I’ve always believed in brand marketing. In today’s world of AI-driven research, it’s becoming even more critical to the overall marketing plan.

What do open source projects and puppies have in common?

More than you’d think.

In honor of the 3rd day of SCALE, I’m introducing you to CC, my 3-year-old chocolate lab. She has become the best example I’ve found for explaining how open source projects actually grow.

Introducing McMahon Consulting. We work with founders and marketing leaders to align strategy, support execution, and develop teams into strong marketing organizations.

I’ve spent my entire career writing. Not books, but messaging, narratives, and content that help companies explain what they do and why it matters.

Oil & gas → tech → open source → AI.

Along the way, I’ve learned a lot about what works (and what doesn’t).

So I’m writing it down.

Event ROI isn’t measured by badge scans alone. It shows up across awareness, ICP conversations, qualified meetings, pipeline influence, sales efficiency, and long-term community growth.

KubeCon is a brand marketing and ecosystem event first. By setting your expectations, building a simple pre-show plan, showing up with messaging that resonates, prioritizing relationships and learning onsite, and running disciplined follow-up, KubeCon becomes a meaningful driver of awareness, trust, and pipeline, now and in the months that follow.

If you’re a Head of Marketing reading this: you’re not imagining it. The job is that hard. It’s the same pressure loop the NFL head coach feels: expectations set at the top, outcomes measured at the bottom, and a single highly visible leader standing in the middle.

If you are wondering why marketing isn’t driving the results you expected, you don’t have a talent problem, you have a coverage problem. And that’s fixable.

Happy new year!

Choose alignment, energy, and work that feels right

Did the customer purchase because of our great white paper? Or because of that LinkedIn post? Or because of the ad? Or because they saw all three, in a specific order? Or because the sun was shining, or because their boss’s daughter likes our brand, or because their friend told them in a DM that they had a good experience with one of our customer service reps?

Do you remember 2009? For many of us, it feels like a lifetime ago, yet the lessons from that period remain remarkably relevant today.

The smartest marketers, like the smartest dogs, understand that sometimes the best strategy is simply creating experiences worth "rolling in"