Interview– Crys Black
Amanda: Hi everyone, and welcome to today’s episode of Female Fractionals. I'm your host and fractional CMO, Amanda Nizzere.
If you're driving or walking, I suggest waiting to listen to this episode until you can have a pen and paper handy, because today we're talking tools to drive your business forward—with Crys Black, fractional CMO and RevOps leader at Crys Black Consulting.
Crys specializes in helping early-stage tech startups scale efficiently. With a background spanning IT, marketing, and revenue operations, she has served as a fractional CMO and marketing advisor to numerous B2B SaaS and deep tech companies. Known for aligning business and technical teams, she helps startups gain traction, generate revenue, and optimize operations for sustainable growth.
During the conversation, Crys shares over 10 tools she uses to grow her own business and support her clients—including how to build an AI twin for your social media presence. Let’s get into this very helpful and inspiring discussion.
Hi Crys, welcome to Female Fractionals! I'm so happy you're here.
Crys: I'm excited to be here. Thank you for having me.
Amanda: I like to start every episode by asking guests to share a bit about their professional background and how they got started in their field.
Crys: I actually started in IT as an early-stage startup person. I came out to Silicon Valley during the dot-com era, fresh from Virginia Tech. I was an IT professional until a lot of that moved over to marketing, especially with tools like Salesforce coming online.
All of a sudden, I found myself in marketing and operations for an early-stage tech startup. That path continued, but as you probably know, the tech industry is volatile. I've been laid off eight or nine times. Consulting became my way to keep income flowing and stay relevant.
Now, I’ve turned fractional, and I love it. I can help more companies than ever before. And with new technologies coming in, I actually have the time to experiment. For me, being fractional has been a force multiplier—it’s allowed me to remake myself and stay on the edge of innovation.
Amanda: You’ve had such an interesting journey. What’s one surprising detour someone might not expect from your story?
Crys: Most people who meet me quickly learn I’ve always been career-focused. I used to call layoffs “divorce settlements” because I loved my work that much. But during COVID, everything changed. I left Silicon Valley—where I was literally breathing tech—to move to Ohio for someone I was dating. That relationship didn’t last, but I didn’t walk away from his child. I became a full-time support system for a teenager.
Now, that “lone wolf” who never wanted kids or a partner has a 20-year-old in college and is living with her college sweetheart, who just moved in. And being fractional gave me the flexibility to support that teenager, help my partner sell his house, and build a new chapter of life—all while growing my business.
Amanda: That’s incredible. And you’ve always been steeped in tech and AI. As I said in the intro, if you’re listening to this while driving, pull over. Crys always brings so many tools and insights to the table. Every time I see you in one of our fractional groups, I literally grab a pen and paper because I know you’re going to share something I need. Can you walk us through the top tools you’re using right now in your business?
Crys: Sure—and I’ll try to go fast. First: HubSpot. As a fractional, you need a CRM, and HubSpot is free and integrates well with email and LinkedIn. It’s perfect for getting started and managing both your business and even your clients’.
Second: your LLM of choice. I use OpenAI’s tools—I'm a Sam Altman fan. But Google Gemini and Claude are great too. I use LLMs not just for writing content, but as thought partners. They help me find blind spots and brainstorm ideas 24/7 without judgment.
Next: video tools. I use Loom-style follow-ups after meetings. I can track whether clients watch them, which helps guide my next communication.
LinkedIn is huge for my inbound strategy. I also use NotebookLM for prospect research—it can create custom summaries and even podcasts from documents.
If I need deeper insights, especially for tech clients, I turn to Stanford’s STORM. It helps me understand complex topics at a layman’s level.
Calendaring is another big one. I use CalendarBridge to sync across client calendars so everything stays blocked and organized. Then I use Motion—which actually schedules my tasks based on priority and time estimates. It's like a built-in ops manager for my day.
Those are the essentials I use daily and couldn’t run my business without.
Amanda: Amazing. So how do you stay up to speed with all this?
Crys: I follow great people on LinkedIn—Lisa Adams, Andy Crestodina, and Christopher Penn are my top three. The Marketing AI Institute podcast is my weekly go-to. And locally in Denver, I attend AI meetups like the Rocky Mountain AI Interest Group and Women in AI Colorado.
And honestly—I play. These tools are affordable and approachable. I start with the tasks I hate, like social media, and automate those first. I even built a digital twin that manages my social posts in my tone and voice. That’s been a game changer.
Amanda: You even created a custom Valentine’s Day album using AI, right?
Crys: I did! I used ChatGPT to write lyrics about my partner and me, then put them into Suno to generate music. I created a 7-song album and played it for him on Valentine’s Day. It was cheesy and perfect—and all through play.
Amanda: I love that. But where do you find the confidence to play like that? A lot of people feel intimidated by AI.
Crys: I remind myself—what’s the worst that can happen? The tool’s not going to judge me. LLMs are actually really kind. Plus, the fractional community is supportive. We’ve all felt imposter syndrome, especially as women in leadership. But AI doesn’t care about your title. It’s just software—no different from what we’ve used for decades.
Amanda: How are you using AI to grow your business and generate leads?
Crys: Honestly, through giving. I help people. I show up to talks, share what I know, and someone always says, “Can you help me?” AI helps me be more generous—whether through summarization, research, or creating custom outputs. And that generosity builds trust.
Amanda: What’s your favorite tool to play with right now?
Crys: Still ChatGPT. It’s my best virtual collaborator. I’ve created content strategists, digital twins, and calculators with it. It even helps me debug prompts when things go sideways. It’s like having an expert sidekick.
Amanda: For listeners who want to build a digital twin for their social media, what are the first steps?
Crys: Start with a Custom GPT (or “gem”) in ChatGPT. You name it, describe its purpose, tone, audience, and feed it materials like transcripts or posts you’ve written. Include quirks—like whether you love Oxford commas or hate em dashes. Then play with it and refine. You can even upload up to 20 files in ChatGPT. It becomes your brand’s voice in a bottle.
Amanda: That’s so actionable. Thank you. What’s one piece of advice you’d give yourself in the early years?
Crys: Raise your hand. Say yes to opportunities—even if you don’t know how. That’s how I went from programmer to branding a company globally. Fractional work and AI are the same—you figure it out as you go. It’s just a new sandbox.
Amanda: Let’s end with some quick-fire questions.
Best investment you’ve made in yourself?
College.Favorite business book?
Radical Candor.Last business book you read?
Ethan Mollick’s AI book.Early bird or night owl?
Night owl.Unexpected skill that’s helped your career?
Breaking down big ideas into small chunks.Where do you look for inspiration?
Everywhere.Dream HQ location?
Edinburgh.Most embarrassing song on your playlist?
Theme from The Greatest American Hero.Last book you read for pleasure?
The Playground (AI fiction).Hidden talent?
The “Crys Effect”—bad luck turns into surprising good luck.
Amanda: I want some of that “Crys Effect”! Thank you again for sharing so generously—on the podcast and in our communities. You’re a gem.
Crys: You’re too kind. Thank you for having me!
Amanda: As always, follow, like, comment, and share. And don’t forget to head over to femalefractionals.com for a full transcript of the show and links to everything we talked about. Thanks for listening.
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