Lisa Merriam

Brilliance in Marketing: Marketing Accountability Standards Board

The Marketing Accountability Standards Board is where marketing activities meet financial return. We interviewed their new CEO Joanna Seddon in front of the Charging Bull statue that symbolizes financial optimism and prosperity in New York City’s Financial District.

Transcript:

0:05 Lisa Merriam: The Marketing Accountability Standards Board has a new CEO: Joanna Seddon. She’s our own past president and still serves with me on the board of directors of the American Marketing Association New York.

0:17 Her career at the crossroads of marketing finance and analytics puts her in a great position to talk to us about best practices in making brands and marketing accountable.

0:30 Joanna Seddon: The Marketing Accountability Standards Board is an organization whose purpose is to elevate the CMO to their rightful place in their boardroom. How does the organization do this? By making marketing accountable.

0:45 Accountability is demonstrating the business the tangible business impact that marketing brings, which means demonstrating how marketing drives revenue, profit, and financial value growth for companies.

1:03 And this should be easy. It’s important because what CEOs and investors care most about is driving profitable growth.

1:13 And whose job is that? It is the CMO’s.

1:16 How marketing is viewed will change. Right now, marketing is not respected by CEOs, CFOs, and Boards. It is regarded as a cost and expense.

1:30 When marketing can demonstrate the financial impact of what they do; show how it is the growth engine of companies–how it drives growth in revenues, and also profits, financial value, and share price, perceptions will change.

1:49 The role of marketing will change. It will be respected. It will become the natural path to the CEO position, and treated as it deserves; the driver of the demand chain, which is what companies want. Not the supply chain. We know there have been some problems, but that has played out.

2:07 The future is about profitable growth. And when companies have profitable growth, businesses do well. People will do well. People will prosper and earn more money. And societies will thrive.

2:25 Lisa Merriam: Linking brand and marketing to business and financial outcomes that’s Brilliance in Marketing.