Ahead of the Game

Email marketing has been around for a while, but it’s still the ideal channel to span the entire marketing funnel. And it’s free! In this episode, host Will Francis talks to Head of Digital Marketing at Drift , Caitlin Seele, on how we can integrate email marketing with all other strategies and keep it as part of the overall conversation. They chat about subject lines, smart scheduling, and A/B te...

What are the top skills you need today for a successful digital marketing career tomorrow?  Should you be a generalist or a specialist? Is there still room for more traditional marketing skills? In this episode, host Will Francis chats with DMI's Chief Marketing Officer, Mischa McInerney about where she sees a clear need for marketing skills today, especially in roles that didn't exist 10 ago...

B2B marketing hardly comes to mind when discussing fun and creative practices in digital marketing. Is it because B2B marketing is just boring? Is there room for creativity in B2B marketing?  In this edited episode, Host Will Francis brings you some of the most creative and unusual B2B marketing practices mentioned during his previous chats with B2B marketing experts. Banks being cool, dentis...

As we go back to the office or try out a hybrid working setup, staying productive while maintaining one’s mental health is as important as ever. In this edited episode, Host Will Francis brings you some of the best productivity tips and methods unearthed during his chats with some of our previous guests. Whether it’s using the Mind Map method, trying out Deep Work, or simply Eating (and Swallowing...

As modern marketers, we are swamped by numbers coming from all directions. How do we manage all this data, demystify it, and use it to our best advantage? Host Will Francis chats with Chris Penn to look at data from different and interesting angles. They talk about Regression analysis, using R and Python, GA4 and GDPR, along with lots of interesting real world metaphors! Chris also offers 5 key ta...

Are you making the shift to using videos on your social platforms? Have you started thinking about using TikTok but don't know where or how to start? In this week's episode, podcast host  Will Francis meets social agency Simply Social who work around the clock to stay on top of trends for their clients. General manager Peter Shannon and Olive Maher offer advice on marketers looking to set sta...

Many marketers are still confused when it comes to regulations around data privacy. While GDPR is the best known data regulation, it has been a catalyst for other data privacy developments around the world, from California to Singapore and Brazil. Your business is only as compliant as the least trained person on your team, so ongoing training of existing staff is essential. In this episode podcast...

Earlier this year, we looked ahead at some of the emerging trends and changes to monitor in 2022. It is now time to revisit and reflect on these insights as they have proven to be still topical and pressing as ever. So, join host Will Francis and 8 experts and practitioners across the industry to look at where digital marketing is at in 2022 and how it is responding to societal changes post-COVID....

With a war raging and an impending recession, many of us are reconsidering our career paths and/or development. So in this re-aired episode, you will get brilliant tips, key insights, and guidance on how to reflect on your career to make sure your career goals stay on track. Focussing on how to improve your personal or “soft” skills, host Will Francis and guests Morgan Cummins (director of TalentH...

Ever considered how your business might benefit from using chat marketing? In this episode, host Will Francis meets Anna Tutckaia , head of marketing at ManyChat, to learn about where this fast-developing form of marketing is helping brands and customers. By building a chat platform on Facebook, Messenger or Instagram, you are essentially meeting your customers where they already are.   A ful...

Pack your suitcase out and get ready to explore a historic corner of eastern Canada! In this episode, host Will Francis chats with tourism marketer Neil McKenzie all about how he operates the Yarmouth & Acadian Shores site in beautiful southwestern Nova Scotia. Using CrowdRiff as a UGC aggregator they continue to explore an omnichannel approach to content as the tourism sector starts to open u...

This week's episode is an especially exciting one for us - it's the first to mark the June launch of our new Search Marketing course created in collaboration with Neil Patel. We're joined today by one of his expert team, Matt Santos, who is VP of Products & Strategy at Neil Patel Accel. He has a breadth of experience across organic and paid search and in this episode he brings his expertise to...

Digital accessibility is more than a catchphrase, or a legal requirement – it’s a mindset that brands and marketers need to be much more aware of and consider building into their strategy. In this week’s episode, host Will Francis meets with Mark Miller and Cori Perlander of leading US-based accessibility consultancy TGPi . Cori shares her experience of seeing and hearing the internet on a daily b...

Host Will Francis is joined by Avocado Social founder Alison Battisby to discuss how marketers can take full advantage of the rise of shopping within social media platforms. From Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest to TikTok, consumers are becoming ever more used to shopping in these environments and they look at brands that are doing it well, how to use videos and influencers, how to work with plat...

In our 50th episode (!) we were delighted to be joined by Sheena Horgan of Drinkaware Ireland to discuss the differences, and commonalities, of nonprofit and corporate marketers. View the full transcript on our website . The Ahead of the Game podcast is brought to you by the Digital Marketing Institute and is available on our website , Apple Podcasts , Spotify , and YouTube .  Check out the D...

In this episode host Will Francis chats with Ewoudt Cloete , PhD about his transition from working in an agency environment to running a team inside one of Africa's largest retailers, MassMart (part of the Walmart family). Ewoudt also discusses his academic background, experience as a DMI student and gives us an insight into digital marketing in South Africa.  The Ahead of the Game podcast is...

What are the traits and challenges of marketing within the pharmaceutical and healthcare space? Host Will Francis chats with David Hunter , veteran healthcare marker with Havas Lynx and now with his new venture, The Considered. They also look at how it worked to launch that agency's new brand during Covid.  The Ahead of the Game podcast is brought to you by the Digital Marketing Institute and...

The fascinating story of how Oxford-based Creation Theatre managed to turn the Covid-19 pandemic to their advantage and produced 16 successful shows online, reaching new audiences but also meeting the needs of their existing audience. Host Will Francis chats with the theater's CEO & Creative Producer Lucy Askew to explore how they used new technology and marketing tools in truly innovative way...

We've covered a lot of ground in the podcast about SEO but what's the current state of Paid Search. Well, it has changed enormously over the last few years, as Will Francis learns from Brendan Almack, MD of Wolfgang Digital. They chat about the three main ways in which Paid Search is changing: it's moving up the funnel, the wide-ranging effects of automation (Smart Bidding), and how cost per click...

It's here! The DMI's rundown of what you need to look out for in the coming year. Host Will Francis is joined by 8 experts and practicioners across the industry to look at where digital marketing is at in 2022 and how it is responding to societal changes post-COVID. We look at issues around recruitment and upskilling and key factors regarding the customer experience. We touch on the Metaverse, NFT...

Data handling is everyone's concern at the moment. But do you know the difference between 2nd, 3rd, 1st and now zero-party data? A recent term that's starting to appear everywhere, zero-party, or trusted, data refers to data the customer intentionally and proactively shares with a brand.    Host Will Francis chats with digital expert Clark Boyd about how brands can treat this new form of...

As an experience architect for Accenture Interactive (ASGR region), Brian Corish has access to, what he calls, "the greatest toy set in the world". He and host Will Francis discuss how digital transformation is not about rushing into new technologies for the sake of it. Rather it is a transformation of mindset and culture, which is aided by creativity and attention to the customer. Brian also join...

In this final episode of 2021, host Will Francis talks to Dominik Schneider , global head of digital marketing and customer engagement at Straumann Group , one of the world's leading manufacturers of dentistry products. He discusses how he has built up the group's social channels, and run global integrated campaigns across all markets and brands, and gives us an insight into their omnichannel...

How exactly can social media - and especially LinkedIn - play a central role in feeding the sales pipeline with qualified leads? That's what Social Selling is about, and Paul Lewis - a veteran social seller at Pitney Bowes, and DMI SME - shares his experiences and tactics on making the most of LinkedIn towards your sales efforts. The Ahead of the Game podcast is brought to you by the Digital Marke...

Host Will Francis talks with Jason Jercinovic, advertising veteran and VP of Technology at North Highland in New York, about the state of new technology in the world of marketing. Jason talks about how the Covid pandemic has really "let the genie out of the bottle" in terms of accelerating the need and pace of innovation. Their conversation covers a world of new learning, from the metaverse, the p...