Marketing Quotes from Brilliant Women

Mark Ritson presented his, "Marketing Heroes" video where announces his top 10 list of people, past and present, that have individually contributed to the field of marketing. Fending off rightful criticism, Mark preemptively announced that his list completely lacked diversity. He fell on the sword, noting that the list of white men was a historical list,  and we've entered a new era where brilliant women are now more commonly influencing his thinking. He goes on to challenge his followers to shine a light on women in marketing, and their sage advice. Although a simple quote doesn't do their work justice, I'll gladly highlight some of my favorite. 

Cheers to you, Mark. Challenge accepted.

"Companies whose cultures wither instead of thrive because their leaders can't articulate the stories of why they do what they do."

- Kindra Hall

"Fear is used by many brands as a key motivator to drive consumer action. Fear based marketing is useful when fear is used as a motive to overcome fear, not instill it. There's a big difference."

- Shantini Munthree

"In our world, there's really no other choice but to be a lean brand - no other choice but to mean something and be a means to something." 

- Laura Busche

"The presence of a brand proclaims that item's ownership. It's the marketing equivalent of signing your painting; it tells the world 'our company produced this'". 

- Jenni Romaniuk 

"A big idea functions as an organizational totem pole around which strategy, behavior, actions, and communications are aligned. The big idea must be simple and transportable, and carry enough ambiguity to allow for future developments that cannot be predicted."

- Alina Wheeler

"Brand should never be a deception; it should be a delightful expression of a product's truth, and ultimately a positive force in people's lives."

- Emily Heyward

"Today's connected customer is inadvertently weaving together every aspect of your brand as a rich tapestry of the brand story. An ad, an email, a meeting with a salesperson or a customer service representative. These are all part of the brand story in the customer's mind and if not designed intentionally to be cohesive, there's a great chance that you may lose the customer somewhere along their brand interaction trip."

- Miri Rodriquez

"If we fail at positioning, we fail at marketing and sales. If we fail at marketing and sales, the entire business fails."

- April Dunford

In the spirit of Kalika Yap's 'the little brand book', I'll provide no single quote. Rather, I'll encourage you to read it, as the entire book is focused on female role models showcasing their brilliance.

"Anything can be an insight as long as it highlights what's wrong with the old story, and shows how much better a new one could be."

- Janine Kurnoff and Lee Lazarus

"Great brand sacrifice even the most sacred cows - short-term profit and growth in their categories because that's often the most effective way to differentiate. If you set different day-to-day priorities from your competitors, you can't help but stand out. Great brands defy conventional wisdom in order to preserve their defining values and attributes. They favor building long-term brand image, maintaining trust with existing customers, and adhering to set strategies that target best prospects."   - Denise Lee Yohn

"Engineering your brand is not an overnight task. And it's not something that will drive sales immediately. What it will do is allow you to stand out from competitors, build lasting relationships with consumers and develop a brand that lasts over time. You must be dedicated to your brand, building it into everything you and your company does. You must live and breathe it - ensuring that everyone who's involved in creating your brand buys into it, as well"

- Ainsley Moir

Dear Mr. Mark Ritson,

You make all of us think just a little bit harder - learn a little bit more - bow to our history - and remind us that we have the opportunity and burden to forge a better, more diverse future. We thank you for this. 

Sincerely, 

Jeff and the whole BrandOps team

P.S. This particular blog post is dedicated to my daughter, Ellie (the most bad-ass woman on the planet.)