It isn’t just the consumer brands pushing for expansion. Tony Ezell, CMO of Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD to the medical and scientific communities it serves) spoke about the need for even B2B companies to have a more consistent brand strategy and drive growth.
Big ideas in breakout sessions
During one of the sessions that opened the ANA Masters, iHeartMedia’s Troberman expanded on a theme she addressed at Adweek’s Cracking the Code event—disarming bias among marketers to reach new consumers.
She was joined by Brand New podcast co-hosts Marisa Thalberg, chief marketing and communication officer of SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, and Steven Wolfe Pereira, founder of Encantos. The panel delved into a deep discussion of how the “marketing bubble” tunes out voices unlike its own, making broad-based discussions about inclusion—from race, ethnicity and identity to religious and military affiliation—even more necessary.
It was one of the most provocative and insightful discussions of the entire event, and it took place in a room about 20% of the capacity of the main stage down a side hallway.
The next night, 4A’s president and CEO Maria Kaplowitz joined Publicis/Leo Burnett CEO Andrew Swinand, Saint Augustine’s University professor Raegan L. Burden and SeeHer president Christine Guilfoyle onstage for what was billed as a gender-equity discussion. It quickly evolved into a discussion of broader issues of equity within marketing covering topics from representation within agencies and brands, representation within the marketing itself, the audience’s own discomfort and uncertainty around equity and what institutional changes are required.
Again, this discussion happened in a small room off to the side of the main venue and the myriad brand tables and activations leading to it.
Finally, on Thursday, the ANA and its Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing (AIMM) released the results of a survey of more than 9,000 consumers conducted with the Cultural Inclusion Accelerator looking at perceptions of inclusive marketing practices and woke brands. They concluded emphatically that consumers are far more likely to reward a brand for taking a stand on social issues than to abandon it, but are also far more likely to drop or outright boycott a brand that abandons its commitments to groups and causes. The survey provided empirical evidence that answered a question bedeviling marketers since Bud Light and Target found themselves embroiled in controversy earlier this year.
“The first thing we want marketers to understand is, you’re better off moving forward than stepping back, and you’re better off speaking up than staying silent,” AIMM co-founder Lisette Arsuaga said.
Agencies take a backseat but work hard behind the scenes
With brands leading the way, agencies usually aren’t much in the public discussion, but that doesn’t mean that agency executives aren’t present. Not only do many have clients presenting at the conference, the close proximity of top brand representatives means that face-to-face interactions happen often and potential deals made.