• by Charlene Weisler , Op-Ed Contributor, June 7, 2018

Digital marketing is one of those moving targets in media, but Touseef Mirza and Brooke Vines, co-founders, CoreConnect Conference, strive to hammer home some constants.

The conference, recently held in New York, offered, as Mirza notes, “best practices for modern digital marketing… how to connect and get the best work for your team and ultimately how to take the message out to the consumer in a way that resonates.”

Charlene Weisler: What did you hope to accomplish at CoreConnect?

Touseef Mirza: The conference was created to address the confusion and overwhelm that people feel when dealing with marketing in the digital age. We provided insights on how to create impact by focusing on key characteristics of the human element in marketing as well as best practices of connection and influence in the digital age….

Weisler: What were some highlights from the main speakers?

Mirza: Keith Reinhard, chairman emeritus of DDB, presented “Digital Disruption or Digital Distraction?”: We are entering an era of the ultimate revelation which will combine what we have learned from the creative revolution about humanity with the wondrous technology brought to us by the digital disruption.

Claude Silver, Chief Heart Officer of Vaynermedia, presented “Why Focusing on Culture Works.”  Corporate culture has lost its way. We need to realize that people who work in an organization are human beings, not just “employees.”

In order to develop a harmonious team, to harness innovative ideas, and build a thriving business, create a space that is safe, both physically and psychologically, and celebrate the uniqueness of every individual in the company.

Debbie Millman, chair of masters in branding, SVA & Host of the Podcast Design Matters, presented her panel, “Advertising in the Age of an Awakened Culture.” Branding and advertising, as we have known it since the past century, is dead. It is now democratized and owned by the people and pushed up to the corporations who have to take notice. This change has gradually happened since the past 10 years with the advent of the Internet, social media, and activism.

Weisler: How can one put the results of the conference into action in the workplace?

Mirza: You can apply different strategies on how to create a culture in the workplace that is safe and nurturing so that the most innovative and creative ideas can actually sprout—which will help your organization differentiate itself and help succeed in a saturated marketplace.
Finally, by understanding the consumer in an objective and truthful way, companies can position their products in a more meaningful light that connects with the audience in a compelling way.

Weisler: What do you see as the future in media in the next three to five years?

Mirza: "Nobody ever got famous predicting that things would stay pretty much the same." — Bob Hoffman, the Ad Contrarian.
Strategies we use today will still be around for the next three to five years, although the tactics may change as the technology evolves. The way we structure and manage teams is beginning to change. As Gen C, The YouTube Generation, ages, the silos that have made up the traditional agency model will finally crumble and the people who will do the best work in getting through to them are the hybrid workers and departments.

It will become increasingly more difficult for the creative department to concept messaging without working side-by-side with media and PR and taking channels into consideration.