Harnessing Employee Data for Actionable Business Intelligence | Igor Karpovich from Aniline

Ernesto Quezada: Pathmonk is the intelligent tool for website lead generation. With increasing online competition, over 98% of website visitors don’t convert. The ability to successfully show your value proposition and support visitors in the buying journey separates you from the competition online. Pathmonk qualifies and converts leads on your website by figuring out where they are in the buying journey and influencing them in key decision moments. With relevant micro-experiences like case studies, intro videos, and much more, stay relevant to your visitors and increase conversions by 50%. Add Pathmonk to your website in seconds. Let the AI do all the work and get access to 50% more qualified leads while you keep doing marketing and sales as usual. Check us out on pathmonk.com. Welcome to today’s episode! Let’s talk about today’s guest. We have Igor from Aniline, CRO with them. How are you doing today, Igor?

Igor Karpovich: I’m fantastic. Thank you for having me on, Ernesto.

Ernesto: It’s great to have you, and I’m sure our listeners are tuning in, Igor, wondering what Aniline is all about. In your own words, tell us a little bit more.

Igor: Sure. Absolutely. Aniline is a generative AI platform. We identify, analyze, and categorize employee perception data. I think we’d all agree that employees are the main assets of any company, and we aggregate all their perception data, all the comments they post online, and deliver that as actionable insights for our clients. Think of Aniline as a large-scale employee focus group at your fingertips in real-time.

Ernesto: Interesting, love it. So, for our listeners to get a good understanding of Aniline, what would you say is the key problem you solve for clients?

Igor: Absolutely. We focus on the problem that employee perception data is extremely valuable, but it’s very difficult to access, analyze, and link to business results. We all like to say culture drives business results, and we actually help solve that problem. We help our clients understand key issues and pain points within their companies and convert that into actionable insights.

Ernesto: Perfect, love it. Is there a certain vertical segment? Is there an ideal ICP for Aniline?

Igor: In general, we’re industry- and vertical-agnostic, though we’ve found our value proposition resonates with several key verticals aligned with our use cases. One is B2B2B sales. We help sales professionals, especially those selling into HR, understand pain points and link their solutions to the key challenges they’re addressing for their clients. Another use case is risk assessment and mitigation, where clients in M&A or insurance underwriting use our data for better risk evaluation. Our focus is primarily on enterprise clients, though we’ve recently expanded to mid-market and launched a PLG motion, covering the entire customer size spectrum. Key verticals include B2B2B sales, HR, and risk mitigation.

Ernesto: Awesome, great to hear that. For listeners who are tuned in, they can check you out at Aniline.ai. What role does the website play in client acquisition?

Igor: It’s a very important part of our client acquisition strategy. We rely extensively on direct sales, especially for enterprise clients, but the website offers a critical first look at the company. Having a clear value proposition, messaging, call-to-action, pricing plans, and use cases is essential. The website provides prospects with an overview of how we can create value for them.

Ernesto: Love it. On that note, Igor, are there any tools or tips you’d recommend for website lead generation?

Igor: Absolutely. For website design, ensure your unique value proposition is clear to anyone visiting. People make decisions in a split second, so a strong value proposition is essential. Have a clear call-to-action and guide users through their journey. We’ve experimented with A/B testing on messaging and headlines; having a good UX and a short form to fill out (for demos or info) is key. Also, including testimonials and logos is valuable—when I shop, I always look for client feedback. These are a few recommendations for creating an effective website.

Ernesto: Perfect, awesome. Let’s switch gears, Igor, and talk about you as a leader. As the CRO at Aniline, what are some key tasks you focus on in your day-to-day work?

Igor: We’re all about revenue. I oversee the entire revenue cycle, from lead generation to pipeline management, deal closing, partnerships, and sales operations. My daily tasks involve getting leads into the pipeline, identifying the right prospects, conducting introductory calls, and managing the lead flow to close deals. Talking to clients is crucial for any revenue leader—listening to their needs, understanding their problems, and aligning our value proposition with their pain points is key.

Ernesto: Definitely some great tips there. Thank you for sharing that with us, Igor. Let’s jump into our next section, the rapid-fire question round. Are you ready?

Igor: Absolutely.

Ernesto: Perfect. First off, Igor, what’s the last book you read?

Igor: My ten-year-old son is learning to play tennis professionally, and his mental coach recommended Mindset by Carol Dweck. I read it as part of his coaching, and it’s very valuable for business leaders, especially sales teams. It discusses two mindsets: fixed and growth. Having a growth mindset helps you approach challenges and believe your abilities can develop through effort, which is essential for both athletes and sales leaders. It’s not just talent that matters but the hard work you put in. The book emphasizes embracing challenges as opportunities to grow—key takeaways I’ve shared with my sales teams.

Ernesto: Super important. That mindset can either limit or elevate you. I’ll have to check it out. Next up, if there were no boundaries in technology, what would be one thing you’d want fixed for your role as a marketer?

Igor: Great question. If I could press a button and get to the right person at the right time with the right messaging, that’s what I’d want. I was just looking at my spam box, filled with cold emails. Marketing has become sophisticated, so how to reach the right person, time, and message is crucial. If technology could handle that, it would be ideal.

Ernesto: Awesome. And if there’s one repetitive task you could automate, what would it be?

Igor: Definitely delivering highly customized messages to prospects. Writing continuous outreach emails is time-consuming, so automating that process would be helpful. Technology is helping with this, especially with generative customizations, but automating that outreach would be my top choice.

Ernesto: Great to hear that. Lastly, with all your experience, what’s one piece of advice you’d give your younger self if you were starting your journey as a marketer?

Igor: Two things: hire and invest in the right people, and listen to clients. I can’t overstate the mistakes I made by not investing enough in hiring and developing people. Also, talk less and listen more. Have the empathy to understand client issues. As a younger person, I ignored that, but I learned through experience. Hire, invest in people, and listen to clients—two key pieces of advice.

Ernesto: Great advice, not just for yourself but for everyone. Igor, we’re coming to the end of the show. Before we wrap up, if listeners remember only one thing from this interview, what should it be about Aniline?

Igor: Employee perception data is a treasure trove of information that’s hard to access, and that’s what Aniline does. We analyze employee perception data at scale, identify key risks and pain points, and provide actionable insights for our clients to address those pain points.

Ernesto: Absolutely. Listeners, check them out at Aniline.ai. Igor, thank you so much for joining us, and to our listeners, thank you for tuning in. Looking forward to our next episode of Pathmonk Presents. Thanks a lot, Igor.

Igor: Thank you, Ernesto, thank you for having me.