| Accomplishment most proud of: Best days are ahead of me!
Marketing mentor? The most important marketing mentors I have had have been my direct managers. Their willingness to share their experience and knowledge has equipped me with skills that have not only help to develop my core marketing skills, but also better deal with all facets of being successful in a professional and large organisation.
What brand do you most admire and why? Apple. Any brand that wields the power to make Sydneysiders wait in the streets for hours on end (in the middle of winter!) for a product that has highly publicised, significant flaw commands respect.
What marketing program do you wish you had worked on? Following the Apple theme, I will never forget the ‘I’m a Mac’ campaign, where Apple went head-to-head with PC. A campaign built on clear customer insights that was burnt into our minds with a very funny piece of creative. Classic! I think the ‘fighter brand’ positioning and all the campaigns that stemmed from that prop would have made working on the Apple brand exciting.
What’s the most valuable marketing lesson you picked up during your career? Pre-test, pre-test and pre-test (and if you have time, pre-test again).
As a young marketer, what has been the biggest lesson in your career, and what did you learn from it? For me, one of the biggest (and first) hurdles you are faced with as a young marketer is the management of a large number of senior stakeholders when executing a campaign or event. The need to deliver disappointing news or to delicately say ‘no’ to well-intended creative sparks is an important part of a marketing role. Developing my ability to effectively ‘manage-up’ continues and I am sure will do so for the remainder of my career. Developing the skill to manage-up can often be a bumpy road; however, a personality/drive to get things done combined with self confidence can go a long way.
What are the biggest challenges facing marketers? Not withstanding the numerous external challenges, I think most marketing teams continue to feel the pinch at home with increasingly scrutinised or diminishing budgets. The biggest and first challenge marketing professionals everywhere are faced with is the need to meaningfully quantify and measure the value of marketing programs and investments to senior stakeholders.
Best recent technological advance for marketing? The most obvious has got to be Internet and all its glory, with its ability to segment the market and talk to those customers you wish in a meaningful way. The Internet is opening all sorts of doors to have two-way conversations with our customers.
Future direction for the marketing profession? Marketing is customer engagement, and as marketers we must capitalise on creating real and relevant connections. The channels to do this are changing and growing. More marketers are learning (and need to continue to learn) how to better leverage the digital space in application and mobile device marketing and further focus on the social media space.
Do you think sustainability is a burning issue for marketing? Sustainability will always be something companies need to address, but this topic seems to have become almost a hygiene factor. A recent focus group I attended spoke to this exact point. Respondents seemed less and less impressed with companies’ actions in this area – “It’s not a matter of boosting about it, they should just be doing it!” and “If they weren’t doing it, someone else would”. Should we build marketing campaigns around it? I would suggest not.
What attributes make a great marketer? First and foremost, great communication/people management skills, closely followed by impeccable time management.
What does the statement ‘Value Creation Through Marketing’ mean to you? Making marketing accountable for every dollar spent finding, converting and keeping a customer, aiming for an equitable or greater return in net profit.
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