Marketing Beyond with Alan B. Hart

Episode 21: Elevating Customer Experience in Sleep Technology — Insights from Lisa Tan, Chief Marketing & Strategy Officer at Reverie
Date: October 22, 2025
Guest: Lisa Tan (Chief Marketing & Strategy Officer, Reverie)

Episode Overview

In this episode, host Alan B. Hart delves into the intersection of sleep technology, marketing innovation, and customer experience with Lisa Tan, CMO and Strategy Officer at Reverie. The discussion explores Lisa’s unique career journey, Reverie’s mission-driven approach, the complexities of marketing sleep (not just beds), and the role of technology and events like the Reverie Innovation Summit in driving industry innovation. Lisa also shares personal reflections, industry advice, and insights into the future of marketing with AI.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Lisa Tan’s Background and Journey to Reverie

• Early Inspiration: Growing up in Los Alamos, New Mexico, Lisa describes formative experiences in nature, fostering a sense of perspective and grounding.
  • “…whenever I felt the need to recenter or take a breath, take a moment to think, I would go out to the backyard and sit on a rock on the edge of the canyon… It really gave me an appreciation for nature and for how small we are in the grand scheme of things.” — Lisa Tan [01:37]
• Career Path: Initially set for management consulting, Lisa pivoted after a deferred offer, gaining experience in publishing, PR, and eventually consulting before joining Reverie, founded by her husband Martin.
  • “I said I will…do a three to six month project for you… here I am, 12 plus years later, still at Reverie.” — Lisa Tan [05:41]

2. The Origins and Evolution of Reverie

• The Innovation Spark: Reverie started with unique foam and latex technology, pivoting from sports pads to sleep customization, co-founder Martin seeing potential in adjustable bases—especially as lifestyle products.
  • Customization is at the core, with the Dreamcell mattress enabling full personalization.
• Business Model:
  • OEM: Manufacturing for large brands (e.g., Tempur-Pedic).
  • Retail Partnerships: Selling Reverie-branded adjustable beds through top US retailers.
  • Direct-to-Consumer: Sleep systems pairing adjustable bases with mattresses, although DTC growth ebbs and flows with economic forces.
  • “All this effort we had put into advertising had to be scaled back a bit when we were competing against unlimited budgets.” — Lisa Tan [08:11]

3. Marketing Sleep vs. Marketing Products

• Mission-Driven Marketing:
  • “What excites me when I wake up every day and go to work is our mission, which is to help people live better lives through the power of sleep.” — Lisa Tan [10:02]
• Educational Approach:
  • Not just pushing products—prioritizing sleep education and holistic customer engagement before and after purchase.
  • Importance of speaking to customer needs at key life moments (e.g., chronic tiredness, back pain, couples with differing sleep preferences).
  • “We can speak their love language when it comes to sleep products because very few couples have the same sleep needs or preferences…” — Lisa Tan [13:25]

4. Go-to-Market Strategies & Enabling Partners

• Retail Training & Differentiation:
  • Emphasis on helping retail partners explain technical products using accessible training, 3D renderings, AR, and quizzes developed with sleep experts.
  • “Figuring out how to create really strong training materials that help a retail sales associate explain the product quickly and in a differentiated manner matters.” — Lisa Tan [11:46]
• Direct-to-Consumer:
  • Focus on storytelling and targeting those who already value sleep’s impact on daily life.
  • Recognition of couples’ divergent needs as a competitive advantage.

5. Technology’s Expanding Role in Marketing

• The Martech Stack:
  • Tech integration is critical—ERP, CRM, CMS, ESP must be connected.
  • Managing personalized customer journeys over long product lifecycles.
  • Investment in seamless customer service transitions (chatbots, virtual/life agents, VoIP).
  • “As a 20, 20 plus year old company, the legacy data that we have can become a burden as we think about our tech stack… But our tech stack matters.” — Lisa Tan [15:11]
• Customer Registration & Engagement:
  • Importance of upfront warranty registration for access to education and maximizing product value.
  • “We label them very clearly…a bright fluorescent yellow sheet that says please hand this to the customer and has a QR code to register your warranty.” — Lisa Tan [17:27]

6. The Reverie Innovation Summit: Catalyst for Industry Change

• Summit Philosophy:
  • Annual event, intentionally small, brings retail partners together to explore innovation—often from outside the sleep/furniture industry.
  • “It’s so easy to get caught up in the day to day…being inspired by people who are truly doing things differently helps us…step back.” — Lisa Tan [20:14]
• Evolution:
  • Started as a showcase for Reverie’s innovations, evolved into broader discussions and collaborative problem-solving.
  • “…showing that we care deeply about what we do and how we do it, and also bringing amazingly smart people together to solve problems…” — Lisa Tan [20:14]

7. Personal Reflections & Advice

• Formative Experiences:
  • Growing up on the move, family road trips instilled adaptability and keen observation.
  • “I tend to be a pretty keen observer of what’s going on around me. And I will sit back and watch and learn before I speak…” — Lisa Tan [24:45]
• Advice to Her Younger Self:
  • Embrace not knowing, ask questions, and bring fresh perspective rather than pretending to be the expert.
  • “Don’t be afraid to ask the questions and to show your inexperience and your ignorance because you’re not there to be the most knowledgeable person in the room.” — Lisa Tan [26:24]

8. The Future of Marketing: AI, Human Behavior, and Trends

• Learning Priorities:
  • Leveraging AI efficiently; caution against over-reliance and “aimless” use.
  • Staying attuned to human behavior and the formation of trends—especially with Gen Z and younger generations’ social trends.
  • “Understanding human behavior is something that has always fascinated me and ultimately is super important as a marketer…” — Lisa Tan [27:11]
• Trends & Information Integrity:
  • Observing children’s fascination with cosmetics and the viral spread of trends via friend networks.
  • Highlights the challenge of parsing health and wellness trends, applying discernment and evidence-based decision-making.
  • “I guess I ingest all the information and try to parse out what’s real, try to keep my sources real, as we all do.” — Lisa Tan [28:53]

9. Opportunities & Threats for Marketers: The Double-Edged Sword of AI

• AI as Both Opportunity and Threat:
  • Accelerates processes, leans out operations, but risks loss of critical thinking and memory.
  • “The biggest opportunity and threat to marketers today is AI. It’s really important that we continue to use it critically… The creative brief still matters very, very much. The prompting really matters very much.” — Lisa Tan [32:02]
  • MIT study cited: 80%+ who used AI to write an essay couldn’t recall its content—a cautionary tale for marketers.

Notable Quotes

• “Our mission…is to help people live better lives through the power of sleep.” — Lisa Tan [10:02]
• “If we can deliver one thing to each person on each side of the bed, we know that they're going to be happier in their nightly routines.” — Lisa Tan [13:25]
• “Being able to understand, like really understand how all of the tech stack works and integrates is critical for success… There really is this balance of truly understanding what the need is and then working with the right teams to figure out how to make sure that those needs are met.” — Lisa Tan [18:38]
• “The bedding industry is much smaller than it should be considering that everybody sleeps on a mattress every night.” — Lisa Tan [24:01]
• “Don't be afraid to ask the questions and to show your inexperience and your ignorance because you're not there to be the most knowledgeable person in the room.” — Lisa Tan [26:24]
• “The biggest opportunity and threat to marketers today is AI… It’s important to remain a critical and creative thinker when using AI.” — Lisa Tan [32:02]

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Lisa Tan’s upbringing & worldview – [01:37]
• Journey from consulting to Reverie – [03:12]
• Reverie’s origin story & product innovation – [05:52]
• Marketing sleep vs. product features – [10:02]
• Go-to-market strategies: partner enablement & DTC – [11:46], [13:25]
• Role of technology & martech stack challenges – [15:11]
• Customer registration & engagement touchpoints – [17:27]
• Reverie Innovation Summit explanation – [20:14]
• Personal philosophies & experiences shaping leadership – [24:45]
• Advice to younger self – [26:24]
• Marketer learning priorities: AI & human behavior – [27:11]
• Trends, kids, and information integrity – [28:53]
• Opportunities/threats of AI – [32:02]

Summary of Key Takeaways

• Drive marketing with a clear mission and customer benefit, not just product specs.
• Use technology as an enabler but maintain critical, human judgment—especially with AI.
• Spark industry innovation through authentic collaboration and exposure to cross-industry ideas (e.g., Reverie Innovation Summit).
• Encourage fresh thinking and humility in teams; curiosity and adaptability yield long-term success.
• Marketers must stay vigilant in parsing trends, information noise, and AI outputs to maintain brand and societal integrity.

For anyone interested in sleep tech, customer-centric marketing, or the evolving role of technology in business, Lisa Tan’s insights offer a blend of strategic perspective and practical wisdom.