More than half of Forbes’ Most Influential CMOs of 2020 were women; it goes without saying that women are just as prominent and consequential to the marketing industry as men.

To celebrate women in the marketing profession during Women’s History Month, we asked women marketing leaders from Carvel at Focus Brands, Gardner Denver, Inc., and Blackbaud to share their personal triumphs, tribulations, perspective, and advice about working in the marketing industry. 

Instead of reserving these insights for one month out of the year, we are releasing a series of blog posts highlighting inspirational stories from women marketing leaders now and throughout the year. Subscribe to see that content here. 

Read more - 6 Questions for Inspirational Women in Marketing

Meet the leaders: 

Q1: What inspired you to pursue a career in marketing?

Bechtel: I am fascinated with human behavior. Amazing things can happen in marketing as you bring together psychology, sociology and creativity. It is the tool that gives your company a voice, a look and personality. It truly is the best job in the world!  

LaCour: I have a deep passion for the role every person and organization can play in building a better world, and when marketing is done well, it can engage people, create emotion, and spark conversations that have an impact. In my role as Chief Marketing Officer for Blackbaud, I have the unique opportunity of bridging my passion for social good and my passion for engaging people and creating connections through marketing. My team and I are focused on delivering an outstanding experience for Blackbaud’s customers throughout their entire lifecycle with the company—that includes nurturing the customer relationship, engaging customers, helping them realize value, and, ultimately, helping them reach their mission to build a better world. I love the way marketing marries creativity with data science and how, as a discipline, it moves and changes so fast that it is imperative to encourage and enable a learning culture. I’ve found that what makes my career exciting and fulfilling is working with my high-performing team who leans in, embraces a fail-fast and fail-forward mentality, and strives to achieve true relationship marketing. It’s that personal connection to the customer enabled through relationship marketing that creates an outstanding experience.

DuBose: My career aspiration started when I majored in Broadcast Journalism. I was excited to combine my love for theatre and current events into what I thought would be an exciting long-term career. However, during my sophomore year, my college introduced a new major: Integrated Marketing Communication. Once I discovered the mix of business, advertising, public relations, and journalism coming together in one major, I was hooked. It has proven to be one of the best decisions presented to me. I felt at home in the consumer behavior classes just as much as the statistics classes. My first job out of college was in media buying for a mid-size advertising agency. I knew I was embarking on my passion and the bonus was working with those that would turn out to be lifelong friends.

Q2: Are there specific challenges you have faced as a woman in marketing and how did you overcome them?

Bechtel: Being a woman in a male dominated industry like oil and gas, I have always had to fight for a spot at the table. We female marketers fight the stereotype that all we do is provide branded promo items for our teams and are overlooked when it comes to true business strategy. I have found success overcoming these by:

1. Over-preparing for meetings and making my presentations/scripts as professional as possible;

2. Investing time into building relationships with team members to generate buy-in and educating them on marketing strategy so I am positioned as an expert in their minds; 

3. Leaning on agency partners to fill my knowledge gaps and bring fresh ideas; and

4. Building and nurturing my network of strong professional marketers outside of my organization through ANA Business Marketing Houston to brainstorm ideas and stay ahead of industry trends.

LaCour: When I finished my MBA in finance, I wanted to be an investment banker. I will never forget a life-defining interview I had on Wall Street with a group of six or seven men who peppered me with unnecessarily hostile, personal questions. I knew in the moment it would be my last interview in the investment banking world. It wasn’t going to be an environment where I could flourish. Today, I’m the Chief Marketing Officer of a technology company—an industry that is just as male dominated as investment banking, but I work for a company that is roughly 50% women and is continually recognized as a diverse and inclusive employer.  I never take that for granted. Leadership is about community. Women—and their male allies—have to join together to create progress and change. That lesson early on taught me the importance of lifting others up, and that is one of the fundamental values of my leadership style today. I am continually advocating that companies like Blackbaud with strong diversity should be the norm and not the exception. We have to work together to get there.  

DuBose: The best way I’ve found to bridge most challenges is to remain open, but don’t give up. Part of my rapid growth came while working with 67 different countries on building brands and better marketing plans. Language barriers, cultural differences and not being prepared for things outside of my control (like a natural disaster) provided me with greater awareness. By being comfortable with identifying the challenges, it gives so much ease to address what needs to happen next. Marketers have much to offer in furthering business, inclusive of all gender and race.

Q3: Who is someone that helped you on your current path to becoming a marketing leader? 

Bechtel: I have had several mentors including coaches, teachers, and professional peers that have been instrumental in helping my career progress.

LaCour: Growing up, I was inspired by my mom, who was a single mother with four children. My mom handled everything with such grace. She never coddled us. Instead, she instilled in us a sense of independence and taught us the most important lesson—you can do it; you are stronger than you think. I didn’t identify my mom as a leader at that point in my life, but I recognize now that she inspired me as the type of fearless, confident, open leader I wanted to become. 

DuBose: I’ve been so fortunate to work with extremely talented people. One of my former bosses, Mike Kehoe, really took the time to not only listen to me, but also push me both professionally and personally. He led the International division at Focus Brands where I spearheaded international marketing for Cinnabon, Moe’s, and Schlotzsky’s. His key words were always “You’re in the driver’s seat.” While his expectations remained high, I knew he was going above and beyond, putting extended time and effort into the business and people. I respected his commitment to excellence and appreciated his genuine care to empower me as a marketer and better professional. I’ve always loved building team culture so he encouraged me to lead the entire International team through a culture workshop. Typically those assignments are handled through an outside source. It was one of many, many examples where I truly embraced the power of being in the driver’s seat and growing rapidly. With that coaching under my belt, I’m eager to rise to an occasion that sometimes seems a bit of a stretch.

Q4: What advice would you give to the next generation of women marketers?

Bechtel: 1) Build a network of like-minded professionals that you can lean on when you need them. 2) The only way to truly grow is through trial and error. 3) Don’t be afraid to fail, because it could be the key to unlock your next professional “growth spurt.” 4) When you’re comfortable, you’re not growing. When you are growing, it will feel uncomfortable. 5) Always fight for a spot at the table. 

LaCour: I think it’s really important to remember that your title doesn’t define you. It’s the work ahead of you and not the title before you that’s going to keep you engaged. Don’t wait for someone to tell you that you are a woman leader. If you want to be a woman leader, then own that. You don’t need anyone else to bestow that title on you. Decide what path is important to you and what values are important to you—trust in that journey, and be a woman leader. And remember, empowered women empower women. Let’s help each other shine.

DuBose: Embrace what makes you unique and honor it! We all bring unique perspectives that take shape in incredible ways. Aside from that, immerse yourself with the talent pool of people around you. Build relationships with curiosity, especially in an industry moving fast, with new ideas constantly. You cannot be the keeper of all the answers. Perspective is a necessity for any successful marketer. Don’t be afraid to ask the dumb questions. You’ll likely have better perspective and outcomes just for asking.

Q5: What were pivotal moments in your career that contributed to your success?

Bechtel: I have found that my greatest successes came after my biggest failures. Trying new things and building that experience makes you feel very vulnerable. I am grateful to have had incredible colleagues and bosses who allowed me to fail, then helped me get back up and learn from it. 
LaCour: I had an incredible opportunity early in my career to work for the United Nations in Kenya. I learned so much through that opportunity about what it means to be a servant leader. The managers there invited me into their homes, shared their lives and families with me, and literally fed me when they had very little. They told me, “if you are here to help me, then I am here to serve you.” This was a completely different type of leadership than what had been modeled for me in business school. My supervisor in Kenya taught me a very important lesson—your success comes from the success of the people who work for you. She modeled what it meant to be a servant leader, always asking what she could do for me. That’s something that has stuck with me throughout my career. I will only be as successful as the people who work for me; so, my job is to coach them and create space for them to be as successful as possible.

DuBose: My extended family owned a restaurant franchise. I started working at the business when I was 13. While it felt like something I just wanted to do for money, I’d have no idea how much I’d reflect back on what I learned in those early years of work. That experience has been pivotal in how I relate to business owners and stakeholders. Having experienced the entrepreneurial side first still motivates me to be humble and work hard for the wins. Lastly, I’m really grateful for periods of reflection throughout my career. Early in my career it was challenging for me to receive a lot of feedback. Looking back, that feedback has contributed to my drive and grit. Now, I welcome perspective. I’m a lifelong learner excited about gaining wisdom with each endeavor, success and failure.

Q6: What emerging marketing trend excites you?

Bechtel: Augmented Reality Technology. You can take a 3D printed model and use it as a “trigger.” Your phone will recognize the trigger and then companies are able to show different animations, such as the internal working components of the product, through the phone screen over the 3D printed model. It’s really neat to see what you can do with the different AR or digitally rendered models!

LaCour: At Blackbaud, we are working to build an Ecosystem of Good®, and the cloud computing revolution has allowed us to lean into that faster, and in compelling ways. From a marketing perspective, I’m most fascinated by the way cloud computing has opened up new opportunities for us to collect data, analyze it, and apply smart algorithms to surgically address opportunities and challenges. The more data we have, the smarter our marketing gets. When this science is practiced ethically, it unlocks new potential for how marketers can create value for prospects and customers, while servicing and even connecting them in meaningful and differentiated ways. For the customer, that’s value creation. For the company, it builds customer loyalty and informs stronger lifetime value.

DuBose: I’m fascinated by the juxtaposition of technology advances making our lives easier married with the simplicity of the analog world, making our lives less noisy. While that sounds broad, I truly believe consumers are going to surprise us with what they ask for next. As I research consumer behavior patterns ahead, marketers have a tough, but rewarding job in finding that sweet spot.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

• Create community and be open to others.

• Build your own network, skillset, and confidence to reach your full potential.

• You are only as good as the people around you. Invest in and coach them to be their best. 

• Don’t be afraid to fail. 

• Don’t wait for permission. 

• Welcome perspective.

• Become a lifelong learner.