Welcoming Keanu Taylor
That’s right, folks, we’re bringing on our first-ever researcher for The Martech Weekly! Say a big, massive, hearty hello to Keanu Taylor. As a researcher, Keanu will increasingly be contributing to TMW newsletters alongside yours truly. He will also be co-starring with me on our soon to come weekly Martech briefing podcast episodes, which are part of the TMW PRO Advantage subscription.
After some solid time together researching the marketing technology domain, I’m super excited to have Keanu on board with us to make TMW even more relevant, useful and insightful. After writing TMW on my own for three and a half years, I’ve increasingly felt the need to have another brain to diatribe, debate, and discuss with as I grapple with the industry and how it’s changing.
TMW is entirely an intellectual pursuit, and it’s just not as fun without other folks who care just as much as me thinking and exploring this incredible industry.
I also think that it’s a little selfish to keep the journey of building a Martech-focused media company all to myself. It’s always a good idea to bring people on the journey with you. After all, pain shared is pain halved, right?
Keanu reached out to me after reading last year’s essay, TMW #144 | Writing for Martech, which was a mammoth 4,000-word piece about my views and process around writing, and how transformative it has been for how I think about marketing technology. After giving Keanu a small writing project, I was blown away by his insightful and clear thinking.
Since then, Keanu has been researching our Wednesday newsletter in the background for three months, and it has been such a pleasure to see his writing grow longer and longer, and growing in complexity and depth in how he questions the industry. His writing has often challenged me, and it has a certain levity and comedy to it that can be missing in my own work. I look forward to reading his writing, and I hope you do too!
Here's what Keanu has to say about joining TMW:
"G’day folks! My name is Keanu Taylor, I'm based in London but am originally from Australia. I’m thrilled to join TMW as co-writer and researcher alongside Juan. Let me share a bit about myself.
I’ve spent my whole 10-year career in Martech working across marketing agencies, consultancies, and tech vendors. When I started out, there were less than 1,000 platforms on Scott Brinker's supergraphic; that number is now over 13,000. The rapid growth, constant transformation and complexity of the Martech industry inspired me to start writing about it as a way of making sense of it all.
While I do nerd out over the tech, what truly fascinates me is the connection between technology and people. At its core, Martech is about enabling people (marketers) to influence how other people (consumers) feel and behave.
Having avidly followed TMW for over two years I understand your expectation for quality writing and insight. I'm a hoover for diverse opinions and I welcome discussions, debates, or even friendly disagreements so don’t be afraid to drop me a line at keanu@themartechweekly.com
Stay curious,
Keanu