10 sessions you won’t want to miss at the Festival of Marketing

The Festival of Marketing (10-11 October) promises to bring to life some of the most exciting marketing debates over two days, with some of the biggest names in the industry.

Marketing Week’s Strategy and Leadership stage, for example, will be packed with content around effectiveness, innovation and the future of marketing. But with hundreds of speakers from top brands across 12 stages there is much more to see besides.

Here’s Marketing Week’s top picks of what to see.

1. Marketing tactics that work: Driving growth through evidence-based marketing

Premier Foods marketing director Yilmaz Erceyes will share how his team has shifted to an evidence-based growth plan, which has removed the guess work from marketing.

He will explain how this approach has helped many of its brands achieve double-digit growth.

2. Bringing dynamic change internally: Lessons from Mondelēz’s transformation journey

How can big FMCG firms innovate internally? That’s the big question Debora Koyama, Mondelēz International’s European CMO will look to answer.

She will be sharing the company’s philosophies on transformation and cultural change, and discussing how to ensure consumers have a positive experience with mass personalisation every time.

In addition to her keynote, Koyama will also be interviewed by Marketing Week reporter Molly Fleming.

3.There’s big value in being small: Learn from the disruptors changing the face of food and drink

Get ready for a lively panel discussion, featuring the founders of disruptive brands Livia’s, Love Corn and Wheyhey, alongside Sainsbury’s head of future brands, Rachel Eyre.

From finding your brand voice to owning every part of the creative process, learn what these disruptors are doing to shake up the industry.

4. GSK’s design advantage: Why design-first brands grow faster

GSK’s global vice-president of design, Andrew Barraclough, will explain how making design a strategic partner of marketing can help drive innovation.

He will share how GSK has changed its approach to brand building, bringing all teams together to work towards a common goal, and the value this has brought to the business.

‘Bigger, stronger, more impactful’: Why GSK made design marketing’s strategic partner

5. Myth busting Gen Z: Harnessing the attention of a global generation changing the future

With panellists including Benefit marketing director for UK & Ireland Lou Bennett and Unidays general manager Viviane Paxinos, get a better understanding of the most valuable engagement tools for communicating with GenZ.

The panel will also discuss the marketing tactics that best suit the behavioural characteristics of this demographic.

6. Delivering the best-in-class strategy for measuring marketing effectiveness

Monzo, Wowcher, Zalando and Tata Global Beverages share examples of how they have tried, tested and developed measurement strategies that are fit for purpose.

The panellists will explore how to approach the short-, medium- and long-term financial impacts of marketing and which methods best contribute to overarching business and brand objectives.

7. KFC and TSB: Moving on and improving after a setback

Join TSB CMO Pete Markey and KFC’s UK & Ireland CMO Meghan Farren, who will each share how their brands have overcome challenging situations and come out the other side stronger.

This will be followed by a panel discussion led by Econsultancy editor Ben Davis.

8. Brands and activism: Is it ever a good idea?

Over the past year brands including Lush, Gillette, Iceland and Nike have all added their voice to political and social debates – but are they right to do so?

This session will explore the challenges of mixing advertising and politics, and what brands should consider before aligning themselves with political and social causes.

9. Is artificial intelligence the answer to a prejudice-free future?

Speakers from O2, Barclays and Sky will debate whether algorithms and machine learning can eliminate bias and help humans make better decisions, or whether they actually increase the risk.

10. Driving growth through innovation and creativity: How consumer trends define Britvic’s vision

Britvic CMO Matt Barwell will share how the drinks business stays ahead of consumer trends while maintaining its 80-year-old company heritage.

He will discuss how, despite behavioural and buying trends constantly shifting, brands can ensure they continue to grow.

For the full event preview, visit the Festival of Marketing website.

The Festival of Marketing takes place on 10 and 11 October at Tobacco Dock in London. To find out more about the stages and speakers, as well as book tickets, visit www.festivalofmarketing.com