Driving Growth Through Customer-First Marketing: A Conversation with Corina Niculescu

Corina Niculescu, Customer Marketing Campaigns Manager at Bitdefender, shares her extensive 15-year journey in B2B marketing across diverse industries. She discusses aligning global GTM strategies with local markets, fostering cross-functional collaboration, executing impactful growth programs, and championing a customer-first approach in marketing.

Corina, it’s great to have you for this interview. Tell us a little about yourself and your marketing journey.

Thanks for having me. I’m a passionate marketing professional with over 15 years of experience in B2B. Over the years, I implemented growth projects across Europe and the US in different markets and industries, switching from Health Care to Traffic Safety, Automotive, and Metalworking, and working with numerous channel business partners while having a customer customer-first mindset. A few years back I switched to cybersecurity, as WW Marketing Campaign Manager at Bitdefender. In this new role, I work with cross-functional teams and channel business partners to implement growth programs for existing customers. My background in sales, negotiation skills, Six Sigma Green Belt Certification, and numerous marketing courses help me better understand the market and the customer’s needs and align with sales and channel teams to launch growth programs.

Outside work, I enjoy traveling, listening to podcasts, reading business books, and baking sweets with my girls. I love spending the weekends in nature, chasing butterflies and watching the clouds.

As a marketer, how did you ensure alignment of regional marketing campaign execution to the global GTM objectives?

There’s no one-size-fits-all formula, that’s for sure. Each local market is different; the customers and business partners act differently so we need to adapt the global GTM to local requirements. Data-driven decisions combined with sales and channel insights, lead to impactful growth programs. My experience taught me that this is one of the critical few factors when implementing successful growth programs across regions/countries. Additionally, staying agile and continuously refining the approach based on local market dynamics ensures long-term success and alignment with overall business goals.

“There’s no one-size-fits-all formula. Each local market is different, so we need to adapt the global GTM to local requirements.”

How do you ensure coordination and synergy with other revenue teams, including sales, RevOps, and customer success?

The synergy between departments is crucial when generating flowless growth programs.

The customer journey is impacted not only by the marketing teams but also by the other teams in the company. Sales and Channel Teams provide valuable insights into customers’ and business partners’ needs and market trends, helping us tailor our sales and marketing programs more effectively. Customer success collaborates with sales and channel teams and supports customers from prospects to active users, focusing on generating customer loyalty. RevOps drives an alignment across sales, marketing, and customer service departments bringing a data-driven approach to optimize the revenue-generation process. By collaborating, we’re able to respond to market changes more dynamically, launch impactful growth programs, and maintain a competitive position.

Can you share your most challenging yet rewarding marketing campaign experience?

I believe that all the growth programs are somehow challenging, but the most challenging are the ones to be implemented across multiple regions, where localization and adaptation to local legislation are needed. As a marketer, you need to take into consideration not only the local needs in terms of a growth program and having a close collaboration with all the functions involved but also if the program is in line with the local legislation.

Once the growth programs are deployed and running and all the tracking tools are in place, I declare it a great time to enjoy a cup of coffee. The programs that are the most rewarding are those that are easily adopted by the sales and channel teams. From my experience, these programs are those that deliver the biggest growth.

In terms of marketing budgets and channels, which channel(s) have you personally found the most effective?

In terms of budgets, it’s essential to have a strong GTM, with clear objectives, strategies, and tactics that are adapted to the local market. I believe social media has an important role when addressing potential customers. When dealing with existing customers or potential customers at the Bottom of the Funnel (BOFU), I believe that the most powerful and effective channels are the sales and channel teams and the face-to-face meetings and events. Within these channels, you can better address the customers (top customers, of course) by leveraging a more human approach.

How do you evaluate campaign success, and what metrics or KPIs do you focus on to measure impact?

I’m using the A3 Matrix-Six Sigma Methodology adapted to business needs. A3 Matrix offers a structured approach and an easy-to-follow control process where the tactics, KPIs, and success criteria are monthly or quarterly monitored, and if the situation imposes, a change in tactics will be implemented as a Plan B to deliver the objectives and to meet the sales targets. I also incorporate customer feedback and market insights to fine-tune campaigns, ensuring they resonate with target audiences. This iterative process not only helps achieve sales targets but also enhances overall campaign effectiveness and ROI.

How do you help prioritize and coordinate upsell and cross-sell campaigns for diverse customer segments?

Based on the global GTM strategy and local needs. The upsell and cross-sell campaigns are implemented by leveraging sales and channel insights. Regular collaboration with these teams ensures the identification of the most relevant opportunities for each segment. Customer data is also analyzed to tailor campaigns to specific preferences and buying behaviors, ensuring alignment with regional nuances. This approach maximizes engagement and delivers measurable results for both customers and the business.

Tell us about your experience with using AI-enabled tools as part of your marketing tech stack.

I’m using AI-enabled tools in my free time, but not in business yet. I attended different classes on AI-enabled tools that can be integrated into our marketing activities, gaining insights into their potential to streamline tasks such as data analysis, personalized messaging, and predictive analytics. I’m eager to start incorporating these tools into my day-to-day business activities to enhance efficiency, improve decision-making, and create more impactful marketing campaigns.

As a marketing leader, what would be your biggest piece of advice for aspiring marketers?

Read a lot of business books, attend marketing events local or international, observe and take notes on how sales colleagues close the deals, and be next to the technical teams—they can teach you more about the products than any onboarding presentation. Build strong relationships with cross-functional teams, especially sales and customer success, to gain valuable insights. Most importantly, be next to the customers and your sales team colleagues. Marketing is about understanding the customer, its pain points, and how to solve its issues.