Strands of Genius: David Berkowitz + The State of Marketing
featuring: an interview with our guest editor and a research report
Welcome to the Bonus edition of Strands of Genius! On Fridays, we’ll be publishing interviews from our guest editors, and sharing a research report. Thanks for being along for the ride. Oh and by the way, you look great today :)
:: STEAL THIS THINKING | RESEARCH REPORT ::
It’s no secret that the marketing landscape is changing quicker than ever. AI and automation, alongside a fast-paced world, have the majority of marketers agreeing that marketing has transformed more in the past three years, than over the past 50. We no longer live in a go-to-market world where having information alone is enough – those who want to succeed must instead act on intelligence. We’ve shifted from the Age of Information to the Age of Intelligence.
That has significant implications for the marketing world. The way that people research and engage with brands impacts which marketing channels and strategies are effective. It’s increasingly challenging to break through the noise to generate traffic and leads. Taking a one-sizefits-most approach to anticipating customer needs no longer works. Marketers need to work through these challenges amidst a backdrop of tight budgets. As you’ll read in the report, 2024 calls for marketers to think through awareness, engagement, personalization, efficiency and growth in new ways.
:: DIVE IN | THE INTERVIEW ::
DAVID BERKOWITZ , FOUNDER, AI MARKETERS GUILD
>> David Berkowitz guest curated Strands on May 9th 2024. Read it here.
Tell us a little bit about yourself and what keeps you busy. How did you end up doing what you’re doing today?
I'm a connector, communicator, and community builder who has followed a very convoluted path that's led me to work with some of the most wonderful folks and companies spanning agencies, brands, and tech companies. I'm spending a lot of my time these days building out the AI Marketers Guild community and the FOAF.pro fraction-of-a-fractional CXO network, both of which I launched last year.
What excites you most about what you do?
When you're working with the right clients, it feels like art. And then on top of it, I get to run communities where I have excuses to interact with thousands of wonderful people. Plus, I get to write a ton, which I've loved since I was around kindergarten age, and I get to constantly learn by doing.
What beliefs define your approach to work? How would you define your leadership style?
I'm a collaborative leader. I want to learn from the best. I got the best compliment recently from a client I was pitching. They said, "You were so much quieter on the initial call than everyone else we spoke to, but when you sent the proposal, you showed you were listening better than everyone else." I landed the project. And granted, I once didn't get an agency CMO job because the CEO said everyone there is very loud in meetings and talks over each other, and he didn't think I'd fit in. He was probably right. I get vocal for what I believe in, and I take ownership, but I'd much rather involve other's input and experience where I can.
What has been the most rewarding project you’ve worked on and why?
I still think so fondly of the period when I was working with Sarah Hofstetter, Bryan Wiener, and the 360i team to launch the Emerging Media Practice that led to all the amazing work with Oreo, Comedy Central, Coke, NBC, and so many other top brands. And it led to Rosie and I working together. Bryan and Sarah had a ton of vision and put a lot of trust in others to carry it out, and it worked way better than I think any of us could have imagined. It helped transform an agency, people's careers, and even in some way the ad and marketing industries. I can't take credit for most of the work or all that came out of it, but being able to have a voice there and build a lot of the scaffolding from scratch was a tremendously rewarding growth experience.
We are big believers in diversity -- Not only because we believe in equality, but because we also think it’s better for business. How do you frame these kinds of conversations, both internally and with clients? Is there an emphasis on action, or are the conversations really more about communication?
It comes up all the time. Sometimes, it's really practical. "Sorry, we can't add another speaker who looks like the other guys on the panel." I worked with an agency to do a virtual event around Pride. I didn't even realize at an agency this would be some political issue; they let me run with it, but a colleague of mine there with a non-binary child told me how much it meant that someone spoke up about this. I was just trying to do my job for an agency that had a lot of LGTBQ+ representation on its team. But it can be tough. I run communities, and I don't always know the right words to use. I have to learn from my members, my colleagues, or anyone I can. People tend to be forviging though when you're really listening. And I'm the same way. If someone comes to me and says, "Well, Jews think this" or "Jews believe that," I don't want anything to do with them. Some guy told me my own feelings were wrong when I publicly lambasted Musk for anti-Semitic remarks and left Twitter; I won't be working with him again. But if someone comes to me and says, "Do some Jews really think this?" and they want to get to know me better -- even if I can only speak to my own perspective, and not any group as a whole -- I can share a personal opinion, and we can have an opportunity to learn from each other. I had a wonderful exchange with an Asian American friend whose family went through Japanese internment as my family was fleeing the Holocaust, and the world needs way more of that.
Switching gears a bit, how do you find time to balance personal interests with your career? Do you believe work/life balance is possible? Anything you’ve implemented that you recommend that others try?
Balance is easier for some than others. Some jobs are more predictable. Some families are more predictable. I've been through a divorce the past few years, and it's worked out well for everyone -- my family and I are lucky. But it means that there are added scheduling considerations, especially with children involved. And then re-partnering brings even more into the juggling mix; I'm fortunate with that too, but it changes the balance equation. The past year or so, I read all the works of James McBride, and he writes about being one of 12 children, and his birth father died before James was born -- talk about all the balance needed there (and the whole story is a TRIP, as he has both black and Jewish heritage). People do it though. People find the love to give to their loved ones and to their work, and there's no shortage of love that people have the capacity to give -- but it doesn't often feel like balance. And it shouldn't feel like balance. Those who matter most to you should know they come first, and you'll go to the ends of the Earth for them. You can't balance that with anything.
What’s your media diet? Where do you find inspiration?
Newsletters are great, but if I could give up everything else, I'd stick with books. I basically always have 3 books going at a time - one Audible, one print, one Kindle (for different situations). And sometimes if a library book comes through on Libby, I have to pause one Kindle book and go to another. It's a mix of literature, history, biography, ancient Greek plays, theology, and more. I read very few business books, and more often than not, those are the ones I regret reading.
What’s the best piece of advice/knowledge you’ve stolen, and who/where’d you steal it from?
A favorite comes from a translation of the poet Rumi that I read ages back. “Eat the grapes. Do not keep talking about the garden. Eat the grapes.”
You can keep in touch with David on LinkedIn.
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rockON,
faris & rosie | your friends over at geniussteals.co
(still want more? @faris is still “tweeting” while @rosieyakob prefers instagram stories)