Just when you thought it was safe to put last year in the rearview mirror — it isn’t. Operating under the notion that hindsight is 20/20, we asked industry executives what they did wrong in 2018—and how they plan to fix their mistakes in the new year. They did not hold back.
Jen Wong, chief operating officer, Reddit
“One of the things that Reddit could have done better is when we turned on ads, we should have had a more robust ads-free subscription product so that we had choice for our users. We’ve done that now, through Reddit premium. … We should have done earlier.”
Andrew Mok, CMO, Turo
“It’s easy to get addicted to paid advertising—you put dollars in and see immediate dollars come back. We’re seeing oftentimes it’s smarter to reinvest that extra dollar in the form of loyalty incentives for your highest-value customers. The dollar not only comes back to you, but it’ll compound over time. In 2019, we’ll be focusing much more on rewarding our most loyal customers.”
Caren Pasquale Seckler, VP of social commitment, Coca-Cola North America
“The mistake we made over the years was really an opportunity cost. We were thinking about the social impact our company makes more through the lens of individual brands or initiatives. … The reality is this generation of consumers is looking for what your total company stands for and does to make the world better. … In the year ahead, we’ll continue to focus our social commitment work to support our overall company brand.”
Anselmo Ramos, founder, chief creative officer, Gut
“It would be easier to ask ‘What didn’t you do wrong in 2018?’ Since 2018 was my first year being 100 percent independent, I was able to do almost everything wrong, and the best thing is, I didn’t have to call New York or London before doing [it]. … For 2019, I actually don’t want to fix anything. I want to keep doing even more wrong things, only faster. That’s the beauty of independence. The ability to be wrong.”
Marisa Thalberg, global chief brand officer, Taco Bell Corp.
“Taco Bell is a brand that feels like an extrovert, so it might be surprising to admit that, if anything, it’s possible we’ve been too demure about all the meaningful things this brand is doing with food, with our people and toward greater social good. In 2019 I’d like people to get to know this side of Taco Bell.”
Tina Davis, managing director global branding and sponsorships, head of global sponsorship, Citi
“One thing I did ‘wrong’ was overcommit my time. With over-commitment comes under-delivery, and that can cause problems at work and at home. How do I plan to fix it in 2019? Focused and realistic time management. Balance work, learning, play, family, sleep—and embrace the positive power of ‘no.'”
To read the original article: https://adage.com/article/agencies/biggest-exec-mistakes-2018-mop-things/316064
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