This week’s Digital Marketing Innovation Summit, which took place in the heart of the City of London, was designed to get UK brand managers thinking on their feet about the future of brand advertising.
Many of the delegates who I spoke with had travelled from across the country to hear what brands such as Red Bull, John Lewis and Deliveroo had to say about creating real brand awareness within the current fast-paced digital environment.
Tristan Thomas, Head of Marketing & Community at Monzo, talked about being ahead of the game; devising new products and concepts by asking their customers for their opinions, wants and needs, and then tailoring new ideas and products to meet those needs. Being a smaller company compared to the major high street banks gave his business speed of growth for new products, and he hoped to remain ahead in the coming months and years.
Next came the Beginner’s guide to Blockchain, presented by Wayne Lloyd from EOS Nation. He talked brand managers through the myths and realities of blockchain and shared his vision of how companies should embrace this technology in order to show real transparency to their customers, through their company practices.
One of the highlights of the day was the talk by Jamal Benmiloud, former VP of Marketing at Red Bull. His message was direct and clear – “Be The Story”. He advocated finding events, magazines or other formats that would allow customers to truly engage with the brand in meaningful ways. In return, this would drive real engagement through the fans reading, attending and contributing to brand activities and sharing their individual stories across social media. Examples of this concept included sharing photos of Monster brand tattoos, attending Red Bull Air Races in London, and supporting branded F1 teams, music festivals or sponsored football clubs.
Other sessions explored specific topics in PPC and SEO, with Ric Rodriguez, Croud’s Director of SEO, joining a distinguished panel of SEO experts to advise delegates on current SEO issues and challenges facing brand managers and website owners.
The other key message from the day was to “be the change you want to see”. Alice ter Haar, Deliveroo’s EU marketing lead, provided her professional development advice to all delegates. Her message was to lead by example with Personal Development Plans for all staff, encouraging training, and ensuring that all employees feel appreciated and given opportunities for personal development and growth. With a strong culture of PDP, teamwork, recognition and regular feedback at Croud, this was one message that resonated with me on a personal and professional level.
It was great to catch up with so many people at this year’s event; if we didn’t cross paths and you would like to chat about all things digital, contact us.
