Marketing in Small, Medium + Large Companies

As marketing matchmakers, Setup has traditionally hosted a quarterly #MarketersBreakfast to connect client-side and agency-side marketers. Over the last year, we have incorporated virtual bi-monthly #MarketingMixers to continue to meet the need to inspire, educate, and bring together marketers in our network. 

The Marketing Multiverse: Marketing in Small, Medium + Large Companies featured a panel of marketers with similar job roles from different sized beverage companies sharing their unique perspectives and experiences. The CEO of Arden's Garden, Leslie Zinn, represented the small company, the CMO of SweetWater Brewing Company, Brian Miesieski, represented the mid-sized company, and the Group Marketing Director of Coca-Cola Freestyle at The Coca-Cola Company, Eric Lewis, represented the larger company. 

The panelists were asked a series of questions, followed by a Q+A and networking. Check out the full video of the event and recap below: 

Key takeaways

Covid influenced marketing campaigns. 

• Since the beginning of COVID, Zinn’s team has been drinking Arden’s Garden’s Grand Slam product to keep their immunity up. Zinn noted that it has kept her healthy, and that she is looking forward to upcoming products like Rainbow Health and Mushroom Shot. 

• Miesieski mentioned that SweetWater’s campaign “Better Days” is rolling out to provide an optimistic feeling after winter and as COVID subsides. 

• Lewis emphasized how Coca-Cola listened to consumer insights heavily during the pandemic. Since 50% of consumers were uncomfortable touching screens, the team launched a new feature - Mobile Pour - on their Freestyle fountain machines that doesn’t require an app, but uses QR codes to empower the consumer to use their phone as the user interface. 

Marketing teams at all sized companies are lean, but nimble. 

• Leslie works with two other marketing people - a social media manager and a marketing manager, who help her keep operations running. 

• SweetWater does most of their marketing inhouse with a team of 12 that tries to stay connected to the fun/chill vibe of the brand, as well as the community. They recently hired a position that is solely focused on storytelling. 

• For a team at The Coca-Cola Company, Lewis also described his team as scrappy with a smaller budget. Though Lewis stated that smaller is almost better because it empowers the team to have more control over decisions. 

Planning depends on the need. 

• All of the speakers stated the importance of agility and real-time marketing with Zinn being the most nimble. 

• Miesieski and Lewis start their planning for the next year at least 6 months before. The explosion of the brewery industry, however, has caused two planning cycles around Spring and Fall. Lewis noted that Freestyle’s marketing planning cycle is pre-planned, for the most part, but they have to be willing to adjust based on the customer’s behavior and preferences regarding the 32 Coca-Cola brands the machine offers. 

Connecting with the consumers leads to the best campaigns. 

• Arden’s Garden has specifically thrived off of grassroots marketing. Their direct interaction with consumers leads to word of mouth, which leads to their ultimate success. The consumer continues the conversation by asking questions that lead to educational content. 

• Miesieski emphasized the importance of authenticity in marketing. He stated that the way to market to consumers is not marketing. SweetWater garners success from investing in the communities of their distributors and staying true to their mission. Since most distributors are a bit old school, the biggest challenge for SweetWater is getting distributors to invest in digital marketing. Geo-targeting distributor zip codes and investing into those communities has been a huge success. 

• Lewis brought up a 2019 campaign that used consumer behavior to increase engagement and awareness. By empowering the consumer to submit their Freestyle mix to the machines, track the success of the mixes, and then reward the most successful mix, Coca-Cola engaged consumers to interact with them across the spectrum - making it rewarding for all parties. 

Company culture is everything.

• Zinn said that although their values have cost them business, their devotion to offering a healthy product that impacts everything they do has also led to their success. 

• SweetWater lives the brand of their founder as well as they strive to be all about the outdoors, community, and environmentalism. “Authenticity and culture is our brand,” stated Miesieski. They make sure that whoever works with them, whether it be an agency or an influencer, lives up to that brand. 

• Lewis said that it is currently a great time to be at Coca-Cola since their new tagline (after COVID and the reorganization) is “emerging stronger.” There is a heavier emphasis on collaboration, winning, and networking that seems to empower the workers much more. 

Want to connect?

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We believe in connecting marketers in various ways, so let us connect you to the perfect marketing agency to suit your needs, to different industry marketers to learn from, and/or to relevant job roles/positions to grow your career. We are here and ready to make more marketing matches for you.