The Setup #MarketersBreakfast is a chance for marketing leaders to gather together each quarter as peers to network with, learn from, and inspire one another.

Several years ago, we presented the theme “Marketing Therapy” to our Setup audience. A lot has happened in the last six or seven years, and what better way to process challenges than through group therapy? Whether in your personal or professional life, it’s important to realize you are never alone, and challenges are just opportunities for growth, innovation, and insights. 

The beauty of our #MarketersBreakfast is that we gather a collection of marketing leaders with years of experience who are eager to connect and share their expertise.

For the event, we crowdsourced challenges Marketing leaders face, and then discussed those questions as a group. Talking points ranged from discussing rising AI technology, to acquiring talent, to branding strategies. Below is a brief recap of the conversation. (We kept the identity of contributors anonymous in true Therapy form.)

Problem #1 | How do I show measurable results for brand building and brand health efforts to the executive leadership team?

Create Evidence to Build Credibility

“I had to do proof of concepts for every single project. Use one project to prove value for the next and continue to show value and momentum. It is a long drawn out process. Use measurable marketing to prove the value, then use the trust built with that to try more immeasurable tactics,” shared a breakfast guest.

Examples

Another attendee shared that using examples (or “currency” like interviews, news, articles, etc.) that the executives are familiar with can help them visualize your project better. They suggested finding out which Brands their leadership admires, and point to published research or information about efforts from those Brands that may inspire more action. 

Problem #2 | When and where should you start plugging in generative AI into marketing?

Industry-specific Cases

“Writing commentaries for Financial Services is a good use case, since it's all about reading data and rephrasing it, not more nuanced things,” shared an attendee in Financial Services.

Understand AI 

There are a lot of assumptions being made about AI right now. A lot of people feel like they’ll be replaced, while some feel like it will elevate current work processes. During the discussion, someone pointed out, “We have to start at the educational level. We have to understand which part of AI is relevant before we can extrapolate to other areas of marketing.”

“At this stage, AI is not going to replace a marketer, rather it should be used to augment your speed and capabilities,” they continued. “Mood boards in the past that took days, can be created in hours by AI. Figure out where you can use AI to help save you time, and allow you to focus on the things that it CAN’T do.” 

A good line of thinking is that AI is your rough draft. It can’t copy your tone or your personality, but is good to use as a guideline for quick turnarounds.

Problem #3 | In this fast paced world, marketing has a constant need to pivot due to everything evolving. How do you focus on retaining and growing new talent? 

Constant Education

For new and old employees, many attendees shared the details of their internal education processes that foster growth. Some employers even survey their staff on both Knowledge and Confidence before, immediately after, and three months after the program to prove its effectiveness and fine tune the program. Employees that are learning and increasing their own confidence through programs that your company offers are more invested and more likely to stay onboard.

Reward Programs

Some companies created a rewards program where they base the rewards off their staff’s preferences, and allocate resources and budget to purchasing the rewards for their team members.

Problem #4 | How do you make the business case for more budget?

This is the question on all marketers’ minds…

Take Time

“Take little steps, and be patient. With every win comes more budget.”

Provide Results 

Patience doesn’t always get you results, however, proof does. “If you are doing the bare minimum, you will not be successful. Do your research, and use the competition’s tactics as groundwork to show value. Use inherent competitiveness to encourage bravery.”

Another attendee chimed in, “Use a small portion of your current budget to prove effectiveness.”

Be Nimble

Be prepared with a plan, and plan on that plan getting thwarted. “If you bring an idea up, have the cost in mind and be prepared to execute for a lower number.” Unfortunately, marketing is a vicious cycle where we need to continue to prove our worth to get more budget, and we prove our worth through projects that require more budget. 

Problem #5 | How do we generate demand for a new product or launch? How do we stand out in a competitive market?

Content

Content generation helps with B2B, and treating that content like B2C content can make a difference for B2B consumers. “AI is changing content generation,” shared an attendee. “But since our industry does not normally venture into content, we have tried to use that to differentiate ourselves.”

Focus on Competition

“If we’re gonna win, we’re going to focus on two competitors and try to find their weaknesses. Their dissatisfied customers are enough to bump our numbers.” Using competitors or other industries as inspiration for what you aren’t doing or what you could be doing better is a great way to inform innovation. 

Problem #6 | When should you hire internally or get agency support for marketing? How do you find the perfect balance?

This is something that we at Setup are experts on.

You won’t know until you try. If you are going for a short-term project, then lean more heavily on external partners. That way, you won’t need to hire and lay off people during busy seasons. It is much easier to cut back on an agency than a bunch of internal hires - it’s also better for culture. 

Agencies help with quick wins to help prove value. Use their expertise to quickly prove effectiveness.

Figure out where your company excels in the market. If you’re good at it and it makes your company money, keep doing it. If you’re not good at it, get help from an experienced partner.

If it’s core to your company, keep it in house and play to your strengths. 

Attendees overall were pleased to hear how different industries were faced with the same problems, and that what works for one team and industry was easily transferable to others. If you would like to attend future in person or virtual events, check out our event page here. Subscribe to the newsletter below to never miss a recap, event, or update!