VP, Marketing @ Place | LITEBEAM Daily Planner

I’m a husband, dad, and marketer based out of Dallas, TX. For the past decade+, I have been running growth and marketing for B2B, SaaS, and growth-stage companies. 

Throughout my career, I’ve built a reputation for building & executing go-to-market strategies, starting marketing from scratch, and being a revenue-focused leader for high-growth companies.

I’ve taken those experiences and used them to build my own proprietary system for growing companies.

Carter Severns

b2b saas marketer in australia | marketingcareers.com.au

over the past decade, I have worked with marketing and growth teams in b2b saas in australia 🇦🇺 and apac 🇸🇬 🇮🇩 to drive revenue with customer-focused marketing campaigns.

axel sukianto

i’m back: i’m joining Truescope as VP marketing.

a few people have asked me why now. honestly, i had a checklist and it ticked every box.

𝟭/ 𝗯𝟮𝗯 𝘀𝗮𝗮𝘀: it's where i do my best work. i dont know how b2c marketers do it, im gonna stick to my zone of genius 😅, aka, tl;dr. traffic > leads > demos > revenue.

𝟮/ 𝗮𝘂𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗲 𝗛𝗤'𝗱: this matters to me. same timezone as leadership means faster decisions. direct access to the founders means i can actually influence strategy, not just execute someone else's plan from a deck created at an overseas HQ.

𝟯/ 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸𝘀 𝘇𝗼𝗻𝗲: not so big that i’m a cog in the wheel. but not so small that the entire go-to-market lives in the founders’ head. ive joined a company where i believe good great marketing can genuinely move the needle.

𝟰/ 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀: first-time founders are learning as they go. kudos to them, but i wanted operators who've done this before. it means less time educating up, more time executing (and having fun)

oh, and it's my first time in martech. if you're a marketer, pr pro, or comms leader and you have thoughts on great marketing, i’d love to chat and take notes on how to execute well.

2026: LFG 🎉.

b2b saas marketer in australia | vp marketing @ truescope

Generate Summit 2026 sponsors are in 🎉

we're thrilled to announce our sponsorship lineup for Generate Summit 2026:

🔵 𝗸𝗲𝘆𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗼𝗿: LinkedIn
🟠 𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗲𝗹, 𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 & 𝗲𝘅𝗵𝗶𝗯𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗼𝗿𝘀: CAASie.co, Clutch, Partner+, farsiight, Keyy Productions, Swag N Send, Atlas Digital

here's what this really means:

𝟭. 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗶𝘁
eight leading companies have chosen Generate Summit as *the* place to connect with the marketing community. They're not just sponsoring a conference… they're backing a community of marketers supporting marketers.

𝟮. 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲
full transparency: the four of us run Generate - The B2B Marketing Community in ANZ as a side gig alongside our day jobs (plus our ambassadors!). sponsors like these don't just make Generate Summit viable, they help us create these experiences for b2b marketers in australia + new zealand. without them, we'd be going to drinks in a pub basement (which honestly wouldn't be terrible, but you get the point).

𝟯. 𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵-𝗳𝗲𝘀𝘁
our sponsors know the deal: Generate Summit is "by marketers, for marketers." they're here to add value... and that's why they keep coming back and why you should trust this is worth your time.

𝟰. 𝘆𝗼𝘂, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗲, 𝗯𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗻𝘆
last year, marketers from Employment Hero, Monday.com, DocuSign, Adobe, Miro, and Culture Amp joined us. this year's sponsor lineup signals we're doubling down on creating australia + nz's premier gathering for b2b marketers who actually *do* the work.

tickets are moving fast, and we're on track to sell out well before July 30.

🎟️ grab yours before the next price increase: https://lnkd.in/gfa5-6yj

tried to make my kids more worldly and show them some winter olympic sports

turned on youtube for the figure skating and they loveddd watching it (yay, but thats not the point of this story)

we dont have youtube premium... so after a while, it switched over to ads

they now know about disney on ice and asking to to go (repeatedly)

curse you youtube

curse you targeted performance ads

curse you marketers

nobody reads your white paper.

ok, that's not entirely true… but be honest with yourself.

when did you last download and read an entire ebook that your own company didn't produce? i'm guessing you can't remember. so why would your buyers be any different?

here's my take: the white paper isn't "dead", but the way we structure them is broken.

most b2b marketers treat the white paper as one thing. it's not. it's two:

𝟭/ 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗲𝗰𝘂𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘆: this is the actual product. it's the 1-pager your buyer reads in 90 seconds and decides if they want to keep going. this needs to do all the heavy lifting: hook, insight, and a clear reason to go deeper.

𝟮/ 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗽𝗲𝗿: treat this as the appendix. the data, the detail, the proof. it's there for the 10-15% who actually want to go deeper.

currently testing a format where the "white paper" is a 1-pager, and if the reader wants the full detail, there's a link to the extended version.

it mirrors how buyers actually consume content… skimming first, diving in only when they're genuinely interested.

less friction. better signal on who's actually engaged.

has anyone tried this format?

one newsletter tactic most b2b marketers haven't tried yet 👀

add a short jobs section at the bottom of your newsletters.

not your own jobs. jobs from other companies in your space, specifically the ones hiring your exact ICP.

Ashby does this well. their newsletter includes open roles from their own customers, all in the people ops and recruiting space. simple to execute, genuinely useful to readers.. why?

𝟭/ 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 (𝗺𝗮𝘆𝗯𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗮 𝗷𝗼𝗯 𝗯𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗱) 
your subscribers opted in because you're relevant to their world. a perfectly matched job listing signals you get them. trust compounds over time.

𝟮/ 𝗶𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀 𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗮𝗹𝘁𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 
you helped someone land their next role. the brand association that follows is real. they'll remember you, recommend you, and bring you into their next company.

𝟯/ 𝗶𝘁 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝗮 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗰𝗾𝘂𝗶𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗽 
they move to a new employer → subscribe again → pitch your product to their new team. your newsletter starts travelling with your ICP.

the best part? it costs almost nothing to get started. spend 5 minutes on linkedin searching for open roles that match your ICP. if you've done your ICP work properly, you already know exactly who you're looking for. 

or do one better, reach out to a handful of customers hiring in your space and offer them a free listing.

you might even get an early look at roles before they go public.

any other newsletters doing this?

i went to an NJA Meetup event last night to support a friend (well done Pam Stevenson!) and i left with a lot of notes on community building.

i'm not in hr or recruiting... i defs don't fit the core audience.

but i left with a solid blueprint for how to run a great community event. here's what they nailed:

𝟭/ 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁: the room was buzzing. people were sharing, helping each other, swapping ideas. (someone put their hand up to say they got a job from a connection they made at the last event!!!). good things happens when you curate the right people and create the conditions for real talk.

𝟮/ 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗱 𝗸𝗲𝘆𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲𝘀: speakers who had been in the trenches and had the stories to prove it (thanks for sharing Jeremy Cabral Gillian Findlay David Ky Patrick Lynch ). that's the difference between "interesting" and "i'm writing this down right now." also helps that there was some spicy takes as well 🌶️ 

𝟯/ 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸: curated attendee list. light-filled + spacious venue. good food. solid agenda. these all signal respect for your attendees' time. and when people feel valued, they show up differently.

big ups to the team (Pam Stevenson Emer McCann Anthony Enright). seriously well done 👏, im stealing some of your ideas for Generate - The B2B Marketing Community in ANZ ;)

newsletters aren't dying. they're becoming media companies.

beehiiv released their state of newsletters 2026 report with data from 28 billion emails sent last year.

the headline stats everyone will screenshot:
→ 41% open rate (up from 37.67% in 2024)
→ paid subscriptions generated $19m (vs $8m in 2024, a 138% jump)
→ new newsletters hit their first dollar in 66 days (median)

my 3 takeaways for b2b marketers:

𝟭/ 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗻𝗲𝘄𝘀𝗹𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲

ryan broderick (garbage day, 100k+ subs) said it best: "i went from someone who just writes newsletters to someone who is building a real and sustainable media business."

newsletters are becoming the hub. podcasts, events, communities, courses - they all radiate from the inbox.

𝟮/ 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘀𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲

generalist world: 43k newsletter subs, 700+ paying members, and they organised international generalist day across 36 countries with volunteer hosts.

catskill crew: 41k subs in a regional market, now selling physical magazines, hosting events, and partnering with local businesses.

depth > breadth. 
10k engaged readers > 100k passive ones.

(we see this with Generate - The B2B Marketing Community in ANZ too. we’re not the biggest marketing community by a long stretch but we think it is special in its own way... and we value depth vs breadth)  

𝟯/ 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 (𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀)

yes, 5-6am EST has the highest open rates (44.46%). yes, monday performs best at 40.45%.

but the delta between days is basically margin of error.

what actually drives opens?
→ short subject lines (<20 words): 41.56% open rate
→ niche expertise (history, podcasts, parenting all hit 51%+ opens)
→ being someone your audience actually wants to hear from

the truth: if people don't open your emails on tuesday, moving to wednesday won't fix it. your content or positioning needs work.

𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗳𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲: ai isn't replacing newsletters - it's forcing them to get better. as ai-generated content floods inboxes, the newsletters winning are doubling down on:
→ personality and authentic voice
→ specific expertise over generalist takes
→ multi-channel presence (newsletter + podcast + events)

growth comes from being recommended by peers, not just from seo or paid ads. (this mirrors what we see in b2b saas - word of mouth and community still win)

search “state of newsletters 2026” to see the full report.

your biggest marketing decisions shouldn't be made by committee.

here are four decision-making modes you can use (and when each one actually works):

𝟭/ 𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹 - you make the call

fast, decisive, but risky if you miss critical info. use this for time-sensitive tactical decisions where you have the expertise and the downside is low. think: adjusting ad spend mid-campaign, pausing an underperforming channel, or fixing website copy.

the trap: overusing this when you need buy-in for execution.

𝟮/ 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁-𝗮𝗻𝗱-𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗱𝗲 - gather input, you decide

you ask for perspectives from your team or stakeholders, but you make the final call. this is your workhorse for most strategic marketing decisions. use it for positioning changes, budget allocation across channels, hiring priorities, or tool selection.

the key: be crystal clear upfront that you're consulting, not consensus-building. otherwise people feel ignored when their advice isn't taken.

𝟯/ 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘀𝘂𝘀 - everyone needs to agree (..enough)

this takes longer but gets stronger commitment. use this when implementation success depends on people you can't directly control or observe. think: rolling out a new brand identity across multiple teams, launching a customer marketing program that needs sales enablement support, or changing how you measure and report on pipeline contribution.

the goal isn't unanimous agreement - it's sufficient consensus where the team believes it's the right call and others can live with it.

𝟰/ 𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗰𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗰 - everyone votes

honestly? rarely useful in b2b marketing leadership. maybe for low-stakes decisions like picking between three solid event venue options after you've done the diligence together.

===

the pattern i see with struggling marketing teams: they try to build consensus on everything because it feels collaborative. but what actually happens is decision paralysis, watered-down compromises, and everyone blaming everyone when results don't hit.

consult-and-decide should be your default for 70% of strategic marketing decisions. 

you're the leader.. prove it. prove it by making the tough calls while genuinely listening to your team.

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Carter Severns

axel sukianto

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The Battle

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