Markigy: The Science of Marketing Strategy

Marketing Is a Marathon: Building Value in Complex Environments w/ Jessica Lyn Zall

Episode Summary

Jessica Zall, CMO of Burford Capital, joins Leanne to discuss how marketing earns trust in complex B2B ecosystems by treating attention as a privilege and delivering value at every touchpoint. She unpacks the critical role of alignment across sales, marketing, and customer success, and how culture and communication drive true transformation. Together, they explore the balance between AI-driven efficiency and the human empathy that makes marketing matter.

Episode Notes

In this episode of Markigy: The Science of Marketing Strategy, host Leanne Dow-Weimer sits down with Jessica Zall, Chief Marketing Officer at Burford Capital, to explore how modern marketing earns trust in complex B2B environments.

Jessica brings two decades of experience across fintech and financial services — and a powerful perspective on why attention, alignment, and authenticity are the true currencies of marketing success.

💡 Key Takeaways

• Attention is a privilege. When someone gives you their time, marketers have a responsibility to make it worthwhile — not just push products or brand messages.
• Marketing must span the full customer lifecycle. It’s not just top-of-funnel; it should be integrated across awareness, onboarding, retention, and renewal.
• Alignment is everything. Sales, marketing, customer success, and leadership must work from a shared strategy and “sing from the same hymn sheet.”
• Culture drives clarity. Breaking silos starts internally — through transparent communication, meetings with purpose, and consistent internal messaging.
• Change management is marketing. Internal education, patience, and persistence are key to transforming how organizations view marketing’s role.
• AI is a tool, not a replacement. Technology can enhance efficiency, but empathy, storytelling, and human oversight make marketing truly matter.
• Be adaptable. In complex, high-pressure environments, CMOs need to be strategists, educators, and relationship-builders — often all at once.
• Marketing is a marathon, not a sprint. Sustainable impact takes time, data, and consistent alignment around value creation.

🎧 Listen For

• Real examples of uniting sales, marketing, and legal teams under a single go-to-market strategy.
• How to educate internal teams on what “real marketing” means — and earn credibility at the executive table.
• The future of marketing as an orchestrator: connecting strategy, culture, and technology into one seamless customer experience.

🔗 Connect

Jessica Zall

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicazall/

Host: Leanne Dow-Weimer
https://www.linkedin.com/in/leannedow/

Website:

 markigy.com