On a recent episode of Marketing Trends, Carrie Grapenthin, the CMO of Lincoln International, discussed the importance of listening, diplomacy, and relationship-building in marketing leadership. She emphasized the need for marketers to be agile and adaptable, especially in a competitive and fast-paced industry. And Grapenthin also highlighted the unique role of marketing in shaping the perception of the brand and driving business growth.

Throughout the discussion, Grapenthin shared examples of innovative marketing campaigns and the impact they had on brand awareness and employee engagement. Plus, Grapenthin predicted that storytelling and maintaining a unique brand voice will be crucial in the future of marketing.

Where AI Comes into Play

These days, AI can be influential for efficiency and effectiveness, but according to Grapenthin, custom and unique content is still important.

“It’s pretty unconventional right now to be a skeptic of AI because it’s such a hot topic,” Grapenthin said. “But ultimately, where I think the shift is coming is that the things that remain very custom and how they feel are going to be the things that prevail in business, whether it’s generative search and ensuring that the things that are unique in their style emerge to the top or that you’re applying a distinct lens on something.”

Key Skills Marketing Leaders Need

In order to be a great marketing leader, along with building a unique brand, you need to be building internal skills. Grapenthing explained that listening and diplomacy are important skills for marketing leaders to ensure that everyone feels heard and valued. It’s important how you think about positioning everyone you work with in ways that they feel seen and heard.

“What you want is for everybody to feel like they’ve been heard, but also that they feel a little bit of a win in whatever the outcome is,” Grapenthin said. “The other piece I’ve always felt is important, is a high degree of diplomacy. When you’re trying to ensure that everybody feels like they’ve won, it’s almost a little bit of brokering that goes on”

Understanding the Competition

Without a doubt, there is a need for agility and adaptability in the fast-paced and competitive marketing industry. Grapenthin explained that with a larger organization, you can remain agile if you work well cross-functionally.

It’s important to take a look at the competition, and then work within your own organization, keeping your branding identity in mind, and finding ways to rise above the rest.

The Importance of Unique Branding

Branding is a key piece of your marketing strategy, and it plays a critical role in shaping brand perception and driving business growth.

Grapenthin said there are many marketing and branding strategies you could be looking at to grow the business and eclipse the competition.

“I’ve been able to encourage new ways of thinking beyond marketing,” she said. “Including introducing a net promoter score study to understand more deeply market perceptions.”

Tell Your Unique Brand Story

Storytelling and maintaining a unique brand voice will be essential in the future of marketing. Positioning your brand as different, exceptional, and unique can be done through telling your brand’s story.

“Storytelling and creating a way for somebody to be engaged in content and embedding some creativity into [our marketing] is the kind of thing that’s going to continue to keep Lincoln at the forefront.

“But it’s also for any company to stand out from its peers.”