This week, Laura and Kevin are joined by Mike Maynard, CEO and Managing Director of Napier, a B2B PR and marketing agency helping tech companies turn awareness into opportunities. Mike started his career as an electronics design engineer before moving into marketing, and that technical background still shapes how he builds and measures campaigns today.

We talk about what real success looks like beyond clicks and leads, how Napier decides which industries to focus on, and why some sectors spark more excitement than others. Mike also shares his perspective on AI in marketing, from copyright questions around image generation to how automation can coexist with campaigns that still feel human and engaging. And of course, we ask what keeps him curious about technology after decades at the intersection of engineering and marketing.

On the lighter side, Laura gets a little weird by asking Mike what number he’d be, and in the outro we get into the Dax Prescott/Jalen Carter spitting incident in the Week 1 NFL opening game, the Eagles’ sportsmanship (or lack of it, depending who you ask), and Laura’s campaign for a new Super Bowl halftime band. This episode has it all!

Mike Maynard is the CEO and Managing Director of the Napier Group, a $7M PR and marketing agency for B2B technology companies. Mike specializes in increasing the speed prospects travel through clients’ sales and marketing funnels, generating opportunities more quickly, building integrated campaigns that focus on the important tactics, whether clients need to increase awareness, generate leads or engage contacts to create opportunities.