How Heidi lays the foundation for the next generation of field marketers at Freshworks

Heidi Malden believes the cornerstone of any successful business lies in the groundwork.

“Most businesses see growth from the top-down, which creates jerry-built foundations that don’t stand the test of time,” she says. This results in solutions, policies, and processes that are mostly underbuilt and implemented without understanding future needs.

As the senior director of field marketing at Freshworks, Heidi ensures that our structures are solid, our marketing foundations set in stone, and our aspirations aloft. 

Field marketers are liaisons between buyers and sellers. We foster human relationships and build awareness about the value of products and how they can solve business problems. In return, our on-the-ground efforts open doors and build pipelines for the company’s future.

Fielding for success

In the B2B ecosystem, field marketing can take many forms — from supporting sales and marketing to leading workshops, conferences, and roadshows. At its core, it’s about selling the right solutions by personally connecting with target customers.

As “a data-driven person at heart,” Heidi is instrumental in transforming how marketing efforts are measured at Freshworks. She adds, “The opportunities for collaboration and growth at the company help me dig in and build the foundation that streamlines our field marketing processes and drives higher results.”

By building lead quality and pipeline, she ensures that “sales and marketing are partners in growing our company and delivering value to our customers.” 

She shares her tips for succeeding in the fledgling field of field marketing.

• Focus on building lasting relationships: Field marketing is all about fostering human connections with your prospects. Gone are the days when field marketers were only required to engage target audiences with pre-built material. In this digital age, act like you’re the face of the brand.
• Rely on people, passion, and products: The shift from traditional to digital marketing has given field marketers a unique opportunity to develop innovative ways of communicating business value. Make sure you rely on the people in your company, understand their passion for the products they build, and imbibe that passion for driving adoption.
• Think beyond numbers to see long-term value: If you only measure success by the numbers, you’ll end up generating more quantity over quality of leads, eventually hurting your business’s bottom line. Instead, build a bottoms-up approach and try to add value to prospects with solutions tailored to their needs.
• Practice adaptability and accountability at work: To thrive in field marketing, you must hold yourself and others accountable and meet your commitments. You must also be open to adapting your approach in real-time to match the shifting demands of changing situations.
• Partner with sales teams to build a powerhouse of product knowledge: No field marketer can act like an island. To build trust through multi-touch customer experiences, you must roll up your sleeves and partner with sales teams to build a pipeline and expedite the sales cycle.

Leading with purpose

When Heidi’s not at work, mentoring field marketers and leading workshops, she enjoys riding her bike, dancing to hip-hop tunes, and empowering communities. A few years back, she rode 250 miles on her bike to Malawi in Africa to raise money for kids who were at risk of contracting AIDS. “It’s an experience I’ll never forget,” she says.

Keep reading to know more.