As a long time financial services marketer, you would expect Dan Marks to have the science of marketing down pat. And indeed he does, having built a predictive marketing spend model at First Tennessee Bank (see The CMO’s Periodic Table!) and the marketing tech infrastructure in his current role. But Marks sees the trend towards data-driven marketing going too far, explaining that, “Just doing the science without starting with the purpose is a recipe for failure.” Embracing the art-side of his job, he encourages his team to “remember that we are ultimately serving people” and to look at what’s happening with people in other categories.”
Meet the Guest
Dan Marks is the CMO for Hancock And Whitney Bank, a regional bank in the Gulf South spanning from Houston, Texas, to Tampa, Fla. At the bank, Marks is responsible for overall strategy and execution of marketing and leading a digitally enabled client-focused transformation. Recognitions have included the Presidents Circle CMO Award, “Top CMO on Twitter,” and “Top 40 under 40.”
Prior to joining Hancock, he was division marketing VP at Sears Holdings. Before that, Marks spent 10 years at First Tennessee Bank, culminating as CMO. He succeeds Bill Andres, who was CMO since 2013.
What You'll Learn
- The importance of keeping your eye on your customers
- Why your marketing needs to avoid over-emphasizing data
- The value of aligning your marketing behind a purpose
- Helpful resources for marketers including The CMO’s Periodic Table!
Quotes from Dan Marks
- I believe that a great CMO needs to embrace both the art and the science of marketing and that might be a bit radical with all of the focus on either the science or the art today.
- The critical part to a balance is to remember that we are ultimately serving people.
- There are tangible parts of what we do that are inspired by showing, not telling, in an emotional way.
- We look at everything through the mission of how are we helping people achieve their goals and dreams?
- People are seeing that humans behave like humans whether or not they're online.
- In terms of marketing, your book is fantastic. (Author’s note: couldn’t resist sharing this one!)