In this final instalment of B&T’s IN THE KNOW – a video series featuring hot tips from Australian marketing professionals and brought to you by film production company In The Thicket – we speak to four top industry pros and get their best advice for young marketing grads.
When it comes to working in marketing, CMO and former Samsung marketing boss Arno Lenior says it’s not enough to be masterful, despite the industry needing “lots and lots” of those.
“Being a master in digital is great, it’s fantastic…but what are you doing with that information I think is the key,” Lenior said.
“The question I would be asking everybody is how do I bring value with the knowledge I bring?”
IAG head of marketing Jane Merrick agrees, stressing there’s no point being a one trick pony, and the industry needs a good level of understanding of both data and digital.
“People shouldn’t pigeonhole and label themselves as either digital marketers or direct marketers or brand marketers. I think we as an industry need to understand to embrace everything,” she said.
For Google Australia’s head of marketing Lucinda Barlow it’s all about empathy.
“The most important thing is that you have a huge sense of empathy, you understand humanity, you can represent people, your users, that you will stand up for them above all else.”
And for Barlow, that also means that you will never put a “horrendous product” out there that “doesn’t deserve to be seen by people”, and to “bring art and story-telling and humanity to everything that you do”.
Hewlett-Packard’s marketing director Darren Needham-Walker says creativity is the king, but only if it’s genuine.
“We all like to think of ourselves as creative,” he said. “Creativity is a component but how do you be creative with authenticity?”
Did you catch the other IN THE KNOW segments with Monique Keighery, Jane Merrick, Arno Lenior, or Lucinda Barlow? Click the names to check them out.
The IN THE KNOW video series is produced by In The Thicket, a production company with offices in Sydney and Melbourne. To learn more about In The Thicket visit www.inthethicket.com.au
