There was a time, not too long ago, when CMOs started to sound a lot more political. They made statements about brand purpose. They pulled funding from fake news. They held advertiser boycotts — more than once. They were operating, it seemed during Donald Trump’s first presidency, from a position of power in which what they said and how they spent their ad dollars could help shape the cultural climate.
This may not be the case Trump’s second time around. The cultural landscape has shifted. Marketers have watched major brands — not just Bud Light, but McDonald’s, Planet Fitness and others — grapple with boycotts of their own. They’ve seen the likes of Harley Davidson and John Deere about-face on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives amid pressure from activist investor Robby Starbuck. They’ve dealt with legal action questioning brand safety and pushing back against their ability to boycott a platform. They’ve seen GARM shuttered. And they’re currently in wait-and-see mode with Meta to understand how its position on censorship will affect them.
The CMO during a Trump presidency in 2025 won’t be the same as in 2017. It’s unlikely that CMOs will be seen making statements about marketing as a force for good or announcing they’re pulling funding from a platform or making any moves that could be seen as overtly political. (Though, arguably, not doing so could also be considered its own political move.) This time around, while of course it will vary from one CMO to another, it seems that CMOs in general will focus on getting back to the basics of marketing and focus intently on their own customers rather than making any big statements.
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The original post is at Marketing Archives – Digiday
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