Kicking off the ANA’s “Masters of Marketing” conference in Orlando Wednesday morning, CEO Bob Liodice told attendees that in a world full of troubles marketers need to be “more purposeful and better aligned with societal needs.”  

“It’s time to change,” he said, emphasizing this year’s conference theme that marketing needs to be both a force for growth and a force for good.   

He showcased several examples of campaigns from major marketers that drive both purpose and growth including a recent effort from Mastercard featuring a blind woman who is seen walking in her neighborhood chatting to friends and easily paying for a latte with a notched Mastercard credit card.  

“Media excellence,” he said, helps drive brand growth, along with creativity and diverse talent both throughout the marketing and agency ranks and in advertising content.   

And increasingly data analytics is a major growth driver. He noted a recent survey that indicates that the top investment marketers have been making since 2021 is in data and analytics capabilities.  

Finding better solutions to the increasingly complicated task of video measurement is also key, Liodice said, noting the ANA’s efforts on cross-media measurement with a focus on unduplicated reach and frequency.   

The ANA, he added is addressing online hate, which he described as a “scourge,” with a new campaign done in partnership with Ogilvy called “Engage Responsibly.”   

Strong leadership addressing key issues will drive growth, the ANA CEO concluded. In success, marketers will add billions of dollars in growth currently being left of the table.