South African Digital Marketing Podcast

Marketing budgets are moving back from digital to in-real-life. The trouble is that most brands still can't show what an event, a sponsorship or an activation actually did for them.Doug Bird has spent more than 20 years in South African experiential marketing, including five as head of sports marketing at Red Bull, and he's the founder of WILD AIR Agency. His argument: in-person marketing is often as measurable as digital, as long as the systems are in place before the idea.In this episode:- Why digital won the budget: it's easier to defend in the board meeting- How Red Bull counted interactions, captured first-party data and measured trial at its events- Why the idea should be the last thing you work on- Going where your customers already are, instead of asking them to come to you- How Saucony took on the big running brands at run clubs with a trailer and 25 pairs of shoes- Why there are no easy wins without systems, and why word of mouth sits at the centre- Go Badger, the platform Doug is building so brands can buy in-person connection the way they buy digital mediaConnect with Doug on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/doug-bird-wild-air/Want the live version of conversations like this? The SA Marketers' Circle is where South African marketers think out loud. Every month, a past guest joins us for a Hallway Session. Apply to join: https://www.samarketerscircle.co.za/join

In this episode, I sat down with Musa Kalenga, group CEO of the Brave Group. Our conversation focused on how agencies and marketing teams should actually treat the people who do the work: the dangers of grind culture, avoiding burnout, and getting real buy-in from your team.This one is a great look at what marketing leaders should be aiming for when thinking about how to run their modern marketing agencies.Connect with Musa on Linkedin Join me and other top South African Marketers in the SA Marketers' Circle

This conversation really focused on an issue that is many marketers are concerned about: AEO.That’s right, you’ve finally got a handle on SEO, and now you have to figure out AEO. Don’t worry though because in this episode we talk about what AEO is and how to ensure your brand is actually being seen in AI search results.Connect with Luke on LinkedinJoin me in the SA Marketers' Circle

Ad fraud is the marketing problem nobody wants to talk about.I sat down with Marc Dhalluin from TruthsetsOnline.com for the first episode of Season 5, and I came away quietly panicking about every campaign I've ever run.Here's the line that got me: more online ads are bought and paid for every single day than there are humans on earth who could ever look at them.Sit with that for a second.We spoke about bots inflating your bounce rate, why the platforms aren't exactly rushing to tell you when your ads never reached a real person, and the difference between plain old wastage and someone actively defrauding you.The good news is it's not all doom. Marc's whole point is that you can find out what your money is actually doing, yet most of us just never look.If you spend a cent on digital advertising, this one's worth your time.Follow Marc hereFollow Terence hereJoin the SA Marketers Circle here

We all know that marketing departments are getting smaller, but how does a head marketing cope when they ARE the marketing department?Amy Hopkins had this experience as head of marketing for Africa Padel (she's has since moved to a new role), so I wanted to understand how she used AI tools strategically, while focusing on building deeper relationships inside and outside of the business.Our chat had some real perspective shifts for me, and I think it will do the same for you.Follow Amy on Linkedin here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amy-hopkins-8725631a/Join the SA Marketers' Cicle here: https://www.samarketerscircle.co.za/Connect with me on Linkedin here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/terence-mentor/———Free guide: The Solo & Lean Marketer's Field GuideIf Amy's "department of one" reality sounds familiar, we've gathered the most practical ideas from across the show into a field guide for marketers who are the whole team. Download it free: https://www.samarketerscircle.co.za/podcast-field-guide.html?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=field-guideAnd if you want the room where conversations like this happen every day, that's the Circle: samarketerscircle.co.za

It’s not often you get a chance to get insight from a marketing professional at the end of her career, so this was a huge opportunity to tap into the deep experience that comes with the winding journey of marketing leadership.This episode is full of key takeaways that make it essential listening for current and future marketing leaders!Connect with Melanie here Follow me on Linkedin here

Is marketing to marketers the toughest kind of marketing?(I think that sentence makes sense)In this episode of the South African Digital Marketing Podcast, I chatted to Michelle Geere, CEO of Adbot. The conversation focused on the benefits and challenges of creating and selling a marketing tool in South Africa.Connect with Michelle on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelle-geere/Connect with me on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/terence-mentor/

In this episode I chat to CEO and Founder of Lucky Hustle, Darren Morris. He recently wrote about what he sees is the 6 trends that South African marketers have to keep in mind as we think about what strategies and campaigns actually resonate with our audiences.Follow Darren Morris on Linkedin here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darren-morris-527598151Follow Terence on Linkedin here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/terence-mentor/Don't forget to subscribe wherever you get your podcast!