Building a Brand Means Mixed Media Marketing

“People think TV is the right way to build a brand,” said Julie Roehm, ’95. “I’d like to see the data on that. TV ads are less than perfect.” Roehm, senior vice president of marketing communications at Wal-Mart, was among panelists who discussed building brand identity at the Management Conference at Gleacher Center May 19. The discussion was moderated by Pradeep Chintagunta, Robert Law Professor of Marketing.

“We can get wrapped up in a single media, but a media mix is the best approach,” she said. “A lot of successful brands and marketers are delving into alternative vehicles, using 360-degree marketing. Surrounding consumers is the way to hit them since people are all over.”

Ann Mukherjee, AB ’87, MBA ’94, vice president of marketing at Pepsico, agreed. “The word ‘courage’ is important,” she said. “How do you find the courage to go against tradition when you know everything is changing. [You can’t] be tied to standard forecasts when you know non-traditional vehicles are more effective.”

Panelists agreed that the Internet—particularly Web logs—provides a new source of information, contact, and dialogue. “We’re living in our own shell if we ignore what’s happening,” said Chris Iannuccilli, executive director of marketing, at Chicago GSB. “ We must try to see what’s going on, understand it, and tap it. We can’t take the road of fear and pretend it doesn’t exist.”

“Blogging lets you see impact,” Mukherjee said. “You can control intent but what’s the impact? We must understand the difference. Blogging is a powerful tool. It’s a data point.”

And data is important. Today there is pressure to show how marketing pays off, said Gary Singer, ’78, chief strategy officer of Interbrand. “Until recently, brands weren’t held accountable for value creation. They were good like motherhood is good, but they weren’t held accountable. Anyone dealing with brands should be held accountable. They must be held to the discipline of business.”

Said Mukherjee, “What’s crucial to calling marketing to task is understanding it as part of the business model. How are brands driven? Innovation? Equity? Accurately understanding how to measure leads to understanding how the brand drives the business. Asking the right question is 90 percent of the answer.”

—Carmen Marti