The Marketing Architects

Chelsea Sumrow, CMO of First American Title and Insurance, brings over 25 years of marketing expertise to the table. She discusses the unique challenge of modernizing a 135-year-old brand while honoring its heritage. Chelsea highlights the importance of building revenue attribution models and moving marketing from a cost center to a revenue driver. She emphasizes empowering teams to be data storytellers and the value of brand perception studies in shaping strategy. Prepare for an enlightening conversation filled with insights on balancing innovation and tradition!

Welcome to Nerd Alert, a series of special episodes bridging the gap between marketing academia and practitioners. We’re breaking down highly involved, complex research into plain language and takeaways any marketer can use.In this episode, Elena and Rob explore Marketing Architects' new report on TV advertising effectiveness, revealing surprising insights about the current state and future of TV.Topics covered:   [00:50] "TV's Future is Much More Than Connected"[03:00] When was TV's golden era?[05:10] Types of TV people watch today[07:45] Growth of live TV viewing[09:15] Streaming trends and consumer preferences[11:30] How streaming is becoming more like linear TV  To learn more, visit marketingarchitects.com/podcast or subscribe to our newsletter at marketingarchitects.com/newsletter. Resources: Marketing Architects’ Report: TV’s Future is Much More Than Connected. https://www.marketingarchitects.com/blog/tvs-future-is-much-more-than-connected   Get more research-backed marketing strategies by subscribing to The Marketing Architects on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Brand spending on market research has been steadily declining, with the latest IPA report showing a 2.9% drop. Why are marketers shying away from one of the best ways to better understand their audience?This week, Elena and Rob talk with Sarah Jordan, CMO of Constant Contact, about the importance of audience research for B2B marketers. Sarah shares insights on marketing to small businesses, measuring marketing's impact on growth, and why she believes the concept of "marketing-generated vs. sales-generated" leads needs to go.Topics covered: [01:00] Constant Contact's unique small business audience[07:00] Marketing's role as a growth driver at Constant Contact[12:30] How Constant Contact measures marketing effectiveness[15:45] The importance of market research for understanding customers[20:00] Sarah's most contrarian marketing opinion[22:00] Making customer-centric marketing decisions  To learn more, visit marketingarchitects.com/podcast or subscribe to our newsletter at marketingarchitects.com/newsletter.  Resources:  2023 MarketingWeek Article: https://www.marketingweek.com/protecting-research-budgets-matters/ Get more research-backed marketing strategies by subscribing to The Marketing Architects on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Welcome to Nerd Alert, a series of special episodes bridging the gap between marketing academia and practitioners. We’re breaking down highly involved, complex research into plain language and takeaways any marketer can use.In this episode, Elena and Rob explore how a brand's customer age profile impacts its success. They discuss why attracting both young and old consumers is crucial for long-term growth and stability.Topics covered:   [00:55] "Ageism Kills Brands"[01:55] New brands attract younger buyers[04:15] Why young-only appeal can lead to failure[05:25] Dead brands skew younger[06:20] The importance of age-diverse customers[07:50] Examples of age-transcendent products  To learn more, visit marketingarchitects.com/podcast  Resources: Anesbury, Z. W., Bellman, S., Driesener, C., & Page, B. (2021). Ageism Kills Brands. Australasian Marketing Journal, *29*(4), 350-365. https://doi.org/10.1177/18393349211017316   Get more research-backed marketing strategies by subscribing to The Marketing Architects on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Jason Ing, the CMO of Gusto with a stellar background at P&G, Microsoft, and Amazon, joins the discussion on essential marketing strategies. He emphasizes how 90% of buyers stick to their initial vendor list, highlighting the importance of brand presence. The conversation dives into the nuances between B2B and B2C marketing, effective measurement techniques, and the need for a customer-centric approach. Jason shares his contrarian marketing opinions and lessons from both failures and successes in his career.

Welcome to Nerd Alert, a series of special episodes bridging the gap between marketing academia and practitioners. We’re breaking down highly involved, complex research into plain language and takeaways any marketer can use.In this episode, Elena and Rob explore research challenging the common belief that focusing on heavy buyers is key to driving sales. They discuss how light buyers and non-buyers often hold the most untapped potential for brand growth.Topics covered:   [00:45] "Where is the Brand Growth Potential? An Examination of Buyer Groups"[01:00] Converting light buyers to regular customers[02:15] Breaking down growth potential across buyer groups[03:00] Why light buyers and non-buyers offer more growth opportunity[03:50] Challenging the "retention is cheaper than acquisition" mindset[04:45] Applying findings to real-world brand strategies  To learn more, visit marketingarchitects.com/podcast  Resources: Trinh, G.T., Dawes, J. & Sharp, B. Where is the brand growth potential? An examination of buyer groups. Mark Lett 35, 95–106 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11002-023-09682-7  Get more research-backed marketing strategies by subscribing to The Marketing Architects on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Byron Sharp, a professor of marketing science and director of the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute, joins the discussion on treating marketing as a science. He delves into evidence-based strategies and challenges the myths surrounding marketing effectiveness. Sharp emphasizes the importance of mental availability over immediate sales and argues that TV advertising remains vital amidst digital shifts. He critiques the insularity of American marketing and discusses how luxury brands adhere to the same fundamental rules as mass-market brands.

Dive into the pitfalls of A/B testing where sophisticated algorithms can mislead marketers. Discover the concept of divergent delivery in online ads and how it complicates performance analysis. Elena and Rob use a pizza party analogy to clarify these concepts. Learn about the impact of user demographics and targeting on results. They also discuss using synthetic audiences to enhance testing reliability and overcome biases. This engaging discussion bridges the gap between complex research and practical marketing insights.

Only 61% of marketing metrics tracked are meaningful to business, brand, and performance. The rest? Vanity metrics. What happens when marketers focus on the wrong numbers?This week, Elena’s joined by VP Analytics Matt Hultgren to discuss the perils of marketing misattribution. They explore how overvaluing certain metrics can lead to wasted budgets and misguided strategies. Matt shares insights on identifying misattribution, its consequences, and practical steps to improve measurement accuracy. Plus, learn why having your own measurement solution is crucial and why you should be skeptical of any single model claiming to definitively prove marketing’s impact. Topics covered: [01:00] Key findings from DMA study on marketing effectiveness metrics[04:30] Common signs of marketing misattribution[07:00] Frequently misattributed metrics and attribution tricks[10:00] Long-term consequences of relying on incorrect metrics[12:00] Steps to measure the right KPIs and avoid misattribution[19:00] Practical tips for marketers with limited budgets To learn more, visit marketingarchitects.com/podcast or subscribe to our newsletter at marketingarchitects.com/newsletter.  Resources:  2023 Marketing Week Article: https://www.marketingweek.com/wrong-effectiveness-metrics-focus/Get more research-backed marketing strategies by subscribing to The Marketing Architects on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Welcome to Nerd Alert, a series of special episodes bridging the gap between marketing academia and practitioners. We’re breaking down highly involved, complex research into plain language and takeaways any marketer can use.In this episode, Elena and Rob explore how the content of TV shows influences viewer perceptions of advertisements. They discuss new research on the "halo effect," and its implications for ad effectiveness across different TV genres.Topics covered:   [01:00] "The Influence of Television Content on Advertisement: A Neurophysiological Study" [03:15] Defining the halo effect in TV advertising[04:20] Impact of high-quality programs on ad perception[05:45] Ranking TV genres by brand value transfer[07:10] How different show types impact brand associations[08:50] The importance of engaging ads regardless of content  To learn more, visit marketingarchitects.com/podcast  Resources: Frontiers in Psychology. (2024, February 1). The influence of television content on advertisement: A neurophysiological study. *Media Psychology*, 15. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1266906   Get more research-backed marketing strategies by subscribing to The Marketing Architects on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.