Smarter Marketer

Most marketers are under pressure to deliver results fast. But when all of the focus goes into capturing demand that already exists, businesses eventually limit their ability to grow. Sustainable growth comes from balancing the customers ready to buy today with those who will enter the market tomorrow. In this episode, James Lawrence sits down with marketing effectiveness expert, entrepreneur and...

Few decisions have a bigger impact on marketing performance than choosing the right agency partner. Yet according to TrinityP3's latest State of the Pitch Report, many pitch processes are still creating frustration on both sides of the table. Agencies invest significant time and resources into pitches, while marketers often struggle with unclear scopes. More than anything, this leads to relationsh...

Episode Description : Most marketers are keen to try the new shiny tactic, but what if the biggest B2B marketing opportunities come from understanding what doesn’t change? In this episode of the Smarter Marketer Podcast, Rocket Agency’s Co-Founder & Host, James Lawrence, sits down with Ty Heath, Global Thought Leadership Lead at LinkedIn and co-founder of the LinkedIn B2B Institute, to explore...

Episode Description : Is Google losing ground? How much traffic are tools like ChatGPT really driving? And what does visibility look like when answers increasingly happen inside AI platforms instead of on your website? In this episode, Host James Lawrence sits down with Rocket’s Head of SEO & GEO, Joe Alder, to unpack what’s actually happening inside AI search in Australia right now. Drawing o...

Episode Description: As attribution becomes less reliable and marketing teams face more pressure to prove what drives growth, marketing mix modelling is becoming a popular way to understand the full commercial picture behind marketing performance. In this episode, James Lawrence speaks with Henry Innis, CEO and co-founder of Mutinex, about how modern MMM can help marketers move beyond channel-leve...

Episode Description: What does a great agency relationship actually look like when pressure on marketing performance has never been higher? As budgets tighten and expectations rise, the difference between an average agency partnership and a high-performing one often comes down to how well both sides work together, not just what’s delivered. In this episode, Host James Lawrence sits down with Jorda...

Episode Description: How should Australian marketers adapt their approach to influencers and content creators as algorithmic changes, platform shifts and changing audience expectations reshape the landscape? Host James Lawrence sits down with Trish McGee, Group Account Director at Impact Agency, to unpack the findings of Impact's 2026 Influencer Pulse Check, Australian research that goes straight...

Episode Description: What would great marketing look like in Australia this year, especially when the rules are changing faster than most teams can keep up? In this episode, Rocket Agency’s top experts unpack the biggest shifts shaping digital marketing in 2026, from AI search and zero-click behaviour to rising costs, evolving content expectations and the growing importance of creative. Host James...

How do you market an ‘unglamorous’ business where your category doesn’t sell itself? And what does it take to build a brand that people trust and remember when your offering is not something buyers get excited about? Host James Lawrence sits down with Lisa Macqueen, CEO of Cleancorp, to unpack how she’s built one of Australia’s most respected service brands in one of the most commoditised categori...

If most B2B buyers already know who they’re going to choose before they even speak to sales, what does that mean for your B2B marketing strategy? In this episode of the Smarter Marketer Podcast, James Lawrence sits down with Stuart Jaffray, Managing Director of Green Hat, to unpack the latest findings from the APAC B2B Buyer Journey Research Report. With data from over 800 buyers across the region...

In this episode of the Smarter Marketer Podcast, Host James Lawrence sits down with Alex Hayes, Founder of Clear Hayes, to unpack what it really means to market to marketers. From building Clear Hayes House at SXSW Sydney to launching award-winning branded content for global platforms, Alex shares hard-earned lessons from both sides of the fence; as a former editor of B&T and Mumbrella, and no...

When the pressure for short-term results keeps getting louder, how and why should you still emphasise creativity? In this episode of the Smarter Marketer Podcast, James Lawrence sits down with Jules Hall, CEO and Founder of The Hallway, to unpack how creativity, data and commercial thinking need to work together if brands want sustainable growth. From navigating short-termism and AI hype to buildi...

What makes people say "yes"? Rocket Agency’s Co-Founder James Lawrence sits down with Dr. Robert Cialdini, the godfather of influence and the world’s foremost authority on the psychology of persuasion, to talk about the timeless principles behind his work, his seventh principle of influence - Unity - and how AI, ethics and empathy are shaping persuasion in modern marketing. Key Takeaways: Origin s...

In marketing, deadlines are relentless and expectations are high. It’s critical to manage stress and make clear-headed decisions under pressure. In this episode of Smarter Marketer, host James Lawrence chats with Dr. Jemma King - founder of BioPsychAnalytics and expert in stress, resilience and high performance.  Having worked with elite organisations like the Australian Olympic Swim Team, th...

In marketing, there exists a fine line between influencing decisions and crossing into manipulation. The difference? One builds trust while the other erodes it. Host James Lawrence chats with Dan Monheit, Chief CX Thinker at Thinkerbell and former CEO of creative behavioural science agency HardHat, about applying behavioural science principles like default bias and anchoring to your marketing, rel...

As platforms push Performance Max, Advantage+ and new modelling systems, we’re entering a world where results often look better in-platform than they do in reality. Behind the scenes, attribution is becoming harder and marketers are being forced to rethink how they interpret success altogether. In this episode of the Smarter Marketer Podcast, host James Lawrence sits down with Rocket’s Paid Media...

Marketers have long optimised for visibility and memory, but in our metric-focused industry, are we measuring what really matters? In this episode of the Smarter Marketer Podcast, host James Lawrence speaks with Dr. Karen Nelson-Field, Founder of Amplified, about why attention is the real currency of modern advertising and how to measure it effectively. From the myth of virality to the flaws in CP...

As 2025 comes to a close, the conversation around in-housing has never been more confusing. With rising pressures on budgets and the disruption caused by AI, businesses are being forced to rethink what the right marketing structure might look like  for them. In this episode of the Smarter Marketer Podcast, Host James Lawrence speaks with Darren Woolley, Founder and Global CEO of Australia’s l...

Once thought of as a “traditional” channel, outdoor has once again become one of the most creative and technology-integrated mediums in modern marketing. As audiences move faster and attention gets harder to hold, out-of-home (OOH) continues to prove its staying power. In this episode, James Lawrence sits down with Josh Gurgiel, Head of Creative at POLY (oOh!media’s content and innovation hub), to...

What does it really mean to lead marketing in 2025? In this episode of the Smarter Marketer Podcast, Host James Lawrence sits down with executive brand strategist Emma Logan to unpack the realities facing modern marketing leaders, from blurred job boundaries and rising stakeholder expectations to the personal toll of visibility and performance. Emma shares why every senior marketer already has an...

For decades the agency-client relationship has worked on a transactional view of marketing and creative services. Agencies gave away their best thinking upfront, clients judged on surface-level ideas and both sides accepted a process that often undervalued expertise. In this Smarter Marketer Podcast episode, Host James Lawrence and renowned author Blair Enns discuss how the future of creative and...

Ranking in ChatGPT is now one of the most urgent challenges in digital marketing. With millions of Australians using AI search every week, the question for in-house marketers isn’t whether ChatGPT is shaping buyer journeys anymore, it’s how to make sure your brand is visible where and when it matters most.  In this episode of the Smarter Marketer Podcast, James Lawrence is joined by Rocket’s...

As competition heats up across professional services, simply telling people what you do is no longer enough. The difference between winning and blending in ultimately comes down to perspective: how you see the world , not just what you sell. Too often, brands overlook this, falling back on cliche messaging in their industry that leaves buyers unmoved. In this episode, James Lawrence (Co-Founder, R...

Marketing in 2025 is being shaped by what some experts call a 'polycrisis' - disruption layered upon disruption. From global conflicts to inflation to AI-driven job shifts, the market conditions facing both brands and consumers are becoming more complex and unpredictable. For marketers, the challenge isn’t just keeping up; it’s finding ways to cut through the noise and still build for the long ter...

Most marketers are pressured to focus their energy on the 5% of buyers ready to purchase today, but what about the 95% who aren’t in market yet? Ignoring them likely means missing your biggest growth opportunity. Building mental availability with future buyers is critical, yet often overlooked in the rush to chase immediate sales. In this episode, James Lawrence (Co-Founder, Rocket Agency) sits do...