Branding at the speed of light: Vincent Sacco, Fivetran

11/21/24 • 44 min

Vincent Sacco is a brand leader who has been in the trenches and, having built brands from the ground up at multiple fast-growing tech companies, has wisdom to impart in absolute spades.

He currently leads the creative team at Fivetran, a data management platform that has seen explosive growth, expanding from around 400 to over 1100 employees during Vincent's 3.5 year tenure. Previously, he built the brand at fintech startup Blend as they underwent rapid scaling. Vincent’s unique background also includes branding San Francisco's pioneering food trucks in the early days of the food truck movement.

In this episode, Vincent shares his hard-earned wisdom on building a brand amidst hyper-growth. Some key topics covered:

How Vincent transitioned from branding bars and food trucks to tech startups
The challenges of establishing a brand when a company has found product-market fit and is scaling rapidly
Key first steps to take when you need to build a brand fast
How to get buy-in across the company and turn everyone into "brand cheerleaders"
Partnering with product marketing to align brand and product
Engaging engineers and developers who are typically harder to reach with brand
Collaborating cross-functionally and getting the C-suite aligned with the brand vision
Adapting the Fivetran brand for the enterprise market while retaining its distinctiveness
The importance of brand flexibility and rolling with unexpected sources of brand affinity
What's next for the Fivetran brand as the company continues its rapid ascent

Timestamps:

00:00 - Introduction and Vincent's background

03:51 - Joining Blend and Fivetran amidst hyper-growth
06:12 - First steps to building the brand foundation

09:22 - Getting company-wide brand buy-in

14:18 - Aligning brand with product marketing

17:34 - Engaging technical audiences with brand

21:35 - Cross-functional collaboration on brand

25:28 - Tailoring brand for enterprise without losing soul

30:44 - Leveraging organic sources of brand affinity

33:49 - The future of the Fivetran brand

35:36 - Conclusion

Send us a message if you enjoyed this episode

If you enjoy the chats then there are more ways to quench your thirst for creative inspiration in the world of B2B tech.
👉 Watch episodes on YouTube
👉 Follow us on LinkedIn for regular snippets in your feed
👉 Visit our website for more in-depth thinking on topics
👉 Subscribe to Beyond our monthly collection of insight, opinion and inspiration
And finally please rate our podcast on Apple if you enjoyed it!
✌️

Vincent Sacco is a brand leader who has been in the trenches and, having built brands from the ground up at multiple fast-growing tech companies, has wisdom to impart in absolute spades.

In this episode, Vincent shares his hard-earned wisdom on building a brand amidst hyper-growth. Some key topics covered:

How Vincent transitioned from branding bars and food trucks to tech startups
The challenges of establishing a brand when a company has found product-market fit and is scaling rapidly
Key first steps to take when you need to build a brand fast
How to get buy-in across the company and turn everyone into "brand cheerleaders"
Partnering with product marketing to align brand and product
Engaging engineers and developers who are typically harder to reach with brand
Collaborating cross-functionally and getting the C-suite aligned with the brand vision
Adapting the Fivetran brand for the enterprise market while retaining its distinctiveness
The importance of brand flexibility and rolling with unexpected sources of brand affinity
What's next for the Fivetran brand as the company continues its rapid ascent

Timestamps:

00:00 - Introduction and Vincent's background

03:51 - Joining Blend and Fivetran amidst hyper-growth
06:12 - First steps to building the brand foundation

09:22 - Getting company-wide brand buy-in

14:18 - Aligning brand with product marketing

17:34 - Engaging technical audiences with brand

21:35 - Cross-functional collaboration on brand

25:28 - Tailoring brand for enterprise without losing soul

30:44 - Leveraging organic sources of brand affinity

33:49 - The future of the Fivetran brand

35:36 - Conclusion

Send us a message if you enjoyed this episode

Previous Episode

Byte-Size: When B2B Got Its Bold Back with Alex & Nick

Here's the second of our new Byte-Size episodes! These are little natters between our team at Shaped By, on...well, anything really. Mostly related to creativity in B2B, But maybe the odd one about cake or something.

In this one, hosts Nick Farrar, Founder and CEO, and Alex Waite, Marketing Director at Shaped By, dissect key insights from the Bring Your Own Bold (BYOB) Virtual Summit. Themes include the importance of authentic and bold branding in the B2B sector, strategies to stand out in competitive markets, and the resurgence of brand investment. They also discuss the pivotal role of AI in business, touching on both the opportunities and challenges it presents.

00:00 Introduction to the podcast
00:14 Reflecting on the BYOB Virtual Summit
01:37 Defining and Embracing Boldness
03:13 The Importance of Authenticity and Differentiation
07:18 Key Themes from the Summit
09:22 The Renaissance of Brand Focus
13:43 Aligning Brand with Audience Values
15:13 Unexpected Insights from CMOs and CFOs
16:46 Bridging the Gap: Marketing and Finance Collaboration
19:57 AI in Business: Opportunities and Challenges
22:27 The Future of AI: Navigating Rapid Changes
24:41 The Strategic Importance of Brand
26:35 Female Leadership in a Male-Dominated World
28:32 Conclusion and Where to Watch More

Check out all the sessions from Bring Your Own Bold here: https://shaped-by.com/byob-event/

Send us a message if you enjoyed this episode

Next Episode

How different cultures shape creative careers: Dave Breckon, Carta - Part 1

Most of our previous episodes to date on The Changemakers have focused on a particular area of B2B tech marketing or branding that has the power to be elevated by creativity.

For this one, we’re taking a bit of a departure from that, and going deep into one creative leader’s journey. Why? Because it’s equally inspiring, especially for designers out there who may not have everything figured out just yet!

Dave Breckon is Creative Lead at the fintech firm Carta. In this episode, our Dave chats with his namesake about his rather unconventional career path, from growing up in a creative family, starting out in photography, working in various studios in the UK and Spain, transitioning from freelance work to in-house roles at tech firms in Europe and the US.

Listen to Dave’s story, and you start to understand the importance of adapting to different cultures, embracing uncertainty, and fostering collaboration. It also offers valuable advice for aspiring designers on navigating the design industry and finding personal fulfilment in their careers.

And the great news? This is only part one! In part two, we delve into how Dave’s career has shaped his perspective on the current design and creative landscape. Just like this one, it’s not to be missed.

Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction and Warm Welcome

01:07 Early Career and Creative Beginnings

01:52 Family Influence and Creative Environment

09:06 Passion for Photography and Education

13:20 First Steps into Design and Freelancing

16:21 Transition to Design Studios and Learning

20:35 Life in Spain and Career Growth

24:20 Return to the UK and Agency Work

27:14 Embracing Startup Culture

33:46 High Salaries and Remote Work Challenges

34:45 Creative Company Culture and Remote Events