Julia Kinner's Linkedin Analytics

🧐 I Asked ChatGPT: How To Destroy Marketing Without Anyone Noticing? The answer was disturbingly accurate. Here's the answer: 1. Promote Vanity Metrics Encourage the team to obsess over metrics like likes, impressions, and followers rather than meaningful KPIs like conversions, customer retention, or revenue attribution. They’ll feel successful without actually driving results. 2. Create Silos Foster poor communication between marketing, sales, product, and customer support. This prevents alignment on messaging, customer needs, and value propositions--crippling campaigns from the start. 3. Encourage Shiny Object Syndrome Constantly push the adoption of the latest marketing trend or tool without strategy or integration. Chase AI today, Clubhouse tomorrow, and TikTok ads the next without a cohesive plan. 4. Undermine Strategic Thinking Reward execution speed over strategic insight. Push for more content, more campaigns, more channels--without ever stopping to ask why. 5. Starve the Budget Slowly chip away at the marketing budget under the guise of efficiency or shifting priorities, until there's just enough to stay busy but never enough to make an impact. 6. Overload with Data, Starve Insight Give them too many dashboards, tools, and reports. Let them drown in noise so they can’t see what actually matters. 7. Erode the Brand Encourage constant changes to logos, taglines, and tone of voice in pursuit of “freshness.” Eventually, no one will recognize or trust the brand. 8. Make Leadership Doubt Marketing’s Value Subtly seed the idea that marketing is just “fluff” or “support,” not a revenue driver. Once leadership believes that, cuts and marginalization will follow naturally. The really disturbing thing? Many organisations are doing this every day and quietly destroy their marketing (without anyone noticing) 😈

🧠 Brands Are Memory Tattoos But Consumers Have Exfoliating Minds I loved Dale W. Harrison's post about what happens when brands stop brand advertising. Here’s 3 counterintuitive things that I learned in the comment section. (1) Brand awareness plateaus even with consistent spend At first, this seems counterintuitive. Shouldn’t you keep growing your reach? Unfortunately not: - You're reaching a fraction of buyers each month - Meanwhile, other consumers forget your brand This leads to a dynamic equilibrium: a balance between people remembering and forgetting, driven by your budget. No budget increase -> no awareness increase. You're just fighting against mental decay. (2) Aawareness bounces back faster after a marketing pause After a 12-month break, brands return to their original awareness faster than it took to build it initially. Here’s why: - Your first campaign builds awareness from zero. - After a pause, you’re working from a "residual memory base" (a faded tattoo, not a blank canvas) - Plus, purchases refresh brand memory without advertising. So the bounce-back effect is real, but the ceiling is still capped by your spend. (3) Big brands lose awareness faster This one was the most surprising. Here's the explanation: - Forgetting happens at a constant exponential rate for everyone. - But big brands start with a "larger base" of awareness, which means there are more people who can forget them. - The rate is proportional, but the absolute loss is much steeper for large brands. 💡 Key Takeaways (1) Awareness has a ceiling and it's driven by spend, not time. (2) Pausing isn’t fatal, but you’ll lose memory unless you refresh it. (3) Big brands are more vulnerable to silence than they realize. (4) Don’t rely on bursts. Memory needs ongoing "refreshment" So the real challenge? Not just building mental availability, but maintaining it. Your job isn’t just to make a mark. It’s to make it last - because customers have exfoliating minds.

𝗗𝟮𝗖 𝗖𝗘𝗢𝘀: 𝟲 𝗡𝗲𝗰𝗸𝗯𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗹 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄 Retail is THE big growth lever for D2C. However, few brands survive. Here's 6 things that break your neck in retail. 𝟭. 𝗜𝗻𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗹 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 Why would a retailer list your product? Because it adds value. Retailers want products that: - Rotate faster than what they replace - Deliver higher volume or margins - Increase basket size - Reduce dependence on dominant players If you're not creating incremental retail value, you won't stand a chance. 𝟮. 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗠𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗵 D2C brands often rely on storytelling BUT retail gives you 2 seconds to convince; hence, you need to win the FMOT (first moment of truth) without - Video - Landing page - Influencer / UGC If your packaging doesn’t communicate your USP, you’ll lose. That's especially brutal in categories where: - Education is needed - The benefit is nuanced or hard to visualize - Packaging limitations prevent clear messaging D2C brands must rethink their pack and assume zero consumer context. Lose FMOT -> no rotation -> end of game 𝟯. 𝗦𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 Retail supply chains are unforgiving. - Pallets & outer cases - Labeling standards - Secondary & tertiary packaging Retail requires a dedicated ops teams and systems to manage logistics and compliance, communication with buyers etc. That's a big leap for many. 𝟰. 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝘁 𝗘𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗰𝘀 Retail is margin brutal. You lose 30–50% to the retailer and need to account for: - Promotions - Trade marketing - Slotting fees - Damaged or expired stock If you already struggle with margins online, retail wrecks your P&L. 𝟱. 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆 Retail is cash-flow hostile. - Listing & onboarding fees - Retail media spend - Product demos, POS materials - Free-fill requirements - Extended payment terms Without solid working capital, retail will starve your D2C operations. 𝟲. 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲 & 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗹 𝗙𝗶𝘁 Not all shelves are equal. Some retail channels require high velocity just to stay listed. This is where many D2C brands make a fatal mistake: They choose high-traffic retailers, but underestimate the needed velocity. In contrast, niche retailers may allow lower rotation and more time to build awareness and trial. Channel strategy isn't only about reach, it's about the right fit for your current awareness and product maturity. 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁 Retail is not D2C 2.0. It’s an entirely different game with new rules, new economics, and new expectations. If you're entering retail, do it with clear eyes and an honest view of your capabilities and what needs to change first. ♻️ Your network appreciates a repost

🥳 Time to celebrate the vanity metrics Just hit 14k followers. I basically just wanted to GIVE A BIG THANKS TO EVERYONE. I really appreciate the support and engagement. The best things happen below the posts with a lot of great questions and contributions. You all rock :) Let's continue the journey for better/more profitable marketing. We can do this fellas 💪 As always, please let me know if there's anything I can do to help. Thanks again. Cheers, Julia

🚨 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝟓 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐁𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐁𝐥𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐮𝐞 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒 And what to learn Most listed companies have published 2024 results. Here’s the 5 losing most topline vs. 2023. From the largest to the smallest % loss.   𝟏. 𝐀𝐥𝐥𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐝𝐬 (–𝟐𝟓.𝟔%) From $0.25B to $0.19B in 2024. What they do: Sustainable footwear and apparel. Known for minimalist wool sneakers. Key Challenges: - Lower unit sales across direct channels - Closure of 20 U.S. stores - Shift from DTC to distributor-led models - Reduced marketing spend Bottomline: - Improved net loss ($93.3M vs. $152.5M in 2023) Outlook: Expect another 25M revenue hit in 2025 driven by distribution model shift (from direct to distributors)   𝟐. 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 (–𝟐𝟐.𝟖%) From $0.26B to $0.2B in 2024 What they do: Eco-friendly home and personal care products. Key Challenges: - 25% YoY decline in active customers - Lower repeat can't offset higher AOV - Cost savings (marketing, sales, product development) Strategic Moves: Acquired 8Greens and Grab Green to expand on wellness. Grab Green: eco-friendly, high-performance cleaning products. 8Greens: Food supplements. Outlook: Q4: 1st sequential revenue uplift in 3 years driven by higher repeat orders, increased first orders (incremental advertising spend) but lower GM.   𝟑. 𝐖𝐨𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝𝐰𝐢𝐝𝐞 (–𝟐𝟏.𝟗%) From $2.24B to $1.75B in 2024 What they do: Parent company of Merrell, Saucony, Sperry Key Challenges: - DTC down nearly 19% - Brand softness: Saucony (–5.3%), Sweaty Betty (–5.9%) Strategic Moves: - Refocusing on fewer, stronger brands - Cost-cutting and org restructuring   𝟒. 𝐒𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐅𝐢𝐱 (–𝟏𝟔.𝟎%) From $1.59B to $1.34B in 2024 What they do: Personal styling service Delivering fashion boxes (AI + human stylists) Key Challenges: - Active clients fell 20% YoY - Increased revenue per client (5.4%) can't offset - Withdrew from UK operations - Struggles with LTV, retention, and cost-to-serve Strategic Moves: - Operational efficiency focus Outlook: Expecting further revenue hit in 2025 (1.1B) 𝟓. 𝐎𝐥𝐚𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐱 (–𝟕.𝟖%) From $0.42B to $0.46B in 2024 What they do: Hair repair brand. Went from salon-favorite to mass market. Key Challenges: - Sales to professionals down 19.3% - DTC down 5.7% - International down 17.4% Strategic Moves: - Rebranding in progress - Specialty retail up 5.4% 💡 𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐓𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 [1] Sustainability ≠ Sustainability Value-driven positioning isn’t enough without mass appeal and unit economics. [2] You Can’t Cut Your Way to Growth Restructuring is necessary, but impacts growth. [3] DTC Needs Reinvention DTC playbooks built in 2019 won’t work in 2025. Brands must evolve experience, margin structure, and engagement. --- I'm Julia Kinner. My consulting firm JK & Associates SA focuses on growth strategy and execution for challenger brands.

🛑 I Don’t Do Coffee Chats Why? It's usually a waste of time I used to say "yes" to almost every coffee chat invite when I first got on LinkedIn. It was nice at first. Chatting, connecting, swapping stories. But over time, I realized: 99.9% of coffee chats are time wasters. If you're looking to pick my brain or learn from me, here are better (and free) ways to do that: - Read my LinkedIn posts - Subscribe to my newsletter - Check out the free resources I share If you're more serious: - Reach out for a consultation - Collaborate with me on a growth project If you're somewhere in between: - Grab a copy of my book “How Small Brands Grow” once it's out So yes, there’s value here for everyone, but if you ask for a coffee chat, you'll probably get a polite “no", unless it's really cool 😎 How do you handle this?

🔥 Exciting & mind-blowing This happens when you work with us ;) It's absolutely mind-blowing what we have achieved with MindKeepr - The Knowledge Retention Company in only few weeks. Congratulations to Sarim Zafar and the team. Well done and well deserved! The most exciting challenge is still ahead, validating the business model in real life and creating and capturing substantial value. 👉 If you're interested in a product that allows you to retain knowledge in your business despite staff turnover, please reach out to Sarim directly. They are currently recruiting test customers. --- Growth follows a playbook, no matter if you're a startup, scale up or mature business. JK & Associates SA follows the zero based growth framework of Frederic Fernandez & Associates of Frederic Fernandez which is a systematic approach to identify the largest profit pools in the market and design a growth strategy and value proposition accordingly. For me it's the best way to minimise luck when starting a business and scaling up. --- If you want to work with us as well, please reach out. We have few free slots for Q3 and Q4 2025. --- #startup #scaleup #profitablegrowth #growth

🤔 80% of teams fix symptoms. WHY? They don't understand 2nd and 3rd order effects. Stop fixing symptoms and think like a strategist Let’s be honest: Most growth teams are fixing the wrong things. CAC goes up. Conversion drops. Churn increases. And what do we do? - We tweak CTAs - Test button colors - A/B test That’s first-order thinking. It feels productive. It looks busy. But it’s not growth. It’s symptom management. Truth is: Your problem isn’t the problem. It’s the symptom of something deeper. Here’s the framework I teach clients hitting a wall: First-order. Second-order. Third-order. 🔹1st order problems = What’s obvious The red metric on your dashboard. - Low signups - High bounce rates - Poor opening rates Easy to measure. Easy to fix. But the fix doesn’t last. You’re treating smoke, not the fire. 🔹 2nd order problems = What’s underneath The actual cause behind the drop. - Misaligned messaging - Irrelevant traffic - Clunky onboarding These require zooming out, asking better questions, and challenging assumptions. 🔹 3rd order problems = What happens next These are the ripple effects. The consequences of how your business operates. They’re not immediate, but quietly break growth. SOME EXAMPLES: You run aggressive discounts to boost sales? -> Customers only buy on promo. You broaden your audience too fast? -> LTV drops and CAC spirals. You make onboarding faster by removing friction? -> Now activation is easier but less sticky. Third-order effects are strategic debt. They show up later, but cost more to undo. 🎯 Great strategy solves 2nd and 3rd order effects. Yes, fix the symptom. But then step back and ask: What’s causing this? What are we accidentally creating here? What will this decision cost down the line? 🧩 In practical terms: Don’t chase conversion rate. Chase alignment between offer, audience, and value. Don’t optimize churn with bandaids. Solve for product habits. Don’t obsess over ROAS. Obsess over acquiring the right customers. --- I'm Julia Kinner. My consulting firm JK & Associates SA focuses on growth strategy and execution for challenger brands.

☀️ Starting another trip around the sun today I really love this way of thinking about your birthday: it's the day you start another trip around the sun. Even though it's always the same trajectory, things change quite a bit with every new round. Grateful for anyone who joins me and the most exciting things are always ahead 🙂 P.S. Still digging - just on different topics.

🧐 Why do you send me an invite if you don't reply? There's one thing I really dislike about Linkedin. People sending invites and then ghosting you. I just don't understand. I screen all my invites. Look at what they do. Accept the ones where I see mutual fit. Send a personal message to say hi. ... However, 80% of people don't bother to reply. I really don't get it. Why do you send me an invite? If you just like me content, you can read it without being connected. The point I'm trying to make: Let's stop wasting each others time here. If you want to have a conversation, please invite me. If not, please just follow. How do you manage such things?

👉 CEO Rule Nr. 3: Strategy = Knowing Where to Play & How to Win! This is Part 3 of my "Segmentation Challenge" mini-series. In Part 1, we discussed why understanding your current customer base is the foundation. In Part 2, we covered how to quantify and segment the broader market. Today, we’re moving to the final and most exciting step: Strategic choices. After you've quantified and segmented and the market and have a clear understanding of your potential target groups, it's time to make the hard decisions. Because here’s the truth: 🚨 You can’t win everywhere. 🚨 You can’t win with everyone. You need to choose: (1) Which segments to target (where to play). (2) How to craft a compelling value proposition (how to win). (3) How to align your 4Ps (Product, Price, Promotion, Place) to the needs of those segments. It’s not about having a beautiful segmentation PPT deck. It’s about making segmentation actionable. This is where segmentation turns into strategy. 🎯 Imagine you’re an archer Segmentation helps you see all targets. Quantification tells you how big and valuable each target is. Now you need to pick the target you’ll aim at and the right bow and arrow to hit it. KEY LEARNINGS: Growth requires structured strategic choices: - Define your target segments. - Build a winning value proposition based on segment-specific drivers, barriers, triggers, and jobs to be done. - Make the right 4P choices to remove friction & unlock demand. The Hardest Parts? (1) Saying NO to segments with low value / low right to win. Focus beats FOMO. (2) Granularly understanding how to BUILD your right to win with your target audience (consumer and market understanding) (3) Crafting a value proposition that's not just appealing to your target group but also profitable. If you get this right, your segmentation effort becomes a growth engine, not just an expensive research project. The end? Not yet. I will finish the series with one post that wraps up everything in my newsletter https://lnkd.in/ec8tpEag I'm Julia Kinner. My consulting firm JK & Associates SA focuses on growth strategy and execution for challenger brands.

🚨 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗢𝗺𝗻𝗶-𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗹 𝗕𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘀𝗽𝗼𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗠𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. Managing value across D2C, Amazon, Offline Retail, Online Retail Most brands plan their channel growth in silos. They operate in different channels, treat them independently and forget that omni-channel value creation is way MORE than the sum of its parts. Imagine an orchestra where every musician plays their own tune. It won't reach its full potential. The best orchestras are the ones where everyone plays together perfectly maximizing the beauty of the whole. It's the same for omni-channel value. Unfortunately, it's very common that each "channel" team - Sets independent targets - Optimizes its own KPIs - Operates in a silo - Plays their own tune They lack a clear view on the strategic role of each channel, the value at stake, and specific "where to play, how to win" choices across the ecosystem. Result? No overarching omni-channel value strategy that maximizes value and leverages the strength of each single one. Just disconnected tactics. That’s where brands bleed growth & margin. 👉 To fix it, ask yourself 10 critical questions: [1] Where do you over- or underindex vs. your total market share by channel? [2] Why? What drivers and barriers explain over- or underperformance? [3] What is the strategic role of each channel? For example: 👉 Amazon = discovery and search. 👉 D2C = loyalty, customer lifetime value, brand equity. 👉 Offline retail = mass reach and impulse buy. 👉 Online retail = convenience and comparison shopping. [4] Which channels have the largest growth potential? [5] What is the true cost of growth in each channel? [6] What is the bottom-line profitability per channel? [7] What is the customer lifetime value of each channel? [8] Are there channel-specific customer segments with different 4P preferences, and do different channels have different shopping missions (product, pricing, sizing, discovery, replenishment etc.)? [9] What's the competitive landscape per channel and what will it take to win? [10] Who actually owns omnichannel value creation? Siloed teams = siloed growth. Someone has to own the full picture. 🚨 Omnichannel isn't just about being everywhere. It’s about creating a system where every channel intentionally plays its role towards maximum value creation. JK & Associates SA offers Omnichannel Value Analysis to diagnose, quantify, and unlock omnichannel value creation: ✅ Channel-specific over/underindexing ✅ Growth drivers and barriers ✅ Profitability and CAC/LTV by channel ✅ Strategic role of each channel ✅ Holistic, integrated growth strategies Imagine, the best orchestras aren't the ones with the best solo players. It's the ones where everyone plays together to achieve one shared goal: The best possible outcome. Curious? Let’s talk.

🚨 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬: 𝐅𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐁𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐑𝐎𝐈 𝐊𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐂𝐅𝐎 𝐓𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭 If you want to stop embarrassing yourself then ...   Yesterday I watched Dale W. Harrison's interview with Wynter. 60 minutes of pure brand measurement wisdom that I packaged into a CMO therapy session. Please find the link in the comments.   𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑝𝑖𝑠𝑡: What’s wrong? 𝐶𝑀𝑂: I presented our brand campaign’s ROI to the CFO and he laughed. 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑝𝑖𝑠𝑡: What did you show him? 𝐶𝑀𝑂: Total post-campaign sales/brand spend. Seems logical, right? 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑝𝑖𝑠𝑡: Not to finance. ROI means Incremental Contribution Margin/Investment. Not revenue, not sales. It's profit directly CAUSED by your spend, within a clear time window. 𝐶𝑀𝑂: But marketing drives revenue and margin! 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑝𝑖𝑠𝑡: True. But what you presented wasn't ROI, it was just a “happy number”. Finance can smell that from a mile away. 𝐶𝑀𝑂: But we calculate ROI for performance marketing. Why not for brand? 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑝𝑖𝑠𝑡: Two different beasts. Performance marketing triggers immediate action (clicks, purchases) and has a short cycle. It’s easier (but still messy) to come up with ROI. Brand marketing builds memory structures that influence buying decisions in the future. On top, it also boosts future performance marketing. It’s way more complex and has longer timelines. 𝐶𝑀𝑂: Then, can we ever prove brand ROI? 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑝𝑖𝑠𝑡: Only if you answer three questions: 1. What share of today's revenue came from today's performance marketing? 2. What share came from past brand marketing? 3. How much of today's performance was boosted by past brand marketing? If you can't answer these, you’re not calculating ROI.   𝐶𝑀𝑂: How do we answer them? 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑝𝑖𝑠𝑡: You need Marketing Mix Modeling (MMM) a sophisticated statistical analysis that: - Separates short-term vs. long-term effects - Models lags & synergies - Controls for external factors But it requires years of clean data and money. 𝐶𝑀𝑂: If we can't afford? 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑝𝑖𝑠𝑡: Stop pretending you have ROI. It only destroys your credibility with Finance. Instead, focus on leading indicators: - Share of Search (brand salience vs. competitors) - Brand Recall Surveys (mental availability)   𝐶𝑀𝑂: So most marketing ROIs are just made-up correlation? 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑝𝑖𝑠𝑡: Yep and Finance won't trust "happy numbers." 𝐶𝑀𝑂: We need to rethink everything. 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑝𝑖𝑠𝑡: Stop chasing fake ROI and start measuring real brand impact: - Building memory - Driving future buying - Measuring actual influence 𝐶𝑀𝑂: Thanks a lot, will do that. 𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐓𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬: [1] Performance ROI: possible but still messy. [2] Brand ROI: long-term, lagged, harder to measure needs advanced modeling. [3] True marketing ROI: requires answering three attribution questions via MMM. [4] If MMM isn’t an option: Track leading indicators like Share of Search and Brand Recall. [5] Stop confusing correlation with causation.

👉 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗗𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘂𝗲. 𝗜𝘁 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. We love to talk about how marketing generates revenue. Or how it's supposed to and eventually doesn't. But we forget ONE thing. Marketing doesn't generate revenue. At least not directly. What it DOES generate is awareness, consideration, and eventually purchase. In other words, it creates the conditions for revenue to happen. It shapes how people think, and what they choose to do next. Marketing shifts minds and changes behaviour! It does this through the 4Ps: Product, Price, Promotion, Place. That’s what we call the "Business Growth Model." It’s how your 4Ps work together to grow your business. 𝗦𝗼 𝗹𝗲𝘁’𝘀 𝗯𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿: The impact of marketing shouldn’t be judged just by revenue alone. It should be judged by its ability to generate and amplify awareness, consideration, and purchase. Because those are the steps that ultimately drive revenue. This is marketing objectives! 𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲’𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘄: Marketing is being reduced to short-term lead gen and mostly promotion. Businesses desperately try to prove the direct revenue impact of marketing. By doing so, they forget one thing: revenue might be the end goal, but it's not a direct objective that marketing can achieve. The direct marketing objectives that are directly quantifiable and measurable are awareness, consideration, and purchase. If you're not doing this, there's a good chance that you measure marketing the wrong way and have unrealistic expectations to start with. It's definitely time for a mindset shift here. Let's start measuring marketing in more realistic terms. What do you think?

💡 10 Marketing Must-Knows for CFOs & CEOs You're making decisions about marketing? Read this first: Marketing is THE business function that everyone likes to talk about but noone really understands. I put together 10 things of which I believe every CEO, CFO and Board Members should understand: (1) Marketing is more than communication Marketing should manage product, price, promotion and channels based on a clear targeting, positioning and objectives. It bridges your business with the market. (2) Brand is a multiplier, not a vanity metric Brand marketing amplifies performance marketing. (3) Short-termism kills compounding Focusing only on the short term tactics harms long term gains because only 5% of buyers are in market at any given point in time. (4) Attribution will never be perfect Not everything converts in a straight line. Time lags are normal and channels have synergistic effects.   (5) Creative quality drives results Creative ads drive have higher impact. It’s worth investing there. (6) Marketing uncovers blind spots Customer and market insights reveal where strategy, product, or operations need to evolve. (7) Great marketing requires risk If it feels “safe” to you, it’s probably invisible to your audience. (8) It’s not about you. It’s about your audience You don’t like a campaign visual? You aren’t the audience. (9) Inconsistent marketing weakens results Constantly shifting your message, audience, or style resets trust and traction. Consistency compounds. (10) If you don’t invest in strategic clarity, you’ll pay in wasted execution. Most underperformance stems from unclear positioning, targeting, and goals. --- I'm 100% convinced that a lack of understanding of how marketing works is the root cause of many business problems. From weak growth and misaligned teams to wasted budgets and missed opportunities. Marketing isn’t fluff. It’s a strategic business function. And when done right, it’s a growth engine. Not understanding marketing means: - Chasing tactics without strategy - Confusing noise with results - Undervaluing the long-term If you want better results, don’t just demand more from marketing. Understand what it’s really built to do and give it a platform where it can do so. --- What's missing on the list?

Marketing is F*cked Up Beyond Repair Too many people who don’t know what they’re talking about are selling their approach as the ultimate solution, mostly just recycling partial truths from other people who also don’t know what they’re talking about and aren’t addressing the core problem. But maybe it’s just me. It’s time to take a step back and look at the very basics. All the shiny stuff will bring you nowhere. The market Consumers Product Price Promotion Channels Not just picking one, but looking at the whole picture. With a focus on value. --- Sorry for the rant, just seing too much BS here.

👉 CEO Rule Nr. 2: Guesses don't build growth. This is Part 2 of my "Segmentation Challenge" mini-series. In Part 1, we discussed why understanding your current customer base is the essential first step to structured growth. Today, let’s look at the next piece: Quantifying and segmenting the broader market. After understanding your current customer base, the next critical step in segmentation is quantifying the broader market. Why? A hypothesis without validation is just a guess and guesses don't build growth. Here's the thing: 🚨 Many companies jump straight from assumptions to action without validating if their assumptions actually hold true. Testing hypotheses properly means you can: [1] Size and value each segment correctly [2] Uncover segment barriers, drivers, triggers, and 4P preferences [3] Understand usage & attitudes [4] Quantify the impact of POME (points of maret entry) [5] Quantify path to purchase metrics (awareness, consideration, purchase) It’s the difference between rock-solid strategy and rolling the dice. 🩺 Imagine a doctor prescribing treatment after just glancing at you through the window of the waiting room without asking a single question or running any tests. Now imagine another doctor who carefully examines you, runs detailed diagnostics, and fully understands what's going on before making a decision. What do you choose? Exactly. It's the same with your marketing strategy. The Hardest Parts? (1) Defining the right segmentation hypothesis (actionable, value based, turn out to be statistically significant). (2) Digging deeper than demographics - understand behaviors, barriers, motivations, the customer and buying journey. (3) Staying open: Your favorite "pet segment" might not actually be the most valuable. Is this the final step? Not yet. 😉 Next, it’s about strategic choices: defining where to play and how to win. (Stay tuned for Part 3!) --- On a personal note: I really wish more companies took this topic seriously. Many businesses I talk to have an almost non-existent understanding of the market and consumer segments. This leads them down the dark road of "tactification" where they do a lot but achieve little, simply because they lack the foundations to build a solid plan. Do it with our without me, but please just do it :) I'm Julia Kinner My consulting firm JK & Associates SA focuses on growth strategy and execution for challenger brands.

💡 Boardroom Dialogue: We don’t measure Brand Marketing ROI?   Board Chair: Let's start. What's the ROI of our latest brand campaign? CMO: We don't calculate ROI for brand campaigns.   Board Member: Why not? Isn't that standard? CMO: Unfortunately it is, but if you don't have Marketing Mix Modeling it produces nonsense numbers.   Board Member: Okay. I didn’t know that. Why does it produce nonsense numbers?   CMO: ROI means cleanly tying spend to profit within a defined period and brand marketing doesn't have clear timelines because it influences buying decisions over months or even years. That means brand marketing simply doesn’t fit the concept of ROI by its very nature. Board Member: So the problem is the time lag?   CMO: That’s one problem, but it’s not the only one. Brand marketing also has synergistic effects with performance marketing and increases its efficiency. Without proper modelling we cannot understand the full effect of brand marketing on the business. We would overstate performance and understate brand. Board Member: Then how do we track if brand marketing is working? CMO: We focus on leading indicators: We analyse Share of Search where we track how often people search for our brand compared to competitors and how this evolves over time. Our share of search increases, that’s how we know that more people know us and our brand marketing works. We’re also doing a yearly Brand Awareness Survey to understand how many people know and consider us. Board Chair: Fine. Then what about performance marketing? We calculate ROI there? CMO: Actually we don’t. It’s a messy affair.   Board Chair: Why so?   CMO: For the same reasons. We just don’t know which part of the effect of performance marketing comes from prior brand campaigns, so we’d be crediting performance marketing for results it didn’t generate alone. Furthermore, attribution to different channels is never perfect and we'd just come up with inflated numbers that ignore synergies and overstate the impact of performance marketing. This would lead us to wrong investment decisions and harm us in the future. Board Member: So how do to measure performance marketing then? CMO: We focus on effectiveness, incrementality and cost-efficiency. For example we run controlled experiments to isolate the impact of specific campaigns or channels and understand the causalities and incremental effects. We also look at blended acquisition cost over time which allows us to gauge efficiency. The goal is to optimize outcomes and understand if we’re making better decisions. That’s more valuable than misleading ROIs.   Board Member: Thanks a lot.   💡 Major Learnings: (1) Brand ROI can't be calculated without sophisticated modeling. (2) Brand marketing builds long-term mental availability measured through leading indicators like Share of Search and Brand Recall or MMM. (3) Performance marketing ROI is closer but still misleading. --- ♻️ Your network appreciates a repost ---

👉 CMOs: Your Performance Marketing Obsession KILLS Growth More and more marketers are getting this wrong. Really asking myself who invented the term growth-marketing. Should be called shrink-marketing 🤔 A study from WARC showed that in 2024, 68.8% of marketing budgets were allocated to performance marketing, and only 31.2% to brand. In comparison, it was 59.9% on performance in 2023. Marketing is under increasing pressure to show results and it's doing exactly the WRONG thing. It’s choosing the short-term performance route to demonstrate clicks, cost per conversion, etc. In doing so, it jeopardizes long-term growth. The performance marketing obsession backfires in the long run and reduces performance marketing efficiency, because consumers had less brand exposure before entering the market. As paradoxical as it may seem: To grow, you need to cut back on what's typically called "growth marketing" and reallocate budget to the 95% of buyers who aren't in the market. That means investing in things that don’t pay off tomorrow but will pay off massively in a year or two. - Memory structures - Mental availability - Consistent, creative brand campaigns Yes, it requires a shift in mindset. Yes, it’s harder to measure. And yes, it can feel like a leap of faith. But if growth is your goal, that's the suistainable choice.

𝗖𝗠𝗢𝘀, 𝗖𝗘𝗢𝘀: 𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱. 𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗮𝘀, 𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘁𝘆𝗽𝗲𝘀?! Many things go wrong in marketing: (1) Short-term performance > long-term brand (2) “Data-driven” yet insight-empty (3) Digital obsession without strategic clarity (4) Forgotten 4Ps (5) Basics? Misunderstood But nothing beats this nonsense: - Personas - Sinus Milieus - Brand Archetypes - Millennials & Boomers You think that’s harsh? Maybe, but it's true. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝘂𝘀 𝗾𝘂𝗼: All these "segmentations" look pretty on slides, but they don’t meet the most basic criteria for business relevance: Value-based: Can they tell you who drives profit or loss? Actionable: Can they shape pricing, product, distribution? Strategic: Can they unlock a competitive advantage? No!! Then WHY are we doing this? I really don't know. You tell me. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴: They give a false sense of understanding and make you believe you know your consumers when in fact you have no clue. The problem is that segmentation is THE lever for profitable growth and if you base it on fiction instead of value, you're not just wasting time, you’re actively hurting your business by building strategy on sand / fiction. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗼 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗱: Customer Value-Based Segmentation 1. Know profit pools Segment sizes Segment value Growth rates Repeat behaviour / loyalty Acquisition cost / Customer value 2. Build segments based on real value Who delivers the biggest upside potential? What do they need? Where are your right-to-win opportunities? How can you address it? 3. Align 4Ps to segment needs Now craft your pricing, product, promotion, and placement to win the most valuable segments - not an imagined eco-conscious multitasker named Lisa. I get it. This is all very hard if your CMO has never heard of segmentation, targeting, positioning etc. That doesn't change the fact it's BS. 𝗕𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗼𝗺 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲: Want real growth? 📌 Dump pseudo segmentations 📌 Start with value based segmentation Then use segmentation to build real strategy and execute with excellence. Thank me later. This is what we do with our clients and it works. --- ♻️ Your Network appreciates a repost. ---