LEADERSHIP

Right place, right time

About one billion years ago in November 2020, Marketing Brew reported that Celestine Maddy joined Pinterest as its global head of consumer and brand marketing. 

• Maddy not only founded industry blog AgencySpy, but also previously held senior marketing roles at Foursquare and Reddit.
• Most recently, she was head of marketing and communications for The Wing—and briefly served as one of its three CEOs. She left the girlboss-branded coworking space after six months.

This month, just a few days after Pinterest made headlines for banning all weight loss related ads, we sat down with Maddy to chat about why she joined the platform and what she likes about the gig. Read our full interview with her here, but if you just want the highlights, keep scrolling.

Marketing Brew: Why did you decide to join Pinterest? Tell me about that decision. 

Celestine Maddy: It was a letter that [Pinterest CMO] Andréa [Mallard] wrote me. I was actually super far down the funnel on a company that was more in my milieu—I love a series D company. But then Andrea wrote me this note that was so thoughtful and made the opportunity sound so exciting, which it has turned out to be.

MB: When you were looking for a new role after The Wing, what were you looking for in particular?

CM: I wanted to do unequivocal good. I wanted to work on a product that made people feel good. And Pinterest does that. 

I also wanted to work somewhere that was thinking about inclusive tech. That's very important to me after my experiences—that I'm working somewhere that is rethinking the approach to technology to make it inclusive for all. Pinterest continues to be a leader there. I'm going to say...skin tone ranges! Weight loss banning! That’s the work I want to do. 

MB: Marketing leaders like yourself are known to jump around from job to job a lot. We keep hearing that CMO tenure continues to shorten. In your case, do you feel like you've landed in the right place this time? 

CM: In my career, I've come to realize that you’re right for a certain company at a certain time period. For Pinterest, it makes sense that I'm here, because I really care about things that we care about together.

I really care about slow and fast culture, which is Pinterest in a nutshell. We aren't TikTok, where you're scrolling through really quickly. We are a place where you've come with an intention, you've come to make something, you've come to do something, you've come to move forward. And that's a little bit slower.—PB

SPORTS

Super Bowl in July

For many advertisers, it’s football season. Rob Schwartz, chair of advertising agency TBWA New York Group, posted on LinkedIn last week that marketers who haven’t yet briefed their agencies on Super Bowl ads are “behind.”

A few days later, NBC said it’s sold 85% of the game’s ad inventory, with commercials costing around $6 million a pop. So if you’re planning on being in the big game, you better get your jerseys in a row. 

Why so soon? Well, there are a lot of moving pieces for agencies to consider, Schwartz told Marketing Brew. 

“It begins in earnest over the summer in July, because that’s the moment you’re doing your calculus between what it takes to come up with the idea, sell the idea, negotiate with the talent, and produce the idea,” he told us, adding that shooting traditionally begins in September or October, ensuring an entire rollout is ready in the lead-up to the game.

According to Schwartz, brands not only want the spot itself to be special, but also everything around it, like the prelaunch, social strategy, and behind-the-scenes content. “It’s less 30 seconds, and more like 30 days,” he said. 

Plus, agencies must think about celebs: Are they available? Is the fee right? “Can the talent stay off the New York Post’s Page Six?” Schwartz joked.

But is it a risk to plan so early? You know, there was just a pandemic. “In the before times, pre-Covid, the risk was low. The 85% sell-out indicates that people are willing to accept the risk,” said Schwartz. 

Speaking of which: While he’s obviously a proponent of early planning, Schwartz and TBWA have moved quickly before, notably on a Michelin commercial from 2017 that the agency put together in less than 72 hours. “Super Bowl advertising is not for the faint of heart,” Schwartz quipped.—RB

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ADVERTISING

Let the ads begin

The Tokyo Olympics *officially* begin this Friday. While fans can’t go to most of the Games, many will be watching from home, which is good news for advertisers. Several released campaigns related to the Games in recent weeks, including: 

• Samsung, whose commercial plugs the fact that people can use its phones to stay connected to the Games in a year when the usual hoopla isn’t happening.
• Nike envisions a “tomorrow” when a woman runs a marathon on Mars—and society respects athletes’ mental health. 
• MilkPep, a marketing org funded by milk companies, rolled out an ad that stars two Olympians, Kristin Armstrong and Ariel Torres, working out in a gym behind a supermarket’s dairy section. “Hidden cameras” capture shoppers’ reactions. 

+1: On Friday, the International Olympic Committee debuted a spot that stars Ágnes Keleti—an Olympian and gymnast who turned 100 this year—and the many Olympic milestones she’s lived through. 

Zoom out: Official sponsors or not, brands are eager to be a part of this year’s Games in some capacity. NBCUniversal expects its broadcast of the event to attract more than 120 advertisers, a 20% increase from 2016’s Summer Olympics, per Ad Age.

But as Covid-19 cases rise in Tokyo and athletes get sick, some advertisers might get cold feet. Today, Toyota said it’s pulling Olympics-themed advertising from Japanese TV.—MS

WHAT ELSE IS BREWING

• TikTok is partnering with Vimeo to help small businesses make posts for the app. 
• CNN will debut its own streaming service next year. Yes, the name includes a plus symbol. 
• Oreo’s new packaging helps parents hide the cookies from their kids.
• Delta CEO Ed Bastian said the Covid-19 Delta variant hasn’t impacted bookings.  

Not a good look: In Friday's What Else Is Brewing, we incorrectly stated that Netflix CMO Bozoma Saint John was one of three marketers let go by the company for venting about management on Slack. To clarify, she was not; rather, The Hollywood Reporter said she was one of the executives "criticized" by the terminated employees. Over the weekend, Saint John said she was not talked about by those employees nor involved in their firings.

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FRENCH PRESS

There are a lot of bad marketing tips out there. These aren't those.

Video: Need some Monday inspo? Learn why these 40 videos went viral. 

Metrics: This guide lists 14 customer service metrics you can track and what they mean. 

Email: You already know email marketing is important, but this infographic succinctly explains why. 

Breakups at work: Not with your cutie coworker—with creativity-crushing silos. We’ve decided it’s them, not us, and call it quits in a letter inspired by a better beau: Asana.*

AD ANTIQUES

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 A simpler, pre-iPhone time. 

ICYMI

Catch up on a few Marketing Brew stories you might have missed.

• A rule that stopped many brands from working with Olympic athletes has changed
• Social media marketers share their thoughts on Fleets disappearing: “It just never made much sense”
• Super Bowl 2022 commercials are nearly sold out, thanks to first-time advertisers