Renee Kraus is a highly regarded strategist and marketer with 20 plus years of experience in professional services driving brand advocacy and growth across industries including financial services, health and care, telecommunications, and communication agencies. As Sonava Group’s director of marketing Australia, she faces the uphill battle of getting people to overcome the fact that it takes seven years on average for consumers to recognise a hearing loss and take action.
Now into our second season of B&T’s CMOs To Watch, presented by Zenith, Kraus joins the ranks of visionary marketing leaders redefining the playbook. This series celebrates those who balance bold ideas with business impact and have a whole lot of fun along the way.
B&T sat down with Kraus to talk about the challenges Sonava Group is facing, her hectic family life and her gorgeous dog Rocco.
B&T: Let’s get to know you… What three things would you take to a desert island?
RK: 1. My dog Rocco, best pal, and permanent shadow; despite hating the water, he swims out into the ocean to ‘save me’ when we are at the beach.
2. Paint, pencils, and paper; a door to my creative ideas…
3. A mobile phone; to SOS a rescue mission after I’m relaxed and craving human connection again…it wouldn’t take too long!
B&T: What is your passion outside of work? If you weren’t a CMO, what would you be doing?
RK: Outside of work and a hectic family life, I love renovating houses, building my network (through The Friday Lunch Club) and being near the water.
If I wasn’t a CMO, I’d start an interior design business with my daughter Lara (currently 13!). We’re both visually creativity (she’s far better than me) and with some of my experience and business expertise, we’d make a great duo.
B&T: What was your favourite campaign of all time?
RK: One of my recent favourites is the Aldi – Good Different campaign; primarily for nailing the customer insight every time and doing it in a memorable quirky way that makes you smile.
B&T: Now let’s talk shop. What is your brand’s top priority for the next 12 months?
RK: To help every Australian enjoy the delight of hearing. Hearing loss can come about for a variety of reasons, and with an aging population, the need for hearing solutions is escalating.
B&T: What channel is exciting you the most and how do you split your marketing budgets between long/short and channels mix?
RK: Infotainment! I’ve worked across complex service industries for decades and I can see consumers craving credible information in a saturated market, delivered in an entertaining way.
Delivering value now, is your ticket to designing for the future, so doing both long/short are super critical. How that plays out in budgets and channels varies, but for me, it’s more than budget allocations, it’s constantly challenging where we spend our time.
B&T: What is the biggest challenge you currently face in the marketplace?
RK: Client inertia—it takes seven years on average for consumers to recognise a hearing loss and take action.
B&T: What are you most excited about in the marketplace?
RK: Artificial Intelligence—yes for it’s obvious efficiency benefits, but mainly for how brands can use AI for differentiation and innovation.
B&T: Where do you see yourself in five years’ time?
RK: Kicking off my portfolio career—consulting to various industries and organisations, growing The Friday Lunch Club, and perhaps starting an interior design business with Lara!
B&T: Speaking hypothetically what’s one brand, product or category you’d like to sink your teeth into right now as a marketer?
RK: Change management. It’s a space I absolutely love! AI will present possibilities at a rapid pace, but they will only be realised through people who can adapt quickly with an innovative mindset.
B&T: Zenith believe there is untapped media potential we need to uncover. What is your prediction for media this year?
RK: One of the key trends I see is ongoing convergence, whether that’s in streaming content across platforms, social media and e-commerce, or immersive media opportunities like AR. It’s never been more important to deeply understand your target audiences – in particular what’s enduring and what’s changing; technologically, demographically, socially, and intergenerationally.
