Jo Arden

Jo Arden is the Chief Strategy Officer of Ogilvy UK, and she joins me on the podcast to talk all things strategy. What's involved, why it's important and how to make a career of it. Jo's experience is vast, not landing a "strategy" role until her 30's and since has had senior roles at Publicis•Poke and MullenLowe.Here's what we covered in our chat:How Jo got into strategyHer winding path from PR through business development and into strategyWhat does a Chief Strategy Officer do?The role of generosity in being a great CSOThe business case for involving your strategy team on a core business problemThe one question you should always ask your customer“Making your thinking as funny as possible”Why the winning ads in technology don’t take themselves seriouslyThe ‘good sense of humour’ approach to planning“If you aren’t having fun you aren’t doing great work”In praise of Dove and it’s purpose in advertising“If it didn’t sell it wasn’t creative”Why the industry loves a crisis narrativeThe crisis in creativity is more of a trend than a crisisCannes Lions role in creative exploration rather than effectivenessJon was left out of his own Cannes Lion winning partyThe one Campaign award no-one wants to winWhy Turkeys eat Lions for breakfast“The consumer is not a moron, she is your wife”The challenge of bringing the consumer into the roomThe importance of doing normal thingsSpending the most time out of the officeRabbits in the office and other fun things at OgilvyGenerating borderless creativityPutting pressure on the task and not yourselfHow to create an environment for creativity to happenWhat Jo would advise her 21 year old selfJon share his almost unbelievable imposter syndrome storyUsing the power of your network

Jo Arden, Chief Strategy Officer at AMV BBDO, shares insights from her impactful career in public health and brand strategy. She highlights how hope and humor can enhance messaging, using the successful Stoptober campaign as a prime example. Discussion revolves around emotional resonance and the effectiveness of celebrity messengers in health campaigns. Jo emphasizes the power of positive communication to counter stigma and engage audiences, along with practical advice for marketers to trust their instincts in crafting messages.