Creatively outmarketing industry giants to a $5.6B valuation | Jon Stona (Airwallex)

How can you rise to unicorn status in an industry dominated by legacy players? Jon Stona, VP of Global Marketing at B2B global payments processor Airwallex shares his insights into growing the company from a coffee shop in Australia to a dominant player in the fintech space.  Today, Airwallex has a $5.6B valuation and handles $100B in processing volume. So, what's the marketing machine behind this financial challenger brand?  00:00 Intro 01:29 What is the marketing budget for a $5B company? 02:55 Sponsorships and the theory of economic value10:48 Celebrity partnerships 22:04 The mechanics of sports marketing23:48 Bringing structure to a marketing team26:53 The role of product marketing within a company33:14 Transforming company culture35:47 The difference between leadership and therapy45:17 Building a sustainable brand59:43 Measuring growth through branded search 1:06:20 Are operating principles important for a company? 1:12:01 Differentiating yourself as a commodity1:14:08 Building out PMM teams for different products1:16:57 Allocating SEO budget1:18:48 The usefulness of industry reports1:26:11 How to use case studies in marketing1:31:04 Getting your name in the press1:34:33 Driving growth through industry events1:41:17 Industry awards 1:46:48 Outro We hope you enjoyed this episode of Ahrefs Podcast! As always, be sure to like and subscribe (and tell a friend).  Where to find Jon: LinkedIn: (https://www.linkedin.com/in/jstona/) Website: https://www.airwallex.com/ Where to find Tim: LinkedIn: (https://www.linkedin.com/in/timsoulo/) X: @timsoulo Website: https://www.timsoulo.com/ -------------------------Referenced: McLaren: @mclarenF1: @Formula1Lando Norris: @LandoNorrisShifted Perspectives: https://www.airwallex.com/airwallex-mclaren-racing-shifted-perspectivesMichael Murphy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Murphy_(sculptor)Mere exposure effect (psychology): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mere-exposure_effectForrester: @forresterEdgar, Dunn & Company: https://www.edgardunn.com/Skift: @skiftnewsYouGov: https://www.yougov.com/David Fallarme: (https://www.linkedin.com/in/dfallarme/) Stripe Sessions: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcoWp8pBTM3CYTQho8i-a_lzx4cq7-ePhBeyond Black FridayeCommerce Champion Awards: https://www.airwallex.com/newsroom/amid-online-spending-resurgence-airwallex-unveils-inaugural-airwallexMoney20/20: https://www.money2020.com/ Cloud 100 list: https://www.forbes.com/cloud100/list/