WFA's Better Marketing Pod with David Wheldon

Half the health information people see on social media is incomplete or wrong, and the result is bigger than a fact-checking problem. It’s a confidence problem. When four out of five people don’t feel comfortable making self-care choices, treatable issues get ignored and brands lose the chance to help.  David speaks with Alberto Hernandez, Chief Growth Officer at Opella, about what consumer health...

Fifty episodes in, one lesson keeps getting louder: marketing is still a person-to-person craft, even when the world feels dominated by platforms, dashboards, and AI. Recording from Stockholm during Global Marketer Week, in this episode David Wheldon reflects on what he has learned from CMOs and top marketing thinkers and why the energy of human contact makes ideas sharper, braver, and more useful...

Real people do not move neatly from awareness to consideration to purchase, they jump between searching, streaming, scrolling and shopping, sometimes all at once. That messy middle is where brands win or disappear, and it is exactly where AI-powered advertising and modern measurement start to matter according to the next guest on the WFA Better Marketing Podcast Dan Taylor, VP of Global Ads at Goo...

In this episode David Wheldon talks with Judy Smith, crisis management expert and former White House advisor, about what protects reputation when risk is everywhere and scrutiny is constant. We come back to one hard rule for leaders and brands: be who you say you are, even when the story is moving faster than your playbook. In this episode David and Judy cover: • Being who you say you are as the f...

When everything shifts at once, composure becomes a strategy. David Wheldon talks with HP’s Antonio Lucio to explore how leaders stay steady through geopolitics, macro pressure, generative AI, and an unexpected CEO transition—while keeping teams focused, customers centred, and growth on track. Antonio cuts through the AI hype with three pragmatic plays: scale asset optimisation for faster NPI read...

Growth doesn’t start with an ad. It starts where your product decisions meet real people. We sit down with Cheryl, newly named Global Marketer of the Year, to unpack how Grab scaled across Southeast Asia by turning marketing into a true commercial engine—where product, pricing, algorithms, and culture work in sync to earn trust and drive results. We chart the journey from a scrappy airport-ride pr...

In this episode we review a year of conversations with Unicef's Frederique Covington Corbett, culture guru Marcus Collins, Cathay Pacific's Ed Bell, Meta's Nicola Mendelsohn, Marcel Marcondes from AB InBev and Global Marketer of the Year, marketing expert Seth Godin, Leyal Eskin Yilmaz from the Magnum Ice Cream Company, and Ogilvy's Rory Sutherland. These conversations led to o...

The biggest wins in marketing rarely fit into neat dashboards. Rory Sutherland joins us to unpack why creativity is “fat-tailed,” how a few outlier ideas create the lion’s share of value, and why short-term incentives push teams to optimise what’s easy to count rather than what actually compounds. From “member since” on a card to names on Coke bottles, we dig into billion-dollar ideas that cost li...

In this episode of the Better Marketing Podcast with David Wheldon, Leyal Eskin Yilmaz, CMO of Europe, UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand for the Magnum Ice Cream Company, shares insights on building a new marketing organisation as the business separates from Unilever. Key points covered: Creating a new company while running the business is like "building a new house while living in it&qu...

What happens when one of marketing's most influential thinkers shares his unfiltered wisdom about the state of our industry? Seth Godin joins the WFA Better Marketing Podcast to deliver profound insights that challenge conventional thinking about what makes marketing truly effective. Seth dismantles common misconceptions about marketing's purpose: "Marketing is about how we're...

The marketing landscape is undergoing profound shifts, requiring marketers to rethink traditional approaches. At the forefront of this evolution stands Marcel Macondes, AB InBev's Global CMO and winner of the 2024 WFA Global Marketer of the Year award. His philosophy brings a refreshing clarity to how marketing should function today: as a bridge between consumers and business. Throughout this...

In this episode of the Better Marketing Podcast, Nicola Mendelsohn, Meta's Head of Global Business Group , shares insights on how Meta is transforming from a teenage platform to a mature business partner for advertisers with innovative tools, AI implementation and a renewed focus on effectiveness. From her early agency days to her pivotal role at Meta over the past 12 years, Mendelsohn brings...

What does it take to rebuild an airline brand after the devastating impact of a global pandemic? Ed Bell, General Manager Brand, Insights and Marketing Communications at Cathay Pacific, takes us behind the scenes of one of aviation's most remarkable recovery stories. Bell's journey from agency dynamo during China's economic boom to airline marketing leader offers a masterclass in re...

What makes a brand truly meaningful in people's lives? In this captivating conversation with Dr. Marcus Collins - professor, agency strategist, and cultural marketing expert - we explore how the most powerful brands transcend their product categories to become vessels of meaning in culture. Marcus reveals why brands aren't something we construct but rather what others think of them. Thro...

In this episode of WFA's Better Marketing Podcast in partnership with Meta, David Wheldon speaks with Dr Frederique Covington Corbett who is in the private sector division of UNICEF as Chief of Global Brand & Marketing.  David and Frederique discuss the biggest mistake marketers make, whether Gen Alpha is getting the leadership they need, why CEOs need to become Chief Energy Officers, the...

In this episode of WFA's Better Marketing Podcast, David Wheldon speaks to marketing guru, Mark Ritson, and his AI-generated alter ego, the Ritbot.  Subscribe to the WFA #BetterMarketing podcast on your preferred platform: https://bit.ly/41ZwqkF.

In this episode of WFA's Better Marketing Podcast, David Wheldon speaks to Primark's Chief Customer Officer, Michelle McEttrick, about pivoting from a 'no marketing' approach to brand building to redefine customer proposition and grow in new markets. Subscribe to the WFA #BetterMarketing podcast on your preferred platform: https://bit.ly/41ZwqkF.

In episode 34 of the Better Marketing Pod, David Wheldon speaks to AXA Group Head of Communication, Brand and Sustainability, and a member of the AXA Management Committee, Ulrike Decoene. Subscribe to the WFA #BetterMarketing podcast on your preferred platform: https://bit.ly/41ZwqkF.

In this episode of the Better Marketing Pod, David Wheldon speaks to Allyson Witherspoon, Global CMO of Nissan Motor Corporation about the electric vehicle race, why marketers should always put brand before product and how a YouTube music channel can help sell cars. Subscribe to the WFA #BetterMarketing podcast on your preferred platform: https://bit.ly/41ZwqkF.

In episode 32 of the Better Marketing Pod, David Wheldon speaks to L'Oréal's CMO, Marketer of 2023 and Global Marketer Week speaker, Asmita Dubey. Subscribe to the WFA #BetterMarketing podcast on your preferred platform: https://bit.ly/41ZwqkF.

Creative Salon’s Claire Beale and Sonoo Singh on why clients should champion creativity, how to attract young talent and the future of the profession in a technology-driven world. Subscribe to the WFA #BetterMarketing podcast on your preferred platform: https://bit.ly/41ZwqkF.

This year we talked again to some of the brightest minds in the industry for our WFA podcast, bringing you tips and insights for better global marketing. As the year draws to a close, host David Wheldon gives his 2023 podcast highlights. Subscribe to the WFA #BetterMarketing podcast on your preferred platform: https://bit.ly/41ZwqkF.

Understanding people, great (female) leadership and why diversity brings diversity of thought: in episode 30 of the Better Marketing Pod, host David Wheldon speaks with Jane Wakely, Chief Consumer & Marketing Officer and Chief Growth Officer, International Foods, at PepsiCo - and PepsiCo's first global CMO. Subscribe to the WFA #BetterMarketing podcast on your preferred platform: https://...

David speaks with the most recent WFA Global Marketer of the Year, Cristina Diezhandino, Chief Marketing Officer at Diageo, about the importance of creative precision, the role of emerging markets and Diageo's brand purpose.  Subscribe to the WFA #BetterMarketing podcast on your preferred platform: https://bit.ly/41ZwqkF.

David speaks with Alberto Levy, Global CMO at Grupo Bimbo, about brand purpose, company responsibilities and sustainability.  Subscribe to the WFA #BetterMarketing podcast on your preferred platform: https://bit.ly/41ZwqkF.