leadership has to bethere.
And you're right, the wholegoal is for the company to, at
the end of the day is to makemoney.
So we continue to have acompany, you know, like that's
what you need to do, so, yeah,it's business, like that's the
(16:10):
goal.
And so understanding how allthose pieces work together,
having the buy-in from seniorleadership all the way down to
everyone in the company,remembering that the employees
are a piece of that, I thinkit's really important.
It sounds like that was how youguys navigated that, which is
really cool, absolutely andobviously you know being
internal comms and also justtalking through that culture and
(16:30):
employees and things like that.
I do want to talk aboutprofessional development a bit
and what are some of the bestways to engage and learn in the
industry.
So now, as you said, you'vebeen here for four years.
Tmsa was one of the things youcame to to kind of learn more.
But how have you navigated?
What are some advice you havefor other people trying to
develop?
Speaker 2 (16:49):
more.
Yeah, I was thinking about thisquestion in advance of this
interview and I realized thatwhat works for me is not going
to work for everybody, because Iam a very social person, I'm
social butterfly, and I learnlike this having conversations
with people who I think knowsomething more than I do are
(17:11):
better at something than I amWatching how someone does
something.
Collaborating with someone Someothers might prefer, you know,
reading some professionaldevelopment books or attending a
webinar or something I like thenetworking.
Networking is a way that Ilearn.
When I started in this industry, I had no network.
(17:31):
I was brand new, right, and soI focused on developing the
internal network in the company,like reaching out, introducing
myself, trying to make somefriends go to some people that I
could go to, when you knowyou're looking for the answer to
something and you're like I'mkind of embarrassed to ask, but
I know.
I have three people who won'tjudge me for asking the question
.
Like developing networks, likeI focus on that right away, but
(17:56):
like my personal mission in life, I've done some work to
identify this and I know it's tobuild community.
So I've done that as a socialworker.
I did that in the dance world.
Now I'm doing it in thelogistics space, like if I'm
building community then I'mhappy.
Right, I could do that indifferent functions.
So right now I'm doing thatthrough my marketing and
(18:17):
communications work.
But in order to build community, I have to meet people.
I have to connect with peopleand just meeting someone and
shaking hands is like that's nota connection, that's just an
introduction.
So when I joined, I joined IWLAwell, wsi was already a member,
(18:37):
but I was like I'm going to getinvolved, like there's a
marketing special interest group, I'm signing up, you know,
finding out about TMSA, which Ifound out about through IWLA and
I was like, okay, I'm going tojoin, I'm going to attend the
event and I'm going to find thatDEI committee and I'm going to
serve, be introduced to vendorsthat have been super helpful,
(19:00):
like writers that can help withour content strategy, make
(19:21):
connections with people thathelped us with like lead gen
campaigns, and it's beenincredibly, incredibly valuable
being invited to speak on thingslike this.
I also think helps in myprofessional development because
, even if I feel like, okay, I'mreally confident in this topic,
but I'm about to talk in frontof a bunch of people about it,
(19:41):
so I'm going to do that extraresearch and I'm going to be
really confident on this topic,now, that's not going to work
for everybody, but it's workedfor me.
Speaker 1 (19:52):
Yeah, I think that's really great advice.
And even what I have been mostsurprised by, I think, doing
this show and I, I know this,but I wasn't thinking about it
is there so many marketingdirectors that come on and
they're like like, at the endthey're like, okay, how was I?
That was my first podcast I'veever done, or something like
that, which has been I'm like,oh yeah, because our jobs as
(20:14):
marketers typically it's likepush our president put someone
else in front of me and we standin the corner and just make
sure they don't say anythingterrible, you know, and so it,
because that was definitelycoming to TMSA and becoming the
executive director.
That was 100% the hardest shiftfor me.
I was not a leader.
I was not an executive leader.
I was a director of marketingwho did that.
(20:37):
But I made sure other peoplewent and talked, I made sure our
content was great, Our boothlooked great, all of those
things, but I was not thethought leader I could do.
I would come to TMSA and Iwould speak there because I was
the marketing person, so like,but so I was professionally
developing in TMSA too, but thatwasn't a piece.
And so suddenly, yes, likebeing seen as the leader and
(20:59):
people noticing me in a room,it's like, oh okay, like that's
a whole different ballgame nowand so.
But that's been a really coolpart of this podcast for me is
because I do think thatmarketing and salespeople have
such perspective and such valueand are thought leaders and they
are following trends andthey're doing all these things
that people outside of ourlittle pocket might not realize
how much they're actually doing.
(21:19):
So I love leaving a space forthem to share that here.
Yeah, it's amazing.
(21:45):
Thanks for having just doubleasked the question.
You volunteer in both places.
What do you do there and howdoes it bring you value to your
career?
That's a better question.
Speaker 2 (21:55):
I volunteer in three places.
So there's the show off.
She's extra Okay, oh man, tryhard over here.
So actually I started with IWLA, with the marketing SIG,
attended the marketing workshopand kind of helped just pitch
(22:18):
with like ideas for things wecould do, and one of the things
that has helped me, I think,with that, or I should say I
kind of take advantage of itright, as I'm like, hey, if I'm
going to volunteer to help planthis, I'm going to make sure
that the topics that I want tohear about are on that agenda.
So that's one thing right, likebeing able to come and say, hey
(22:40):
, I want to know how otherpeople are dealing with their
budget struggles right now, canwe hear from this person?
Can we recruit this person tocome speak?
Can we, you know, organize theschedule to include a roundtable
discussion?
Like, I kind of got to helptailor the experience I get to
have by influencing the scheduleand the planning of the event
(23:03):
and then, with the TMSA andworking on the diversity, equity
and inclusion initiatives, notonly have I met a ton of really
amazing people, but have alsolearned about some struggles
that some of our peers and othercompanies in the industry are
(23:24):
having that are similar to whatwe are having, or that, hey,
we've been able to solve this orthey've been able to solve this
.
And can we share some tips witheach other?
A lot of it has been aroundlike how we communicate these
things, like how we talk aboutthese things, um, how do we get
this message out in a way that's, you know, going to be really
digestible, um, that won't putanybody off, um, and is really
(23:49):
focused on like positive,uplifting, building and
improving.
Upskilling, I think, is one ofthe terms that I've heard
recently.
Our industry, and then also Iwent to the Women in Supply
Chain Forum and started torealize like, oh, hey, I know
you because I met you at thisother event.
(24:11):
I know you, I met you at thisother event, got introduced to a
couple different people, gotintroduced to Sarah Barnes
Humphrey through TMSA and now Iactually also volunteer with
Blended.
Speaker 1 (24:22):
Oh awesome, I love that.
Speaker 2 (24:25):
I'm the chair of the volunteer committee for the
Blended Pledge with a mission ofbringing more diverse voices to
industry stages and kind ofbreaking down barriers.
So it's a lot of work, I'm notgoing to lie and it is volunteer
right Like this is like on topof my regular work.
So I'm not going to act likeit's all easy peasy.
(24:48):
But I had, if I did not havewsi today, I would be very sad.
But I would also have, you know, 30 other people that I've now
made friendships with in theseother areas that I know I could
lean on for support and advice.
And I know I could lean on forsupport and advice and I
(25:10):
wouldn't trade that.
I would do it again.
I would put in all thevolunteer hours to also just
have that feeling of likefulfillment, you know.
Speaker 1 (25:20):
Yeah, I do.
I mean, that's how I came toTMSA, was as a member and
getting involved, and it's wherethe passion comes in the people
.
Because you do, they becomeyour real life friends.
I actually was looking theother day, like the people I
talk to on a daily basis between, like my friends and family so
many of them are TMSA peoplethat just have, you know, become
(25:43):
a part of my real life too,which is something.
Yeah, the slack is nice, whichis something.
Yeah, the slack is nice.
Yeah, yeah, it is yes, we havea TMSA slack and we do.
Each committee has their ownspace and so you can talk to
your committees.
You can also talk in thegeneral spaces.
I think it's really cool to beable to connect and network and
just even just oh, hey, who'sgoing to this industry show or
(26:05):
who's doing this?
And so you said before aboutbuilding a community, and that's
really what we try to be andwhat we try to help our members
be so really excited about that,and we are, of course, thankful
for all the work that you'reputting in for us, and I do
think having you volunteer inother places help, um, us all
grow together because you know,then there there's oh yeah, this
(26:27):
is what people over in the morewarehousing side are saying,
and and this is giving thatfeedback, which is great yeah,
well and hey you are going to becoming to speak at the IWLA
marketing workshop.
I am.
I am as well.
So I am coming to be thekeynote speaker at the IWLA
(26:50):
Marketing Summit, which is July10th through 11th in Orlando.
I do have the IWLA website QRcode right there for anyone that
is interested in scanning.
I'm really excited.
I have heard about the IWLAMarketing Summit for the past
couple of years and it justnever.
That time in July is typicallywhen I either like have to like
get a surgery, or like I go onvacation, like it's.
(27:13):
It's like four weeks afterelevate, and so it's like, okay,
I've paid all my bills, I'veread all the surveys, like I can
close things out and take aweek off work.
So it just has not worked forthe past couple of years.
And they've asked me but this,I'm like you know what?
We're just so we're going onspring break this year, hence
why I will be gone for this week.
And so I was like, oh, I willactually have July open this
(27:35):
year.
So, let's talk about it.
I'm so excited.
I have wanted to go for thepast couple of years but, as
part of that group, can you tellus more about this event, what
people can expect from it?
Speaker 2 (27:55):
Yeah, I really love it because it's always a smaller
setting, so it's not like a bigconvention, it really is a
workshop vibe.
So I think in the past we'vehad like maybe 50 people a lot
more like small groupdiscussions and like let's, you
know, do a case study and likereally figure out how we would
solve.
This just feels more intimate.
And also speaking of like thevalue of doing these things and
(28:16):
joining these organizations,this year I am bringing someone
from my team and I was like hey,you are a rock star, you should
speak at this event, like otherpeople should hear what you
have to say, because you'reamazing and I'm pumped.
So you'll be hearing from MaryBerko at this year's event on
(28:37):
our content strategy and I'mhoping that will also help her
get some value out of theconnections and the friendships
too.
Speaker 1 (28:46):
I love that.
I love workshop style events,and that's, yes, like I have a
part.
That's like speaking bestpractices for smaller marketing
teams, how to maximizeefficiencies really, I can't
wait, you have and then alsodoing it as like a workshop and
like being like hey, like this,this is what we have going on.
How would you use the situation?
(29:09):
What would you do All that kindof stuff?
So like really walking peoplethrough it, cause I am a
hands-on learner myself, so Ilike being able to okay, let me
sit and listen to what thisperson's saying, but how do I
actually apply that?
So I'm pretty pumped about it.
I'm excited and honored to beable to do it and to be
interested to lead thatconversation.
So I'm excited and honored tobe able to do it and to be
(29:30):
interested to lead thatconversation.
So I'm really excited.
Speaker 2 (29:33):
I can't wait.
I can't wait for it.
I suggested we do a session onlike your biggest marketing
fails, because you know we allhave that story that we're like
oh my gosh that one time Ithought I had the campaign
running and I didn't, and orthat one time when I ran ad copy
and it was wrong.
We always have so much to learnfrom those.
(29:54):
I can't wait to hear otherpeople's.
Speaker 1 (29:58):
Yeah, I mean it's so.
It's honestly one of thereasons why I like to run the
marketing and sales group,because anytime I feel like we
make those blunders, like peoplejust understand and they're
like we understand.
Where do we need to go to?
Now like it's it's more, it's amore of an understanding group
than I think other places,because we've done that.
(30:21):
You know, like we at one timewe accidentally sent out we were
like reworking our workflows inHubSpot and it sent out like a
mass email that was supposed togo to like 20 people.
Speaker 2 (30:31):
It did not, it went to the entire database and I'm
like cool, cool, cool, cool,okay, um but you know, I work so
public like when you everythingyou're doing like marketing
communications, it's very likeout there you put something out,
it's for like thousands ofpeople to see it.
Like you send an email, youknow.
So it's it is like very you'rein the spotlight.
And when you're in thespotlight like sometimes people
(30:53):
you're you're not going toalways be on point.
Um, we want to be on point asmuch as we can, but so much of
like marketing also isexperimentation and to
experiment and only have successis like that's not real life.
Like you're going to experimentSome things are going to work
and some things are going.
Like that's not real life, likeyou're going to experiment.
Some things are going to workand some things are going to not
.
So I'm pumped to hear, like,what are the other things people
(31:14):
have tried and failed at?
Maybe I don't have to try andfail, cause I'll learn from them
.
Speaker 1 (31:20):
That's always like if we like we'll do a lot of like
case study type sessions at atour shows, and I'm always like
also put what you did and youhad to adapt.
Like don't just put the wins inthere, even if you don't want
to like fully reveal the fullloss, but at least like be.
Like when did you have to pivotsomething?
Or like did you have to changethe ad copy because that wasn't
(31:41):
working?
like I feel like that's just asvaluable of being like hey, we
did this and it was awesome,okay, but like when?
Like when did you have the?
Yeah?
When did you have to adjust thecopy?
Or did you realize, oh okay,this actually are was terrible
in email form.
So we're going to stick tosocial or whatever it is, but
how did you learn that?
Because that's a piece of thepuzzle too.
Speaker 2 (32:02):
I have this practice.
I like journaling and every yearat the end of the year, every
year that I've worked at WSI, atthe end of the year, I write
like my reflection on the yearand it'll include like a summary
of like here's what our likemarketing plan was for the year,
here's what I accomplished,here's what I didn't accomplish
(32:23):
and and it's like it was nevermeant for like anyone else's
eyes but my own.
So I'm just like I had no ideawhat I was doing here, Like this
was a mistake, but it's beenfunny because I go back then and
like read last year's learningsand it's actually really
encouraging because I can seethe progression.
(32:44):
I can look back and be likeactually I was on point with
this.
I just needed to wait longer.
Like you know, or well, I gaveup on that idea too quick.
I should try that again withthis.
You know change.
And then I actually reported toour VP of sales and marketing
for the first three-ish yearsand then we got a VP of
(33:05):
marketing.
So the role was split and youknow what One of the first
things I did is share thatdocument with him.
Speaker 1 (33:12):
I was like what do I have to?
Speaker 2 (33:13):
lose.
He's going to look all up in mySOPs, anyways, like he's going
to look at all the historicaldata, anyways.
Like here you go, buddy, I cantell you.
Here's where I didn't know whatI was doing.
Here's where I do.
Speaker 1 (33:27):
And this is what I've learned since which is great.
Yeah Well, thank you so muchfor all that you're doing here
at TMSA and in the industry.
I do have one last questionthat I ask everyone who comes on
the show, and you've beenpretty open and honest, so I'm
actually curious where thisquestion will go with you.
But if you could go back intime and advise your younger
(33:50):
self anything, personally orprofessionally, when would you
go back to and what would youtell?
Speaker 2 (33:56):
her.
I think I would probably goback to college, madi, and I
would ask her to think aboutwhat she wants her actual, like
day to day life to feel like.
I think I focused a lot when Iwas younger on like, what, what
(34:20):
am I passionate about, which isimportant?
Right, and where do I think Ihave great skills, which I think
is important?
And I don't know that I spentenough time thinking about like,
yeah, but what do I think Ihave great skills, which I think
is important, and I don't knowthat I spent enough time
thinking about like, yeah, butwhat do I actually want to be
doing day to day?
You know, and I don't regrethow my life turned out by any
(34:41):
means, but I would have maybecut myself a little more slack,
I think, had I gone back to say,yeah, I want to spend more of
my time, you know, beingcreative, I want to spend more
of my time, or I want to.
I know that I want to get homeand have dinner with my family,
(35:01):
like that's a priority.
I should.
I should think about that whenI'm making a career decision,
right, that kind of stuff.
But frankly, like knowing me,even if, like future, madi
showed up and was, like girl,you need to do this and this and
this, I'd be like don't tell mewhat to do, I'm going to figure
it out for myself.
And then I would have just donewhat I want to do anyway.
Speaker 1 (35:27):
Yeah, sometimes we have to learn things the hard
way or we don't realize it.
What we want or need like ittook me a long time to be like
you.
You should just never work inan office.
It does not work for you,period.
Okay, I accept that.
Now that was annoying andsocial work.
Speaker 2 (35:45):
I'm like, I'm empathetic, I connect with
people, I'm passionate abouthelping people.
It's like, okay, but that meansevery day you're going to be
seeing people be really sad,every day you're going to be
around people who are goingthrough a really hard time.
And then I was like, oh, like,yeah, that's.
I don't know if I can do that.
I'm going to go home very sadevery day.
Speaker 1 (36:04):
I'm going to go home very sad every day.
Speaker 2 (36:08):
Yeah so.
Speaker 1 (36:10):
Well, I'm glad that you have found your path into
logistics because it is funhaving you around and I'm
excited for Elevate to be comingup June 8th through 10th, and
then the IWL marketing is thenext month, july 10th through
11th.
So all exciting things comingup and thank you so much for
coming on the show.
Happy to have you, thank you.
Speaker 2 (36:29):
It's coming on the show.
Happy to have you.
Thank you, it's nice chattingwith you.
Speaker 1 (36:32):
Enjoy your vacation, thank you have a good one, bye.
Hello everyone, welcome to On the Move, a show
where we share transportation,sales and marketing success
stories.
I am Jennifer Purpose Romain,executive Director at the
Transportation Marketing andSales Association, which is a
trade nonprofit educating andconnecting marketing and sales
professionals in transportationand logistics, and today on the
(00:45):
show I have Mariana Vieth,marketing Director at Case and
WSI, really excited to have youon the show.
We were just laughing before wewent live that we are doing
this interview in between yourvacation and my vacation.
So, but you know transportationnever sleeps, so here we are
doing our interview in the smallpocket of time.
(01:05):
But welcome to the show.
How are you doing today?
Speaker 2 (01:08):
Thank you.
Thank you, I'm great.
I'm happy to be back and wellrested and bright eyed and bushy
tailed for this interview.
Speaker 1 (01:17):
Awesome.
I do want to talk about yourexperience in transportation,
kind of what landed you here andwhat's kept you in the space.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
So that's a great question to start, because it's
part of the reason that I joinedthe TMSA at all is because I
don't have a ton oftransportation experience.
I've been in the supply chainspace and marketing for a little
over four years, focusingprimarily on warehousing and
(01:45):
fulfillment, and then there wasa transportation portion of the
business.
But about a year, year and ahalf ago, we made an acquisition
in the transportation space.
We, you know, kind of raisedsome of our goals and so I knew
I needed to step up my game.
So joining TMSA was part of mytrying to get more exposure,
trying to connect with morepeople.
(02:06):
But my actual background haslike nothing to do with
logistics.
Which I've recently found is alot of people's stories Like
they didn't go to school forsupply chain but they somehow
landed here, and that's whathappened to me too.
Speaker 1 (02:22):
Yes, I feel like people either are lifers their
families did it and so they didit or you happened into it.
You are slowly seeing morepeople going to supply chain,
yes, and in school, which iscool, like the the people coming
in, but I like that.
It's a good mix.
Everybody has their own story,which is, which is pretty
awesome and especially in salesand marketing.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
Like how many people went to school for like B2B
sales and marketing?
Just not really like a degreepeople are going to get.
So it's a unique and excitingspace to be in.
I'm actually I like to jokethat I'm a classically trained
social worker who became a notclassically trained
(03:07):
choreographer, dance instructorfor a decade running a small
business with my friends andthen a non classically trained
supply chain B2B marketer.
So it's like I go to school forone thing and then I'm like
this looks fun.
Speaker 1 (03:24):
Yes, I, it's always an interesting path.
I think about that a lot.
I started, I went to school forjournalism and I did that for a
long time, Still do that on theside.
I always did gravitate more tothe industrial spaces and things
like that.
So, like I'm not totallyshocked, I ended up in
transportation.
But I mean, the dream of courseI feel like for many
(03:45):
journalists is to like write forthe New York Times.
But once you like get out ofcollege you realize that that's
not going to actually happen formost everybody.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
So then what's the next dream, yeah, or that
there's like 10 other thingsthat could make you that happy
and fulfilled right.
I think for me, I kind of tendto be.
I gravitate towards wherethere's like a vacuum of like oh
, there's an opportunity here,this could really be something,
and it's just sitting there, noone's doing anything with it.
(04:16):
Like I will snag thatopportunity.
It's just like in my nature.
So even when I started at WSI,I was doing project management,
supporting sales and marketingand the pricing team.
Well, there was really not amarketing team at the time, but
sales and pricing, I guess ingetting a better proposal
process together, being able toturn them around faster, create
(04:38):
better materials, and thenrealized we could be doing a lot
more with marketing here.
There isn't really a fullybuilt out marketing department
or program and the supply chainspace.
It's not like we have a ton ofreally talented marketers in
this space.
A lot of them end up in thelike you know, the consumer
(05:01):
marketing side of things, and soI'm like I see an opportunity
here and I sagged it.
Speaker 1 (05:07):
I love that that's.
That's kind of how I've lived.
My life is I don't know what'sgoing to come next.
I don't really want to knowwhat's going to come next.
All I know is I want to beprepared for the opportunity so
that I can take it, and that'sjust how.
I've gone and so like it's beena very crazy path and I
wouldn't know what, I definitelywould have never anticipated
(05:29):
what my steps would have beenthroughout that, but I just knew
like.
That's like, if I'm unhappy in ajob or something like that, I'd
always be like, okay, how do Iabsorb every single thing I can
from this role, this position,this company, so that when I
take the next step it's a stepsomewhere else that will make me
happier, but I'll be morequalified, or I'll have more
skills or whatever that lookslike.
And so it seems that you kindof navigate that way too.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
Yeah, yeah, I mean coming from a totally different
field into this one.
I really didn't know what toexpect.
Like, am I going to like this,am I going to want to stick with
this long term?
But I also have this philosophythat, like everything I do, I
do it big.
You see the referenceEverything I do, I do it big.
(06:18):
So if I'm going to try this andtake a risk and like, take this
opportunity, I'm going to gohard.
So, four years later, I'm stillpretty committed and, like
having a great time building anawesome team.
I feel really, really fortunateto have landed where I am for
sure.
Speaker 1 (06:35):
Awesome and WSI recently launched Case, so now
you're director of marketing forboth and Case is a new order
fulfillment brand and I wouldlove to hear more about it and
what that means for your teamand the whole team at WSI and
Case.
Speaker 2 (06:49):
Yes, I'm so pumped, so pumped.
This has been a huge projectfor us and I'm extremely excited
for all of the opportunities itwill give for us in the future.
So when I started, WSI had doneorder fulfillment for years
like going way, way back but,like many other 3PLs, really
(07:10):
stepped it up.
In the e-commerce space rightaround the you know pandemic, it
was like everyone was like wehave an opportunity here.
We already had things set up.
So we're like, okay, let'sreally commit and invest some of
our resources in the space andmake our marketing actually
match the investments we'remaking in technology and all of
these other areas.
(07:31):
So I already knew from thebeginning it was a little bit of
a challenge and I know that WSIis not the only one facing this
.
Where you're trying to markete-commerce fulfillment services
while you had, for the lastseveral decades, really focused
on that, like industrial spaceand like the larger warehousing,
(07:52):
bulk storage, freight brokerage, small parcel and e-commerce
fulfillment is a bit of adifferent beast and definitely a
different audience and adifferent way you're going to
need to market to them.
So when WSI acquired ShippingTree and then we made the
decision to rebrand it, I waslike this is a great opportunity
(08:13):
for us to try some things withthis brand that the WSI voice
wouldn't have quite been able todo as well.
So we can have a unifiedcompany.
We have, you know, unifiedservices, shared services, that
we can leverage a unifiednetwork, but tailor our
messaging with the differentbrands based on what the
(08:35):
customer really wants and needsto hear.
So very customer focusedproject, which it should be, and
fun, fun for me and my team.
Speaker 1 (08:49):
And it can be a challenge.
I love that.
You think it's fun, but part ofthat is is the intrigue of the
challenge to do it, I'm sure,because doing new branding,
launching a new brand,especially under a bigger brand,
can present all kinds ofchallenges.
So what are some of the biggestthings you've learned through
the process?
Speaker 2 (09:09):
good question.
Yeah, of course it was.
It was stressful.
I'm not saying it was fun andeasy, it was fun and hard.
Would be cool to not do itagain for a while.
Like it's fine, but I thinkwhat's exciting about it is the
getting to like create something.
I've definitely always been acreative person, so being able
(09:30):
to create something from scratchbeen a creative person, so
being able to create somethingfrom scratch and I'm also like
an extreme extrovert and arebrand project is a very like
collaborative project, likeyou're not going to do it in a
vacuum and have it be successful.
Like you have to have thebuy-in from the full senior
leadership team you get to.
You have to get the buy-in ofthe rest of the employees.
(09:51):
You want to build pride aroundthe brand.
You want to communicate thebrand to your employees and your
customers and your prospects ina smart way.
And that challenge to me is funand exciting One, and I already
knew this, but it was like nowI'm really never going to forget
(10:12):
it that a brand is so much morethan a name, and I bring this
up because we had a list of like50 different names we could
have used for this company andif anyone's gone through this
process before, you'll know,like trademark is kind of a
(10:32):
nightmare.
Like buying the domain that likeexactly fits the name of your
company and is affordable, likethat's a whole process and you
know that was a little stressful, I'm not going to lie.
Like there were those momentswhere we're like, oh my gosh, we
got so far with one concept andthen it like falls through on
the legal side, but realizingthat we built so much of the
(10:53):
brand without a name and thenwe're able to find the name that
was like this is perfect, likethis fits and it all came
together but the name alonewasn't all of it.
The other thing I made notesdon't underestimate the time it
takes to project manage stuff.
(11:15):
And I think people a lot oftimes will say, well, I'm not a
project manager, but whether ornot you have that title, like as
a leader managing a projectlike this, like you have to
project manage it.
And it's not a nuisance, it's apriority.
So making sure that all of thepeople are doing the things that
they're supposed to be doing,managing the timelines, managing
(11:36):
expectations, really puttingthe time is key.
It should not be anafterthought, it needs to be a
(11:57):
priority but I'm also a littlebiased because, in addition to
being marketing director, myrole includes corporate
communications, internal comms,so I'm passionate about both.
Speaker 1 (12:09):
I think that's really important and I was just
thinking about it is so muchmore than a name and it has to
fit in with the other things too.
Like I remember, so I've beenexecutive director since
November of 2021.
And since then, like, tmsa hashad its brand but we rebranded
(12:31):
like the Elevate conference.
That was always just annualconference and so then it was
like Elevate and then I was like, okay, we want to do a podcast.
So now that's on the move andwe have our newsletter.
That's moving forward.
And our, we rebranded the awardprogram and that's Rising Stars,
mountain Movers, trailblazersand all of those.
They all are different, theyall have movement in them.
(12:53):
I don't know if people haveactually realized that to the
degree that I have sat andthought about it.
Like it there, everything hassome type of movement, even like
our DEI committee that youserve on the tree.
Like the committee, the name isjust a name, right, it may
evolve, it may change orwhatever, but our, our icon of
the tree the roots are buildingdown and the tree is building up
(13:17):
.
There's movement.
That's why I proved that therewas like multiple iterations of
that logo when we went throughthat.
I'm like I want the tree,because the tree represents
movement up and down, groundingyourself in a community and
building yourself up.
Like it it is.
There's so much thought behindit and it's more than just a
name.
But how does it stand alone,how can it incorporate itself in
all of the pieces?
Speaker 2 (13:38):
yeah, well, even the awards, like I couldn't name all
of them from memory, but Iremember they have the same logo
in the background.
You just changed the colors torepresent the different
categories, right, like thatkind of thing, yeah.
Speaker 1 (13:53):
And I mean you'll.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
You'll notice too, if you look at the case website
and the case logo mark and allof that, that the co-branded
identity of WSI and case likethey're not the same but they
look like they belong together.
They you know signify thatunity for sure.
Speaker 1 (14:11):
Yeah, I think that's so important both.
Like you said, internal commsis also a passion, I feel like.
Then your teams, like ifthere's people that are just at
wsi, just that case, oroverlapping, they need to know
how these these things playtogether too.
And so I love when those visualrepresentations match that,
because I think there gets to bea lot of confusion, both
internally and externally, whenthey don't.
(14:32):
And you see that a lot withacquisitions that acquire over
and over and over and over, andthen they don't work on any of
the blending portions of that,which can get really tricky.
Speaker 2 (14:42):
For sure, and I think I have to give a big shout out
to our HR and organizationaldevelopment teams at WSI because
they were incrediblycollaborative with the marketing
team and our president, oursenior leadership, in really
thinking about how does thisrebrand help us meet our goals
(15:03):
right, like our growth and likeour revenue goals, and how are
we going to win new customerswith this branding.
But also, how is this going tomake our employees feel about
the merging of the companiestogether under one culture.
How does this represent who weare internally and how we the
values that we live by and howrooting for this?
(15:23):
You know like it's going to behard to get that externally, so
I'm super proud of, internally,the work that we've done to
(15:44):
really collaborate with alldepartments.
Speaker 1 (15:47):
I think that's fantastic.
I think too often the brandconversation only sits in
marketing.
But you have to have thatbuy-in.
You have to.
The senior leadership has to bethere.
And you're right, the wholegoal is for the company to, at
the end of the day is to makemoney.
So we continue to have acompany, you know, like that's
what you need to do, so, yeah,it's business, like that's the
(16:10):
goal.
And so understanding how allthose pieces work together,
having the buy-in from seniorleadership all the way down to
everyone in the company,remembering that the employees
are a piece of that, I thinkit's really important.
It sounds like that was how youguys navigated that, which is
really cool, absolutely andobviously you know being
internal comms and also justtalking through that culture and
(16:30):
employees and things like that.
I do want to talk aboutprofessional development a bit
and what are some of the bestways to engage and learn in the
industry.
So now, as you said, you'vebeen here for four years.
Tmsa was one of the things youcame to to kind of learn more.
But how have you navigated?
What are some advice you havefor other people trying to
develop?
Speaker 2 (16:49):
more.
Yeah, I was thinking about thisquestion in advance of this
interview and I realized thatwhat works for me is not going
to work for everybody, because Iam a very social person, I'm
social butterfly, and I learnlike this having conversations
with people who I think knowsomething more than I do are
(17:11):
better at something than I amWatching how someone does
something.
Collaborating with someone Someothers might prefer, you know,
reading some professionaldevelopment books or attending a
webinar or something I like thenetworking.
Networking is a way that Ilearn.
When I started in this industry, I had no network.
(17:31):
I was brand new, right, and soI focused on developing the
internal network in the company,like reaching out, introducing
myself, trying to make somefriends go to some people that I
could go to, when you knowyou're looking for the answer to
something and you're like I'mkind of embarrassed to ask, but
I know.
I have three people who won'tjudge me for asking the question
.
Like developing networks, likeI focus on that right away, but
(17:56):
like my personal mission in life, I've done some work to
identify this and I know it's tobuild community.
So I've done that as a socialworker.
I did that in the dance world.
Now I'm doing it in thelogistics space, like if I'm
building community then I'mhappy.
Right, I could do that indifferent functions.
So right now I'm doing thatthrough my marketing and
(18:17):
communications work.
But in order to build community, I have to meet people.
I have to connect with peopleand just meeting someone and
shaking hands is like that's nota connection, that's just an
introduction.
So when I joined, I joined IWLAwell, wsi was already a member,
(18:37):
but I was like I'm going to getinvolved, like there's a
marketing special interest group, I'm signing up, you know,
finding out about TMSA, which Ifound out about through IWLA and
I was like, okay, I'm going tojoin, I'm going to attend the
event and I'm going to find thatDEI committee and I'm going to
serve, be introduced to vendorsthat have been super helpful,
(19:00):
like writers that can help withour content strategy, make
(19:21):
connections with people thathelped us with like lead gen
campaigns, and it's beenincredibly, incredibly valuable
being invited to speak on thingslike this.
I also think helps in myprofessional development because
, even if I feel like, okay, I'mreally confident in this topic,
but I'm about to talk in frontof a bunch of people about it,
(19:41):
so I'm going to do that extraresearch and I'm going to be
really confident on this topic,now, that's not going to work
for everybody, but it's workedfor me.
Speaker 1 (19:52):
Yeah, I think that's really great advice.
And even what I have been mostsurprised by, I think, doing
this show and I, I know this,but I wasn't thinking about it
is there so many marketingdirectors that come on and
they're like like, at the endthey're like, okay, how was I?
That was my first podcast I'veever done, or something like
that, which has been I'm like,oh yeah, because our jobs as
(20:14):
marketers typically it's likepush our president put someone
else in front of me and we standin the corner and just make
sure they don't say anythingterrible, you know, and so it,
because that was definitelycoming to TMSA and becoming the
executive director.
That was 100% the hardest shiftfor me.
I was not a leader.
I was not an executive leader.
I was a director of marketingwho did that.
(20:37):
But I made sure other peoplewent and talked, I made sure our
content was great, Our boothlooked great, all of those
things, but I was not thethought leader I could do.
I would come to TMSA and Iwould speak there because I was
the marketing person, so like,but so I was professionally
developing in TMSA too, but thatwasn't a piece.
And so suddenly, yes, likebeing seen as the leader and
(20:59):
people noticing me in a room,it's like, oh okay, like that's
a whole different ballgame nowand so.
But that's been a really coolpart of this podcast for me is
because I do think thatmarketing and salespeople have
such perspective and such valueand are thought leaders and they
are following trends andthey're doing all these things
that people outside of ourlittle pocket might not realize
how much they're actually doing.
(21:19):
So I love leaving a space forthem to share that here.
Yeah, it's amazing.
(21:45):
Thanks for having just doubleasked the question.
You volunteer in both places.
What do you do there and howdoes it bring you value to your
career?
That's a better question.
Speaker 2 (21:55):
I volunteer in three places.
So there's the show off.
She's extra Okay, oh man, tryhard over here.
So actually I started with IWLA, with the marketing SIG,
attended the marketing workshopand kind of helped just pitch
(22:18):
with like ideas for things wecould do, and one of the things
that has helped me, I think,with that, or I should say I
kind of take advantage of itright, as I'm like, hey, if I'm
going to volunteer to help planthis, I'm going to make sure
that the topics that I want tohear about are on that agenda.
So that's one thing right, likebeing able to come and say, hey
(22:40):
, I want to know how otherpeople are dealing with their
budget struggles right now, canwe hear from this person?
Can we recruit this person tocome speak?
Can we, you know, organize theschedule to include a roundtable
discussion?
Like, I kind of got to helptailor the experience I get to
have by influencing the scheduleand the planning of the event
(23:03):
and then, with the TMSA andworking on the diversity, equity
and inclusion initiatives, notonly have I met a ton of really
amazing people, but have alsolearned about some struggles
that some of our peers and othercompanies in the industry are
(23:24):
having that are similar to whatwe are having, or that, hey,
we've been able to solve this orthey've been able to solve this
.
And can we share some tips witheach other?
A lot of it has been aroundlike how we communicate these
things, like how we talk aboutthese things, um, how do we get
this message out in a way that's, you know, going to be really
digestible, um, that won't putanybody off, um, and is really
(23:49):
focused on like positive,uplifting, building and
improving.
Upskilling, I think, is one ofthe terms that I've heard
recently.
Our industry, and then also Iwent to the Women in Supply
Chain Forum and started torealize like, oh, hey, I know
you because I met you at thisother event.
(24:11):
I know you, I met you at thisother event, got introduced to a
couple different people, gotintroduced to Sarah Barnes
Humphrey through TMSA and now Iactually also volunteer with
Blended.
Speaker 1 (24:22):
Oh awesome, I love that.
Speaker 2 (24:25):
I'm the chair of the volunteer committee for the
Blended Pledge with a mission ofbringing more diverse voices to
industry stages and kind ofbreaking down barriers.
So it's a lot of work, I'm notgoing to lie and it is volunteer
right Like this is like on topof my regular work.
So I'm not going to act likeit's all easy peasy.
(24:48):
But I had, if I did not havewsi today, I would be very sad.
But I would also have, you know, 30 other people that I've now
made friendships with in theseother areas that I know I could
lean on for support and advice.
And I know I could lean on forsupport and advice and I
(25:10):
wouldn't trade that.
I would do it again.
I would put in all thevolunteer hours to also just
have that feeling of likefulfillment, you know.
Speaker 1 (25:20):
Yeah, I do.
I mean, that's how I came toTMSA, was as a member and
getting involved, and it's wherethe passion comes in the people
.
Because you do, they becomeyour real life friends.
I actually was looking theother day, like the people I
talk to on a daily basis between, like my friends and family so
many of them are TMSA peoplethat just have, you know, become
(25:43):
a part of my real life too,which is something.
Yeah, the slack is nice, whichis something.
Yeah, the slack is nice.
Yeah, yeah, it is yes, we havea TMSA slack and we do.
Each committee has their ownspace and so you can talk to
your committees.
You can also talk in thegeneral spaces.
I think it's really cool to beable to connect and network and
just even just oh, hey, who'sgoing to this industry show or
(26:05):
who's doing this?
And so you said before aboutbuilding a community, and that's
really what we try to be andwhat we try to help our members
be so really excited about that,and we are, of course, thankful
for all the work that you'reputting in for us, and I do
think having you volunteer inother places help, um, us all
grow together because you know,then there there's oh yeah, this
(26:27):
is what people over in the morewarehousing side are saying,
and and this is giving thatfeedback, which is great yeah,
well and hey you are going to becoming to speak at the IWLA
marketing workshop.
I am.
I am as well.
So I am coming to be thekeynote speaker at the IWLA
(26:50):
Marketing Summit, which is July10th through 11th in Orlando.
I do have the IWLA website QRcode right there for anyone that
is interested in scanning.
I'm really excited.
I have heard about the IWLAMarketing Summit for the past
couple of years and it justnever.
That time in July is typicallywhen I either like have to like
get a surgery, or like I go onvacation, like it's.
(27:13):
It's like four weeks afterelevate, and so it's like, okay,
I've paid all my bills, I'veread all the surveys, like I can
close things out and take aweek off work.
So it just has not worked forthe past couple of years.
And they've asked me but this,I'm like you know what?
We're just so we're going onspring break this year, hence
why I will be gone for this week.
And so I was like, oh, I willactually have July open this
(27:35):
year.
So, let's talk about it.
I'm so excited.
I have wanted to go for thepast couple of years but, as
part of that group, can you tellus more about this event, what
people can expect from it?
Speaker 2 (27:55):
Yeah, I really love it because it's always a smaller
setting, so it's not like a bigconvention, it really is a
workshop vibe.
So I think in the past we'vehad like maybe 50 people a lot
more like small groupdiscussions and like let's, you
know, do a case study and likereally figure out how we would
solve.
This just feels more intimate.
And also speaking of like thevalue of doing these things and
(28:16):
joining these organizations,this year I am bringing someone
from my team and I was like hey,you are a rock star, you should
speak at this event, like otherpeople should hear what you
have to say, because you'reamazing and I'm pumped.
So you'll be hearing from MaryBerko at this year's event on
(28:37):
our content strategy and I'mhoping that will also help her
get some value out of theconnections and the friendships
too.
Speaker 1 (28:46):
I love that.
I love workshop style events,and that's, yes, like I have a
part.
That's like speaking bestpractices for smaller marketing
teams, how to maximizeefficiencies really, I can't
wait, you have and then alsodoing it as like a workshop and
like being like hey, like this,this is what we have going on.
How would you use the situation?
(29:09):
What would you do All that kindof stuff?
So like really walking peoplethrough it, cause I am a
hands-on learner myself, so Ilike being able to okay, let me
sit and listen to what thisperson's saying, but how do I
actually apply that?
So I'm pretty pumped about it.
I'm excited and honored to beable to do it and to be
interested to lead thatconversation.
So I'm excited and honored tobe able to do it and to be
(29:30):
interested to lead thatconversation.
So I'm really excited.
Speaker 2 (29:33):
I can't wait.
I can't wait for it.
I suggested we do a session onlike your biggest marketing
fails, because you know we allhave that story that we're like
oh my gosh that one time Ithought I had the campaign
running and I didn't, and orthat one time when I ran ad copy
and it was wrong.
We always have so much to learnfrom those.
(29:54):
I can't wait to hear otherpeople's.
Speaker 1 (29:58):
Yeah, I mean it's so.
It's honestly one of thereasons why I like to run the
marketing and sales group,because anytime I feel like we
make those blunders, like peoplejust understand and they're
like we understand.
Where do we need to go to?
Now like it's it's more, it's amore of an understanding group
than I think other places,because we've done that.
(30:21):
You know, like we at one timewe accidentally sent out we were
like reworking our workflows inHubSpot and it sent out like a
mass email that was supposed togo to like 20 people.
Speaker 2 (30:31):
It did not, it went to the entire database and I'm
like cool, cool, cool, cool,okay, um but you know, I work so
public like when you everythingyou're doing like marketing
communications, it's very likeout there you put something out,
it's for like thousands ofpeople to see it.
Like you send an email, youknow.
So it's it is like very you'rein the spotlight.
And when you're in thespotlight like sometimes people
(30:53):
you're you're not going toalways be on point.
Um, we want to be on point asmuch as we can, but so much of
like marketing also isexperimentation and to
experiment and only have successis like that's not real life.
Like you're going to experimentSome things are going to work
and some things are going.
Like that's not real life, likeyou're going to experiment.
Some things are going to workand some things are going to not
.
So I'm pumped to hear, like,what are the other things people
(31:14):
have tried and failed at?
Maybe I don't have to try andfail, cause I'll learn from them
.
Speaker 1 (31:20):
That's always like if we like we'll do a lot of like
case study type sessions at atour shows, and I'm always like
also put what you did and youhad to adapt.
Like don't just put the wins inthere, even if you don't want
to like fully reveal the fullloss, but at least like be.
Like when did you have to pivotsomething?
Or like did you have to changethe ad copy because that wasn't
(31:41):
working?
like I feel like that's just asvaluable of being like hey, we
did this and it was awesome,okay, but like when?
Like when did you have the?
Yeah?
When did you have to adjust thecopy?
Or did you realize, oh okay,this actually are was terrible
in email form.
So we're going to stick tosocial or whatever it is, but
how did you learn that?
Because that's a piece of thepuzzle too.
Speaker 2 (32:02):
I have this practice.
I like journaling and every yearat the end of the year, every
year that I've worked at WSI, atthe end of the year, I write
like my reflection on the yearand it'll include like a summary
of like here's what our likemarketing plan was for the year,
here's what I accomplished,here's what I didn't accomplish
(32:23):
and and it's like it was nevermeant for like anyone else's
eyes but my own.
So I'm just like I had no ideawhat I was doing here, Like this
was a mistake, but it's beenfunny because I go back then and
like read last year's learningsand it's actually really
encouraging because I can seethe progression.
(32:44):
I can look back and be likeactually I was on point with
this.
I just needed to wait longer.
Like you know, or well, I gaveup on that idea too quick.
I should try that again withthis.
You know change.
And then I actually reported toour VP of sales and marketing
for the first three-ish yearsand then we got a VP of
(33:05):
marketing.
So the role was split and youknow what One of the first
things I did is share thatdocument with him.
Speaker 1 (33:12):
I was like what do I have to?
Speaker 2 (33:13):
lose.
He's going to look all up in mySOPs, anyways, like he's going
to look at all the historicaldata, anyways.
Like here you go, buddy, I cantell you.
Here's where I didn't know whatI was doing.
Here's where I do.
Speaker 1 (33:27):
And this is what I've learned since which is great.
Yeah Well, thank you so muchfor all that you're doing here
at TMSA and in the industry.
I do have one last questionthat I ask everyone who comes on
the show, and you've beenpretty open and honest, so I'm
actually curious where thisquestion will go with you.
But if you could go back intime and advise your younger
(33:50):
self anything, personally orprofessionally, when would you
go back to and what would youtell?
Speaker 2 (33:56):
her.
I think I would probably goback to college, madi, and I
would ask her to think aboutwhat she wants her actual, like
day to day life to feel like.
I think I focused a lot when Iwas younger on like, what, what
(34:20):
am I passionate about, which isimportant?
Right, and where do I think Ihave great skills, which I think
is important?
And I don't know that I spentenough time thinking about like,
yeah, but what do I think Ihave great skills, which I think
is important, and I don't knowthat I spent enough time
thinking about like, yeah, butwhat do I actually want to be
doing day to day?
You know, and I don't regrethow my life turned out by any
(34:41):
means, but I would have maybecut myself a little more slack,
I think, had I gone back to say,yeah, I want to spend more of
my time, you know, beingcreative, I want to spend more
of my time, or I want to.
I know that I want to get homeand have dinner with my family,
(35:01):
like that's a priority.
I should.
I should think about that whenI'm making a career decision,
right, that kind of stuff.
But frankly, like knowing me,even if, like future, madi
showed up and was, like girl,you need to do this and this and
this, I'd be like don't tell mewhat to do, I'm going to figure
it out for myself.
And then I would have just donewhat I want to do anyway.
Speaker 1 (35:27):
Yeah, sometimes we have to learn things the hard
way or we don't realize it.
What we want or need like ittook me a long time to be like
you.
You should just never work inan office.
It does not work for you,period.
Okay, I accept that.
Now that was annoying andsocial work.
Speaker 2 (35:45):
I'm like, I'm empathetic, I connect with
people, I'm passionate abouthelping people.
It's like, okay, but that meansevery day you're going to be
seeing people be really sad,every day you're going to be
around people who are goingthrough a really hard time.
And then I was like, oh, like,yeah, that's.
I don't know if I can do that.
I'm going to go home very sadevery day.
Speaker 1 (36:04):
I'm going to go home very sad every day.
Speaker 2 (36:08):
Yeah so.
Speaker 1 (36:10):
Well, I'm glad that you have found your path into
logistics because it is funhaving you around and I'm
excited for Elevate to be comingup June 8th through 10th, and
then the IWL marketing is thenext month, july 10th through
11th.
So all exciting things comingup and thank you so much for
coming on the show.
Happy to have you, thank you.
Speaker 2 (36:29):
It's coming on the show.
Happy to have you.
Thank you, it's nice chattingwith you.
Speaker 1 (36:32):
Enjoy your vacation, thank you have a good one, bye.
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