Alastair Thompson
Verified Expert in Marketing
Marketing Expert
Florianópolis - State of Santa Catarina, Brazil
Toptal member since October 3, 2022
Alastair is a seasoned revenue operations and marketing expert with agency and corporate experience. He led a marketing agency for seven years, managing over $1 million in annual advertising budgets for clients on five continents. Alastair's secret sauce is his ability to lead multicultural teams in the planning and executing of data-driven, revenue-focused growth and go-to-market campaigns. He takes leadership seriously, keeps his skillset updated, and loves being challenged by new projects.
Project Highlights
Expertise
Work Experience
Product Marketing Director
Intellivy Software
- Led the content team in leveraging demand planning and in-depth market insights to maintain a competitive edge on Amazon. Achieved over 1,000% increase in reach and engagement through content research and compelling content strategies.
- Collaborated with the product team, Amazon seller and Amazon Advertising experts, and the sales team to source accurate technical insights and success stories that resonated with the users' needs. Increased new user activation by 133%.
- Created persuasive content to depict the real-world impact of Intellivy's SaaS solutions for prospection and user activation based on the user stories for our personas. Increased software sales and ROI for new users by 175%.
- Delved into Amazon seller trends, competitive forces, and evolving customer preferences, providing BI and invaluable insights into the three distinct personas that shaped communication planning and our marketing and social media content strategy.
- Implemented data-driven lifecycle and loyalty marketing strategies, incorporating quantitative research, remarketing, AI content creation, and marketing automation to enhance customer prospection and consumer protection, activation, and retention.
- Provided regular reports to senior management on the effectiveness of the sales and marketing strategy.
- Practiced my experience with YouTube ads, where I used data from our ad campaigns to optimize our ads, audience development, and landing pages. I also utilized voice search optimization to improve the visibility of our online content.
Head of eCommerce and Digital Marketing
Wonderbag
- Developed global online retail marketing campaigns and a sales management strategy, including enterprise sales and a competitive pricing strategy with budgets and forecasts, in the capacity of a chief marketing officer (CMO).
- Directed cross-channel marketing, including account-based marketing (ABM), email marketing through AWeber and SendGrid, social media marketing (including Hootsuite), affinity marketing, and blog posting.
- Handled affiliate marketing, Google Ads and Google AdSense campaigns, online reputation management, and brand development.
- Led the team to increase global annual online retail and field sales by 70%.
- Managed global ad spending and increased return on investment (ROI) by 150%.
- Set up cross-platform data tracking and Google Analytics 4 for comprehensive insights, including video marketing performance analysis. Handled copy editing responsibilities, leveraging AI writing and Pipedrive as a CRM tool.
Managing Director
Loft44
- Defined and led the agency's digital marketing, lead generation, growth, sales, and lead nurturing strategies, including targeted email campaigns using Klaviyo and social media management using Hootsuite.
- Directed the agency to six consecutive years of 20% annual growth.
- Led the transition to 80% remote working one year before COVID-19.
- Developed and maintained key relationships with national and global partners.
- Managed over $1 million in annual ad spending with an average return on ad spend (ROAS) of over 200%.
- Established and refined Marketo workflows and multi-level marketing strategies, including real estate marketing, for our clients.
Director of Operations
Inspirados pelo Autismo
- Directed the development and launch of an innovative new product for families and professionals working with autism, formulating and executing a comprehensive product strategy to meet market needs.
- Handled community management and led the search engine optimization (SEO) campaign, including local SEO, to rank number one for over 20 top-performing keywords related to autism in Brazil.
- Built and led marketing and customer success teams, helping thousands of families in Brazil and worldwide.
- Developed the processes and technology to scale operations nationally and globally, employing startup marketing best practices alongside B2B and B2C, as well as trade marketing and sales strategies.
- Spearheaded Instagram growth initiatives to enhance brand visibility and community engagement.
Project History
IoT Product Launch
http://mysutro.comLed the team for the launch of the Sutro pool monitor and app in the USA, hitting the target of $1 million in sales in six months.
Our solution was to run high-intensity brand campaigns for carefully segmented audiences on social media. Initially, our focus was on visibility, not conversion. We then ran targeting campaigns based on interactions and video views, focusing on lead capture for educational email funnels. We ran pay-per-click (PPC) on Google for competitor searches and keywords and constantly ran A/B testing of our ads, landing pages, emails, and purchase pages.
Without assuming anything, we were constantly testing and measuring. If it worked, we scaled; if it didn't, we circled back to test again with new parameters.
eCommerce Infrastructure and Scaling
http://wonderbagworld.comDirected the team to structure and scale Wonderbag's eCommerce operations.
Marketing focused on clear messaging with segmented campaigns for each demographic and culture with clearly defined objectives for each segment. Influencer campaigns that concentrated on critical demographics were essential, as well as increased visibility and sales in new geographies. We also leveraged email campaigns using Klaviyo.
The result was a global online retail operation, with segmented budgets and forecasts and an increase in global annual online retail sales by 70% and ROI by 150%. Sales in the UK, our key target market, increased tenfold. We had a fully integrated warehouse and eCommerce operation with cross-platform data tracking for all our customer touchpoints.
eCommerce Optimization and Scaling
http://www.smileproworldwide.comHeaded the team that grew SmilePro's global online sales by 20% to over $500 thousand per month in six months, with top-performing ads hitting conversion rates of 10%.
Account-based Marketing Success Story
Led the account-based marketing strategy and the development of customer-facing content for high-value enterprise clients.
The challenge was translating complex product features into clear and compelling narratives for niche markets and then fine-tuning that content to address the unique pain points of our high-value enterprise clients across the website, social media platforms, and email.
The solution included customized content workflows and processes for both sales and marketing teams to improve efficiency and collaboration and ensure coherent messaging. The content team focused on high-converting niche content based on specific content strategies for each target audience.
Education
Master's Degree in Education
University of South Africa - Johannesburg, South Africa
Bachelor's Degree in Chemical Engineering
University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg - Johannesburg, South Africa
Certifications
Coaching Skills for Leaders and Managers
Agile Project Leadership
Launching Breakthrough Technologies
Harvard University
Skills
Core
Digital Marketing Strategy, Lead Generation, Social Media Strategy, Email Marketing, Digital Marketing, Facebook Ads, B2C Marketing, Growth Hacking, Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO), Marketing, Content Creation, Email Campaigns, Performance Marketing, Google Ads, Brand Strategy, Brand Marketing, Funnel Marketing, Funnel Optimization, Landing Pages, A/B Testing, Marketing Strategy, SEO, Branding, Audience Targeting, GTM Marketing, Digital Campaigns, Social Media Campaigns, Market Research & Analysis, Content Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Content, Organic SEO, Social Media Management, Blogging, Marketing Technology (MarTech), Social Media, Marketing Mix, Digital Advertising, Inbound Marketing, Ads, Google SEO, SEO Content, Funnel Analysis, Campaign Management, Cause Marketing, Facebook Video Ads, Marketing Leadership, Product Marketing, Marketing Research & Analysis, Content Strategy, Keyword Research, Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), Content Marketing Strategy, Social Media Content, SEO Keyword Research, SEO Audits, On-page SEO, Sales, Omnichannel Marketing, Product Positioning, Writing & Editing, Instagram Marketing, Marketing Automation, Marketing Operations, Marketing Analytics, LinkedIn Ads, LinkedIn Marketing, Pay-per-Click (PPC), Campaign Strategy, Channel Strategy, Display Advertising, Ad Campaigns, Paid Advertising, Customer Segmentation, Influencer Marketing, Copywriting, SEO Tools, Organic Social Media, Search Engine Marketing (SEM), Affiliate Marketing, Local SEO, Google Paid Ads, Community Management, Account-based Marketing (ABM), Google Tag Manager, App Store Optimization (ASO), Facebook Marketing, Agile Marketing, Customer Success, YouTube Ads, Instagram Growth, AWeber, Enterprise Sales, Retail Marketing Campaigns, Software Sales, Field Sales, AI Marketing, Inside Sales, Financial Marketing, Sales Analysis, TV Advertising, eBay Listings, Interactive Advertising, Agile Transformation, Brand Consulting, Competitive Intelligence
Platforms & Tools
HubSpot, Google Analytics, Facebook Ads Manager, Google Ad Manager, Instagram Ads, Acquisition Channels, Google Analytics 4, Content Management Systems (CMS), Klaviyo, Asana, CRM Systems, ActiveCampaign, Oracle CX Marketing, Marketo, Mixpanel, Jasper, RainMaker, Lead Capture Pages, SendinBlue
Business Models
B2B, B2C, Business to Business (B2B), SaaS Product Marketing, SaaS, Business to Consumer (B2C), Software as a Service (SaaS)
Technical
HTML, CSS
Other
Team Leadership, Data-driven Marketing, Launch Strategy, Revenue Strategy, Project Management, Communication, Culture Management, Project Planning, eCommerce, Data Analysis, Leadership, Management, Strategic Planning & Execution, Growth Strategy, Customer Experience, Product Launch, B2B Lead Generation, Event Management, Business Development, Customer Journeys, Customer Acquisition, Product Growth, Direct to Consumer (D2C), Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), Brand Building, Brand Positioning, Growth Marketing, Landing Page Optimization, Monetization Models, Minimum Viable Product (MVP), Startups, Product Branding, User Journeys, Web Content, Website Optimization, Website Traffic, Management Consulting, Consulting, Digital Transformation, Business Strategy, Media Planning, Leads, WooCommerce, Retail & Wholesale, Web Analytics, Conversion Rate, Conversion, Monetization, Food & Beverage, People Management, Program Management, Remote Team Leadership, Creative Direction, Subscriptions, Subscription Pricing, Pricing Strategy, Analytics, Renewable Energy, Roadmaps, Coaching, Market Entry, Awareness Campaigns, Value Creation, Project Management Operations, Branded Content, User Experience (UX), Edtech Design, Market Segmentation, Revenue Optimization, Sales Growth, Go-to-market Plans, Customer Research, Instagram, Data Analytics, Integration, Facebook Pixel, Data Collection, Demand Generation, Research, Content Production, Digital Agencies, Spreadsheets, Direct Mail, Customer Lifetime Value (CLV), Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Customer Retention, ClickFunnels, Consumer Services, Sales Funnel, Data, Sales Effectiveness, Paid Media, Value Proposition, Agile Project Management, Workshops, Human Resources (HR), Market Research, Pricing Models, Event Planning, B2B Marketing, Market Sizing, Paid Search, App Growth, Go-to-market Optimization, Market Assessment, Growth Strategy Consultants, Business Proposals, Pitch Decks, Solution Design, Presales, Community Outreach, Pricing, Amazon, Brand Management, Ideation, Process Development, Process Optimization, Product Ideation, Agile Project Management, Agile Coaching, Team Development, Product Strategy, B2B Partnerships, Sales Strategy, Events, Creative Strategy, Digital Media, Nonprofits, Digital Marketing Product Manager, Advertising, Competitor Analysis & Profiling, Content Writing, Video Production, Fintech, Google Optimize, Podcasting, Sponsorship, Marketing Attribution, Google Maps, Advertising Design, Nutrition & Supplements, YouTube, YouTube Marketing, Marketing Plans, Thought Leadership, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Healthcare, Retail Strategy, Channel Management, Blogs, Google Shopping, Inventory Management, Content Management, Slack, Salesforce, Jira, Shopify, WordPress, Commercial Strategy, Strategy, Project Design, Project Scoping, Data Strategy, Brand Development, Team Management, Crypto, Partnerships, Event Marketing, Web Design, Web Development, Video Editing, Planning, Microsoft Power BI, Google AdSense, Blog Posting, Lead Nurturing, Copy Editing, Business Intelligence (BI), Quantitative Research, Online Reputation Management, Remarketing, Voice Search Optimization, Communication Planning, Trade Marketing, Startup Marketing, Video Marketing, AI Content Creation, SendGrid, Pipedrive, Multi-level Marketing, Loyalty Marketing, Cross-channel Marketing, Affinity Marketing, Competitive Pricing, Sales Management, Demand Planning, Content Research, Audience Development, Real Estate Marketing, Consumer Protection, OEM Sales, Resellers, Fulfillment, Customer Service, Tech Sales, Retail Sales, SaaS Sales, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), MarTech Solutions, Corporate Branding, SEO with AI, Attribution Modeling, AI Social Media Content Creation, AI Social Media Influencer, Amazon Seller Central, Marketing Program Management, Media Training, Product Listings, Web Trends, Multichannel Marketing, Multicultural Marketing, Marketing Mix Modeling, Mobile Sales, Salesforce Service Cloud, Buffer, Data Analytics Sales, Recruiting Sales, Content Personalization, Customer Data Platform (CDP), Advertising Technology (Adtech), Post Sales Consulting
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