Media:NOW's Keynote Speaker Linda Boff on the Future of Media
The AD Club is thrilled to present Linda Boff, Executive Director, Global Brand Marketing at GE, as the opening keynote at this year’s Media:NOW event on March 31st! GE has always stood at the forefront of innovation, and at GE, Linda is responsible for always being one step ahead when it comes to digital marketing, content and commercial strategy.
So where are the conversations taking place? What do the consumers want to see? With Linda’s vast experience in strategizing about how to cultivate the right relationships between brands and their consumers, we thought we’d to ask her a few questions about the future of media to get warmed up for Media:NOW. Here’s what she had to say…
When it comes to connecting with consumers, what’s the biggest challenge facing a marketer like GE?
GE is an extremely well-known brand – our awareness is high. Our challenge is to be relevant and contemporary, to reach new audiences, and to make sure people understand the company we are today.
What innovative tools or methodologies are you using to create meaningful touchpoints with your customers?
GE has been a very early adopter of many new tech platforms and forms of storytelling. Because our company has always stood for innovation, our marketing needs to be equally innovative to reinforce the brand DNA.
GE was an early adopter of social platforms like Instagram, Pinterest and Buzzfeed. Does traditional media still matter? What are you placing your bets on?
Wherever the people we want to talk to are spending their time – TV, mobile, digital – that’s where we place our bets. We follow the user and try to understand their behavior and how to work within that context.
Does operating as a BtoB company mean you approach consumers differently than a BtoC company would? Do these distinctions still matter?
Our customers are people and we try to approach all of our marketing in a way that is compelling, interesting and unexpected. As our CMO likes to say B2B doesn’t mean BORING!