Dale Durrett (Bombora) - Pressed the Wrong Button

Ben: Welcome to The Marketing Stir Podcast by Stirista. Probably the most entertaining marketing podcast you're going to put in your ears. I'm Ben, the associate producer here at Stirista. The goal of this podcast is to chat with industry leaders and get their take on the current challenges of the market. And we'll have a little fun along the way. In today's episode, Vincent and Ajay have a chat with Dale Durrett, the VP of partnerships at Bombora. Dale discusses how understanding customers and prospects can greatly help with engagement within the buying cycle. Ajay is glad that Texas weather finally feels like fall, and Vincent looks forward to hotel upgrades. Give it a listen.

Vincent Pietrafesa: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to another episode of Stirista's The Marketing Stir. I, of course, am one of your hosts. Vincent Pietrafesa, the vice president of B2B products and partnerships. It is so great to be back. And thank you so much for all the amazing emails and notes about how much you're enjoying season two. Yes, season two, we had to be cool. Netflix, all the cool TV shows are doing it. We're like," Let's do a season two." And it's already been off to the races. Thank you so much for doing it. And also I love hearing from our own clients. Hey, get me on this podcast. I was like," Okay, let's see what we could do." Awesome. I'm so glad to be back here. Let's talk about Stirista for one moment. Ladies and gentlemen, Stirista, we are a marketing technology company. We focus on identity. We have our own business to business databases, business to consumer. Customers utilize those databases to get new customers, to enrich their existing databases. We are sending email on their behalf. We also own our own DSP adster so we can execute media, display OTT, connected TV. Call me. That was a lot of rhyming, I think, right there. I didn't mean for that to happen, but it just happened. vincent @ stirista. com is my email. Maybe I won't give my phone number out on this, we have a lot of listeners, but my email at least. Ladies and gentlemen, the other thing that I'm confident about is my co- host. I get to see him next week. He is in San Antonio. We call him the San Antonio slater. I call him my CEO. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Ajay Gupta. What's up Ajay.

Ajay Gupta: Hey, Vincent. It looks like fall is finally in San Antonio. It was 55 degrees outside this morning.

Vincent Pietrafesa: I didn't realize, I thought you were going to say it's fall and that means it's 87 degrees out. I didn't know what fall even means in San Antonio, but I will be experiencing that next week. Great. What is it? There's no leaves that change, right?

Ajay Gupta: No. You just have to use your active imagination for the rest of it. But the temperature somehow has dropped, which is not a bad thing. It was quite hot here this summer.

Vincent Pietrafesa: Yeah, it definitely was. I'm glad I didn't have to come out there this summer, or did I? I don't even remember if I was there this summer.

Ajay Gupta: I think you were there, but we had quite a bit of wine, so you might not remember that.

Vincent Pietrafesa: Yeah, I was going to say," wow." I was like,"Was I even there?" And in my old age of 43 here, one drink, I'm just like, what happened? I feel like it's the movie the hangover after one drink nowadays. And that's just the Chardonnay. Oh, what's good with you, Ajay? What's going on over there? What's new in San Antonio Stirista?

Ajay Gupta: It's going pretty good here. We are ending our quarter. It's coming to a pretty good end. I think this will be our best quarter ever, so I'm excited about that. But trying to wrap up some of the pending deals here in the last few days of the quarter here.

Vincent Pietrafesa: Absolutely. Well, good. I'm glad that's one of our best quarters. So, when I come down next week, it's good news to not do... Well, there'll still be a do- better- Vincent, but it'll also be a, Hey, we're doing okay. That's awesome.

Ajay Gupta: And you no longer have to stay at Motel 6, you can go ahead and upgrade.

Vincent Pietrafesa: Oh, awesome. That is amazing. I love it. I will now be at the Holiday Inn, I love it. This is a great upgrade for me. Speaking of upgrade... Not upgrade to our guest, I shouldn't say that. But an upgrade to me, because we love all of our guests, but an upgrade to me. This next guest... Let me first talk about the company Bombora. You can not be on a phone call these days where I'm on the front lines, talking to a lot of people where they're like," Hey, bombora, we use Bombora." Do you have intent? Ah, we do have some strong intent, but we're not Bombora. I often hear ourselves say that. And I love that. I love when there's a company in the industry that's so synonymous with high quality intent data. And this next guest, rarely do we know the guest beforehand, and we make new friends. But this next gentleman I've met him. I like him very much. We had lunch together during the crazy pandemic. Those two months where everyone was like, it's okay to do it. But we are so happy to have him here. Ladies and gentlemen, a warm Marketing Stir welcome to the vice president of partnerships at Bombora, Dale Durrett. What's going on, Dale?

Dale Durrett: Hey, Vince. Nice to see you. Hey, Ajay. Thanks for having me on the podcast. Awesome to be here. Very good. We're also starting to head into autumn, but really muggy in New York today. But doing well.

Vincent Pietrafesa: I love fall, it's my favorite time of year. It is muggy today. I was like,"I've got to wear a nice dress shirt." Our pale Dale's coming, I've got to step it up here. And then I'm getting my coffee at Dunkin' Donuts and I'm sweating. I was like, what is happening right now? What's going on? But it was... I love fall here and I love that we're getting into the holiday season. Because there's nothing better, I think, than this holiday season in New York City. But looking forward to that. And looking forward to chatting with you, Dale. Let's get right into it.

Dale Durrett: Awesome.

Vincent Pietrafesa: Bombora, I know it, people know it. I hear it all the time. Tell our listeners what Bombora is. And then I'd love to learn about your specific role as far as vice president of partnerships, some of your day- to- day, what that entails.

Dale Durrett: Sure. To your point, we have a great brand. We've done a lot of really great work I think developing that brand and representing it. Bombora is the leader in B2B account intent and ABM activation, really across AdTech and MarTech ecosystems, both from a sales and a marketing standpoint. Our focus is really on helping companies leverage really first, second, third- party intent signals. And we can get into how we do that. But to understand which of their products and services customers and prospects are currently researching, which greatly improves their ability to engage said customers across wherever they are in their buying cycle. And what that ultimately delivers is a quality sales pipeline, and in turn scalable and repeatable revenue streams. That's really what Bombora is about and what we do for our customers.

Vincent Pietrafesa: And also your role within there, some of the things that you're doing as far as partnerships. What are you looking for? Are you inaudible.

Dale Durrett: Vince, my role at Bombora, I've been there for around four years and I've had a couple of different roles. Working in the channel was the first role where we activate our data in an OEM relationship for our partners. And then I spend quite a bit of time on our audience solutions team, where we activate audiences across mainly programmatic and paid social for our customers. And at the moment, my main focus and attention is really on the data sourcing side of our business. As a relation of that, we've been able to establish and build our relationship, which has been great. But I'm very focused on that in terms of two things. One, helping our audience solutions team further activate the audiences, and two, enriching the data that we ingest to compute our Bombora company search.

Vincent Pietrafesa: Dale, we always love to ask this, these are our staple questions right up the bat here. How did you get into this industry? You have a unique background, because it's partnership. You, at some point, have done sales. It's like me being in marketing and in sales where it wasn't a clear path. I minored in marketing, but no one minors in sales. That was at least me. So, talk to me about that role.

Dale Durrett: My entire career has actually been focused on B2B, which has been quite unique. And I was really fortunate to begin my career on the agency side. I worked for [Kirschbaum & Partners 00:09:32]. And it was right as companies were really starting their digital transformation, where I was able to work with some of the largest tech brands on establishing their first online presence. And then running the associated brand and lead gen campaigns that they had in market at the time. That was how I entered into the space and it was a really great foundation to understand, one, how enterprises go to market, and two, working with them to bring their brands online. And then I also had the privilege to work with a lot of large B2B publishers, Wall Street Journal and Barons and Smart Money under the Dow Jones brand. Then I ran the B2B sales team for CBS, where we focused on selling into big tech and enterprise level brands there. Then I was very fortunate to be one of the founding team members that built out LinkedIn Marketing Solutions and was part of the LinkedIn IPO, which was a really very enriching experience. So, I think there's been really three trends across my career. It's been a focus on B2B, working with companies as they transform digitally. And then with that is really being the advent of data. And the use of data, both in terms of the digital transformation and how they engage their customers with the B2B lens. That's what really led me to 6sense and Bombora, which have been much more pure data plays, where we're actually really sourcing and curating and modeling data to help customers across sales and marketing. So, it's been quite a nice journey. And all kind of focused on B2B, ultimately landing at data driven solutions that can be activated in platforms.

Ajay Gupta: Dale, Bombora has become almost synonymous with the word intent. So anytime we hear intent, we hear Bombora, which is awesome. What have you guys done to become so unique and distinguish yourself in this space?

Dale Durrett: That's a great question, Ajay. I think what's really unique about Bombora is that we provide an intent signal at the account. A lot of our competitors would provide an interest level segment, a signal, or they provide an intent or interest segment at the buy level. And the difference between interest and intent, I think is key. Interest is interesting, but it's not always actionable. Whereas an intent is both an insight as well as actionable. And what I mean by that is, interest is derived by looking at trends around behavior or keywords on a particular page. Where intent is looking at the same signals, but then building a baseline and being able to compare that signal over a historical baseline. I think that's very important, especially for B2B, because understanding if an account is in market today is not as necessarily important as understanding if that account has been in market over time. And if that account is increasing their research around your products and services or that's decreasing. So, the whole concept around intent versus interest is the ability to evaluate the signals against a historical baseline in order to make that signal, not just an insight, but actually actionable. And then I think the other key differentiator from Bombora is our co- op and how we collect the initial seed dataset for our modeling. That is a very unique asset in the market. So, I think the way we collect our data and then the way we derive intent at the account against the historical baseline is truly the differentiator for Bombora.

Ajay Gupta: Dale, to switch the focus more on the client side of things. What are some of the verticals that you focus on in terms of getting new clients, as well as... I guess, what does your ideal client look like?

Dale Durrett: I think it's a great question. In terms of verticals to that point, we've had great success in the tech and telco verticals. And we're starting to see additional interest and start to think about solutions for business services and financial as well, as additional verticals. But in terms of like an ICP, it's really at the enterprise in the mid- market where we've seen our greatest success. Then we are very focused at the moment on building out a growth offering where we can service companies of all sizes. And then the channel is very important to us there as well, especially for the long tail, is being able to work with some of our channel partners to allow customers to activate our data there, where we don't have a direct relationship. So, that's some insight to our ICP and where we've seen some success.

Vincent Pietrafesa: Dale, it's not often that we have a strategic partner on the podcast, because we keep it open to everyone. We wanted to talk about... You and I... Well, not you and I specifically, but Stirista specifically. We have a strategic partnership with Bombora. Is it okay if we talked about that?

Dale Durrett: Love that. Yeah. The best part about it is, it's been a great journey. It's not been something that... There's always opportunity. So, we started working with you guys really to enrich our datasets for audience activation across demographic and firmographic attributes. And over the relationship, which has been a number of years now, Stirista has become a very key data source for us. And I think the exciting part about it is, all of the innovation work that you guys have done and some of the acquisitions you've made to open up additional opportunities. I think the goal for us and the roadmap is obviously to continue to work on the data sourcing side, but I think there's opportunity to leverage some of your ability to activate in channels. There's a lot of interest there, I think, for us to work together. So, it's been a great partnership, starting on the data sourcing side and I think additional opportunity there. But then as you guys innovate, the ability to use your platforms to activate audiences for our customers is probably where we're headed. So, exciting relationship and great people. It's been a very enjoyable relationship and partnership to build.

Vincent Pietrafesa: We appreciate that. That's why I bring it up, because we're just proud of the partnership. We wanted to, more just to thank you on the podcast, and let the world know that we have an awesome partnership together. Dale, Bombora, I know you only there the past like what, four years you said?

Dale Durrett: Four and a half years.

Vincent Pietrafesa: Four and a half years, but can you talk to us about the beginning? Why Bombora chose the intent path?

Dale Durrett: I think at the end of the day, when you think about B2B marketing, unfortunately we have a tendency to really focus on the direct side of it. We're not as good a brand from a B2B standpoint. When you think about... There are some very well established brands IBM, SAP. But when you think about the time that's spent on building brands, B2B versus B2C and the investment made, it's very different. So I think in terms of B2B with the majority of the investment happening in terms of lead generation, whether that's top of funnel marketing automation or sales enablement, there's always a inaudible focus. The reason for intent was to really bring efficiencies to that. I think the issue that we had prior to intent at the company level is that, when you think about intent or generating leads that are contact based or contact records. It is about one individual, and getting that signal from one individual. But when you really think about B2B with a buying cycle of 12 to 18 months, you think about a buying committee, and you think about the very large investment that is normally made when making a B2B purchase. Getting a buying signal from one individual within that buying committee and not understanding if that company is in market, can be very misleading. So, intent as a concept of further refining lead generation was one of the reasons we went that way. And furthermore, to first start with understanding that the account is in market and then any known contacts and leads associated to that account to be leveraged in a more strategic way. Because that is what would drive the efficiencies. This account's in market. These are the contacts that we know at this account. These are the leads that we're generating against that account. And then all of those signals combined is what really drives the effectiveness and intent. But from a B2B standpoint, given what we've just discussed, it should really start at the account. So, that's why Bombora focused on intent and furthermore focused on intent at the account level.

Ajay Gupta: When we started the podcast, it was largely due to the pandemic that we finally had time where Vincent and I were not traveling and we could easily book meetings. And we never thought coming into season two, a year later, we'd still be asking this question, but unfortunately that's the situation we live in. How has the pandemic changed the day- to- day at Bombora? Are you guys still remote? We'd love to learn a little more on that.

Dale Durrett: It's a great question. Firstly, I think it's obviously had a pretty negative effect, impact on the globe and individuals and their families. That definitely needs to be recognized. And I think we've all felt the impact of that. With that said, one of the key values of Bombora is flexibility and part of that value is the ability to, within reason, have flexible approach to work. Whether that's the hours that you're working, or where you are working from. So, as a culture, we were quite familiar with remote working. Fortunately, we've seen more demand from our customers over that period. And because of that value and the ability for us to work remotely as part of the culture, we haven't seen an impact, negatively, to the business. Obviously, not being in social environments and being with folks in a meeting or in the office has had its negative impacts. But we've been very fortunate at Bombora given the demand we're seeing and the fact that we're pretty well set up to work remotely. And we do a lot of things to try to keep people together and the culture top of mind. But yeah, we've actually grown the business quite considerably over the period of time. And both from a revenue standpoint, as well as from a talent standpoint. Bombora, I think we're over 200 people now. And I think over the last 12 months, we've pretty much... It's probably about at least 50 to 80% growth. So, it's been an interesting time, but we've fared well, thankfully.

Ajay Gupta: That's great to hear, Dale. And I think in general, it seems like B2B companies have come out of the pandemic stronger. Unfortunately, same probably can't be said about a lot of B2C facing companies.

Dale Durrett: Yeah. I think particular industries as well, hospitality, travel, I think they're obvious. But hopefully, in time, they will come back. But I think, yes, definitely some industries hit harder than others.

Ajay Gupta: I was recently at the LA Airport and there was practically standing room only. So, I think a lot of travel is at least coming back.

Dale Durrett: Yeah. I think it's a matter of time.

Vincent Pietrafesa: Dale, what's new and exciting that's coming up, as we get into this last quarter here and 2022 at Bombora?

Dale Durrett: I think for us, what's really exciting at the moment, and a big focus is we're a data company and we are really focused on providing additional insights on that data. So, we have a big focus on visualization. And we have a couple of products that we've rolled out that have really been well received in the market that are not just data products, but the ability to visualize that data in different ways and really bring value to it. We're looking to roll that out in a more meaningful way. So, that's been a really big focus for us. And then as I mentioned, the cookie list side of things and looking to activate in other channels is still top of mind for us. So, there's a lot of focus on additional match keys outside of the cookie and how we pull in segmentation against that, and then omnichannel activation. I'd say the insights and then further building out are our match keys, and our ability to activate omnichannel are key focuses for us.

Vincent Pietrafesa: Dale, I want to stay on that topic there, because it's been a large topic, at least for the last year. And then it's kind of like, well, cookie is going away. I've never spoken about cookies more in my life in this last year, been on panels. And it seems like it's coming out, then it's getting moved. Give me your overall thoughts on that and how... As much as you can, share with us about the new release, how Bombora is going to be attacking that.

Dale Durrett: It's definitely been a conversation, I think we were all talking about it. And it has... Ever since the Google announcement pushing it back, definitely hasn't been top of mind. I think everybody was fairly exhausted. But we haven't lost focused on that at all at Bombora. I think it's very dependent on Google in terms of ultimately the decision they make and how they go ahead with the ability to build audiences, especially for third- parties. I think first- party is fairly well understood. So, I think we are very much involved in following what's happening on that front and seeing what's happening there. And then we've been working closely with some of our partners like LiveRamp and The Trade Desk on terms of understanding their authenticated unified IDs. And then some of our other partners like LiveIntent and Load Me on the more publistic side. We are definitely looking at both what's going on at Google and then what's happening in terms of the ID space. So, that's kind of the external. And then internally, we've very focused on finding additional match keys outside of the cookies. We're doing quite a bit of work on hashed emails and mates, each with their own nuances. And then the other unique area we are very interested in is IP, given that we have an ABM focus, so we're doing quite a bit of work there. Then the other area that we are really interested in, and we have a unique kind of a play with given our B2B topic taxonomy is contextual. So, we are breathing a bit of a sigh relief with the pushback, just because we want to make sure we can stand these opportunities up with scale. But we are working on a couple of different avenues that we feel could replace the cookie in time and continue to activate audiences for our customers at scale, with quality datasets.

Vincent Pietrafesa: Thanks. I appreciate that insight. Dale, another question I had is more of one that I always wondered. Bombora has so many different categories, almost anything you could think of it's out there, thousands. So, everyone be sure to check Bombora out. But what goes into thinking of a new category? Do you have a team who goes out and like," Oh, Hey, this is a brand new topic that people are searching for, this is hot in the market right now, we need to build around it?" Talk to me a little bit about that.

Dale Durrett: It's a great question. I think our topic taxonomy, which really drives the ability for us to create a baseline, which I mentioned was a unique differentiator. And just to give some folks context, the topic taxonomy, to Vince's point, is broken into different themes and categories and then individual topics. So, what drives the topic selection there? The way I think to understand it in the most simplest way is, when we work with a customer, normally they come to us with a TAM or an account list. The way that we derive the account score and the topic consumption associated to those counts, which is the Bombora company search product, is we create a topic cluster that represents the product or service that they're looking to market. So ultimately, the way that it works is, if we're able to absorb the topic consumption associated to those domains and understand against the baseline, if it's greater or less than the norm, we can understand the intent signal. So ultimately, the topic clusters that we develop are representative of the products and services that our customers are looking to market. A lot of the way that the additional topics come into the taxonomy is based on customer requests, in terms of the topics they need to better refine their clusters to reach the right customers or to get the right insights. And then to your point, trends that we might see in the industry, whether that might be around crypto or fintech or things like that. So, it's kind of a combination of customer driven feedback and then trends that we see in the marketplace. And then we are working on additional solutions where we would be able to use more of a keyword approach and combination with the topic taxonomy, so that in the shorter term, we can add more topics to an activation. Because adding a topic to our taxonomy does take a little bit of time. So, in between that, we're looking for a interim solution. There's work being done on that side as well, more of a keyword based approach. So, some interesting stuff in terms of how the topics are selected for the taxonomy, and then some work we're doing in terms of getting additional scale while we bring topics into that taxonomy.

Ajay Gupta: Dale, this morning I was going through your LinkedIn profile. And I have to say, you probably have more written recommendations than anyone else I know that we have had on podcast. And there was some great stuff in there, but I'd love to hear what for you has been a highlight for your career.

Dale Durrett: That's a funny story, actually I'll tell you it quickly, because I worked at LinkedIn obviously for a number of years. And when we released that feature, I actually pressed the wrong button. And instead of sending it to a select group of people within my contacts for recommendations, I sent it to my entire contact. I was pleasantly surprised by the response, but you'll notice that it's done in a certain window. That was kind of how it happened. They have been subsequent ones since then, but that was how it was. I think the main highlights for me when I think about where I really developed, obviously, on the agency side. Because that was the first time I really started to understand the digital side of things. It was much more traditional media at that time and working with the Ciscos and the PeopleSofts of the world to understand. Digital was really quite an interesting and a highlight for me. But then I would say, The Wall Street Journal was where I first started to manage teams. So, there was definitely a lot of highlights and learnings there. And then just in terms of learning about growing teams at scale and being on a rocket ship, LinkedIn was probably a huge highlight there, experiencing an IPO and what goes into that. So, I'd say those three, I think. I couldn't pick one. They all had different contributions to me. Yeah, I think those are the three highlights for me.

Ajay Gupta: That's a great story. I like it. Another LinkedIn related question, which is a staple of The Marketing Stir. I'm sure with your title and what you do at Bombora, you get a lot of unsolicited message, if I know data companies. What's a message that gets your attention and what's one that really you don't like?

Dale Durrett: Well, in my heart I'm a sales guy, so I'm pretty social. I'm open, I don't really gate people from reaching out to me. And then I like to connect with people. I think it's a good thing. What I don't like is when people reach out under the pretense of connecting on thought leadership, something that's interesting, they want your insight on it. And then it turns out to be, they're looking to sell you something. That I don't really enjoy. And then the worst part about it is when you get the followups, which are, A, did I annoy you? B, are you just not interested? C, do you need more time? I find those kinds of engagements on the LinkedIn platform. Maybe an email, okay. But on the LinkedIn platform where your personal brand and that is attached to it, I think people could be a little bit more creative in terms of how they engage with you. So, that part is the part that I think... Most of notes I get, get my attention, just given my personality and that side of it. But that's the part that annoys me. And it happens more than one would really think.

Ajay Gupta: I think it's almost like somebody's copying and pasting, or there's a template in one of these automation platforms, because they all are so passive aggressive.

Dale Durrett: It's very odd. I think automation is an amazing thing, but I think the personal touch, especially when it comes to sales, is a little lost in terms of the BDR, SDR era. Not that automation is an amazing thing, but that doesn't stop you from actually personalizing it a little bit more, I think. In my humble opinion, it would be a good thing.

Vincent Pietrafesa: I agree. And it's funny, because we tell some of our SDR teams, we say," Listen to the podcast, not just to hear Ajay and I speak, but listen to every single guest that we ask that question." And no one is ever like," I'd love an automated message to see if I've been kidnapped or something." No one ever says that. That's the one that gets me. And there must be some sales manager out there where he or she is like," You keep sending this message until they respond. A no is better than..." But it's an angry one. I will respond, I'm like you Dale, I think our personalities are similar where I'm like, I respond to everyone. And I'll just say," No, I'm not interested. And by the way, my name is Vincent, not Viknet. These emails, you should really personalize. Listen to The Marketing Stir, here's a link to our podcast."

Ajay Gupta: I got a good one the other day, Vincent. I shared on slack, where instead of a passive aggressive message, the salesperson wrote," I'm starting to feel like your crazy ex- girlfriend."

Vincent Pietrafesa: I've never had that one before.

Ajay Gupta: That was good. I actually told her who to reach out to.

Vincent Pietrafesa: That worked.

Ajay Gupta: Because I laughed.

Dale Durrett: I think this is way data driven, and that's a balance, hey, in terms of having the data to understand what works and what doesn't. But then at the same time having that human touch. I do think there is a combination of the two when it comes to outreach. Especially once somebody engages. But all in all, I think the LinkedIn platform is... I'm a bit biased, but I think it's a great platform. inaudible.

Ajay Gupta: Agree.

Vincent Pietrafesa: I love it. It's a lot of the ways that I communicate with people. I always hold my network very close to the best. I just don't let anyone in to it, because in the hopes of, I could rely on anyone in there and they can rely on me. That's how I like to keep it.

Dale Durrett: Well, it's got a lot bigger, but I think it's one of the platforms where people are really tied to their real persona. So, I think it brings an authenticity that we don't find maybe on a lot of other social platforms, but all good.

Vincent Pietrafesa: Exactly right. I like now that... Some people don't like it, but I like now that there's becoming a little bit more of the personal side of people coming out on there. Sometimes you're like," Oh, this isn't Facebook." But it's like, look, we're all in this together. Your kids are on your lap now while you're doing a meeting. I was on a call the other day where someone's cat was just cleaning themselves, giving themselves a bath right in front of the thing. I'm like," This is normal now, this is what happens." But couple more questions before we wrap here, we want to get into some of the personal side there, Dale. Talk to me about Bombora where I would imagine you were like us, trade shows, in- person. What's on the horizon there? Have you been starting to sign up for some shows? I know PROGRAMMATIC I/ O is one we're headed to. I saw that RampUp is coming back in person. So, tell me about any plans there to start getting out.

Dale Durrett: I think definitely, we're taking a very individual approach. Everybody needs to make decisions for themselves. There's no really company- wide mandates outside of make the decision that's right for you. So, I wouldn't say, holistically, we're back going to events and that kind of thing, but there are definitely a few of us that I think are starting to think about that. And then we've done quite a bit of, as I said, building of the Team. There's a lot of thought around like what you guys are doing here in terms of podcasts. And if there's ways to bring content and engage with customers in ways that might not need to be in- person. So, I think we're definitely getting back into the swing of things, but at the same time, looking for other ways to engage and chat with our customers and build content, and that kind of thing. So, it's a little bit of both. I wouldn't say it's one at the moment.

Vincent Pietrafesa: It's great. I actually always see those cool videos from Bombora of someone talking to your customers and getting a customer perspective. They're really well done. So, go out there listeners and check that out. But Dale, finally, tell us about yourself. What do you like to do personally? What do you like to do in your spare time? What are you into?

Dale Durrett: I think first of all, I'm a dedicated husband and father. I have a little girl who's 11 this year, who I'm a big fan of and spend a lot of time with. That's a big part of it. Then outside of that, I'm pretty curious. I really enjoy to read. Actually like to cook. And then the two sports that I'm really into are surfing and golf. So, I try to divide my time up amongst those kinds of things when I'm not at work, but very fortunate.

Vincent Pietrafesa: That's awesome. Any books that you've read in the past that maybe have helped you along the way with your career or any books that you recommend? It's odd, Ajay, because a lot of people will email us and like," Hey, thanks for that book recommendation, or that helped my career, or that was just a great book recommendation." I feel like we get those Oprah style book club emails now, and I'm like," All right, I guess we'll talk about it more."

Ajay Gupta: Did you start reading yourself now, Vincent?

Vincent Pietrafesa: Yes. I started reading, just magazines very slowly. And then I think one day I'm going to get to a book. One of these books there. I'm reading my children books. And I've got to tell you, whenever my son, he asks for a large one, I'm like," Hudson, fewer pages." Our listeners are going to think that I just don't know how to read. Yes, I do enjoy reading. Just, I don't maybe read as much as most people or some people, I don't know.

Ajay Gupta: Unless it's a sales contract, Vincent doesn't like it.

Vincent Pietrafesa: Yeah, I know. Or sales books that our sales leadership makes me read. I do enjoy that. Which are propping up my computer right now as I do this. I swear, I read them. So, go ahead, Dale. Sorry, I was going on a tangent there.

Dale Durrett: No, you're good. I think at the moment, one of the books that I have been enjoying is The Signal and the Noise. It's quite a bit inaudible. It's a little older, but it's pretty interesting. Then the other one I'm reading at the moment is this book called Blue Ocean Strategy, which is just an interesting way of trying to identify what your differentiators are and where your blind spots are. So, that's been quite interesting. And then personally, just reading this book called for best time... New York best time seller called Say Nothing. I'm not like reading a hundred books a year, but I do enjoy reading. And also just about the industry in that I find it quite insightful just to see how people are thinking about different things. And there's plenty of books that come out on it. So, you just kind of inaudible the choice.

Vincent Pietrafesa: Absolutely. Well, thank you so much, Dale, for your time. This has been-

Dale Durrett: Cool.

Vincent Pietrafesa: ...awesome. Thank you for the insight. I love the way you explain things. We really enjoy having you on, and we enjoyed the partnership. I look forward to seeing you again in person very soon. And we thank you so much. Ladies and gentlemen, that's Dale Durrett, he is the VP of partnerships at Bombora. Go check out Bombora, bombora. com. I am Vincent Pietrafesa, that's Ajay Gupta. This has been another episode of The Marketing Stir. Thank you so much for listening, and we'll talk to you soon.

Ben: Thanks for listening to The Marketing Stir Podcast by Stirista. Please like, rate and subscribe. If you're interested in being a guest on the podcast, email us at themarketingstir @ stirista. com. Thanks for listening.