Building Loved Brands in an Age of Data and AI

Marketing effectiveness is under pressure as short-term metrics continue to shape decision-making. Recorded at the Effie Awards South Africa as part of The Lead Creative Effies Series, this conversation with Gillian Rightford, Effie Awards South Africa Lead and ACA Executive Director, revisits the long-term cost of short-term thinking, now viewed through award-winning work. Conversation highlights Why long-term brand building is back in focus Why vanity metrics carry less weight in judging The limits of AI in creative effectiveness Why playing safe is a brand riskProduced in collaboration with our partners, Soweto Media.___________________________Buy us coffee here to help us grow.___________________________The Lead Creative Podcast is available on:AppleSpotifyYouTubeFollow us on:LinkedInFacebookXInstagramSend us mail!Support the show___________________________Follow us for more on:YouTubeLinkedInInstagramSend us mail! Support the showBuy us coffee here to help us grow. Follow us for more on: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

What separates effective marketing from short-term noise? Recorded at the Effie Awards South Africa, this conversation with Thami Majola, Executive Head of Brands and Communications at Vodacom, unpacks advertising effectiveness through a brand and business lens. Thami shares insights on data-driven marketing, customer understanding, AI and the discipline required to build trusted, loved brands. Produced in collaboration with our partners, Soweto Media.___________________________Buy us coffee here to help us grow.___________________________The Lead Creative Podcast is available on:AppleSpotifyYouTubeFollow us on:LinkedInFacebookXInstagramSend us mail!Support the show___________________________Follow us for more on:YouTubeLinkedInInstagramSend us mail! Support the showBuy us coffee here to help us grow. Follow us for more on: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

Simple work is often the hardest to make. In this episode, Kenosi Matsebatlela, Head of Marketing for Vaseline, and Tumi Moutlana, Creative Director at VML, share how trust shaped the Mntana Ka Gogo piece. We explore why the idea resonated, how cultural memory works in advertising and why clarity outperforms complexity. They share how instinct, chemistry and timing help teams create work that feels familiar and honest. ___________________________Buy us coffee here to keep us fuelled.___________________________The Lead Creative Podcast is available on:AppleSpotifyYouTubeFollow us on:LinkedInFacebookXInstagramSend us mail!Support the show___________________________Follow us for more on:YouTubeLinkedInInstagramSend us mail! Make a donation to Threads for Ikasi, a foundation that provides school uniforms, dignity packs and other essentials to children in townships, rural areas and under-resourced communities. To support them, go to: https://threadsforikasi.org Support the showBuy us coffee here to help us grow. Follow us for more on: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

Advertising faces a growing challenge: too much work is created to avoid failure rather than pursue meaningful success. In this episode, creative consultant and Number 10 founder Ahmed Tilly breaks down why this mindset persists and how brands can move beyond it.Ahmed’s work includes Nando’s campaigns across 14 countries and the launches of Virgin Money, 1LifeDirect and Mazda. As Effie Awards South Africa Co-Chair (2024 & 2025) and Loeries Jury President, he offers clear insight into what makes work effective.Midway through our conversation, he recalled an insight he shared two years ago: trends are diluting creativity. “Trends are the opposite of creativity. If you’re not different, you’re dead.”Conversation highlightsTrue creativity requires resisting trends, not chasing themDistinctiveness drives real effectivenessTrend-chasing weakens creativityEffies work requires rigour and originalityMany marketing issues are rooted in strategyThank you to the Effie Awards South Africa team and Soweto Media.___________________________Buy us coffee here to help us grow.___________________________The Lead Creative Podcast is available on:AppleSpotifyYouTubeFollow us on:LinkedInFacebookXInstagramSend us mail!Support the show___________________________Follow us for more on:YouTubeLinkedInInstagramSend us mail! Make a donation to Threads for Ikasi, a foundation that provides school uniforms, dignity packs and other essentials to children in townships, rural areas and under-resourced communities. To support them, go to: https://threadsforikasi.org Support the showBuy us coffee here to help us grow. Follow us for more on: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

How do heritage brands stay relevant in a world full of choice? At the Effie Awards South Africa, we sat down with Arpan Sur, CMO of the Sub-Saharan Africa Business Unit at Mondelez, to discuss marketing effectiveness, cultural leadership, and what makes brands like Chappies and Cadbury endure.Arpan shares why “marketing should lead culture”, how brands build rituals, and why effective work must deliver his “trifecta” of consumer impact, business outcomes, and fame. As an Effie Awards South Africa juror, he explains the rigorous judging process and what trends stood out this year.Highlights: Why Chappies became a cultural category cue.The rise of “value as effectiveness” in inflationary markets.Why clear, focused briefs deliver stronger work.Thank you to the Effies for the platform.Produced in collaboration with our partners, Soweto Media.___________________________Buy us coffee here to help us grow.___________________________The Lead Creative Podcast is available on:AppleSpotifyYouTubeFollow us on:LinkedInFacebookXInstagramSend us mail!Support the show___________________________Follow us for more on:YouTubeLinkedInInstagramSend us mail! Support the showBuy us coffee here to help us grow. Follow us for more on: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

The challenge for many leading brands is staying relevant in categories where functional claims and pricing pressure can erode brand value. As part of our Effie Awards South Africa series, which explores marketing and advertising effectiveness with leading marketers and advertising trailblazers, I spoke to Elizabeth Mokwena, Executive Marketing Director at Unilever, about why emotion still matters.Conversation HighlightsEmotion as a driver of marketing effectivenessHow Vaseline’s “Mntana ka Gogo” refreshed a heritage brandParallels with Pete Case and Ogilvy’s international Vaseline collaborationFinding universal human truths leads to universally compelling big ideasProduced in collaboration with our partners, Soweto Media.___________________________Buy us coffee here to help us grow.___________________________The Lead Creative Podcast is available on:AppleSpotifyYouTubeFollow us on:LinkedInFacebookXInstagramSend us mail!Support the show___________________________Follow us for more on:YouTubeLinkedInInstagramSend us mail! Support the showBuy us coffee here to help us grow. Follow us for more on: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

How do we ensure that marketing has a seat at the business table? That’s one of the questions explored with Brian Yuyi, CEO of the Marketing Association of South Africa (MASA), in this episode of The Lead Creative recorded at the IMC Conference.The conversation looks at how to give marketing a stronger voice in business, inspire the next generation to join the profession, and elevate those already driving growth and creativity.“Marketing is business and business is marketing,” says Brian. “It’s not about making marketing the centre of everything — it’s the connector between business and consumers.”He also reflects on how MASA continues to professionalise and unite the industry under one tent through education, accreditation and advocacy.Conversation highlights:Giving marketing a stronger voice in business.Nurturing young talent to grow the profession.Uniting the marketing ecosystem through MASA.Produced in collaboration with our partners, Soweto Media.___________________________Buy us coffee here to help us grow.___________________________The Lead Creative Podcast is available on:AppleSpotifyYouTubeFollow us on:LinkedInFacebookXInstagramSend us mail!Support the show___________________________Follow us for more on:YouTubeLinkedInInstagramSend us mail! Support the showBuy us coffee here to help us grow. Follow us for more on: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

Brands grow through trust and shared ambition. Pete Case, CEO and Creative Chairman of Ogilvy South Africa, joins The Lead Creative to discuss how long-term client–agency partnerships help brands like Volkswagen, KFC, Audi and Carling Black Label thrive.“Trust is the most important ingredient. It’s what allows us to put new, untested ideas in front of clients.”Key insights include:How longevity fuels creativity and commercial success.Why trust leads to braver, more effective work.Lessons in leadership and purpose from Pete Case.___________________________To keep us fuelled, buy us coffee here.___________________________The Lead Creative Podcast is available on:AppleSpotifyYouTubeFollow us on:LinkedInFacebookXInstagramSend us mail! Make a donation to Threads for Ikasi, a foundation that provides school uniforms, dignity packs and other essentials to children in townships, rural areas and under-resourced communities. To support them, go to: https://threadsforikasi.org Support the showBuy us coffee here to help us grow. Follow us for more on: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

Advertising needs more than good creative; it needs solid measurement. Oresti Patricios, CEO of Ornico, has spent over 40 years tracking how advertising, marketing and PR drive business growth.“The basics haven’t changed,” he says. “Marketing still exists to grow business, but measurement tells you if it’s working.” He warns against the short-term vs long-term debate: “It’s not either/or. Brand building takes time, but tactical work drives sales. You need both.”He also points out that “vanity metrics are a non-trend.” For marketers to retain credibility and budgets, they must link their efforts to real business outcomes.Conversation highlightsThe CFO’s influence on marketing accountabilityHow programmatic buying changed advertisingWhy long-term brand building still mattersProduced in collaboration with our partners, Soweto Media.___________________________Buy us coffee here to help us grow.___________________________The Lead Creative Podcast is available on:AppleSpotifyYouTubeFollow us on:LinkedInFacebookXInstagramSend us mail!Support the show___________________________Follow us for more on:YouTubeLinkedInInstagramSend us mail! Support the showBuy us coffee here to help us grow. Follow us for more on: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

In our IMC Conference series, we reconnected with Dr Pepe Marais, Co-Founder and Group Chief Creative Officer of Joe Public, two years after our last conversation.He believes the industry remains “trapped in the busyness, not the business of advertising.” Agencies, he says, are producing hundreds of assets a month, leaving little time for ideas that last. “We’ve got the talent, but not the time to think.”Pepe calls for a reset — fewer, better ideas, more time for strategy, and trust between brands and agencies to create lasting impact. Conversation highlights:93% of advertising fails, Dr Pepe Marais explains why.Advertising’s short-term crisis.AI as a tool for time.Trust enables creative excellence.Reclaiming time for thinking.___________________________The Lead Creative Podcast is available on:AppleSpotifyYouTubeFollow us on:LinkedInFacebookXInstagramSend us mail!Support the showBuy us coffee here to help us grow.Follow us for more on:YouTubeLinkedInInstagramSend us mail! Make a donation to Threads for Ikasi, a foundation that provides school uniforms, dignity packs and other essentials to children in townships, rural areas and under-resourced communities. To support them, go to: https://threadsforikasi.org Support the showBuy us coffee here to help us grow. Follow us for more on: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram