Here’s the final part of Taylor Fielding, CEO of TFM Digital’s Cairns Crocodiles diary. His key takeaways? B2B marketing is very challenging and localising global creative can be tough. The parties were pretty good, too.
Pangs of Cairns Crocodile Comedown were in the air this morning (Friday), given the festival of content we’ve feasted on all week.
No dregs of shower-hungry Splendour debris to sidewinder through thankfully to get home, but god I’m looking forward to my own bed.
Branding that sparkles
Thursday, though, was a day that started like any other for our dear Hayden. A scrumptious buffet, washed down with Cairns’s own coffee concoction, unaware of the hand, that fate had in store for him.
All week we’ve passed the ARE Media booth with eyes fixed on the Claw Machine with Swarovski crystals as the jackpot. And today was lucky last for TFM’s Growth Manager, who walked away a winner.
There’s been lots of decent activations, from Mutinex’s coffee cart, through to Tracksuit offering data for agency pitches. This offer provides value for both agency and tech supplier, with the potential for work off the back of any agency success. Win-win.
Never waste a good crisis
Optus had a fairly torrid time a few years back, between a cybersecurity faux pas and a torrent of online misogynistic abuse for their CEO. There were some learnings, though, that Cam Luby, Head of Consumer Marketing, was able to share that would apply to most businesses, significantly less high risk than Optus was.
Takeaways for brand managers, no matter your size:
Transparency is key – update your customers on the situation as soon as you know there is a problem. Continue with regular updates so they feel informed; this was not the experience for Optus customers.
Empowering your team to make decisions at the most appropriate level when time is an issue will help reduce bottlenecks. Horizontal structures will work well even in less panicked times.
Single source of truth – the most senior person should be the figurehead during a time of crisis. Hearing from the organisational leader demonstrates the situation’s importance, that they care, while also offering a degree of control over the situation. Richard Brandson is one of the best examples of this type of leadership you’ll see.
Remain aligned – your staff need to be aligned with the facts and what it’s possible to communicate. Without this step, feelings of disconnect and frustration will linger long after the crisis is over.
If you’re going through negative publicity, it’s wise to turn off all advertising, especially on social, for obvious reasons.
Consistency
Heads of media and brand at Uber, Audible and Zespri joined a panel to discuss the challenges of operating from our region while in global roles.
Brand consistency when working on global campaigns to implement local nuances isn’t easy, and I’m yet to find a marketer with solutions.
The role of maintaining a local brand voice, sometimes without creative control, can be challenging, so an adaptable fluid mindset can help you work to your best with what you have available.
Being Brave in B2B
We’ve all heard the stats from Ehrenberg Bass – “95% of B2B buyers are not in-market right now, but 80% will buy from a brand that was top of mind when they do enter the market.”
And Google’s Duncan McGrath spoke quite candidly about sometimes reframing the challenge you’re facing. The recent Magda Szubanski (Kath and Kim’s Shazza Strzelecki) campaign illustrated this by taking an upper funnel approach but having a performance KPI of driving action. While it started life as a TVC, the content showcased the lived customer experience through the eyes of one of Australia’s most hapless characters of the past three decades – “So now I tell all my fellow ontray-preneurs … if I can do it, youse can too … tell ’em Shaz sent ya.” This was then segmented into shorter social videos and even static posts.
The boldness worked with a 17% increase in sign-ups, together with a 5% lower cost per signup overall, the brave campaign reaped its own rewards.
A week of creativity
We’ve had inspiration, different approaches and ways of thinking and a lot of today felt like getting the foundation elements right. Setting yourself up for future success starts today.
That’s exactly what the young Hatchlings did through their efforts, and it was fantastic to see the promise of future industry leaders showcased alongside the Crocodiles award winners.
The energy of the panels and workshops this week is matched only by the hedonism on display at the opening AND closing parties.
One hot topic was the volume of tech companies here and available in the market, a testament to the way media/tech is moving. Many have a similar offering, but it’s up to an agency to align with the one that will deliver for them – each client has unique needs.
But it wasn’t all party chat, as discussions turned to favourite sessions and one I kept having people recommend was Sherilyn Shackell’s The Leadership Reckoning.
She’s one of the most influential in marketing, focusing on making marketers better people so they can change the world, despite not being a marketer herself. It really is a people business. I hear the course draws out the emotions, and is selective, only taking a few people a year.
Will I be buying tickets for next year? Wooaah, not today, sleepy day at the office first. It’s an exhausting week, but in the best way. I remember feeling similar last year – when reflecting back on the value it was absolutely there, particularly for wider members of the team for them to build their networks.
This year, the parties were bigger and the content was better – the awards acting as a great way to cap a week of creative Hydralyte for the mind.
