Building Better CMOs and Marketing Leaders

Full transcript As recently as the late 2000s, if you wanted to launch a new banking brand you needed brick-and-mortar branches. But GMAC, a spinoff of GM that was bought by private equity firm Cerberus, didn’t have the liquidity to build or buy a network like that. Joining the company as a brand executive and later becoming its CMO, Andrea Brimmer recalls how risky it felt to debut GMAC’s new identity, Ally Financial, as an online-only firm. “It sounds funny to say that now, 15 years later when everybody's banking in the palm of their hand, but it was a huge challenge to convince people to send their money to the internet, and that was exactly what we had to do,” Brimmer says. “We really underestimated how big this franchise could really be … I think it's one of the best turnaround stories in American business history." Today on Building Better CMOs, Andrea talks with MMA Global CEO Greg Stuart about the research Ally and the MMA have done together on "brand as performance marketing,” sharing data with marketing leaders at other companies, and what it takes to make the leap from account manager to marketing leader. They also talk about Ally’s commitment to investing equally in men’s and women’s sports, and why no responsible company can ignore generative AI. Follow or subscribe to Building Better CMOs Rate & review the podcast Links: Andrea's LinkedIn Greg's LinkedIn This episode was produced and edited by Eric Johnson from LightningPod.fm.

Full transcript There are some necessary dividing lines in FanDuel CCO Mike Raffensperger's line of work. The most obvious one is that online sports gambling is legal in 19 states, but not others. The company also refuses to do name & likeness deals with college athletes because many of them aren't old enough to gamble, Mike explains. But he outright rejects the idea — widely accepted in some marketing circles — that there needs to be such a bright line between brand and performance marketing. "What human being experiences a brand or marketing that way?" he says. "'Ah, I see their new television campaign is out, building their brand attribute... I've formed a more intimate relationship with this company.' A little bit later, I'm on Twitter: 'Oh, they've got a special offer that is 20% off this week! I should click on this and activate.' Nobody does that! That's not the way anybody actually has a consumer journey." Today on Building Better CMOs, Mike talks with MMA Global CEO Greg Stuart about why CMOs are becoming more like strategic leaders, how FanDuel became "one of the most successful second-screen experiences in the world," and the challenges he is tackling beyond just legalization. Plus: Why FanDuel is able to says it airs more live sports than any other company in America. Follow or subscribe to Building Better CMOs Rate & review the podcast Links: Mike's LinkedIn Greg's LinkedIn This episode was produced and edited by Eric Johnson from LightningPod.fm.

Full transcript When CMO Kellyn Smith Kenny joined AT&T in 2020, she led an ambitious overhaul of the company's purpose; as is the case in many companies, this required a huge amount of customer research, and countless workshops and conversations with employees from across the company. But after landing on a stronger brand — to connect people to greater possibility through expertise, simplicity, and inspiration — Kellyn realized the new identity couldn't be launched to the public yet. Internally, AT&T's staff would have to "live it" first. "We needed to get our employees excited about it, our employees inspired by it," she says. "We needed for every single employee of the company to have their own connection story, to be able to tell a story that showcased how AT&T was bringing greater possibility either to communities or customers or even members of their own family so it felt real and personal, and it felt like a purpose that they could sign up for." Today on Building Better CMOs, Kellyn talks with MMA Global CEO Greg Stuart about the incredible success of that rebranding, and why it worked. They also discuss the fatal mistakes that marketers can make in measurement and attribution; the enormous impact AI will have on marketing; embracing change to grow in your marketing career; and more. Follow or subscribe to Building Better CMOs Rate & review the podcast Links: Kellyn's LinkedIn Greg's LinkedIn This episode was produced and edited by Eric Johnson from LightningPod.fm.

Full transcript The online design software Canva has more than 130 million users around the world, but it wasn't obvious 10 years ago that the Australian startup would one day be a runaway hit, valued at $40 billion. Just ask CMO Zach Kitschke, who was employee number five. He was hired to do communications and marketing, but also wound up being tapped to lead customer service, product, HR, and even food prep for a time. "When you're working towards a mission like that, it's just like, okay, one step after the other, this kind of relentless pursuit of trying to get there," Zach recalls. "There were weeks early on where it was this kind of desperate exercise of, how are we going to get the next five users, 10 users, 50 users? And it felt like that went on for a long time." In this episode of Building Better CMOs, Zach talks with MMA Global CEO Greg Stuart about how Canva got started, why he strives to avoid chasing marketing buzzwords, and how Canva is re-aligning its products to embrace AI. They also discuss the benefits of working with a professional coach, and why you should say yes to opportunities that are outside your comfort zone. Follow or subscribe to Building Better CMOs Leave a 5-star rating on Apple Podcasts Links: Zach's LinkedIn Greg's LinkedIn Greg's Twitter This episode was produced and edited by Eric Johnson from LightningPod.fm.

Full transcript Colgate-Palmolive has been in business for more than 200 years, and it won't be around for another 200+ unless its operators continue to innovate, says Diana Haussling, the company's VP and GM North America Consumer Experience & Growth. "It's really important that we don't have a sense of entitlement," she says. "We are parts of a broader history, of a huge brand and a huge brand story. Our responsibility as brand stewards has to drive our passion, our focus, to make sure that these brands don't fall down on our watch." Diana originally came to Colgate-Palmolive to run digital commerce in North America, which gives her a unique perspective on marketing, and in this episode of Building Better CMOs, she tells MMA Global CEO Greg Stuart that it's time to rethink some fundamentals — including the funnel. They also talk about acting like a founder, winning in both digital and brick-and-mortar, and the balance between ambition and fear of failure. Plus: Where Diana's work ethic comes from, how she gives back to her community, and what marketers should take away from this year's Pride Month. Follow or subscribe to Building Better CMOs Leave a 5-star rating on Apple Podcasts Links: Diana's LinkedIn Greg's LinkedIn Greg's Twitter How Colgate developed a recyclable toothpaste tube This episode was produced and edited by Eric Johnson from LightningPod.fm.

Full transcript Mayur Gupta attributes everything he understands about marketing to his background as an engineer, the safest career path for a young person in India. He pivoted twice: First to Sapient's ad tech product BridgeTrack, and then to his first proper role in marketing, joining Kimberly-Clark in 2012. Today, Mayur is the CMO of the Kraken Digital Asset Exchange, which he describes as a crypto brand with a soul. "Fundamentally, the way I look at it is the next stage of growth and adoption for crypto will come when the technology underneath crypto becomes hidden and the value becomes more visible," he says. On this episode of Building Better CMOs, Mayur and MMA Global CEO Greg Stuart talk about crypto non-believers, the four eras of marketing, aligning the C-Suite to marketing objectives, building transparency and accountability, and more. Plus: The book that changed Greg's life, and two leadership lessons from Mayur that will make any organization stronger. Follow or subscribe to Building Better CMOs Leave a 5-star rating on Apple Podcasts Links: Mayur's LinkedIn Greg's LinkedIn Greg's Twitter The viral Kitboga video Kraken helped create This episode was produced and edited by Eric Johnson from LightningPod.fm.

Full transcript Jonnie Cahill has served as CMO of Heineken USA since 2018, overseeing the marketing for some of the world’s biggest beer brands, including Heineken, Dos Equis and Tecate. He also worked on their alcohol-free beer, Heineken Zero, including a Super Bowl TV spot starring Paul Rudd as Ant-Man from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. On this episode of Building Better CMOs, Cahill tells MMA Global CEO Greg Stuart why live experiences are an underrated form of marketing; makes the case for marketers to be both "disciplined and driven," all the time; and issues what should be the First Commandment of marketing: Buy the idea, not the execution. Follow or subscribe to Building Better CMOs Leave a 5-star rating on Apple Podcasts Links: Jonnie's LinkedIn Greg's LinkedIn Greg's Twitter Heineken's Super Bowl ad The "riveting viking saga" ad for Heineken Silver This episode was produced and edited by Eric Johnson from LightningPod.fm.

Full transcript Since 2019, Linda Lee been the CMO of Meals and Beverages at Campbell Soup Company, and she also chairs MMA's North America board of directors. Her pre-Campbell's resume includes stints at Procter & Gamble, General Mills, and Mondelēz International. But before all that, she was a scientist, earning a BS in chemical engineering. On this episode of Building Better CMOs, Lee convinces MMA Global CEO Greg Stuart that marketers should apply a kind of scientific method to their work; she also talks about the challenges of bringing original thinking to iconic brands, and why the conventional wisdom about career advancement may be wrong. Follow or subscribe to Building Better CMOs Leave a 5-star rating on Apple Podcasts Links: Linda's LinkedIn Greg's LinkedIn Greg's Twitter 1960s Spaghettios ad Good Thins ad A sponsored TikTok for "sides season" This episode was produced and edited by Eric Johnson from LightningPod.fm.

Full transcript As CMO of CVS Health, Norm de Greve has overseen some incredibly important and sometimes controversial campaigns, including the removal of cigarettes from all of their stores in 2014. More recently, CVS has made a point of calling out when photos of models have been retouched, and is offering both virtual and in-person mental health counseling to customers who need it. On this episode of Building Better CMOs, de Greve talks to MMA Global CEO Greg Stuart about all of those things, as well as the balancing act between being successful and doing the right thing; he also argues that an alarming number of marketers are wasting everyone's time by not developing a framework to drive growth for their organizations. Follow or subscribe to Building Better CMOs Leave a 5-star rating on Apple Podcasts Links: Norm's LinkedIn Greg's LinkedIn Greg's Twitter NBC News coverage of the "beauty mark" campaign CBS News coverage of the cigarette removal This episode was produced and edited by Eric Johnson from LightningPod.fm.