That's What I Call Marketing

Epizodes

• The Singles: The hot hits of June with The World Cup, Spotify, Brew Dog & The Lotto 29.06.2026 30min

  In the latest episode of The Singles, Conor is joined by Ed Parkin and Bella Harrison from Tracksuit to dig into four marketing stories where the headlines only tell part of the story.The episode starts with the FIFA World Cup and what it could mean for soccer in the US. Major League Soccer still has a long way to go versus the NFL, NBA and MLB on awareness, but Tracksuit data shows consideration is already moving in the right direction. The conversation gets into younger audiences, affluent consumer skews, regional growth and why feeling “for people like me” matters so much in sports marketing.Then it’s onto World Cup sponsorship. Coca-Cola, Adidas and McDonald’s show what decades of investment can do when brand associations compound over time, while Mengniu shows how sponsorship can still create warmth for a lesser-known brand.The team also discuss Spotify’s temporary 20th anniversary logo, the backlash it received, and whether marketers sometimes overreact when a strong brand plays with its distinctive assets. With 88% awareness and very strong consideration, Spotify has more room to experiment than most.BrewDog is next. Once valued at £2bn and now sold for £33m, it is a reminder that awareness can remain even when consideration, usage and preference are falling. The discussion also looks at James Watt’s new brand, Second Best, and whether founder-led challenger energy can travel from one brand to another.Finally, the episode turns to the Irish National Lottery ad controversy, after its new work closely followed a New Zealand Lottery ad scene for scene. The question is not whether the insight worked. It did. The question is what happens when inspiration becomes imitation.Tracksuit University is also featured in the episode, including how it helps marketers make the case for brand in a more finance-friendly way.Get 20% off Tracksuit University with the discount code: That’s What I Call MarketingVisit: university.gotracksuit.comIn this episode:00:00 Introduction01:24 Tracksuit University and making brand finance-friendly02:48 The FIFA World Cup and soccer in the US03:47 MLS awareness, consideration and growth potential05:25 Younger audiences, affluent consumers and regional skews06:49 Why relevance matters in sports marketing09:02 World Cup sponsorship and long-term brand investment13:00 Spotify’s 20th anniversary logo backlash16:31 Why Spotify has earned the right to play with its assets18:21 BrewDog’s sale and brand decline20:01 Trust, relevance and the erosion of BrewDog’s core audience21:01 Second Best and the future of founder-led brands23:33 The Irish National Lottery ad controversy26:45 Distinctiveness, copying and creative shortcuts29:07 Tracksuit University discount detailsThat’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• The Cannes Sessions - TWICM X The Uncensored CMO 27.06.2026 6min

  Jon Evans (Uncensored CMO) on Going Solo: Sponsorship, Podcasting as Networking & Cashflow RealityConor Byrne chats with Jon Evans (Uncensored CMO) about leaving the CMO track to run his podcast full time, using sponsorship to fund the work and turning “being good at talking” into a career. Jon explains why podcasting is a powerful networking tool—CMOs often decline coffee but say yes to being a guest—and how it accelerates learning by speaking to experts weekly. He also shares the less glamorous surprises of working for yourself: contracts, running a business properly, cashflow, and the difficulty of getting paid on time while supporting a team. Jon stresses that success is a long grind—“seven years to have an overnight success”—and that consistency and compounding effort are what make creator-led media businesses work in marketing.That’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• The Cannes Sessions Day 4 - Daily Round Up 25/06/2026 25.06.2026 28min

  In this episode of the Cannes Sessions, Conor Byrne takes us through another packed day on the Croisette, starting with the CMOs in the Spotlight session featuring Jill Kramer of Mastercard, Michelle Klein of Westpac, Manuel “Manolo” Arroyo of The Coca-Cola Company, and Suhayl Limbada CMO of KFC India. There were big themes running through the day: how legacy brands stay useful, why marketers need to understand the P&L, what happens when creativity meets commercial pressure, and why the best brands do not throw away their distinctive assets just because the world has changed. There is also a brilliant conversation with Maddy Cooper, Founder and CEO of Flourish, on how AI can help marketers in regulated sectors get work to market faster without creating a compliance nightmare. That matters because the future of marketing is not just more content, more formats and more channels. It is whether brands can still make sharp, responsible, commercially useful work at the speed the market now demands. The Digital Voice team were also out on the Croisette speaking to marketers including Langton McCombe from Particular Audience, Rory McDonald from Market Media at The Warehouse Group, and Alex Springer from OpenAttribution.org about retail media, incrementality, AI, ROAS, creativity, and what Cannes is really for and James Taylor CEO of Particular Audience.And, of course, there was a big moment for Ireland, with Heineken’s The Pub That Refused To Die winning a Grand Prix, plus a look ahead to the Cannes Young Lions results where Darragh Spain and Fardosa Flanagan from 123.ie represented Ireland in the Young Marketers category along with lots of amazing talent representing Ireland.01:18 – CMOs in the Spotlight: Mastercard, KFC India, Westpac and Coca-Cola02:01 – Why Mastercard is re-examining the Priceless platform03:14 – KFC, Gen Z, universal truths and the role of the Colonel04:19 – Westpac, jingles, legacy brands and speaking the language of the CFO05:14 – Coca-Cola, creativity, behaviour and why great teams matter more than big budgets11:28 – Spending time with Jonnie Cahill and the value of generous senior marketers15:03 – Maddy Cooper on Flourish, AI, compliance and regulated marketing18:29 – Inside the Cannes Lions work exhibition21:00 – Ireland’s Grand Prix moment for Heineken23:58 – Langton McCombe on retail media, commerce media and incrementality26:32 – Rory McDonald on creativity, ROAS and business outcomes29:54 – Alex Springer on attribution, AI, influence and the future of content34:26 – Final reflections from Cannes Sessions 2026Thanks to The Digital Voice for partnering on the Cannes Sessions.Find out more:The Digital Voice: thedigitalvoice.co.ukFlourish: flourishingworld.comThat’s What I Call Marketing: follow the podcast for more conversations with the people shaping modern marketing.That’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• The Cannes Sessions Day 3 - Daily Round Up 24/06/2026 24.06.2026 21min

  Cannes Lions Day 3: Moloco CMO Paul Darcy on AI Disruption, Brand vs Performance + Festival Voices & Award HighlightsOn day three of the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity, host Conor Byrne records The Cannes Sessions in partnership with The Digital Voice and interviews Paul Darcy, CMO of Moloco, fresh off an Adweek panel on how AI and LLM-driven consumer behavior are disrupting digital brands and acquisition channels. Darcy discusses the growing importance of brand as a signal to LLMs, the rising opportunity cost and measurement challenges of brand media versus increasingly optimized performance marketing (including CTV and in-app video), and Moloco’s focus on expanding modern performance surfaces. He also summarizes Moloco and BCG’s report on AI disruption by industry, highlighting discovery and customer-relationship durability, and notes AI overviews reducing clicks. The episode also features Cannes attendee perspectives (Amir Rasekh of Nectar 360, Beatrice Bordel Grant, Pauline Yoo from Samsung Ads, and Max from Adnormally) and Conor’s press-room roundup of select Cannes Lions winners.00:00 Welcome to Cannes01:15 Meet Paul Darcy01:39 AI Disrupts Brands02:43 Brand vs Performance04:29 Performance as Brand05:19 Fixing Ad Inefficiency06:44 Moloco Growth Mission07:19 BCG Disruption Report10:33 Digital Voice Street Chats10:56 Nectar 360 Goals11:50 Amazon Port Surprise14:24 Samsung Ads Highlights16:12 Networking at Cannes17:34 Press Room Winners20:07 Wrap and TomorrowThat’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• The Cannes Sessions Day 2- Daily Round Up 23/06/2026 23.06.2026 24min

  Cannes Lions 2026 Day 2: Google’s Paul Limbey on AI Transformation, LinkedIn Creators & Heineken’s Bronze LionOn day two at Cannes Lions 2026 (Tuesday, 23 June), host Conor Byrne recaps a busy schedule at Brand Tech Beach, including an interview with Natasha Wallace to be released later in the summer with The Digital Voice. He doorstops Google’s Paul Limbey, who warns against the “double shift” of giving top performers both day jobs and transformation work, highlights the rise of forward-deployed roles backed by major programs from Google Cloud, Anthropic and OpenAI, and explains his upcoming leadership fable The Frog in a Sock (out early July) about organizational constraints like workflows, approvals and pilot obsession; he also argues for product-minded scaling, better performance metrics for transformation, and repeated communication. At the System1 party, Conor discusses talks from Andrew Tindall, Mark Ritson and Jon Evans, chats with creator Henry about high-effort LinkedIn video, and interviews Jon Evans on going full-time with Uncensored CMO. Fiona shares Heineken Ireland’s Bronze Lion wins for The Pub That Refused To Die, while Digital Voice street interviews cover AI, retail media, and creators seeking long-term brand partnerships.00:00 Day Two Kickoff01:02 Paul Limbey from google01:28 Ending The Double Shift05:00 Frog In A Sock05:50 Scaling Beyond Pilots06:45 Performance And People08:07 Repeat To Lead Change09:31 System1 Party Recap10:35 Henry Hayes On LinkedIn Comedy14:45 Jon Evans Goes Solo20:54 Heinekens Bronze Lion with Fiona Curtin23:19 Croisette Street InterviewsThat’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• The Cannes Sessions - Daily Round Up 22/06/2026 22.06.2026 22min

  Cannes Lions 2026 Day 1: Young Lions Kickoff, AI Takes Over the Croisette & Early WinnersOn day one of Cannes Lions 2026, host Conor Byrne covers the Young Lions competition as teams prepare for a 24-hour brief, and shares highlights from meetings and sessions across the festival. He recaps a coffee catch-up with Karen Nelson-Field and plans to feature her on the podcast, then reports recurring Cannes themes around AI, including agentic AI in ad tech and the importance of transparency and human-in-the-loop control discussed by Limelight leaders. From Adweek House, he notes talks on moving at “the speed of now,” AI enabling human connection (including Grindr and TD Bank), and sponsorship as a marketing lever. He also shares early Lions winners across Creative B2B and health categories, and summarizes research from WARC, Jellyfish, and Inseed on how creativity performs differently for humans versus LLMs.00:39 Young Lions Kickoff01:24 Coffee With Karen Nelson-Field02:19 Limelight on AI Transparency04:48 Adweek House Highlights06:31 Early Lions Winners Roundup07:59 Creativity in an LLM World12:21 Oshri on Limelight US Growth14:46 Ritson vs Sharp Debrief with Marc & V from the Sleeping Barber PodcastThat’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• TWICM 195: LinkedIn's Ty Heath on why she will defend brand to the death 15.06.2026 49min

  “I will defend brand to the death.” Ty Heath, Global Director of Thought Leadership at LinkedIn and Jury President for the B2B Creative category at Cannes Lions 2026, joins Conor Byrne on That’s What I Call Marketing for a conversation about B2B marketing, brand building, AI search, thought leadership, creativity and the future of buying decisions.Ty has helped shape some of the most influential thinking in modern B2B marketing through The B2B Institute at LinkedIn, including work on the 95/5 rule, brand and demand, buying committees, B2B creativity and the emotional nature of business decision-making.In this episode, Ty shares her journey from high-performance athletics to Google, Nestlé, IBM and LinkedIn, and explains why the lessons of elite sport still shape how she thinks about leadership, resilience and long-term practice. The conversation then moves into some of the biggest questions facing marketers today. What changes when buyers use AI tools and LLMs to build their shortlists? How should brands think about visibility, authority and credibility in an AI-assisted search world? Does gated content still make sense? Why does brand still matter when algorithms and AI tools are influencing discovery? And what will Ty be looking for as Jury President of the B2B Creative Lions at Cannes Lions 2026?This episode is part of the Cannes Sessions, sponsored by The Digital Voice, the amplification agency working with leading ad tech and martech companies globally. The Digital Voice helps brands show up across the full mix, from global press and thought leadership to content, social, events and creative, including major moments like Cannes Lions.What you will learn:Why Ty Heath says she will “defend brand to the death”How B2B marketing moved beyond rational messaging into emotional decision-makingWhy The B2B Institute focused on what does not change, not just what is changingHow the 95/5 rule helped reframe long-term B2B growthWhy buying committees need to feel safe before they say yesWhat AI search and LLMs mean for B2B discoverabilityWhy authority, credibility and reputation now matter moreHow brands can be visible to buyers and surfaced by AI toolsWhy gated content can create a trade-off between lead capture and reachHow employee and executive voices can build trust at scaleWhat Ty will be looking for in B2B creative work at Cannes Lions 2026Why B2B creativity is finally getting the attention it deservesTimestamps:03:03 – From elite athletics to marketing leadership10:51 – Google, Nestlé, IBM and finding a path into marketing15:20 – Why words, language and communication carry responsibility17:52 – The emotional reality of B2B decision-making18:57 – Building The B2B Institute and changing B2B marketing21:55 – Brand and demand, the 95/5 rule and long-term growth23:18 – AI, LLMs and the changing future of discoverability27:42 – Buying committees, buyability and making decisions feel safer30:36 – The gated content debate35:14 – Why brand still matters in an AI-assisted world38:58 – Employee voices, executive presence and B2B credibility43:23 – Cannes Lions 2026 and the rise of B2B creativityListen to more episodes of That’s What I Call Marketing for conversations with leading marketers, CMOs, founders, strategists and creative thinkers on brand, effectiveness, creativity, marketing leadership and the future of the industry.#B2BMarketing #BrandBuilding #TyHeath #LinkedIn #TheB2BInstitute #CannesLions #B2BCreativity #MarketingEffectiveness #ThoughtLeadership #AIsearch #LLMSEO #GEO #BrandAndDemand #MarketingLeadership #ThatsWhatICallMarketingThat’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• TWICM 194: Former Dove CMO Alessandro Manfredi on Why Marketing Is Losing It's Professionalism 08.06.2026 49min

  Former Dove CMO Alessandro Manfredi joins That’s What I Call Marketing to discuss Dove Real Beauty, brand fundamentals, AI, creative effectiveness and why marketing may be losing some of its professionalism. Alessandro spent 28 years at Unilever and played a major role in the growth of Dove, one of the most famous examples of long-term brand building in modern marketing. In this conversation, he explains why Dove’s success was not built on purpose alone, but on product quality, emotional connection, research, innovation, communication architecture and strategic rigour. Thanks to the Marketing Society of Ireland for organising this event. Tracksuit cares deeply about marketing professionalism and have introduced Tracksuit University to close the gap between Marketing and the C Suite and you can get 20% Off with an exclusive TWICM Discout - use the code thatswhaticallmarketing at https://university.gotracksuit.com/This episode is for marketers, CMOs, brand leaders, strategists and agency teams who want to understand what it really takes to build brands that last.What you will learn:Why marketing is losing some of its professionalism and trainingHow Dove Real Beauty moved the brand from product love to emotional connectionWhy “people don’t buy beautiful ideas” without strong products behind themWhat Alessandro means by brand fundamentalsWhy AI is powerful for execution, but not a replacement for strategyHow CMOs can reclaim strategic influence without making it a power grabWhy brands need to shape culture rather than chase trendsHow purpose can work when it is grounded in a real human tensionWhat smaller marketing teams can learn from Dove’s approach to creativity, insight and rigourChapters:03:35 From academia to Unilever and Dove06:22 The origins of Dove Real Beauty09:37 Why marketing is losing strategic discipline12:03 How Dove grew over 20 years14:23 Research, insight and emotional connection19:30 Why people do not buy beautiful ideas alone20:41 Brand fundamentals and communication architecture22:54 Why AI is not strategy24:32 Working with agencies and strategic planners25:48 The three elements of bulletproof brand fundamentals29:34 Purpose, North Star and shaping culture33:09 Creative effectiveness: culture, talent and rigour36:50 What smaller marketing teams can learn from Dove37:26 Handling criticism of Real Beauty39:04 Social media, mental health and marketers’ responsibility41:23 Life after Dove and Unilever44:37 Where to find Alessandro ManfrediGuest: Alessandro ManfrediHost: Conor ByrnePodcast: That’s What I Call MarketingFind out more about Alessandro Manfredi: aleikigai.comLearn more about Tracksuit: gotracksuit.comSubscribe for more conversations with leading marketers, CMOs, brand builders, strategists and creative leaders. https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.com/#Marketing #BrandBuilding #Dove #RealBeauty #CMO #BrandStrategy #CreativeEffectiveness #AIInMarketing #Unilever #MarketingLeadership #PurposeMarketing #BrandFundamentals #ThatsWhatICallMarketingThat’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• TWICM 193: How Tourism Australia Became One of the World’s Strongest Brands 01.06.2026 49min

  Tourism marketing often gets reduced to beautiful beaches, drone shots and generic aspiration. Susan Coghill has spent years proving that isn’t enough.In this episode of That’s What I Call Marketing, Conor sits down with the CMO of Tourism Australia to explore how one of the world’s most recognisable destination brands thinks about salience, creativity, distinctive assets and long-term brand building in an increasingly competitive global market.Susan shares the story behind Tourism Australia’s hugely successful “Come and Say G’Day” platform, why Ruby the Kangaroo became such a powerful brand asset, and how the organisation balances consistency with freshness across markets including the US, UK and China.The conversation also explores Susan’s fascinating career journey from working at Apple during the “Think Different” era, including delivering creative work directly to Steve Jobs in Hawaii, through to leading one of the most admired tourism brands in the world.Along the way, they discuss:Why Australian marketers consistently punch above their weight globallyThe role of salience and mental availability in destination marketingWhy tourism brands often fall into category samenessThe importance of distinctive assets like Ruby the KangarooHow Tourism Australia approaches talent partnerships with figures like Nigella Lawson and Robert IrwinWhat modern tourism marketing can learn from entertainment and social mediaHow AI discoverability is changing brand strategy and search behaviourWhy consistency compounds in marketingThis is a conversation about much more than tourism. It is really about how brands stay memorable in a crowded world.07:40 – Working during Apple’s “Think Different” era & meeting Steve Jobs14:05 – Moving from agency life to brand side16:20 – Why Tourism Australia is “the best job in the world”18:00 – Why Australian marketers punch above their weight20:15 – Escaping tourism marketing clichés22:10 – Building the “Come and Say G’Day” platform24:45 – Talent strategy, Robert Irwin and Nigella Lawson29:30 – How Tourism Australia thinks about salience and consideration32:10 – Competing without the biggest budget35:00 – Social media, TikTok and destination storytelling38:20 – The creation of Ruby the Kangaroo42:40 – AI discoverability and the future of search45:20 – Why tourism marketing matters economically and culturallyA huge thank you to our partners at Tracksuit for supporting the podcast.You can listen to more episodes of That’s What I Call Marketing here:That’s What I Call MarketingThat’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• TWICM 192: LinkedIn’s CMO on why Marketers Need a GM Mindset with Jessica Jensen 25.05.2026 41min

  Jessica Jensen is the CMO of LinkedIn, but this conversation goes far beyond platform strategy or social media trends.In this episode of That’s What I Call Marketing, Jessica joins Conor Byrne for a deep conversation about what modern marketing leadership actually looks like inside one of the world’s biggest technology companies.From studying Japanese and living in Tokyo, to starting a business during the 2008 financial crisis, to leading global marketing teams across Silicon Valley, Jessica shares the experiences that shaped her approach to marketing, creativity, leadership and growth.They explore why marketers need a GM mindset, how LinkedIn thinks about trust and brand building, why AI is changing career development, and what separates marketers who stay relevant from those who get left behind.Jessica also explains:– Why most marketing messaging is forgettable– Why marketers should learn finance, product and sales– How LinkedIn manages global marketing across multiple business units– Why human networks matter even more in the AI era– The real tension between global scale and local market needs– What CMOs actually measure internally– Why humour and humanity matter in B2B marketingIf you’re a CMO, marketing leader, brand strategist, or someone trying to build a long-term marketing career in the age of AI, this episode is packed with practical insight.Timestamps00:00 Intro02:25 How Jessica accidentally inspired the podcast03:40 Learning Japanese & living in Tokyo05:45 Startup failure & “Mama had to go get a job”07:00 Discovering marketing at Facebook08:40 Bringing humour into LinkedIn marketing10:55 The difference between LinkedIn & Indeed12:30 Why personal brands matter more in AI13:40 Is organic reach on LinkedIn getting harder?15:05 Managing complexity as LinkedIn’s CMO18:00 Running global marketing across 20+ markets22:05 Breaking down silos inside large organisations26:20 What Jessica actually measures as a CMO28:15 Why marketers need a GM mindset30:20 Why marketers should “wear lots of sweaters”32:00 Jessica’s warning for marketers ignoring AI35:20 The skills marketers need in 202637:45 What prepared Jessica to become LinkedIn’s CMO39:00 Final reflections on leadership & humanitySubscribe for more conversations with the world’s leading CMOs, founders, strategists and creative leaders.Listen to the podcast:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7MXhujDpTzbSRRbyQFgdWpAcast: https://shows.acast.com/thats-what-i-call-marketingFollow Conor Byrne on LinkedIn for more marketing analysis and commentary.Brought to you by TracksuitTracksuit is the always-on brand tracking platform helping marketers understand brand health, measure impact, and make better decisions over time.👉 https://gotracksuit.com#Marketing #CMO #LinkedIn #ArtificialIntelligence #BrandStrategy #B2BMarketing #MarketingLeadership #PersonalBrand #FutureOfWork #DigitalMarketingThat’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• TWICM 191: How a bank CMO builds trust with Laura Lynch 18.05.2026 41min

  Banking is one of the hardest categories in marketing.Trust is fragile. Customer expectations are shaped by every app on their phone, not just other banks. And every interaction has the potential to redefine the relationship.In this episode of That’s What I Call Marketing, Conor Byrne sits down with Laura Lynch, CMO of Bank of Ireland, to explore what it actually means to build a modern banking brand in 2026.Laura takes us inside Bank of Ireland’s recent brand transformation, including the thinking behind the new “Right With You” platform, the role of customer experience in shaping strategy, and why the bank deliberately avoided category clichés in its latest advertising work.The conversation also explores:Why Laura stepped out of traditional marketing roles before becoming CMOHow customer trust is rebuilt after the banking crisisThe balance between AI, personalisation and human connectionWhy marketers can become too focused on attribution and performance metricsThe challenge of creating distinctive advertising in regulated categoriesHow Bank of Ireland uses customer insight, segmentation and CX to shape growthThe role of leadership, resilience and timing in building a marketing careerLaura also shares the inside story behind Bank of Ireland’s latest campaigns, including the strategic use of humour, movie references, and why every line, casting decision and creative choice was intentionally designed to create distinction.For marketers working in financial services, regulated industries, or legacy brands navigating change, this is a fascinating look at how modern brand building actually works inside one of Ireland’s most important organisations.Timestamps:00:00 – Why trust in banking has to be earned every day02:00 – Laura Lynch’s path to becoming CMO of Bank of Ireland06:30 – Leaving traditional marketing to build customer experience capability10:00 – Going “all in” to land the CMO role13:00 – Leadership, intensity and avoiding groupthink16:30 – The reality of leading marketing inside a major bank18:00 – Rebuilding customer trust after the banking crisis20:00 – Why banking competition has fundamentally changed21:30 – Inside Bank of Ireland’s new brand strategy24:00 – Building “Right With You” with customers and colleagues27:00 – Why the strategy had to stretch the organisation29:00 – The making of the new Bank of Ireland advertising32:00 – Using humour to talk about fraud and financial confidence35:00 – Creating distinctive work in a regulated category37:00 – AI, personalisation and the future of marketing teams39:00 – Why performance marketing alone is not enoughBrought to you by TracksuitTracksuit is the always-on brand tracking platform helping marketers understand brand health, measure impact, and make better decisions over time.👉 https://gotracksuit.comListen / Follow That’s What I Call Marketing:🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7MXhujDpTzbSRRbyQFgdWp📩 Email: thatwhatswhatIcallmarketing@gmail.comSubscribe for weekly conversations with leading marketers.That’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• The Singles: The hot hits of May with Lucky Saint, Lego & Entertain or Die. 11.05.2026 33min

  The Singles is back with Tracksuit, taking some of the biggest marketing stories in culture right now and putting them under a bit more pressure using real brand data.Because the interesting part is rarely just the campaign itself. It is what the campaign reveals about the category, the audience, and the way brands are trying to grow.In this episode, Conor Byrne is joined by Ed Parkin and Bella Harrison from Tracksuit to explore three very different examples of brands using culture, entertainment, and timing to build relevance.Lucky Saint shows how alcohol-free beer has moved far beyond Dry January, using Lime Bikes, London culture, run clubs, and moderation trends to position itself as a year-round brand for active urban consumers.Lego demonstrates why it remains one of the most culturally flexible brands in the world, turning the FIFA World Cup into entertainment before a ball has even been kicked, while continuing to stretch beyond the toy category into fandom, collectibles, and adult audiences.The conversation then turns to the latest Entertain or Die Report, looking at why entertainment is increasingly becoming a commercial growth strategy rather than just a creative ambition.The episode also explores:Why brands are now competing against Netflix, TikTok, creators, and sport for attentionThe shift from “salesmanship” to “showmanship” in advertisingWhy entertaining brands are outperforming commerciallyWhat brands like Currys, Compare the Market, Guinness Zero, and Lego are getting rightHow mental availability is built long before purchase moments happenIf you want a deeper understanding of how entertainment, culture, and brand growth connect together, this episode is packed with practical examples and real-world data.Listen to Paul Feldwick on That's What I Call Marketing here:Paul Feldwick on That's What I Call MarketingRead the full Entertain or Die report:Entertain or Die Report Find out more about Tracksuit:TracksuitListen to more episodes of That's What I Call Marketing:That's What I Call MarketingTimestamps:02:06 – Lucky Saint and the rise of moderation culture03:24 – Why Lucky Saint is so culturally aware05:05 – Lime Bikes, London culture, and timing07:08 – The functional drinks category shift08:45 – Alcohol-free beer becoming mainstream10:00 – Guinness Zero vs Lucky Saint11:18 – Winning locally before scaling nationally13:22 – Brand perception and category positioning15:00 – Lego and the FIFA World Cup campaign16:01 – Why Lego works across every demographic18:22 – Lego’s cultural timing advantage20:00 – Lego, fandom, and entertainment21:40 – World Cup advertising and brand competition22:15 – Entertain or Die explained24:00 – Why entertainment drives commercial growth25:35 – Future demand and entertainment26:17 – Gap hires a Chief Entertainment Officer27:09 – What makes brands entertaining29:00 – Brands that entertain us today31:00 – Why culture matters inside companiesThat’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• S5Ep14:  Personalisation is just good prediction with CEO James Taylor 05.05.2026 38min

  We talk about personalisation as if it’s about the person. It isn’t. It’s about prediction.”That line sits at the centre of this conversation with James Taylor, CEO & Founder of A Particular Audience and once you hear it properly, it’s difficult to go back to how most marketing teams currently think about relevance. Because for years, personalisation has been framed as something close to one-to-one messaging. The idea that if we just had enough data, we could tailor every experience to the individual. It sounds right. It feels intuitive. And yet, in practice, it has largely disappointed.What James lays out here is a different way of understanding the problem.Not who the customer is — but what they are doing.Not static segments — but real-time signals.Not demographics — but behaviour.Drawing on his experience building AI-driven recommendation systems used by global retailers, he explains how the most effective ecommerce experiences are not built around people, but around patterns. Around the relationships between products, actions, and intent. Around what millions of other customers have done before you, and what that makes likely next. This fundamentally changes how you think about websites, search, media, and even creativity.Along the way, the conversation explores why so many early personalisation efforts failed, how Amazon and Netflix approached the problem differently, and why most retailers are still playing catch-up despite having access to the same underlying data.There’s also a more grounded thread running through it — the reality of AI in practice. Not the version you see in product demos or LinkedIn posts, but the version that still requires constraints, rules, and human oversight. The version that gets things wrong. The version that can be incredibly powerful, but only when properly understood.For marketers, there’s a useful tension here, on one side, the promise of hyper-relevance and automation, on the other, the discipline required to make it actually work.This episode sits right in that space.⏱️ Key Moments:00:00 – Why “you are not your demographic” changes everything02:15 – From investment banking to building AI products08:00 – The real meaning of personalisation (and why it’s been misunderstood)12:30 – Behaviour vs demographics: what actually drives relevance18:00 – Building a recommendation engine from scratch26:00 – Why most retailers still lag behind Amazon30:00 – How AI is changing marketing teams34:00 – The limits of AI (and why rules still matter)36:30 – “Personalisation is just good prediction”What you’ll take from this episode:Why most personalisation strategies fail to deliverHow recommendation systems actually work in ecommerceThe difference between explicit and implicit customer signalsWhy demographics are often a poor proxy for behaviourHow AI should (and shouldn’t) be used in marketing todayWhat marketers need to rethink about relevance and experience designBrought to you by TracksuitTracksuit is the always-on brand tracking platform helping marketers understand brand health, measure impact, and make better decisions over time.👉 https://gotracksuit.comListen / Follow That’s What I Call Marketing:🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7MXhujDpTzbSRRbyQFgdWp📩 Email: thatwhatswhatIcallmarketing@gmail.comSubscribe for weekly conversations with leading marketers.That’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• S5Ep13: Christmas in April with Pete Markey & Leanne Tomasevic powered by Electric Twin 27.04.2026 37min

  How Brands Should Really Be Planning Christmas CampaignsWhat happens when you start planning Christmas… in April?In this episode of That’s What I Call Marketing, Conor Byrne is joined by Pete Markey (former CMO of Boots, Marketing Week Marketer of the Year) and Leanne Tomasevic (Insights Lead at Electric Twin) to explore how brands should approach Christmas advertising — using real-time synthetic audience insights.Instead of guessing what consumers want, this episode puts Electric Twin’s platform to the test live, revealing how marketers can simulate audience reactions, test ideas, and sharpen creative briefs months before campaigns go live.The result is a grounded, practical look at:What people actually want from Christmas ads in 2026Why emotional storytelling still matters (but needs reframing)The role of celebrities, music, and consistencyHow to balance commercial pressure with authenticityAnd how AI-driven research can speed up better decisionsIf you’re working on a Christmas campaign, brand strategy, or creative development, this is a genuinely useful watch.⏱️ Timestamps00:00 – The reality of planning Christmas in April01:10 – What Electric Twin actually does (synthetic audiences explained)03:00 – Why speed matters in modern marketing decision-making05:30 – Live demo: Understanding the mood of the nation at Christmas08:30 – What consumers really want this year (family, realism, restraint)12:00 – Gifting trends: practicality vs meaningful connection14:30 – The balance between storytelling and selling16:00 – What people want from Christmas ads now18:00 – Should brands use celebrities? (and when it works)21:00 – The role of consistency (Kevin the Carrot, John Lewis, Coca-Cola)24:00 – Realism vs escapism in Christmas creative27:00 – How agencies can use this to build stronger briefs29:00 – The most memorable Christmas ads and why they last32:00 – Should brands reuse ads instead of making new ones?33:00 – Why music is critical to Christmas advertising effectiveness35:30 – Final thoughts: faster insight, better decisions🎯 Key TakeawaysChristmas advertising isn’t about excess — it’s about connection under constraintConsumers want authenticity, not performanceCreative effectiveness improves when insight is iterative, not staticConsistency often beats novelty in building long-term brand memoryAI isn’t replacing research — it’s changing how quickly you can think🔗 Links & ResourcesLearn more about Electric Twin: https://electrictwin.comListen to more episodes: That’s What I Call MarketingPrevious episode with Dr. Ben Warner (Synthetic Research deep dive)🎙️ About the PodcastThat’s What I Call Marketing features conversations with leading marketers, CMOs, and industry thinkers — focused on how marketing actually works in practice.If you’re working on Christmas 2026 right now, get in touch with Electric TwinThat’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• The Singles: The hot hits of April with McDonald’s, KitKat & Bieber 21.04.2026 27min

  The Singles is back with a new line-up from Tracksuit, looking at the marketing stories everyone is talking about In this episode joined by Bella & Ed we take a look at the data behind three very different moments McDonald’s shifts the conversation away from product and towards Gen Z employees, at a time when confidence in job opportunities for young people is low. It could easily have drifted into familiar employer-brand territory, but early signals suggest it is doing something more meaningful, with trust moving among younger audiences in a category where that is not easy to shift.KitKat finds itself at the centre of a global story after 12 tonnes of product are stolen, and instead of containing it, turns it into something participatory. Consumers are actively engaging, brands are joining in, and even a “KitKat” crypto coin spikes by 2000%. Most reactive marketing creates attention. Very little of it changes behaviour. This one starts to.Justin Bieber’s Coachella set works in a different way, stripping everything back and building the performance around YouTube. Nearly 6 million people stream it, and it splits opinion in a way that keeps it moving. It takes something familiar and presents it in a way that forces people to reprocess it, which is often where attention sustains rather than fades.Along the way, the conversation gets into why authenticity is showing up differently in production, how nostalgia actually works when brands get it right, and why participation is becoming more valuable than passive reach. 05:00 – McDonald’s: trust, Gen Z and employer brand 10:30 – KitKat: heist, participation and brand response 15:50 – Justin Bieber: YouTube, nostalgia and polarisation 20:30 – Nostalgia in advertising and brand memory 25:00 – Always-on tracking and what the data showsDon't forget to check out the new Entertain or Die report at TracksuitCOMING SOON - TWICM Training course will launch, stay tunedThat’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• S5Ep12: Meet The Young Lions Headed to Cannes 13.04.2026 31min

  The first Cannes Sessions episode of That’s What I Call Marketing is here and we kick off the series by interviewing three Irish IAPI Young Lions winner teams heading to Cannes: Darragh Spain and Fardosa Flanagan (Young Marketer, 123.ie/Intact Insurance), Ciara and Niamh (Film, Droga5), and Emily and Rhea (Digital, Omnicom Media). They discuss why they entered, how they tackled the 48-hour brief, research and insight methods, time management, prototyping and AI tools for film, adapting to an older target audience, presentation pressure, reactions to winning, and how they’re preparing for Cannes through past work review, equipment planning, bootcamps, and confidence. The Cannes Sessions are brought to you by The Digital Voice.These interviews shine a spotlight on their exceptional talents and the creative potential that exists within the next generation of marketing leaders, lets support and celebrate these future leaders as they prepare to bring home some medals from one of the most prestigious events in the marketing world.01:05 Young Lions Explained01:40 Meet the Winning Teams02:43 Darragh and Fardosa Intro03:19 Cracking the Brief04:33 Research and Insights06:55 Teamwork Under Pressure08:21 Shortlist to Presentation10:11 Winning the Call11:29 Preparing for Cannes12:55 Niamh and Ciara Win13:35 Film Category Workflow15:45 Agency Advantage16:21 Why Enter Young Lions17:07 Choosing a Category17:22 Learning Film Skills18:06 Upskilling With AI18:52 Planning For Cannes19:35 Storytelling Edge21:07 Why Enter Young Lions22:24 Team Dynamic Under Pressure24:03 Choosing The Digital Route24:51 Cracking The Age Group25:39 Winning Call Reaction26:42 Cannes Prep And MindsetSponsored by The Digital Voice, the amplification agency working with global ad tech and martech brands across press, thought leadership, content, social, events, and creative. That’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• S5Ep11: Descript CEO on What Actually Grows A Product. 31.03.2026 40min

  Laura Burkhauser, CEO of Descript, explains the surprising truth about what actually grows a product.Most marketing advice assumes growth comes from better targeting, smarter funnels, or stronger loyalty. Laura sees it differently.In this episode, we get into what actually drives product growth — and why some of the most widely accepted ideas in marketing and SaaS don’t hold up when you look at real behaviour. From why freemium often fails, to why loyalty doesn’t grow your business (but still matters), to what AI will and won’t change — this is a grounded, operator-level view of how products actually scale.If you work in marketing, product, or growth, this will likely challenge a few default assumptions.In this episode, we cover:Growth doesn’t come from loyalty — it comes from penetrationMost freemium models don’t work the way companies think they do“Target audiences” often aren’t real, connected communitiesAI will amplify creativity, not replace itCustomer care is one of the last real competitive advantages02:00 – What Descript actually is and who it’s for04:30 – Product vs product marketing: the career fork that shapes everything07:30 – Why big tech can slow you down (and what startups get right)10:00 – Moving from product leader to CEO — what actually changes13:30 – The freemium myth: why it didn’t work the way they expected15:00 – “Are we dating or not?” — a better model for product growth16:30 – How products actually get discovered (SEO, content, and reality)18:00 – Why most “target audiences” aren’t real communities20:30 – The shift from founder-led to customer-led companies22:00 – What customers are actually good at telling you (and what they’re not)24:30 – Why customer care is a competitive advantage (and why most companies cut it)25:00 – Loyalty isn’t growth — but it might be your moat26:00 – How to actually achieve penetration in a crowded market28:00 – The challenge of building a product for “everyone”30:00 – AI, content, and the future of podcasting — what’s real vs hype33:00 – Why most AI-generated content won’t work34:30 – The “Finding Nemo” moment AI still hasn’t had36:00 – Scaling a company without losing creativity37:00 – Why “intrepid” might be the most important mindset for modern teamsAbout Laura BurkhauserLaura Burkhauser is the CEO of Descript, one of the most widely used platforms for podcasting, video editing, and content creation. She has held senior product leadership roles at companies including Amazon and Twitter, and is known for her product-first approach to growth.Listen / Watch more episodes:https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.com/Thanks to our partner on this episode the always on brand tracking dashboard TracksuitIf you enjoyed this, subscribe for more conversations with CMOs, founders, and marketing leaders on how growth actually happens.That’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• S5 Ep10: Inside Saatchi & Saatchi, with CEO Claire Hollands 25.03.2026 41min

  Inside Saatchi & Saatchi. Sit down with the CEO of one of the most iconic agencies in advertising, a name that carries both weight and expectation, to understand how CEO Claire Hollands leads for today.This is a conversation about ambition. Not in the abstract, but in how it shows up in the work, in the culture, and in the relationship between agencies and clients.We get into how Saatchi & Saatchi is positioning itself around growth, why creativity still holds commercial power (even if the industry occasionally forgets it), and how agencies are rethinking their value, from billable hours to business outcomes.There’s also a clear view on where things are shifting: the role of AI, the reality of pitching, and why agencies need to be more deliberate about the clients they choose.Running through all of it is leadership, how you make decisions without perfect information, how you build a culture of high challenge and high support, and how you balance legacy with the need to move forward.What you’ll learn:Why agencies need to reposition themselves around growth, not outputsHow creativity still drives commercial performance and where it gets undervaluedWhat actually builds trust between agencies and clientsWhy most pitch processes are flawed and what better looks likeHow to think about agency value, pricing, and remunerationThe difference between growth brands and transformation brands and why it mattersWhat “high challenge, high support” looks like in practiceHow great leaders make decisions without having all the answersWhat AI is changing in agencies and what it isn’tWhy hiring for attitude and curiosity matters more than experienceTimestamps00:03:00 – Finding your people in the industry00:06:00 – Why account management sits at the centre of the agency00:07:00 – Building trust in client relationships00:12:00 – How decisions are really made at senior level00:15:00 – Culture, values, and collective ambition00:19:00 – High challenge, high support: what it means in practice00:23:00 – Managing pressure across career and family00:25:30 – Where the agency world is heading00:29:30 – The evolving agency model00:32:00 – The role and reality of pitching00:33:30 – What needs to change in pitch processes00:37:30 – Hiring for attitude, not just skill00:39:00 – What excites Claire about what’s nextAbout the podcastThat’s What I Call Marketing is a podcast for marketers who care about how brands grow, how advertising works, and how the industry is evolving through conversations with the people shaping it.That’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• S5 Ep9: Andrew Tindall: The Creative Dividend, How Creativity Drives Profit 10.03.2026 42min

  In this episode of That’s What I Call Marketing, Conor Byrne speaks with Andrew Tindall, Chief Growth Officer at System1, about his new publication/pdf The Creative Dividend. Built using global Effie case study data and creative testing from over 250,000 respondents, the research explores a simple but uncomfortable truth: most advertising fails to deliver profitable growth. Andrew explains why creativity has been undervalued in modern marketing, why many campaigns generate revenue but not profit, and why the industry’s biggest problem may actually be a lack of creative confidence. The conversation also explores the relationship between emotion, distinctiveness, media investment, pricing power and brand growth and what marketers should actually do differently. If you care about marketing effectiveness, advertising creativity, and long-term brand growth, this is a fascinating deep dive.Topics Covered• Why only 9% of advertising campaigns report profit growth• The concept of creative confidence• What the Creative Dividend actually means• Why distinctiveness beats differentiation• Why advertising cannot create loyalty• The link between emotion and profit• Why many campaigns are designed to fail• The tension between creative quality and media investmentTimestamps05:00 What The Creative Dividend is trying to solve06:32 Why global Effie data matters for marketing effectiveness07:17 Has creativity been undervalued in advertising?08:59 The crisis of confidence in marketing creativity10:16 Why many organisations see creativity as a risk11:21 The role of the client in protecting great ideas12:17 Why businesses avoid creative risk13:00 The shocking statistic: only 9% of campaigns report profit growth14:17 Are marketers measuring the wrong outcomes?15:21 The importance of pricing power in marketing16:45 How creativity enables brands to charge more19:16 What the “Creative Dividend” actually means21:00 The four drivers of creative effectiveness22:00 Why 83% of campaigns are designed to fail23:06 Why great creative fails without media support24:16 The power of long-term creative platforms26:00 Consistency vs freshness in advertising28:46 What surprised Andrew most in the research29:07 Why distinctiveness matters more than differentiation29:48 Why advertising doesn’t create loyalty30:00 Distinctiveness vs emotion: efficiency vs effectiveness31:41 Why emotional advertising drives profit32:44 Why revenue alone isn’t success in marketing34:00 The debate about gated content in marketing research39:00 AI, marketing knowledge and the future of learningLinks MentionedThe Creative Dividend (download the pdf): https://system1group.com/the-creative-dividendTracksuit https://www.gotracksuit.comThat’s What I Call Marketing Podcast https://www.thatswhatIcallmarketing.comGreen Hat Episode (gated content discussion): https://open.spotify.com/episode/72D5zXtNRzzNgdjYytRQdI?si=r2kbvHU3QqWVh6sM6na7wg OR https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s3-ep39-the-b2b-power-shift-what-marketers-must-do/id1615415427?i=1000672178838That’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
• S5 Ep8: Synthetic Research Explained 03.03.2026 33min

  Synthetic Research Explained, Understanding AI-Powered Audience Testing for MarketersWhat is synthetic research and how accurate is it really?In this episode of That’s What I Call Marketing, Conor Byrne sits down with Dr. Ben Warner, former Chief Data Adviser to the UK Prime Minister and co-founder of Electric Twin, to unpack one of the most talked-about developments in modern market research: synthetic audiences.This is not ChatGPT pretending to be a consumer. Synthetic research uses real-world survey data, behavioural modelling and large language models to create AI-driven audience simulations that allow organisations to test messaging, product ideas and strategy at speed before committing real budgets. If you work in marketing, insight, product, strategy or leadership, this episode will challenge how you think about research, risk and decision-making.⏱️ Timestamps00:00 – Introduction to synthetic research02:00 – From quantum physics to behavioural modelling03:35 – Why human behaviour is harder to predict than we think05:17 – The problem with traditional decision-making tools09:02 – What Electric Twin actually does10:00 – What a “synthetic audience” really means13:59 – Testing creative, messaging and propositions in real time15:06 – Accuracy vs traditional survey research17:00 – Real-world use cases across marketing and product19:02 – The danger of asking the “wrong” question23:06 – Democratising customer insight inside organisations25:00 – Where synthetic research fits (and where it doesn’t)27:00 – Innovation vs risk-averse organisations29:09 – The story behind the name “Electric Twin”In this episode, we cover:How synthetic audiences are built from real-world dataWhy traditional surveys can be slow, expensive and restrictiveHow AI allows teams to iterate research questions instantlyThe difference between testing ideas safely and making bold decisions blindlyWhy trust and validation matter in emerging AI toolsWhere synthetic research complements (not replaces) conventional methodsWhy this mattersEvery organisation says it wants to be “customer-centric”.But insight is often expensive, delayed, siloed or underused.Synthetic research introduces a new tool into the decision-making toolkit — one that allows teams to explore, iterate and pressure-test ideas before they go live.Whether you are a CMO defending budget, a product lead developing a proposition, or a strategy team modelling future scenarios, this conversation explores how AI-driven research could reshape how decisions are made.If you found this useful, share it with a colleague and subscribe for more conversations with marketing leaders shaping the future of the industry.🎧 Listen to more episodes of That’s What I Call Marketing 📌 Connect with Conor Byrne for more marketing insight🔗 Learn more about Electric Twin and synthetic audiencesThat’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.comConnect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/If you enjoy the show, please follow, subscribe and leave a review. It helps more marketers find the conversations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.