“Navigating the Now:” Judy Lewis and Tony Chapman explore the impact of disruption on marketing
Marketing Legends offer advice for succeeding in troubled times
TORONTO, November 13, 2024 – Be bold. Lean into empathy. And become a force for change.
Those were just some of the messages delivered to a full house at IBM’s York Street office during AMA Toronto’s Legendary Leadership Series event on the theme of Navigating the Now.
During the event, Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends inductees Judy Lewis, co-founder of Strategic Objectives, and Tony Chapman, founder of Chatter that Matters and Chatter AI, delivered an engaging dialogue on shifting trends in the world of marketing.
Lewis and Chapman were welcomed by fellow Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends inductee Sharifa Khan, president and CEO of Balmoral Multicultural Marketing, who observed that charting your way as a marketer amidst turbulence and transformation is never easy.
“The mood of the world impacts marketers and marketing. It’s clear our profession is undergoing dramatic change, that disruptive events and technology are rapidly transforming our world — and our industry,” Khan said.
You can’t sell a truth that no one believes
Lewis, whose career spans award-winning PR work for brands such as The Body Shop, Kia and Cadbury, led off with her thoughts on the state of the world and what it means for marketers.
“Unfortunately, we’re living in a very angry world. People are frustrated. At the same time, there’s so much great joy and there’s so much to appreciate in the world, but it’s a reality that just isn’t selling, [because] you can’t sell a truth that no one believes,” Lewis said.
She added, with so much of traditional marketing being turned upside down, that succeeding today means finding opportunity in change.
“We’re living in an era where the status quo is being thrown out the window. Nothing is sacred anymore, and it really is an era where marketers need to be very, very bold,” Lewis said.
Your brand doesn’t matter unless you matter to me
A popular podcast host and founder of an innovative AI-driven agency, Chapman told participants that, whether you are selling soft drinks or vying for political re-election, you must never lose sight of your audience.
“Marketing has changed. It used to be this big drift net, where one size fit all – Coca Cola’s “Open Happiness,” Budweiser’s “King of Beers” – and it was just pounded into our brains. Today, the world has changed, and now your brand doesn’t matter unless you matter to me,” Chapman said.
He added that social media and algorithms now make it possible for brands, politicians and other influencers to deliver highly-personalized messages right to your doorstep.
“It’s like fly fishing, and it’s done in a very creative way, because they’re talking directly to you, because they know your data. They know what makes your eyes shine and your heart beat, and they know what makes you agitated and anxious,” he said.
Embrace disruption and promote empathy
In times of disruption, Lewis said that marketers need to act as strategic advisors in their organizations, and learn to harness change, rather than run from it.
“If you want to create great marketing, you need to say to yourself, ‘How can I do this differently, and how do I create change?’ One of the greatest powers marketers have is that we can create positive change in our world, because we know how to do it,” she said.
The impact of seismic shifts like COVID, Lewis added, have left many people struggling, and marketers need to respond with greater understanding.
“You need to lean in, and marketers need to be empathetic. And empathy is something that doesn’t exist a lot in our world,” Lewis said.
The era of big ideas might be over (and we may have data to blame for it)
Before digital marketing really took hold of brands, Chapman lamented to the audience, there was always room for experimentation, big ideas and trying something different.
“But, it shifted one day, and it went from spending to investing. Suddenly, it was, what’s the return? Is that idea going to work? How many cases are we going to sell? That’s when I realized that data wasn’t going to free marketers, it was going to contain them,” Chapman said.
Moreover, Chapman explained, the risk-and-reward approach of the past has been largely taken off the table, and with it long-term growth in favour of short-term gains.
“It’s that fight where the salesperson says, ‘You can spend a million dollars on branding, but if you give me a million dollars, I can do a promotion at Walmart, and I’ll deliver the numbers for the quarter.’ They’d deliver the numbers for the quarter, but the next week, they had to keep the price down because customers were conditioned to it,” he said.
There is still room for challengers
Lewis also emphasized that marketers need to listen to their customers, keep their messaging simple and do whatever it takes to build confidence in their offering.
“Fundamentally, reputation and trust are the key to everything. Your brand gains value the more you’re trusted, and the greater the reputation you have,” she said.
For those just getting started or with little reputation to build on, she added, you need to demonstrate curiosity, empathy and the ability to deliver something special.
“For any entrepreneurial organization that doesn’t have massive backing from a worldwide organization, you really need to work hard. But, I believe there’s still a lot of room for challengers and if you can show that you’re different and that you offer more,” Lewis said.
We have to create the conditions for success
Chapman concluded that, despite a wealth of talent and innovative ideas, we still have a lot of work to do as Canadians if we want to compete with the world.
“We’re sitting on our intellectual resources. We share a border with the United States. We share the same language with them. They’re the world’s greatest economy. Their productivity is through the roof. They’re growing like crazy, and we’ve let it slip on our watch,” he said.
Ultimately, he said, marketers need to speak up and take action to ensure a solid foundation for the future of our industry at home.
“We’ve got to change the way we do things and start growing our economy, start growing purposeful jobs and start growing opportunities. But, we’re not protesting enough as marketers to create the conditions and circumstances for success,” he said.
AMA Toronto would like to thank our lead sponsor Balmoral Multicultural Marketing, venue partner IBM and production partner Stonehenge Digital for their support in staging our Legendary Leadership Series event with Judy Lewis and Tony Chapman. Visit our events page here for details on upcoming AMA Toronto events.
About Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends
Founded in 2004, Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends honours inspiring Canadian leaders who have dedicated their lives to the pursuit of excellence in the field of marketing. The award, created to spotlight the stories, people and brands behind Canada’s greatest marketing successes, recognizes a noteworthy body of work and a life-time of achievements and leadership, including contributions that have made our community a better place. Nominate someone you admire for the 2025 Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends here.
About AMA Toronto
The Toronto Chapter of the American Marketing Association (AMA Toronto) is a not-for-profit community of volunteer marketers who have been empowering leadership and business growth for more than 70 years in Canada. With more than 30,000 members and 70 chapters across North America, the AMA is the largest not-for-profit marketing association in the world serving organizations and individuals who practice, teach and study marketing. Learn more here.
About the author
Michael Thede is a PR manager with AMA Toronto. Prior to relocating to Toronto, he lived and worked in Shanghai, where he led international marketing communications for China Europe International Business School (CEIBS). He has also worked with brands such as Education First, Disney and Porsche. Michael has a BA in film studies and philosophy from Western University and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in marketing at Schulich School of Business (York University). Connect with him on LinkedIn here.
About the photographer
Duo Ma is the director of volunteer onboarding and a photographer for AMA Toronto. Outside of AMA, she works as a Marketing and Trade Show Coordinator at Top Grade Molds. She has a master’s in marketing from Schulich School of Business. Her passion for photography has been a lifelong pursuit, stemming from her early years, and she takes joy in capturing cherished moments through her lens. Connect with her on LinkedIn here.
