PODCAST
Tara Deveaux
Shawn Shahani
In an age where consumer attention spans are at an all-time low, something curious is happening: under the right circumstances, consumers are spending hours - even days - immersed in lush fictional worlds such as Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, and The Avengers. However, world building isn't just for blockbuster entertainment franchises. When executed well, brands can create immersive worlds of their own, significantly driving brand loyalty in the process. We spoke with Tara Deveaux and Shawn Shahani of Wild Card about a new study on world building and consumer behavior. They shared what marketers could learn from Hollywood producers, and gave tips on creating a world of engagement around your brand.
Ted McConnell
“Innovation occurs when what’s needed meets what’s possible.”
Ted McConnell, SVP of Business Development at Lucid, is no stranger to innovation. Throughout his illustrious career, Ted found himself time and again pushing the envelope on behalf of global brands, including shepherding the creation and implementation of Hawkeye, P&G’s in-house programmatic buying operation, 10 years ago. Ted shared his thoughts on what brands need to do to enable innovation to thrive within their organizations, discussed the challenges of balancing consumer data privacy and effective advertising, and explained how playing with music synthesizers helped him understand data and technology.
Richard Plansky
Benedict Hamilton
Influencer marketing is one of the hottest trends in the industry right now. Brands are teaming up with celebrities, artists, athletes, and more to reach consumers in a way that feels genuine and native to the social platforms they spend all their time on. But all too often, brands jump into these relationships without the proper vetting, which can lead to disaster.
At the 2019 ANA influencer conference, we spoke with Richard Plansky and Benedict Hamilton of Kroll, a corporate investigation company, about brand safety in influencer marketing. Richard and Ben discussed the right way for brands to approach influencer vetting, shared some influencer horror stories, and shed light on one of the biggest misconceptions brands have about “micro-influencers.”
Chris Aarons
It’s 2020, and still one of the most popular topics among marketers is digital transformation. According to a study by Deloitte, 87% of companies think digital will disrupt their industry, but only 44% feel they’re prepared for such a disruption. That’s why today, we’re talking with Chris Aarons, one of the co-authors of the Digital Helix: Transforming Your Organization's DNA to Thrive in the Digital Age. Chris shared why tech alone isn’t going to cut it, and talked about the importance of intellectual curiosity, and constantly looking for new learnings and strategies on your path to digital transformation.
Dr. Joseph Riggio
It’s a new year, full of possibilities, which makes it the perfect time to welcome Dr. Joseph Riggio to the Marketing Futures Podcast. Dr. Riggio is an expert in cognitive and neuroscience, and an executive trainer and consultant for 30 years. He breaks down “carrot” vs. “stick” motivation, and why “FOMO” (fear of missing out) might be every marketer’s favorite buzzword, but is a terrible way to base your long-term strategy. Instead, Dr. Riggio recommends “Possibility-Based Marketing,” which leverages joyful emotions and consumer aspirations to influence purchase decisions. Finally, he shares why the “Hero’s Journey” – the narrative structure of myths dating back centuries—is the key to driving meaningful, lasting brand loyalty.
David Lee
Ryan Reis
It’s one thing to be agile and innovative when your business is a 10-person startup, “growth hacking” its way to success. It’s another thing entirely when your business has more than 17,000 employees, and a family of more than 20 brands, many of which are household names. David Lee and Ryan Reis of MillerCoors gave the Marketing Futures Podcast a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to make bold ideas work in a multi-billion-dollar company, and discussed why some ideas that seem like “no-brainers” from the outside look at lot different from within.
Lisa Hurwitz
The fourth installment in the Future of Brand Activation miniseries features the first Chief Innovation Officer to grace the Marketing Futures Podcast: Lisa Hurwitz, CMO and CIO of Grassroots Cannabis. Lisa welcomed us inside the Grassroots “Herbmobile” to share what it’s like growing a brand for the long-term in the midst of the “gold rush” market of legal cannabis. She discussed the challenges of reeducating consumers about cannabis after decades of stigmatization, and what a typical day looks like for the head of marketing and innovation in an emerging market.
Joel Walker
We all get by with a little help from our friends. Today, we're talking with Joel Walker, Group Creative Director at BlueChip Marketing, as our miniseries on the Future of Brand Activation rolls on. Joel and his team have worked with brands ranging from challengers fighting for market share, to category leaders looking to evolve with the times, helping to infuse their marketing with the innovation necessary to drive growth.
Learn what Joel looks for when hiring new team members, and which trend he thinks is about to change the game.
Lisa McKnight
For decades, Barbie has been one of the most iconic toy brands on the planet. However, recently the doll that played an integral role in the childhood of millions began to struggle to keep pace with the changes in society, and relevance (and sales) suffered as a result.
Enter: Lisa McKnight, a 20-year veteran at Mattel, who stepped up to bring the Barbie brand into a new era, creating new revenue streams in the process. Lisa shared her journey that led her to become the Global Head of the Barbie brand, and discussed the key insights that led to the transformation of an icon.
Alvaro Luque
The Marketing Futures Podcast is proud to present a special miniseries on The Future of Brand Activation, recorded on-site at the 2019 Brand Activation Marketing Conference in Orlando, FL. The miniseries showcases brands that are driving growth using key elements of Brand Activation, including influencer marketing, retail activation, commerce marketing, and more.
In 2014, Alvaro Luque was hand-picked to become the first president and CEO of Avocados from Mexico, a not-for-profit organization charged with coordinating the marketing activities for all major Mexican avocado farmers. Just six months later, the brand introduced itself to the world on the largest possible stage for advertising: the Super Bowl. In each of the five years since, Avocados from Mexico has taken either the No. 1 or No. 2 spot on Merkle’s “Digital Bowl Report,” which evaluates Super Bowl advertisers’ digital marketing efforts. Luque shared his philosophy behind the brand’s bold debut strategy, and discussed the omnichannel activations that amplified the brand’s Super Bowl efforts beyond the TV screen.
Ned Duggan
Innovation takes many forms -- using cutting-edge technology to engage customers, forging unconventional partnerships to bring your brand into new spaces, and taking a bold stand on something you believe in, to name a few. We were lucky enough to speak with the head of marketing for Bacardi, a brand doing all of the above and more.
Ned Duggan, Global SVP of Marketing at Bacardi, talked company culture, the importance of music to Bacardi's brand, and why the company is vowing to eliminate the use of 1 billion single-use plastic straws by 2020.
Jessica Peltz
Charlie Chappell
Michael Trapani
Netta Jenkins
Matt Sweeney
Individuals born in 2010 and beyond belong to “Generation Alpha.” This group will grow up with an unprecedented amount of exposure to technology, in a world of virtual assistants, mixed realities, and AI-enhanced human capabilities. ANA’s own Mike Berberich spoke with Laura Macdonald, Head of Consumer, North America at Hotwire Global, about their new report on this group of future consumers. Laura discussed the challenges and opportunities marketers will face when attempting to engage and build relationships with this new generation, and shared case studies of brands who were already making inroads with both children and their millennial parents.
It's never too early to prepare for the future—are you ready for Generation Alpha?
In 2020, as the world was on lockdown, consumers reignited an old relationship – with their TV, that is. Today, we’re joined by Bob Ivins and Jo Kinsella of TVSquared to discuss the rebirth of television, and what it means to advertisers. Bob and Jo explained why Direct-to-Consumer brands are turning to TV in droves and gave their opinions on when we might finally see fully-addressable TV ads.
> See all episodesNow that 2020 has officially come to a close, marketers are hoping to move beyond the necessary survival mode tactics that challenged the world in the past year. Looking to the future is no easy task, however – despite the arrival of a new year, the lingering effects of 2020 will need to be taken into account as brands pivot to new strategies and tactics. Though planning for post-COVID-19 marketing has begun, the actual pandemic hasn’t ceased, and a continuing focus on digital will be necessary both now and later in the year. Likewise, the social justice and awareness initiatives that arose as direct responses to the unrest in 2020 must now become part and parcel of every successful marketer’s overall branding. The resources collected in this issue of Pulse share where marketers should focus their energies and advise how they can continue to adapt to the world’s present challenges.
> See all issuesPODCAST
The ANA Marketing Futures Podcast Series is a crossroads for marketers, entrepreneurs, innovators, and academia to discuss and debate the future of marketing, and business in general. Hosted by Charles Cantu, Founder and CEO of RESET DIGITAL and ANA Futures Advisor, the Podcast Series looks to demystify emerging trends, share different perspectives on critical economic issues, and help marketers and business owners focus on what matters most: growing their brands.
EPISODES
June 2019
Ned Duggan
Innovation takes many forms -- using cutting-edge technology to engage customers, forging unconventional partnerships to bring your brand into new spaces, and taking a bold stand on something you believe in, to name a few. We were lucky enough to speak with the head of marketing for Bacardi, a brand doing all of the above and more.
Ned Duggan, Global SVP of Marketing at Bacardi, talked company culture, the importance of music to Bacardi's brand, and why the company is vowing to eliminate the use of 1 billion single-use plastic straws by 2020.
May 2019
Jessica Peltz
In the quest to keep up with technological advancements, brands are beginning to enter the world of venture capitalism to "get in on the ground floor" of the next game-changing innovation. But what type of partnerships make sense for brands, whose objectives aren't quick profit, but learnings and competitive advantages? And how does a brand even enter this space? We spoke with Jessica Peltz of MDC Ventures, who shared her journey into the world of Corporate VC, and discussed some tech developments marketers should keep an eye on.
April 2019
Charlie Chappell
The Hershey Company, celebrating its 125-year anniversary in 2019, was founded by Milton S. Hershey, a serial entrepreneur on a mission to “democratize chocolate,” which at the time was considered a luxury good. Over the years, what began as a simple candy bar has become a globally recognized family of brands, an amusement park, a school, and an entire town. But even a brand as established and beloved as Hershey isn’t impervious to disruption. We spoke with Charlie Chappell, Head of Integrated Media and Comms Planning at The Hershey Company, about the company’s philosophy on innovation, what it took to “digitally transform” its legacy media strategy, and some of the hits—and misses—that the brand experienced along the way.
April 2019
Michael Trapani
Artificial Intelligence is already a significant part of most marketers’ toolkits. Whether it’s email automation, product recommendation, programmatic media buying, or data analytics, AI touches a majority of the marketing function. But did you know that the commercial application of AI is still 10 years behind what the technology is actually capable of? We spoke with Michael Trapani, Director of Marketing at IBM Watson Marketing, about the “now, new, and next” of AI, including the future of personalization, the importance of data security, and what the next decade of AI developments has in store for marketers.
March 2019
Netta Jenkins
A recent study that looked at the 3,000 largest publicly traded companies in the U.S. found that businesses that hire and retain a diverse workforce across the ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation spectrum were better at developing innovative products and services. We spoke with Netta Jenkins, VP of Global Inclusion at The Mosaic Group and Ask Applications, about the importance of not only hiring, but training and empowering underrepresented employees. Netta shared how brands could take active steps to create an inclusive environment for their employees, and laid out the business benefits that come from a broad and dynamic marketplace of ideas.
About ANA Marketing Futures
Knowing that marketers are increasingly challenged in their efforts to keep up with the latest trends and technologies, the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) tasked itself with creating a program designed to help marketers anticipate—and prepare for—the future of marketing.
ANA Marketing Futures is what emerged. With a focus on innovative topics and emerging trends, ANA Marketing Futures provides resources that will influence and inform via member cases, research studies, and insight from industry innovators. Check back often to learn about emerging trends and become inspired to take steps toward the growth of your business.
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