THREE YEARS AGO, Jim Stengel absolutely startled an industry that prides itself on being ahead of the curve. “The traditional marketing model we all grew up with is obsolete,” Stengel told attendees of the 2004 American Association of Advertising Agencies annual media conference. “We are taking the reinvention of marketing very seriously at Procter & Gamble,” he added, “and we all need to do that.” The proclamation from the chief marketing officer of the world’s largest advertiser was all but terrifying to any number of marketing and agency people who were quite comfortable, thank you, slightly nudging the status quo ahead whenever change seemed to be in the wind. In response to Stengel’s challenge, advertisers from all over the world started to look for ways to pick up the pieces and start over.
Of course, the reinvention was well under way at P&G. Marching orders from A.G. Lafley, the chairman, president, and chief executive, had defined the direction: “Let’s get back to what we do best, and that is putting the consumer at the heart of what we do, having a higher kind of purpose to help improve her life. Let’s articulate that, let’s live it, let’s talk about it, let’s value it.”
In a lot of companies, marketing isn’t important. Or maybe management isn’t thinking about it or looking at the right things. In this case, I would start with the consumer. I would try to figure out if she or he is delighted by my product or service. What is her real experience? What’s really happening? In the first two months on the job, go out and spend a lot of time with your customers.
If you can, make a deal with your CEO: “If you’re going to hire me, leave me alone for 90 days and I will come back to you. And if you don’t like the agenda I have and what I think we can do for this company, then I’ll renege the contract.”
Then begin to focus on metrics. Do it for your own personal credibility. You need to show what can be done, what you want to be held accountable for, and how marketing can help the organization achieve it. But keep coming back to our consumer experience. And keep asking, “What is the state of our business?”