In this episode of B2B Marketing Excellence & AI, Donna Peterson shares an honest reflection on her lifelong tendency to rush, whether lifting weights or creating marketing campaigns, and what it taught her about strength, patience, and long-term results. Donna explains how slowing down helped her focus on what truly matters and how that same mindset applies to B2B marketing and sales alignment. When teams take time to understand their audience, measure what is working, and give each message more meaning, they build stronger relationships and measurable results. It is not about doing more; it is about doing what matters well.

When sales and marketing aren’t aligned, it drags out an already long B2B sales process. But when small teams connect those dots, and use AI intelligently, the results are transformational. In this episode, Donna Peterson sits down with Josh Blankenship of OuterBox to talk about: - Aligning sales & marketing without a big budget - Simple digital shifts that make a measurable impact - Practical, trustworthy ways to use AI in B2B - How small B2B teams can compete with larger brands If you lead a small marketing or sales team, this episode will show you how to simplify your digital strategy, strengthen relationships, and grow smarter — not just bigger.

Most brands still publish first and pray later. In this episode, Donna shows a better path: start with the exact questions your audience is already asking, then use AI to surface, validate, and organize those questions into high-performing content across podcast, blog, email, social, and newsletters. You’ll learn simple, practical ways to capture questions from trade shows, sales calls, customer service, and transcripts, then turn them into long-tail, low-competition topics your team can rank for and build trust with- especially for high-consideration B2B offers like industrial equipment, executive education, and auctions. Donna

In this episode, host Donna Peterson sits down with David Clemen, Editor and Publisher of Global Market News, to unpack what truly drives database performance in 2025 and why the era of “bigger is better” lists is over. Together they explore how data governance, clear naming conventions, and regular list cleaning lead to more engagement, better ROI, and fewer headaches. From removing “dead wood” contacts to documenting how lead sources are named, David explains the real-world steps that keep data reliable, even as titles and roles change faster than ever.

In this episode of B2B Marketing Excellence & AI, Donna Peterson sits down with Bridgette Lehrer, the Global Audience Engagement Leader at UC Berkeley, to talk about what it really takes to build trust in higher education marketing today. They explore how to stay personal and purposeful as technology continues to evolve — and how a thoughtful balance between traditional and digital marketing can create a stronger sense of community.

Many forward-thinking CEOs and leaders are embracing AI — but struggle with one key challenge: how to get their teams on board. In this episode of the B2B Marketing Excellence & AI Podcast, host Donna Peterson shares practical strategies to inspire buy-in, align employees with AI tools, and create a culture of experimentation. Drawing from leadership principles and her own journey with ChatGPT, Donna explains why defining the “why” is critical, how transparency builds trust, and why training and one-on-one conversations are essential to long-term adoption. You’ll also hear examples of how leaders can introduce AI in simple, personal ways that reduce overwhelm and spark curiosity.

For years, Donna Peterson dreaded public speaking- sweaty palms, racing nerves, and sleepless nights before client presentations. But everything changed when she joined Toastmasters, and discovered that public speaking isn’t just a personal development skill- it’s also one of the most powerful traditional marketing channels available today. In this episode of the B2B Marketing Excellence & AI Podcast, Donna shares her journey from fear to confidence and explains how speaking engagements helped her grow the World Innovators brand, strengthen relationships, and establish trust in the age of AI.

Have you ever registered for a conference and suddenly been flooded with emails offering to sell you the attendee list? The truth is: those lists are illegal, inaccurate, and dangerous for your brand. In this episode of the B2B Marketing Excellence & AI Podcast, host Donna Peterson breaks down why attendee list offers are scams, how shady vendors scrape and fake this data, and the serious risks companies face when using unverified, non-opt-in databases.

In today’s business climate, disruption is constant — from mergers and acquisitions to supply chain challenges, global uncertainty, and emerging technologies like AI. In these moments of change, the strength of your corporate reputation and the trust you hold with employees, customers, and stakeholders determine whether your company thrives or falters. In this episode of the B2B Marketing Excellence & AI Podcast, host Donna Peterson speaks with Alfred Leach, President of Leach Advisors, about how organizations can communicate with transparency, protect stakeholder trust, and define their “why” during times of uncertainty. Drawing on decades of experience advising companies through major transitions and crises, Alfred shares strategies leaders can use to keep employees informed, build brand credibility, and adapt to disruption without losing their core identity. Listeners will discover why transparency matters, how to align communication across audiences, and why defining your company’s deeper purpose is the key to resilience and long-term reputation.

Direct mail is making a comeback — and when paired with AI, it becomes an even stronger marketing tool. In a digital-first world, a tangible piece of mail can stand out, build trust, and validate your brand. Add AI into the mix, and you can streamline the process, refine your message, and connect with prospects in smarter, more personal ways. In this episode, Donna Peterson shares how direct mail can deliver old-school impact while leveraging new-school tools like ChatGPT. She walks through her recent Fabtech promotion as a case study, highlighting how validating postal data, segmenting audiences, and integrating direct mail with digital campaigns creates measurable results.

Marketing industrial equipment is complex — long sales cycles, high-stakes investments, and the need for absolute trust. In this episode of B2B Marketing Excellence & AI, Donna Peterson sits down with Brent Fischmann, Managing Director of Wintersteiger Solutions, to explore how companies under the Wintersteiger umbrella — including Kohler Leveling North America — approach these challenges.

Industrial marketing isn’t like selling shoes or software. It takes time, trust, and a strong understanding of how real relationships drive long-term results. In this episode, I sit down with Brian Contini, VP of Sales and Marketing at Pennant Moldings, to hear what’s actually working for their team right now. We talk about how they’re combining traditional methods—like trade shows and in-person visits—with smart use of AI to support research, improve outreach, and build stronger customer connections.

In-person meetings will always be the gold standard for building relationships. But in B2B, you can’t always sit across the table right away. That’s why B2B Personalized Video Marketing is such a powerful tool—it lets people see you, hear you, and understand your perspective before the first handshake. At World Innovators, we’ve seen this work firsthand. When I send an email with a short, personal video, people who have never met me before click because they want to see what I have to say. That video starts a conversation—viewers hear my tone, see my face, and begin to understand that I’m here to help them succeed.

Ever get lost down a YouTube rabbit hole when you were supposed to be checking your own channel? You click to review your latest video and somehow end up watching celebrities or cat videos instead. You're not alone—and this distraction problem is exactly what's happening to your potential B2B customers too. In this episode, I talk with Nate Woodbury, CEO of Be The Hero Studios and author of "Influence on YouTube." Nate reveals why most YouTube advice actually hurts B2B companies and shares his proven LEAF Strategy that helps businesses generate high-quality leads from YouTube—even with videos that only get 100 views.

Have you ever tried to finish a round of golf as the sun goes down? It gets dark, you swing, but you can’t really see where the hole is — you’re just hitting into the dark. That’s what many B2B brands are doing with their marketing: they’re executing campaigns without clearly knowing where the target is or how to measure success. In this episode, I talk with Lori Turner Wilson, CEO of RedRover Sales & Marketing Strategy and author of The B2B Marketing Revolution. Lori shares her 12 Battles Framework, which gives companies a roadmap to bring clarity, focus, and measurable outcomes to their marketing.

In this episode of B2B Marketing Excellence, Donna Peterson breaks down the intimidating term “prompt engineering” and shows how it’s simply a smarter, more consistent way to work—no tech degree required. Drawing from her experience with generative AI and recent insights from the Vanderbilt Prompt Engineering course, Donna shares practical ways to use prompts for repetitive marketing tasks like campaign planning and list recommendations. You’ll hear how creating simple, reusable prompts not only saves time but also ensures your whole team is aligned—producing clear, professional results.

In this episode, Donna Peterson, President of World Innovators, shares practical strategies for marketing offers with longer decision timelines and higher price points. Whether you’re promoting an executive education program, industrial equipment, or a multi-thousand-dollar event registration, Donna explains why relationship-building across multiple touchpoints is essential. The conversation focuses on how to educate prospects in advance, use consistent messaging across email, postal, banner, and phone outreach, and apply AI tools like ChatGPT and Descript to support your efforts.

What if you could scale meaningful relationships—without sacrificing authenticity? In this second part of my conversation with Patrick McCullough, President of Hallmark Business Connections, we talk about how B2B companies can use tools like AI and ChatGPT to enhance personalization without losing the heart of what matters: trust, care, and connection.

Are you tired of all the AI-generated content flooding your inbox and feed? You’re not alone—and your prospects feel it too. In this episode of the B2B Marketing Excellence & AI Podcast, I share why showing your real face and voice in videos and podcasts is one of the most powerful ways to build trust today.