Too many B2B marketing teams are still talking leads when they should be talking revenue. In this episode, Shahin sits down with David Heyworth, GTM advisor and former Head of Marketing at Vocus, to unpack what it really takes to drive commercial outcomes in the second half of 2025. From ditching MQL vanity metrics to building genuine alignment with sales, finance, and product, David brings hard-won lessons from complex B2B environments in Australia.

This is a conversation packed with practical frameworks and honest war stories, including one of the most creative ABM activations you'll hear about: a commissioned coin ceremony at the Australian War Memorial, hosted by former Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove, that cemented a 20-year defence sector partnership without a single sales pitch.

Guest Introduction

David Heyworth is a GTM advisor and CMO with deep experience leading marketing in complex B2B environments across Australia, including his tenure as Head of Marketing at Vocus, one of Australia's leading fibre and network solutions providers. He specialises in go-to-market strategy, sales and marketing alignment, and account-based selling for enterprise and government markets.

Key Topics

Why agility, balance, and growth are the non-negotiables for B2B marketing teams in the second half of 2025
Shifting the conversation from lead generation to revenue opportunities and why talking in dollars gets marketing a seat at the table
How marketing can own the full GTM motion: building interlocks with sales, finance, and product leadership rather than operating in isolation
The case for an inside sales or sales discovery rep function that sits within marketing and how to prove the model before committing headcount
Why ABM works better when reframed as account-based selling (ABS) and how to sequence one-to-many, one-to-few, and one-to-one engagement
Battle-tested lessons from event marketing gone wrong and how champions and pre-agreed outreach schedules turned it around
A standout defence sector ABM case study: creating a custom commemorative coin and hosting a ceremony at the Australian War Memorial to honour a 20-year partnership
Go-to-market fundamentals that get skipped: market definition, value proposition, messaging frameworks by segment and buyer persona, and why these must come before the marketing plan

Resources & Links

People

Peter Cosgrove-former Chief of the Defence Force and 26th Governor-General of Australia
Seth Godin - Author and marketing thought leader; David recommends his book Purple Cow on differentiation.

Companies & Tools

Vocus -Australian telco where David served as CMO.
Akimbo -Seth Godin's Podcast

Books

Purple Cow by Seth Godin

Contact & Credits

Host: Shahin Hoda

Guest: David Heyworth

Produced by: Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell

Edited by: Alexander Hipwell

Music by: Breakmaster Cylinder

APAC's B2B Growth Podcast is Presented by xGrowth

Rebroadcast:How Marketing Can Own Go-to-Market (Instead of Just Supporting Sales) with David Heyworth

APAC's B2B Growth Podcast

Rebroadcast:How Marketing Can Own Go-to-Market (Instead of Just Supporting Sales) with David Heyworth