CMO Summit Recap – Syon Park, London March 7th 2023

On March 7th, Syon Park in London we hosted our first CMO Summit of 2023. This event brought together some of the most experienced and innovative marketing professionals from across the UK for a day of thought leadership, professional networking, and learning.

The Summit was a two-day event, beginning on March 6th with a pre-event networking dinner. Attendees had the opportunity to meet and mingle over hors d’oeuvres and a cocktail reception, followed by a luxurious three-course meal. Later in the evening, advocate and founder of Lions Barber Collective, Tom Chapman, delivered an inspiring speech on men’s mental health, highlighting the work the organization is doing to break down the stigma around the issue.

The Summit’s main event took place on March 7th, with an opening panel discussion featuring Daryl D’Cruz, Briony Mathieson, Scott Somerville, and Molly Dobson. The panel explored the topic of “Purpose-Driven Marketing,” accompanied by a packed workshop. The discussion covered the future of purpose-driven marketing, with panelists sharing insights on how brands can show their customers that their messaging is more than just lip service.

After the opening panel, the marketing professionals had a networking break and strategic one-to-one meetings, providing an opportunity for attendees to form meaningful relationships with each other. The attendees took full advantage of these meetings throughout the day, sharing their projects and challenges in a very productive meeting space.

Next, WPP’s Dr. Stacie Graham, Perry Nightingale, Clare Coffey, and Kat Sullivan presented their headline session on the “Future of Creativity.” In this masterclass, the speakers discussed WPP’s purpose of using creativity to “Build Better Futures” for people, clients, the community, and the planet. They also brought out “Spot,” a Boston Dynamics industrial robot, to demonstrate their lidar technology. Spot entertained the attendees by showing off some of its capabilities, including a dance performance.

The CMO Summit then split into two workshop spaces, where Finastra’s Global Director of ESG, Purpose & Impact, Jay Mukhey, and VP of Marketing Joerg Klueckmann explored how creating a marketing strategy around purpose and effectively communicating your environmental and social impact can help build brand equity and differentiate you from competitors.

During the CMO Summit, Schwa’s Creative Director Nick Padmore revealed that the words “Consumer,” “Commit,” “Innovative,” “Ensure,” and “Happy” are hindering marketing efforts. His session sparked critical thinking and innovative solutions for attendees to consider in their own organization’s marketing efforts.

The day continued with more networking breaks, allowing for conversations to take place throughout the networking area and meeting room. Attendees also engaged in further masterclasses, including Clevertouch Marketing CEO Adam Sharp and Professor of Marketing at Southampton University Business School, Prof. Paurav Shukla, who explored the changing dynamics, cultural differences, priorities, and strategies for CMOs in the next 10 years.

Matt Kissane delved into the topic of vulnerability, emphasizing how creative, authentic, and imperfect brands are more transformative because they are vulnerable and confident enough to take risks. Using the “Face Your Fears” methodology, Matt fully explored what it means to be vulnerable and how vulnerable brands are not weak, but rather strong and resilient.

During the day’s proceedings, attendees had the chance to network over a business lunch before diving back into the masterclass sessions. First up was Max Carenton, Similarweb’s Principal Sales Manager, who hosted a session on predicting trends in an unpredictable world. Drawing on key insights from Similarweb’s whitepaper, ‘The State of Consumer Spending,’ Max covered topics such as inflation, market effects, and the impact of ‘BNPL’ on conversion rates.

Later on, attendees joined Matt Delaney, Partner/Joint Head of Strategy at EssenceMediacom, for a masterclass on achieving breakthrough results in the new communications economy. Lindsey Jordan also spoke during the first half of the session, passionately discussing the rapid acceleration of human behavior changes driven by changing platforms, followed by insights on new ways to enter a market and effective social media strategies.

The CMO Summit also welcomed Gemma Christie, Senior Marketing Director for EMEA at ON24. Gemma shared a new playbook for digital marketing success, teaching attendees how to create content experiences across the entire buying journey, design engaging campaigns, and uncover insights to align with sales and drive the next action.

The next session, titled “The Connected Customer,” Medallia’s Solutions Consultant Ben Carmichael discussed how organizations can deliver personalized customer experiences in today’s omnichannel world.

Auto Trader’s Marketing Directors, Laura McNally and Camilla Ellerton, talked about the importance of post-sale engagement in their session “Relationship Goals – Developing Post-Sale Engagement that Works.” They emphasized that organizations need to invest in delivering successful customer conversion campaigns and how post-sales engagement is crucial for customer retention.

Head of Product Marketing for TomTom, Andy Marchant, provided valuable insights and knowledge on successful rebranding in his session, “The Ultimate Guide to Successful Rebranding,” sharing the lessons learned during TomTom’s recent rebranding.

J.P. Morgan’s VP Marketing – Corporate & Investment Bank Amy Carswell and Head of Markets Marketing Jasmine Ferreira shared their expertise on how to be creative in a regulated world in their session. They emphasized J.P. Morgan’s ability to stand out while remaining compliant through a healthy mix of creativity and industry regulations.

Julie Kennedy, Director of User Experience at Saint-Gobain, led the final masterclass session of the day, “How to Succeed as a Digital Leader,” where she shared her advice, techniques, and behaviors for marketing professionals to thrive within their organizations.

Overall, the CMO Summit brought together innovative and forward-thinking marketing professionals to stay ahead of the curve in the ever-evolving marketing landscape. We are delighted to have met so many incredible individuals and we cannot wait to host the next CMO Summit!