Mark Schaefer, Executive Director, Schaefer Marketing Solutions

Marketing Rebellion: The Most Human Company Wins

Designed to change the way companies and organizations look at marketing, sales, advertising, and overall customer experience and based on Mark Schaefer’s brilliant new book, Marketing Rebellion: The Most Human Company Wins, this program took the audience on a discovery of surprising consumer realities. Weaving research with entertaining stories, Mark showed how an entirely new mindset is needed to meaningfully connect with customers in a rebellion against marketing, advertising, and PR.

The talk was devised to give attendees new inspiration and new information on how they can incorporate strategies such as live experiences, people and culture, and story into their marketing, sales, and customer-service processes. Initially, Mr. Schaefer came across a bit serious and introduced himself as a professor. The introduction seemed a bit to-the-point. However, as time passed, he progressively became funnier and more charismatic. He had the audience howling toward the end. He was definitely one of the funniest speakers of the day.

Marketing, Advertising, Sales, Customer Engagement, and Customer Loyalty Have Changed Forever

• Two thirds of your marketing is occurring without you
• “Our research revealed that consumers are increasingly likely to have a negative reaction to a company’s attempt to earn their loyalty.”
• 87% of customers are “shop around” customers, while 13% are loyal—this is because there is no more emotion for the consumer
• we are in the midst of a “consumer rebellion’
• A brand is no longer what we tell the consumer it is; consumers believe what they tell one another (word of mouth)
• This rebellion is redefining the business landscape

Focus Less on Technology, More on People

• Marketing is a combination of anthropology, sociology, and psychology
• Your customers are now in charge so you need to change your business plan to a more human-centered marketing business approach
• What makes a great advertisement? When you make the customer the hero, the customer is the marketer, and the company helps these people feel like they belong
• Warmth and competence are important in order to captivate audiences

Key Takeaways

1. Reimagine marketing in a post-advertising world
2. Five ideas to move toward human-centered marketing
3. We are in the midst of the third consumer rebellion