2018 ANA Masters of Marketing Week

The Tennis Tournament is currently at capacity, please email Meghan Salome at msalome@ana.net to be placed on the waitlist.

The Golf Clinic is currently at capacity.  Please email David Buzby at dbuzby@ana.net to be placed on the waitlist.

Session 1 – PART 1 – THE END OF ADVERTISING AS WE KNOW IT: NOW WHAT?

Advertising is increasingly invading consumers’ lives. Not only are there too many ads, there is too little attention being paid to brand engagement. The key is to stop selling and do a better job of connecting. Content marketing, programmatic buying, crowdsourcing, and social and digital engagement are transforming how brands advertise. But how can they ensure that messaging is on brand, compelling to audiences, and connects in ways that build brand loyalty every day and in every way? The AEF Symposium will focus on the ways brands can most effectively reach audiences across touchpoints to create meaningful connections. The two-hour session will feature:

Hour one

• Table exercise on key industry issues and pain points surrounding advertising practices that aren’t working
• A visionary view of marketing communication’s next steps — stop bombarding, annoying, and selling to customers. New ideas and best practices to win.

George Hammer

Chief Content Officer IBM

Session 2 – THE STORY BEHIND XEROX’S PROJECT: SET THE PAGE FREE

Learn the what, why, and so what about this innovative omnichannel marketing initiative, focused on content, communication, and creativity. Told through the lens of 14 world-renowned authors and artists who collaborated to create a tale of the modern workplace, Project: Set the Page Free is filled with passion, suspense, and paperclips —  and all made possible by Xerox. 

Barbara Basney

Former Vice President, Global Brand, Advertising and Media Xerox Corporation

Session 3 – BRAND BALANCING ACT: DEBATE BETWEEN DRIVING AWARENESS VS. PERFORMANCE IN THE AI ERA

One of the most important things brands need to do is also one of the hardest: balance the needs of building brand awareness while simultaneously driving business performance. As technology continues to blur the lines between upper and lower funnel tactics, brands need to figure out how best to do both. MikMak's Founder and CEO Rachel Tipograph and Quantcast’s Chief Marketing and Communications Officer Steven Wolfe Pereira will discuss how marketers should manage the balancing act while navigating the rise of direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands, the growing need for first party data and the increasing penetration of AI-driven automation and predictive optimization.

Rachel Tipograph

Founder and CEO MikMak

Session 1 – PART 2 – THE END OF ADVERTISING AS WE KNOW IT: NOW WHAT?

Hour two

• Presentations from four panelists
• Q&A

Conference registrants are welcome to attend both sessions or either one.

Moderator:

Repeat Session 2 – THE STORY BEHIND XEROX’S PROJECT: SET THE PAGE FREE

Repeat Session 3 – Quantcast/MikMak

Entertainment provided by Westwood One/Cumulus Media. Don’t miss a special performance by Train!  Train is a multi- award-winning band from San Francisco, CA that has had 14 songs on Billboard’s Hot 100 list.  They've sold more than 10 million albums worldwide, more than 30 million tracks, with multiple platinum/gold citations, including 3 GRAMMY awards, 2 Billboard Music Awards and have received dozens of other honors.  On Jan. 27, 2017, the band released their 8th studio album, a girl a bottle a boat, via Columbia Records spawning the lead single, “Play That Song,” which went platinum in 4 countries including the U.S., hit Top 5 on the U.S. iTunes chart, Top 10 at Hot AC radio, and charted at Adult Top 40.

Train

Noovie Trivia Night

Join ESPN’s Sr. Fantasy Analyst Matthew Berry for Noovie Trivia Night, brought to you by NCM –  America’s Movie Network. Show off your Halloween movie trivia knowledge and play for a chance to win a $5,000 grand prize, plus other fabulous prizes (and maybe some fantasy advice)! You’ll also get to experience Noovie Arcade, the first-ever augmented reality gaming app designed for the big screen. (Be sure to download the Noovie Arcade app in advance.) Test your movie recognition skills with Name That Movie, presented by State Farm. Cocktails and movie snacks are on us!

TIME (WELL) SPENT

Join Pinterest's Global Head of Partnerships, Jon Kaplan, for a discussion about how technology has shaped our world as marketers and more importantly, as people. Learn what we as an industry can do in the next decade of technological transformation to help consumers live inspired lives, off of their devices.

Jon Kaplan

Global Head, Partnerships Pinterest

OPENING REMARKS

Bob Liodice

Chief Executive Officer ANA

THE MOST FEARED FOUR-LETTER WORD IN MARKETING (Main Stage)

In today’s polarizing climate, disruption has all but given way to the era of “safe creative.” A sea of unmemorable content continually deepens as fearful marketers shy away from stepping anywhere near the creative edge. However, brave marketers can capitalize now when others are retreating if they’re willing to face marketing’s most feared four-letter word: RISK. No stranger to the word, Progressive CMO Jeff Charney talks about various elements of the subject, from evaluating individual risk tolerance to managing brand risk. He will highlight how his unique “network philosophy” and taking the right amount of creative risks led to the company’s highly successful roster of creative characters and campaigns that span across both digital and broadcast media. He’ll also explain the risks associated with keeping “Flo,” one of the industry’s longest-running and most memorable brand icons of the 21^st century, relevant for 10 years.

Jeff Charney

Chief Marketing Officer Progressive

MINDSET, MONEY, AND MUSCLE (Main Stage)

The world is moving at a dizzying pace. There is no lack of products, services, or entertainment options to present or promote. The key to success is not only distinguishing your offering but embracing the product’s unique value proposition in the current environment and projecting it into its most viable future state. The WNBA, founded in 1996, recently completed its 22nd season. It is both the longest-running women’s professional sports league and the youngest professional sports league in America. Created as the first NBA product extension, the league features 12 teams and 144 elite female athletes. Professional basketball is now played in more than 200 countries, underscoring sports as one of two international languages (music being the other). Growth of the game of basketball is undeniable; growth of the WNBA has been a work in progress. This presentation will offer insights into the business, including strategies used to generate positive KPIs and results as well as accelerated growth for the future.

Lisa Borders

President WNBA

GREAT BRANDS DON'T HAPPEN BY ACCIDENT (Main Stage)

Raj Subramaniam believes it takes vision and a people-focused workplace to build and sustain a great brand. Every day FedEx team members around the world are motivated by the Purple Promise — a pledge to customers and to each other to make every experience outstanding. In this session, learn more about how this simple yet effective principle drives success at one of the world’s most admired companies.

Rajesh Subramaniam

Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing and Communications Officer FedEx Corporation

FIRE YOUR CMO: MARKETING’S FUTURE WILL NOT RESEMBLE ITS PAST (Second Stage)

Terry Kawaja, founder and CEO of digital marketing investment bank advisory firm LUMA Partners, will examine the challenges and opportunities in today’s complex marketing ecosystem with a view toward what is required to win in the future. The much heralded success of disruptor direct-to-consumer brands is not a fluke; they have a vastly different approach to marketing, from CMO skills to tools deployed and incentives. It’s almost as if it’s too late for traditional marketers to reinvent themselves. Or is it? Find out if new approaches to media, data and technology can be learned or if it’s time to fire your CMO and start afresh.

Terry Kawaja (@tkawaja)

Founder and Chief Executive Officer LUMA Partners

THE NEXT EVOLUTION OF BRAND PURPOSE: INSPIRING MOVEMENTS (Main Stage)

CMOs today are more accountable than ever to be growth drivers, while also balancing the responsibility of positively contributing to the global agenda and serving as protectors of the brand. In this presentation on the purposeful and performance-driven marketer, Ancestry CMO Vineet Mehra will discuss the new role that brands play in engaging consumers to affect positive change and how marketers can leverage a unique blend of technology and creativity to connect with global consumers and continue innovating in meaningful ways.

Vineet Mehra

Executive Vice President and Global Chief Marketing Officer Ancestry

WINNING IN TODAY’S MEDIA LANDSCAPE: IT TAKES A VILLAGE (Second Stage)

Hear key insights from senior executives at L’Oréal USA and Unilever on the rapidly evolving media landscape. They will take on everything from the digital ecosystem and marketing in a data-driven world to new operating and measurement models that are shaping the future of the industry.

Rob Master (@rmaster)

Vice President, Media and Consumer Engagement Unilever

EBAY'S APPROACH TO CONSUMER ENGAGEMENT AND BUYER GROWTH (Main Stage)

Digital natives, also referred to as millennials and gen Z, have incredible buying power and massive online presence. It’s becoming ever so critical that retailers pay close attention to this new majority of the consumer population. As CMO of eBay Americas, Suzy Deering understands this deeply, as she and her team navigate a new retail and consumer landscape to drive engagement and growth. They’re working to reach customers in an incredibly seamless way and connect with them where they spend their time. To facilitate journeys to purchase, eBay leverages emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence and machine learning, to make the experience of shopping fun again. It has become a playground for discovery, a platform built to connect, where brands partner with sellers, not compete against them. Ms. Deering will highlight eBay’s strategy for consumer engagement and growth, and describe how the company is working to become consumers’ number one shopping destination.

Suzy Deering

Chief Marketing Officer, North America e-Bay

DIVERSITY: GOOD BUSINESS (Second Stage)

Today many marketers are missing a major growth opportunity because they have not adapted their business strategies to reflect the diversification of the marketplace. Brands must shift toward more-inclusive business practices by deepening their understanding of the economic drivers and implications diverse consumers present. This session will highlight growth opportunities across business sectors with examples from Wells Fargo and an in-depth look at why brands must transform the way they do business and go-to-market.

Nydia Sahagún (@nydiajanet)

Senior Vice President, Segment Marketing Wells Fargo & Co.

INTENT IS REDEFINING THE MARKETING FUNNEL: A NEW FORMULA FOR GROWTH

In an intent-driven world, the opportunity for marketers to lead growth for business has never been greater. Join us for a discussion on how intent is redefining the traditional funnel, the new shapes of today's dynamic consumer journeys, and the new formula for success. We’ll explore attainable steps for marketers to better assist customers throughout the journey to drive superior business outcomes.

Allan Thygesen

President, Americas Google

2018 CLASS OF RISING MARKETING STARS

Once again, the ANA will present Rising Marketing Star Awards to four of the best and brightest young marketers from member companies. Nominated by a senior executive in their marketing organization, these individuals, all 30 years old or younger, have shown competence, aptitude, leadership, and professionalism in the field of marketing.

STARTING A SMALL BUSINESS REVOLUTION (Main Stage)

On its centennial in 2015, Deluxe Corp., long known as a maker of checks, needed a major brand transformation. The company made a bold bet with the “Small Business Revolution,” spotlighting small businesses rather than Deluxe itself. Next, recognizing that small businesses are especially under siege in small towns, the company launched the Small Business Revolution — Main Street show, which each season gives one small town and its small businesses a $500,000 makeover. In this session, learn how Deluxe transformed its brand while transforming communities and how all companies can do well by doing good.

Amanda Brinkman

Chief Brand and Communications Officer Deluxe Corporation

EMERGING TRENDS: CRASH COURSE ON THE HOTTEST EMERGING TRENDS IN MARKETING (Second Stage)

Following and connecting with consumers is only going to get harder in the months to come. Not only is there a growing proliferation of internet-connected consumer devices, making marketing attribution more complex than ever, there are a number of new technologies, platforms, and tools that come with steep learning curves and require entirely new approaches. In this data-infused, eye-opening session, eMarketer cofounder Geoff Ramsey will paint a vivid picture of where marketing is headed over the next 12 to 18 months, including why AI and machine learning will power, accelerate, and personalize every aspect of marketing.

Geoff Ramsey (@geofframsey)

Co-founder and Chief Content Officer eMarketer

HEALTH, HOMETOWN, HUMANITY: PUTTING THE "H" BACK IN HEALTH CARE (Main Stage)

By using insights and analytics to uncover key health drivers and trends, and employing innovative and personalized approaches to changing the human condition, Cigna has redefined what it means to be a health service company. Leveraging thoughtful and creative brand assets and messaging, Cigna is giving customers control by simplifying the more complex aspects of health care, increasing access to and knowledge of preventive care, and making awareness of the four key health numbers a priority. In this session, learn how Cigna’s important work has delivered double-digit revenue and earnings growth and rallied employees around the company’s mission to serve its customers, clients, partners, and the communities in which they work, live, and play.

Lisa Bacus

Executive Vice President and Global Chief Marketing and Customer Officer CIGNA

DATA: IT’S FOR LOVERS (Second Stage)

We’ve all seen the data on data. It’s the most overhyped, misunderstood, and essential imperative in the marketing industry. So many of the data conversations today seem focused on audience targeting and performance optimization. This discussion will examine the true super-power of data for marketers and the ability to create relevant ads, content, and experiences that will break through the noise and make emotional connections in real-time. Learn about the importance of understanding the mindset and motivation of individuals across the digital ecosystem, and why a marketing data strategy is an essential component of any marketer’s business plan moving forward. Plus, hear how to connect today’s data hype to tomorrow’s machine learning hype.

Lou Paskalis (@loupas)

Senior Vice President, Customer Engagement and Media Investment Bank of America

Join iHeartMedia, ANA Audio Partner, for dinner and a special performance by Kelly Clarkson, who recently released her critically acclaimed eighth studio album, “Meaning of Life,” and is among the most popular artists of this era with total worldwide sales of more than 25 million albums and 36 million singles.  The Texas-born, Nashville-based singer-songwriter first came to fame in 2002 as the winner of the inaugural season of “American Idol.” Clarkson’s debut single, “A Moment Like This,” followed and quickly went to #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100, ultimately ranking as the year’s best-selling single in the U.S. Further, Clarkson is, without doubt, one of pop’s top singles artists, with 17 singles boasting multi-platinum, platinum and gold certifications around the world, including such global favorites as “Miss Independent” and “Because of You.”

Kelly Clarkson

Light Up the Night with DJ Irie

Join Extreme Reach at Light Up the Night with DJ Irie for a fun filled after-hours party from 11 pm – 2 am with Miami-based sensation, DJ Irie. The official DJ to both Jamie Foxx and NBA World Champions, the Miami Heat, has an incredible night in store for all. *Space is limited.

Jakki Krage Strako

Chief Customer and Marketing Officer U.S. Postal Service

OPENING REMARKS

LEADING DISRUPTION TO DRIVE GROWTH (Main Stage)

Marketing as we know it is being disrupted, so how can we lead disruption and drive more growth? In this session, Marc Pritchard, chief brand officer at P&G and chair of the ANA Board of Directors, will host a panel of leading CMOs who will discuss the industry movement underway for brands and companies to take back control of marketing – individually and collectively – to lead disruption to drive growth through a global growth agenda.  They will share insights and initiatives with an open invitation to join this global effort by taking action.

Marc Pritchard

Chief Brand Officer The Procter & Gamble Company

DRIVING BUSINESS GROWTH THROUGH LOYALTY (Main Stage)

Kohl’s is turning its loyalty program on its head to deliver even greater value for customers and drive long-term growth for the company. The new Kohl’s Rewards, which leverages the power of the brand’s iconic Kohl’s Cash, seeks to accelerate the rate of customer acquisition and retention, deepen customer engagement, and simplify the national retailer’s value proposition. Currently piloting in markets across the country, the program leverages data and analytics to deliver richer rewards for more customers while retiring less effective marketing tactics in the process. As the company prepares for the nationwide rollout in 2019, CMO Greg Revelle will share how his team is building the new standard in loyalty and offering every customer an opportunity to win at Kohl’s.

Greg Revelle

Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Kohl's

LEVERAGING AN ICONIC BRAND TO FUEL BUSINESS GLOBALLY (Main Stage)

Core to the success of American Express has been its constant reinvention. In 2017, the company began a journey to reignite the brand globally to drive growth. It led to the launch of a new global brand platform, tied to a single, overarching message: American Express has your back as you do business and live life. The message is a guiding principle for how American Express behaves as a company, how it treats its customers and colleagues, and how it develops new, innovative products and services. In this session, CMO Elizabeth Rutledge talks about American Express’ vision to provide the world’s best customer experience.

Elizabeth Rutledge

Chief Marketing Officer American Express Co.

2018 CLASS OF ANA GENIUS AWARD WINNERS

Who are the industry’s true data masters? We will present the 2018 winners of the ANA Genius Awards, recognizing leading brand marketers for their outstanding achievements in data and analytics. Last year’s winners included IBM, Coca-Cola, and Citigroup.

View Presentation

DENNY'S SERVES UP A FRESH BRAND REVITALIZATION STRATEGY (Main Stage)

Denny’s has been on a journey to rejuvenate its status as an iconic American brand while simultaneously battling the immediacy of driving daily sales in the ultra-competitive restaurant space. In this session, CMO John Dillon will explain how Denny’s rediscovered its role as “America's Diner,” a work-in-progress story of growth driven by a unique blend of insight, purpose, personality, humility, calculated risks, and the magic of a good old-fashioned diner meal.

John Dillon

Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Denny’s

PATH TO GROWTH: A MODERN MARKETING DILEMMA (Second Stage)

The data and technology revolution has created two distinctly different approaches to modern marketing: content marketing versus performance marketing. Content marketing is the evolution of brand marketing and seeks to create growth by building consumer relationships and long-term brand value using content and context. Performance marketing seeks to create growth by maximizing immediately measurable ROI and related metrics. Both approaches are fighting for companies’ growth agendas and marketing dollars. This session will share stories of each of these paths to growth, as well as lessons learned through the lens of Clorox’s two recent acquisitions in the vitamin, mineral, and supplements category.

Eric Reynolds (@EricCLX)

Chief Marketing Officer The Clorox Company

HOW A QUIET UNICORN BECAME THE NO. 1 SKINCARE BRAND IN THE U.S. (Main Stage)

The $80-billion-a-year U.S. beauty industry has been growing 4 percent a year since 2010, while Rodan + Fields has averaged 60 percent-per-year growth since its launch just a decade ago. This hyper-growth company recently rocketed past $1.5 billion in annual revenue and was named the number one skincare brand in the U.S. for the past two years. A quiet unicorn, Rodan + Fields has disrupted the beauty industry and is outpacing industry stalwarts. During this session, CMO Elisabeth Charles will share insights and strategies on how the brand is reinventing the way consumers shop for skincare through its transformative skincare products, passionate brand advocates, and disruptive consumer-connected commerce model.

Elisabeth Charles

Chief Marketing Officer Rodan + Fields

IN-HOUSE: CHALLENGING MYTHS TO BUILD A NEW TYPE OF AGENCY (Second Stage)

During Cannes 2018, George Felix, marketing director at KFC, presented a slide that stated, “The road to mediocrity is paved by in-house creative.” He had a valid point. In-house creative teams haven’t made creative excellence a priority, and as such, have deserved the reputation for bad creative output. But mediocre creative work doesn’t only come out of in-house teams. There are plenty of established creative agencies serving a variety of clients producing mediocre work. When built with passionate talent, in a culture that harnesses great creative ideas, in-house agencies can make a long-lasting positive impact. They are closer to the brand than anyone else, more invested in solving problems, and can make decisions faster. In this session, learn how 140, the in-house agency for Verizon, debunked the six most common in-house agency myths.

Warren Marenco Chase

Vice President and COO for 140, Verizon’s In-House Agency Verizon, Inc.

THE CHANGING MARKETING OPPORTUNITY (Main Stage)

Once considered an art, marketing is now both an art and a science. CMOs, as strategic influencers in the C-suite, must assess market trends and needs and act on data-driven insights that contribute greater value and measurable results across the enterprise. In fact, more than 70 percent of CMOs say their ability to lead organizational growth and change is now essential to their professional success. As visionaries, CMOs need to instill a culture of customer-centricity through creativity, innovation, collaboration, and governance, and bring in the voices of clients, employees, and partners alike. Michelle Peluso will discuss what it takes to create a data-driven and client-centric culture, fostered by a nimble, agile workplace, where change is the only constant.

Michelle Peluso

Senior Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer IBM

GDPR: THE MOUSE THAT ROARED (REDUX) (Second Stage)

Much like the satirical movie, The Mouse that Roared, where the European Duchy of Grand Fenwick decided to invade the U.S. over a wine dispute, Europe is again at our doorstep preparing for an invasion. This time, it’s over data and consumer privacy under the guise of the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and soon to be released e-Privacy Directive. Both pieces of legislation turn the traditional notions of interacting with consumers in the U.S. on its head. The reaction of many brands has been, “That’s not my problem. I don’t market in Europe so the GDPR doesn’t apply to me.” Not only is that conclusion wrong, we now have a number of states passing legislation that, in comparison, is worse in limiting the use of consumer data than the GDPR. This session will explain why the GDPR and its offspring are a concern of every marketer, and how to make this legal maze manageable in a world of walled gardens, conflicts of interests, and regulatory investigations.

Douglas Wood (@djwood1976)

Partner Reed Smith LLP

IDEAS THAT BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER…

…HOW THE POWER OF COMMUNITIES CAN TRANSFORM CREATIVE STRATEGY IN TODAY’S MOBILE WORLD. Community has always been at the heart of the best creative technology. From the radio to the internet, what really matters is how new technologies bring people together. In these changing times, how can marketers reach audiences with ideas that inspire? Hear from Andrew Keller, Facebook Creative Shop's Global Creative Director, on how community and technology have forged our common past and will define our creative future.

Andrew Keller

Global Creative Director Facebook Creative Shop

DEFYING INDUSTRY NORMS TO DRIVE UNCONVENTIONAL GROWTH (Main Stage)

Since 1950, King’s Hawaiian has grown from a small bakery in Hilo, Hawaii, to a national brand primarily through word of mouth. In 2013, Erick Dickens joined the company as SVP and CMO to create a world-class marketing organization designed to help the brand expand into new markets and launch new categories of products. The King’s Hawaiian marketing team has embraced the brand’s unconventional approach and appetite for taking risks by disrupting the traditional agency model, minimizing inefficient digital spend, and reaching consumers through live events, professional sports, entertainment properties, and high-impact TV. As a result, the brand has doubled in size, with consecutive years of double-digit growth and significant gains in both household penetration and purchase frequency.

Erick Dickens

Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer King's Hawaiian

IT'S MARKETING'S MOMENT TO SHINE (Main Stage)

With so much noise around how marketing is being disrupted and transformed, CMOs have more opportunity than ever before to seize this unique moment for themselves, for their brands, and for the future of the industry. Now is the time to reframe marketing’s role in how companies become customer-centric engines for growth. Now is the time to ensure the consumer is placed firmly at the center of the organization and that the entire enterprise is prepared to deliver across touchpoints. And now is the time to drive growth at the industry-level to help marketing’s entire ecosystem thrive. In this session, CMO Alicia Hatch will share insights from her own experiences, along with new research to help marketers transition to growth champions.

Alicia Hatch

Chief Marketing Officer Deloitte Digital

PASSION, PURPOSE AND PERFORMANCE: A FOOD & WINE CULINARY EXPERIENCE

Join Meredith for a once-in-a-lifetime FOOD & WINE culinary and wine tasting experience, featuring a bespoke menu curated and prepared by Celebrity Chef Marcus Samuelsson, in collaboration with chefs Adrienne Cheatham, James Bowen and Tiffany Jones. Samuelsson is the acclaimed chef behind many restaurants worldwide including Red Rooster Harlem and Marcus B&P.  Samuelsson was the youngest person to ever receive a three-star review from The New York Times and has won multiple James Beard Foundation Awards including Best Chef: New York City. He was also crowned champion of television shows “Top Chef Masters” and “Chopped All Stars”, and served as a mentor on ABC’s “The Taste”. In May 2016, he was inducted into the James Beard Foundation “Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America”. Samuelsson regularly appears as a speaker at the FOOD & WINE Classic in Aspen. The dinner will also feature distinctive wine pairings selected by FOOD & WINE Executive Wine Editor Ray Isle. 

#SeeHer Celebration: Dinner will conclude with an electrifying musical performance by Hip Hop and R&B Recording Artist and International Entertainer Amara la Negra.

Marcus Samuelsson

Celebrity & Award-Winning Chef and Owner Marcus Samuelsson Group

Charity silent auction benefitting Careers through Culinary Arts Program (C-CAP) and Harlem Park to Park, meet-and-greet with Amara La Negra and book signing with Marcus Samuelsson.

PREPARING FOR GENERATION ALPHA

How is technology impacting kids born after 2010, also known as Generation Alpha? And what does this mean for marketers? With the help of Wired Consulting and the world’s leading neuroscientists, educators, and cultural commentators, Hotwire has uncovered how technology is affecting brain development of these youngsters, the trends that will define this generation, and how brands will be able to reach them in the future. But what about right now? New findings address the parents of Generation Alpha across the world to understand what they make of their kids’ use of technology and the impact it has on family life, along with what that means for marketers today.

Laura Macdonald

SVP, Head of Consumer Hotwire Global Communications

HOW A STORIED BRAND JOURNEYED INTO CONTENT (Main Stage)

For nearly 125 years, The Hershey Co. has built a beloved brand through strong storytelling in traditional media outlets and owned experiences like Chocolate World. But as digital transformation became a necessity for large marketing operations, the historical chocolate manufacturer needed a new way to approach content that would carry Hershey, its brands, and its experiences into the future and resonate with modern audiences. Over the past year, the company embarked on two distinct paths to make this vision a reality, creating an in-house branded content studio and using content to transcend the physical boundaries of its experiences in Hershey, Pa. In this session, hear key learnings from these two content journeys, including the challenges of monetization, the importance of scale, and how to build and execute a vision spanning more than 100 years.

Jill Baskin

Chief Marketing Officer The Hershey Co.

THE U.S. NAVY’S PIONEERING PIVOT TO DIGITAL INNOVATION (Main Stage)

For a brand whose legacy is paramount, the U.S. Navy needed to reinvent itself in a perpetually changing digital age. Connecting with centennials and millennials were key, making it more crucial than ever for the Navy to ignite intrigue and drive engagement in its latest “Forged by the Sea” campaign. It demanded a new approach and led to sweeping changes to the Navy’s media mix, moving the brand from a traditional marketer to a digital player. In this session, learn how the Navy is harnessing media and technology (such as augmented reality, video, social, and podcasts) to drive deeper connections with a new generation and, ultimately, shift brand perception.

Matt Boren

Chief Marketing Officer Navy Recruiting Command

HOW KEURIG MODERNIZED THE COFFEE EXPERIENCE (Main Stage)

In this session, learn how the power of modern marketing shifted Keurig from a simple appliance company to a consumer-centric coffee experience brand. From refocusing on consumer needs through new product launches to modernizing its brand purpose to infusing humanity into its communications, Keurig became a meaningful household brand across the U.S. The strategy has helped the brand achieve double-digit growth the past two years. Learn how to combine human truths, data, and brand purpose to drive more meaningful connections with consumers and spur business growth.

Philip Drapeau

Vice President, Keurig Brand Marketing Keurig Dr. Pepper

HOW MICHELOB ULTRA REVIVED THE LIGHT BEER CATEGORY (Main Stage)

It’s no secret: American light beer has seen better days, with declines in volume, occasions, and category share. To defy this trend, Michelob ULTRA took an unconventional approach: It began behaving like an active lifestyle brand. Leveraging the consumer belief that one should be able to “work out and go out” and that “you can stay fit and stay fun,” the brand introduced its new positioning during Super Bowl 50 with a series of smart partnerships and activations, as well as strategic content. In two short years, Michelob ULTRA’s new active lifestyle persona has bucked the category’s decline, leading to skyrocketing growth for the brand. Michelob ULTRA is now the sixth-largest player in its sector, and to date, has become a clear standout brand in the light beer category.

Azania Andrews

Vice President of Marketing, Michelob ULTRA Anheuser-Busch