As part of our report into future trends for CMOs, we asked representatives from PensionBee, Mindshare, Chip and more for their one piece of advice to future generations of C-suite marketers.
From fully embracing the role and being passionate to learn what motivates people, to ensuring creativity and technology work hand-in-hand, what follows is a useful snapshot of what it takes to succeed.
This article was produced in association with Lead Monitor, New Statesman Media Group’s marketing solution.
See also: How to succeed as a CMO: Leading marketers share their insights
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Exist in all of the customer journey
Jasper Martens, CMO at PensionBee: “Be a chameleon and stick your nose in the whole customer lifecycle because that’s where you belong.”
Diversity increases creativity
Teresa Barreira, CMO at Publicis Sapient: “Focus on the culture and environment you’re building as it will ultimately help you drive the best results. Bringing diversity to the team fosters innovation and creativity.”
Everything hinges on our emotions
Paul Knegten, CMO at Outbrain: “Don’t be afraid to be creative, to love the writing and the expressive parts of the role. You’re there to persuade people, a lot of them, and you have to do so through emotions. The energy is as important as the message.”
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Don’t be afraid to stand out from the crowd
Alex Latham, CMO at Chip: “Don’t just presume that because everyone is doing something a certain way it’s the right thing to do. Sometimes being different is drastically better than being perfect.”
Technology is key to success
Dirk Wischnewski, CMO at B2B Media Group: “The next generation of CMOs must make sure they understand the role that technology will play within the job. Technology has transformed the role of the CMO. And looking into the future, this will continue at a remarkable rate as technological development gains pace in a digital world.”
Customers are you and me
Greg Brooks, CMO at Mindshare: “Have fun. Don’t forget, beyond all the marketing automation, software and platforms that it is still about connecting with consumers and consumers are people – just like you and me. So bring some joy to it.”
It’s all about the customer
Becky Skiles, CMO at Deloitte Digital: “Be passionate about the customer and their experience, because if you don’t get that right you’re setting yourself up for disruption. Technology is a tool to deliver on that experience, it’s not a solution in and of itself.”
Live and breathe marketing
Rebecca Dibb-Simkin, CMO at Octopus Energy: “Capture experiences, push yourself out of your comfort zone, and question everything.”
Study people and behaviour
Michelle Goodall, CMO at Guild: “Be genuinely intrigued and hungry to understand what motivates people to make certain decisions about their lives and work. Study people, their behaviours and rituals, social anthropology, community science – do it in parks, in cafes, at events, in your communities, through your data. Don’t dismiss blockchain and AI, but figure out how to map human behaviour to these technologies.”
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