Marketing Communications Manager B2B
Marketing Communications Manager B2B
Chapter B2B Marketing, small-business segment, Content & Communication
Works in Utrecht and from home
Lives in The Hague
Works at VodafoneZiggo since 2016
Leading the competition, thinking ahead and adding value - three essential elements for the desired customer experience at VodafoneZiggo. Janet Kroondijk has made them her business. #BreakTheBias is her natural state of mind, as she firmly believes that diversity leads to creativity. And creativity is precisely what it takes to reach customers and inspire their decisions.
A Frisian country girl, Janet grew up with her two feet firmly in the clay. Today, she's perfectly comfortable in the fast-paced tech environment at VodafoneZiggo. "I like to think that my rural background and down-to-earth attitude make me less sensitive to stress and more able to roll with change. Those traits come in handy in this business, because technologies undergo constant change and with that, so do the needs of our customers. My job is to swiftly respond to both." In her work, Janet targets an audience of hundreds of thousands of small business customers. "It's a very large, very diverse crowd, and there are very many ways in which they can be inspired and activated."
It's all about making a difference through technology. "Our recent campaign with sneaker label Mercer Amsterdam is a case in point. It showcases their latest collection of shoes online in 3D volumetric video. The technology makes it possible for companies to offer customers a completely new experience and thanks to our 5G network, these fantastic videos can be very quickly downloaded and viewed, even on a smartphone on the go. I love projects where everything comes together like that: high technology and people who do wonderful things with it."
Janet and the marketing team at B2B like to respond to customer needs in totally new ways. "We organised a big digital event a while ago to serve as inspiration for 1,000 small-business customers. Expert Mark Tigchelaar gave a talk on focus and personal development, and former footballer turned successful businessman Demy de Zeeuw told our audience about the importance of a winner's mindset in business. It gave me so much satisfaction to come up with and initiate the event, especially after all the positive feedback from attendees."
Janet's genuine interest in her customers has taught her the best way to reach them. "The essence of my work is to truly understand and inspire. If you're going to make an impact, then you must study customer data. Only then can you reach them with the right message at the right time through the right channel. Our approach at VodafoneZiggo is digital first, so we think in terms of digital solutions. To make sure that I'm abreast of all the latest developments and possibilities in this respect, I did a course in digital marketing through our Unlimited Learning platform. Now, I'm in an even better position to test and evaluate data-driven marketing and communication campaigns that provide superior customer experiences."
Reaching customers as effectively as possible isn't something Janet does alone. At B2B, she's part of a 100-strong marketing department, of which three squads of seven focus on the small-business segment. "And we very often work in close cooperation with our colleagues at B2C. You see, the wonderful thing about our target group is the significant overlap with ordinary consumers. They invariably use their internet connections at home for business in addition to the usual family purposes. Special offers and extra services that take advantage of this overlap enable us to make combined propositions small business owners cannot refuse."
What will the future bring? "More diversity, hopefully. We could use a little more diversity in the B2B management team, for instance. Nobody knows what the world of tech will look like in five years' time, so if you're going to stay relevant, look ahead and think out of the box, you'd better have a lot of very different people at the table." Janet is confident she can make a meaningful contribution in that respect. "I think the logical next step for me is to go back to Unlimited Learning to find out which form of leadership suits my style. Anything can happen, so it's best to be prepared."
