“The boldest clients are those who let people play with their brands”

SOPHIA KHAN: In your experience, as former CMO of the Royal Bank of Scotland and having held senior positions at other blue-chip companies, what has been the impact of the current changes in media consumption habits?

DAVID WHELDON: We haven’t had a flourishing of creativity. Sir John Hegarty is very good on this subject and has, on several occasions, spoken about the arrival of the printing press and the reception of the printed word. When radio arrived, it was pronounced to be the death of newspapers and similarly, when TV arrived, it was the death of radio and so on. What actually happened was that initially the creativity in the new emerging media was dreadful. With time, people got the hang of it and it became rather good. However, Sir John explains that people have not learnt how to do great creativity in the new context. What does great creativity look like for an avid TikTok user and how do you reach them effectively? I think there is some wonderful creativity on TikTok, and most of it is generated by users and not brands. The boldest clients are those who let people play with their brands. It’s a great time to be a marketer because there’s so much to learn and so much to be curious about.

SK: In this context, how has advertising evolved?

DW: When I started in the world of marketing, there were only three TV channels in the UK – today there are thousands. There were no mobile phones and no internet. The world has changed exponentially since, but when you look at it through the lens of marketing and advertising, all that has actually changed is the number of channels available and the speed of the feedback loop. Responses, good or bad, are now immediate. If I say something inappropriate now, you could put it on X and I would be cancelled by the end of this sentence; that’s how fast the feedback loop is. The initial promise sold to us was that the digitisation of channels would enable better personalisation and delivery of marketing messages. This is untrue, as only six to eight percent of advertising is effective and achieves what it sets out to do – this is a terrifying wastage of the other 92%. What one really needs to pay attention to is: are you delivering a message that is useful to Gen Z and is the product you are marketing going to help them? Because if you are not, you are wasting their time.

SK: What does the shift to digital mean for advertisers in terms of reaching their target consumers?

DW: Everyone wants to speed up the complete transition to digital, but they don’t always want to justify the spending. However, in many developing countries, and especially in Pakistan, people still watch a lot of TV. People are still reliant on TV, radio and print, and they are still very viable mediums. Even in the developed world, the data shows that you need a healthy media mix to reach your audience. How do you build a brand long-term? You do that by using a healthy media mix.

SK: In a speech at an Incorporated Society of British Advertisers (ISBA) event in 2016, you said, “I am fiercely proud of the marketing profession. Marketing does all sorts of things for society that aren’t acknowledged and it is often not taken as seriously as it should be.” Do you still hold that view?

DW: I still think that’s true. If you look at some of the public service messages globally, marketing has been really effective in that regard. In the UK, there was a significant drunk driving problem in the eighties, with people driving themselves from parties completely inebriated. Most people don’t do that now. They have been convinced not to do so by effective and impactful marketing that shifted societal attitudes. Marketing can be used to accomplish all sorts of things.

SK: What leadership qualities do you think are essential for success in the marketing and advertising industry?

DW: I would say a mix of technical and soft skills; the more senior you are, the more you depend on building the right team of people, giving them a clear vision as well as the space to operate and deliver. This includes being cognisant of the expectations of the people working with you and having clarity about what you are trying to do. How do you help everybody achieve their goals and keep them focused? Another important quality is being empathetic towards people and understanding their circumstances while keeping them on task. A true leader is adept at collaborating and knows how to get the best out of people. Such a person leads with their eyes wide open and their paranoid antennae looking out for problems.

SK: How can advertisers innovate to stay relevant and effective?

DW: Investing money wisely is the first big challenge. You have to take a deep breath and think hard about your ROI and set yourself up for success. It’s important to know when to pivot when something is not working and adapt accordingly. Sometimes this translates to being more slow and deliberate about what you do, which is an odd thing to say because the world is becoming faster. The marketing world loves to rush, but the best concepts are hatched after they are slow-cooked and simmered.

SK: What inspired you to launch the ‘Better Marketing’ podcast with the WFA?

DW: I have realised in my career that quite often people are generous with their time and their learning. The idea was to talk to people in the advertising space and have them tell their stories. See what they have to share, especially things that will help people learn about better marketing. It’s always nice to hear a lot of the things I believe about marketing and advertising (in my own bubble) reinforced by other people. So there is a fair bit of that and it’s also nice to have a challenge.

SK: What prompted you to gravitate towards training and speaking, and how are you enjoying this change?

DW: I really enjoy mentoring and coaching, imparting what I have learnt over the course of my career. One of the reasons I am very happy to speak on different platforms is because I am not afraid of saying what I think, whether it’s good, bad or indifferent. I am also not afraid of challenging people, and I think there is a need for that in the industry right now. I stumbled into this courtesy of the pandemic, when I stepped down from full-time work. The most important thing is I now own my own time and plan my own time, which means I can travel a lot with my wonderful soulmate and wife.

For feedback: aurora@dawn.com

Published in Aurora’s November-December ’24 issue.