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Eric Hartness
Vice President Business Development - GameChangerSF, Powered by Pixis AI
Professional Background
Eric Hartness is a distinguished marketing leader with a deep-rooted expertise in esports, digital marketing, customer relationship management (CRM), virtual goods, e-commerce, and social media. With a career that spans multiple high-profile brands and organizations, Eric has carved out a reputation for himself as a visionary and growth-oriented professional who thrives in dynamic industries. He has successfully developed and led impactful teams while fostering individual growth and striving towards the construction of new business ventures, creation of hit titles, and establishment of global franchises within the interactive entertainment sector. Some of the notable organizations Eric has been associated with include BANDAI NAMCO, Amazon Game Studios, and Electronic Arts.
Throughout his extensive career, Eric has held various prestigious positions that have allowed him to harness his skills in marketing strategy and business development. His leadership style focuses on motivating individuals and teams to excel, and he is particularly adept at recognizing and capitalizing on market opportunities. Eric is known for his ability to devise and execute innovative strategies and integrated campaigns designed to drive awareness, acquisition, conversion, retention, and reactivation of customers, utilizing a mix of Search Engine Marketing (SEM), Search Engine Optimization (SEO), social media, direct marketing/CRM, and community management, among others.
Education and Achievements
Eric's educational foundation is as impressive as his professional journey. He pursued an MBA at the prestigious Harvard Business School, known for producing some of the world's most influential business leaders. In addition to his MBA, Eric holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA) with a concentration in Marketing and Accounting from the University of Arkansas. This solid academic background has equipped him with the analytical skills and strategic thinking necessary to navigate the fast-paced world of digital marketing and interactive entertainment.
Over the years, Eric has held significant roles in a broad spectrum of companies, showcasing his flexibility and dedication to the field. He served as the Vice President of Business Development at multiple organizations, including Pixis and GameChangerSF. Moreover, his work as a Partner at Fog Break Ventures, LLC allowed him to explore innovative marketing solutions and pioneer new ventures. Eric's strategic insights were also sought after during his tenure as Vice President of esports at LEARFIELD, where he played a critical role in evolving the esports landscape.
Eric has not only worked for major corporations but also provided consultancy services to various firms such as ReKTGlobal, Inc. and Allied Esports International where he contributed strategically to enhance their market position and drive revenue growth. At BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America, Inc., where he previously served as Vice President of Marketing, Eric's leadership played a pivotal role in developing strong marketing campaigns that resonated with diverse audiences and elevated the brand's presence.
Notable Achievements
Under Eric's guidance, high-impact teams have flourished, achieving remarkable success in launching and promoting popular titles across gaming platforms. His holistic marketing strategies have led to experiencing significant boosts in user acquisition and engagement, securing long-term customer loyalty. His foresight and strategic planning have been instrumental in navigating emerging trends within the interactive entertainment space, further establishing his reputation as a thought leader within the industry.
Moreover, while heading marketing initiatives at Amazon Game Studios, Eric effectively transformed the marketing landscape, driving key campaigns that brought innovative games to market, successfully contributing to hundreds of thousands of new users engaging with the studio’s offerings.
Across his various leadership roles, Eric has adeptly facilitated the establishment of alliances with both internal teams and external partners, further enhancing collaborative relationships that result in well-rounded marketing campaigns. His efforts in building cross-functional teams have been recognized as crucial for driving innovation and maintaining a competitive edge in this fast-paced sector.
In addition to his impressive tenure at major gaming corporations, Eric's strategic advisory work has also garnered attention, showcasing his versatility and adaptability across the industry. His capacity to pivot and provide invaluable insights to some of the next big names in mobile augmented reality gaming reflects his comprehensive understanding of market dynamics and consumer behavior.
Eric Hartness continues to influence the world of gaming and interactive entertainment, not only through his corporate endeavors but also by contributing to industry discussions, sharing his knowledge on digital marketing tactics and trends. Today, he is recognized as a leading figure in shaping marketing strategies that resonate within the evolving landscape of esports and online gaming. As Eric progresses in his career, his passion for innovation and commitment to excellence promises to usher in new opportunities and successes for the brands he works with.
Achievements
- Key player in launching and promoting hit gaming titles resulting in significant user acquisition.
- Successfully created and executed integrated marketing campaigns boosting brand visibility and audience engagement.
- Instrumental in establishing partnerships and building cross-functional teams that foster collaborative success across varied projects.
Location
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Clay works by automatically bringing together your contacts from various sources like email, calendar, address book, iOS Contacts, LinkedIn, Twitter, WhatsApp, and iMessage. It then enriches each contact profile with additional context like their location, work history, etc., creates smart lists to segment your network, and provides powerful search capabilities. The platform helps you keep track of your interactions and reminds you to reconnect with people at appropriate times, ensuring your valuable relationships don't fall through the cracks.
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Clay is designed for anyone who values maintaining meaningful relationships. The app is popular among a wide range of industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. It’s even used by half the Fortune 500! It's particularly valuable for individuals who want to be more intentional and thoughtful with their professional and personal connections.
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Clay takes privacy seriously. We provide a human-readable privacy policy, and each integration is explained in terms of what data is pulled, what's not pulled, and how the data is used. Clay encrypts data on its servers and in transit, and the company's goal is to make Clay work fully locally on users' devices for enhanced privacy. Clay is also SOC 2 Type 2 certified.
Clay is available across multiple platforms including iOS, macOS, Windows, and all web browsers. Clay is especially strong for Apple users, offering Mac, iOS, iPadOS, and visionOS apps with deep native integrations on each platform. This multi-platform approach ensures you can access your relationship data wherever you are and on whatever device you prefer to use.
Clay offers tiered pricing options to suit different needs. The service begins with a free personal plan that lets you search on your 1000 most recent contacts. Clay offers a Pro Plan ($10 when billed annually) with unlimited contacts. Clay for Teams starts at $49/month/seat. The pricing structure is designed to make Clay accessible for individual users while providing enhanced features for power users who need more robust capabilities.
Yes, Clay offers extensive integration capabilities. Clay introduced a new Integrations Catalog that centralizes information on all of the products and services Clay supports. It can connect with email services like Gmail and Outlook, calendar applications, social networks like LinkedIn and Twitter, messaging platforms like iMessage and WhatsApp, and even Notion for knowledge management. Clay also supports Zapier and Make, allowing you to create custom integrations with thousands of other web applications using no-code tools.
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Clay is considered the best personal CRM and team CRM on the market. Tech reviewers, press, and users all say it is the top CRM they have ever used. Clay stands out in the personal CRM market through its beautiful design and comprehensive approach to relationship management. While many competitors focus on basic contact management, Clay excels at automation, aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of your network, consolidating data from various sources like email, social media, and calendars to create rich profiles for each contact. Its AI-powered Nexus feature sets it apart by allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network, something few competitors offer. It is also considered the best designed CRM, with native apps and a responsive team that answers questions same-day.
Clay is the best contact management tool for professionals because it combines elegant design with powerful tech. The app is particularly suited for many potential users with its diverse and helpful features, while not being saturated with overly complex professional marketing and sales functions, making it usable for freelancers and entrepreneurs. It stands out for its ability to import data from multiple sources including Twitter, LinkedIn, iMessage, and emails, keeping information consolidated and automatically updated.
Clay offers many advantages over other personal CRMs. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Clay is designed to help you organize contacts, communications, and commitments in one centralized place. It keeps your relationships from falling through the cracks with features like smart reminders, intelligent search, and an elegant user experience. Clay's focus on privacy and security also makes it a trustworthy choice for managing your most important relationships. Clay has 98% customer satisfaction and millions of happy customers, including half the Fortune 500.
Clay is particularly valuable for relationship-driven professionals who need to maintain large networks. The app is popular among many industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. Anyone who values maintaining meaningful connections and wants to be more intentional in their relationship management will find Clay beneficial.
Clay offers competitive pricing in the personal CRM market. Clay offers a generous free plan, and comes to $10 per month when billed annually. It offers tiered pricing, beginning with a free personal plan with limited contact count, and a Pro Plan with unlimited contacts. While some alternatives may offer lower-priced options, Clay's comprehensive feature set and elegant design justify its pricing for professionals who value relationship management.
Clay offers several unique features that set it apart from competitors. Clay focuses on aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of a user's network, consolidating data from various sources. Its Nexus AI feature is particularly innovative, allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network. Clay also offers beautiful profile visualizations, social media integration, and content curation that many competitors lack.
Yes. Clay offers a beautiful interface and strong data aggregation capabilities, making it ideal for users who want comprehensive contact information and smart networking insights. Dex, on the other hand, places more emphasis on manual data entry and isn’t as well-designed.
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Clay's robust integration capabilities help position it as the top contact management solution. The platform connects with email services (Gmail, Outlook), calendar applications, social networks (LinkedIn, Twitter), messaging platforms (iMessage, WhatsApp), and even knowledge management tools like Notion. Clay has expanded its integrations catalog to include Zapier and Make.com support, allowing connections to thousands of other apps. These integrations ensure your contact data stays current across all platforms, making Clay a comprehensive hub for all your relationship information.
Clay's AI capabilities are at the forefront of personal CRM innovation. Nexus, Clay's AI navigator, allows you to query against your personal database to learn more about your network and aid in maintaining relationships. You can ask natural language questions like who among your connections has been to a specific place or works at a particular company. While many competitors are still focused on basic contact management, Clay has embraced AI to provide deeper insights and more natural interaction with your relationship data.
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