Why Every Marketer Is Already a Prompt Engineer with Rubina Carlson

Marketing at the pace of AI innovation isn't easy, but Rubina Carlson, Head of Marketing at 90 Seconds, has found a way to stay ahead without burning out. In this conversation with host Vinnie Romano, Rubina shares her honest journey from feeling late to the AI party to becoming an AI-first marketer who dedicates one hour per week to systematic experimentation.

This episode is packed with practical wisdom for B2B marketers who feel overwhelmed by the rapid pace of AI evolution. Rubina reveals how she carved out time to test tools like Opus Clip, custom GPTs, and Canva Magic, turning weekly pain points into opportunities for AI-powered solutions. She challenges the myth that prompt engineering requires specialists, arguing instead that it's simply about learning to communicate with clarity.

Whether you're struggling to justify AI experimentation to leadership or feeling paralysed by the sheer number of tools available, this episode will give you a clear framework to start testing, learning, and integrating AI into your everyday marketing workflow.

Guest Introduction

Rubina Carlson is a Certified Practising Marketer and Head of Marketing at 90 Seconds, the global platform empowering enterprise brands to create video content at scale. With over 15 years of experience driving growth across tech, tourism, higher education, and agency sectors, Rubina leads data-driven, growth-focused strategies that fuel brand visibility and revenue. Known for her early adoption of social media platforms and now AI, she's at the forefront of marketing innovation, having built internal GPTs and tested a wide range of AI tools to push marketing performance further. Beyond her corporate role, Rubina serves as Director of Digital Adelaide (South Australia's largest marketing conference) and is a key driver of Adelaide's emerging AI events.

Key Topics

• Overcoming "late to the AI party" fears: Transform anxiety into systematic learning
• One-hour-per-week AI testing: Friday afternoon framework for testing solutions
• Building custom GPTs: Achieve 80% first-draft quality with brand voice
• Strategic AI tool testing: Compare tools for real problem-solving vs trends
• Opus Clip for video repurposing: Transform long videos into social clips
• Rebecca Webber's AI success: Cut assessment time from 60 min to 30 sec
• Prompt engineering demystified: Clear communication, not specialist role
• Navigating AI restrictions: Build business cases when IT blocks tools

Resources & Links

People Mentioned

• Stephen Mayall - Growth marketer focusing on AI and agentic workflows
• Tim Lillyman - Marketing leader at XPON Technologies Group, active in AI and automation
• Axel Sukianto - B2B SaaS marketer and growth marketing advisor
• Christopher Chow - Head of Growth Marketing at Smokeball, LinkedIn video creator
• Rebecca Webber - Literacy leader at the Department of Education, South Australia, developed an award-winning AI assessment tool
• Simon Sinek - Author of "Start with Why"

Companies & Tools

• 90 Seconds - Rubina's company, a global video creation platform
• Opus Clip - AI video clipping tool for creating viral shorts from long videos
• Canva Magic - AI features within Canva for design and content creation
• Custom GPTs - OpenAI's customisable AI assistants
• Department for Education, South Australia - Organisation where Rebecca Webber developed an award-winning AI assessment tool
• Social Media Club Adelaide - Early adopter community mentioned by Rubina

Books & Resources

• "Start with Why" by Simon Sinek

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Contact & Credits

Host: Vinnie Romano

Guest: Rubina Carlson

Produced by: Shahin Hoda and Alexander Hipwell

Edited by: Alexander Hipwell

Music by: Breakmaster Cylinder

APAC's B2B Growth Podcast is Presented by xGrowth