Boosting Cybersecurity Marketing with Data Insights | Richard Counsell from CyberRisk Alliance

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Hey everybody, welcome back to Pathmonk Presents. I’m really excited for today’s episode. We’ve got Richard Counsell over at Cyber Risk Alliance. How are you doing today, Richard?

Richard Counsell:
Doing good. It’s nice and chilly in Florida, so can’t complain. I guess I’m waiting for the heat.

Kevin:
It’s coming soon. I’m really looking forward to chatting today about how you guys are managing all of the digital marketing over at Cyber Risk. I know it’s a really interesting industry—especially from a competitor standpoint, there’s a lot of different options people can go to when it comes to cybersecurity.

Before we dive into things, why don’t you tell me, in your own words, what’s the company all about and who do you help?

Richard Counsell:
Cyber Risk Alliance, or CRA, is community-centered and data-driven. We provide business intelligence that helps cybersecurity ecosystems connect, share knowledge, accelerate careers, and make smarter and faster decisions—through events, communities, and marketing solutions tailored to cybersecurity companies.

We use an interconnected, trusted network of experts, brands, and events to provide cybersecurity professionals with actionable insights. We consider ourselves a powerful extension of cybersecurity marketing teams. We’ve got tons of data and are the go-to source in the space.

Kevin:
It sounds like you’ve positioned yourselves to truly support one specific industry and vertical. Could you break down specifically who within these teams you’re serving, and the core problems you’re solving for them?

Richard Counsell:
Our primary audience is marketing professionals at cybersecurity companies—think CrowdStrike, IBM, or any company offering a go-to cybersecurity solution. Outside of the marketing team, we also serve the practitioners: CISOs, security specialists, etc., who attend our events and participate in our communities.

Our events—like Identiverse and InfoSec World—are core to building a knowledge ecosystem. We’re transparent about our partnerships and sponsors, and everything we do is built with integrity. Our goal is to elevate the ecosystem by sharing real insights and connecting the right people—not just to push products.

Kevin:
I saw your website features both client solutions and events. Can you explain the difference and how these work together?

Richard Counsell:
Sure. Our marketing solutions fall under CRA Connect. It’s built to help cybersecurity marketers connect with their ICP using integrated campaigns, powered by our proprietary data platform, CyberCept. This allows tailored experiences our competitors can’t match.

We offer content services, lead gen, digital ads, PR, channel marketing, video interviews via CyberRisk TV, and even podcast ads. CRA Connect can operate as a full-service marketing partner or complement sponsorships at our events.

Speaking of events, we have two tiers:

• Regional & Community events like Cybersecurity Summits and Cyber Risk Collaborative (CRC), which are invite-only and very intimate—think CISO dinners.

• National events like InfoSec World and MSSP Alert Live, which are larger, expo-style conferences.

These two branches work together. If you sponsor an event, we can plug you into an integrated campaign through CRA Connect—offering reporting and insights from start to finish. Everything funnels into our central CRA brand, supported by our entire portfolio of resources and data.

Kevin:
It sounds like you truly have something for everyone—events, services, and a strong data layer. So how do people find you? What are your strongest acquisition channels?

Richard Counsell:
Our top channels right now are organic social and organic search. We owe a lot of that to SC Media, our publishing arm. They’ve been a staple in the industry for a long time and do amazing work.

We have a robust internal advocacy program that promotes our content. Everyone at CRA acts as an advocate for the brand, and it’s all done organically. We focus on earned media value. People trust people more than brands, so we double down on that.

Kevin:
So you’re not really investing heavily in paid acquisition?

Richard Counsell:
Not at the moment. We’re not opposed to it, but we’re extremely intentional about where we spend. If we do paid, it’s performance-focused—not brand awareness. We’ve already built a trusted brand and have great organic momentum. We’d rather allocate budget to areas where we can directly measure impact.

Kevin:
That makes sense. So how does the website itself factor into client acquisition?

Richard Counsell:
The website is both a strength and a weakness. We’ve got a lot of content—which is great—but it can overwhelm users. We’ve been working to clean up navigation, optimize landing pages, and reduce friction in the user journey.

Our bounce rates are often due to content overload or unclear next steps. We’re aiming for simplification and consolidation, making sure visitors know what we offer, and how to take action without confusion. Brand affinity is key. Everything should tie back to the CRA umbrella.

Kevin:
Makes sense. Too much content can be as risky as too little. Now let’s talk about you as a marketer. What are some actionable tips you’d give others to boost website conversions?

Richard Counsell:
Start with heatmaps and use Google Tag Manager and GA4 for event tracking. If you have budget, get a session-recording tool—it shows you exactly where users bounce or get confused.

Don’t just collect vanity metrics. You need actionable insights. Ask yourself: why are users leaving? Why aren’t they converting? If your data doesn’t answer that, it’s not useful.

Kevin:
That’s a solid framework. Now shifting to MarTech stacks—why do you think companies underutilize their tools, and how can they be more intentional?

Richard Counsell:
Tools are often bought for a single feature but pitched as all-in-one solutions. Marketing to marketers is brutal—everyone knows what to say to get us to buy.

Companies often end up with tools that only get them 50–80% of the way there. To cover the rest, they layer in more tools—creating bloat.

We need to push vendors to deliver complete solutions and stop marketing modular features as full platforms. Zoho is a good example—it seems cheap, but by the time you add all the necessary modules, it adds up.

Kevin:
That’s spot on. If the first tool did 100% of the job, the stack wouldn’t grow.

Richard Counsell:
Exactly. I’m a big fan of HubSpot for that reason. It’s not cheap, but it does email, CRM, social, reporting—everything I need. Add a conversion tool like Pathmonk and maybe Photoshop, and I’m set.

Kevin:
Alright—time for some rapid fire questions. Short answers only. First one: Where do you go to keep learning and stay up to date?

Richard Counsell:
Work. Just doing the work. Experience teaches me more than newsletters or podcasts ever have.

Kevin:
Fair. What’s the last book you read?

Richard Counsell:
Llama Llama Red Pajama. My almost three-year-old’s favorite bedtime book.

Kevin:
Love the honesty. If there were no tech limitations, what would you fix today?

Richard Counsell:
Real-time journey mapping—personalized, predictive, and tied to all touchpoints online and offline.

Kevin:
One task you’d automate?

Richard Counsell:
Email. Sorting, replying, flagging. I spend way too much time on it.

Kevin:
Last question: what advice would you give your younger self as a marketer?

Richard Counsell:
You don’t know everything. Ask for help. Lean on your network. Don’t get stuck in paralysis by analysis. Trust your gut when the data can’t tell the full story.

Kevin:
Brilliant. Thank you so much for joining the show, Richard. And for any cybersecurity companies out there needing support—go check out Cyber Risk Alliance and reach out to Richard directly.

Richard Counsell:
Thanks, Kevin. Appreciate it!