MNicola Bach, BP's senior vice president of global marketing and Castrol CMO, says architects looking to future-proof their business need to live in “both worlds,” balancing data-driven opportunities with brand-building. He says he needs to go.
Speaking at Advertising Week Europe today (15 May), Mr Buck urged marketers to seize the opportunities presented by automation, CRM and targeting, while also recognizing the importance of brand.
“If we don't drive it, we don't have a future,” she says of the technology and data opportunities presented to marketers, while also acknowledging the risks when marketers focus solely on data.
Castrol has a 125-year history, she adds, and “to keep your brand relevant for decades and generations, you have to do the work of your brand.” added.
If you can make your current marketing as efficient and effective as possible, you have room to address long-term challenges.
Nicola Back, BP
Buck acknowledged the challenge of deciding where to allocate attention and budget, and stressed the importance of navigating both the long-term and short-term journeys.
“If we can make marketing as efficient and effective as possible today, we have room to address long-term challenges,” she added.
When asked about the company's competitors and the emergence of convenience-first brands entering the mobility space, Buck said there is a “radical focus” on who they are targeting and why they are targeting them. He emphasized the importance of this.
“In a world with so many new entrants, be ruthless about who your customers are, why they're coming to you, and whether you're offering them what they need,” she says. advised.
Buck claims customers are choosing BP's “high quality” fuels and the company is “staying ahead” and staying competitive in the face of competitors entering the space with a digital-first approach. He explained that he was under pressure to do so.
“It's a time where there are a lot of changes that we have to step into. It's scary, too, but you can't go through those kinds of challenges and have a better career,” she said.
hindsight, insight, foresight
Buck reflected on the role of marketing leaders and argued that in a rapidly changing world, the CMO's role is more important than ever.
“The world is changing at such a pace that no one knows the answers,” she said, adding that the best place for customers is alongside the CMO.
BP's marketing chief was joined on the panel by Edwin Taborda, L'Oréal's chief consumer and market intelligence officer, who echoed Buck's comments about the brand's potential. He spoke about combining hindsight, insight, and foresight to drive transformative change.
Taborda says that while it's important to learn from the past, we often get left behind when we look to the future.
“It’s a very rare case, but we’re thinking about what could happen,” he said. “That’s where we really need to focus and have a clear view of how brands take their next steps into the future.”
L'Oréal has 37 brands under its umbrella, and Taborda spoke of the group's intention to become a “beauty technology powerhouse.” He used Maybelline's AI-powered virtual makeup feature, accessible through Microsoft Teams, as an example.
“That's our obsession as a group,” he said. “We're trying to see what's started and be able to implement it early.”
