The WARC Podcast

Mid-market brands have hopes that AI can make them more competitive, but know they need to upskill their AI literacy. WARC's Lexi Wolf talks to Caroline Giegerich, VP - AI & Marketing Innovation at IAB; and Jillian Ryan, Senior Manager, Content Marketing Strategy at Intuit Mailchimp about a new report from Mailchimp and WARC. This episode is sponsored by Mailchimp.

Brands with engaged employees tend to have higher customer satisfaction, increased profitability, and outperform businesses that do not. WARC's Cathy Taylor and Vaniele Casimir discuss best practice for employee engagement.

LLM-based search is the new mental availability engine, but success requires deep understanding of how a category is bought, thought and talked about. Shane O'Leary (Zoetis) and Gemma Spence (VML) join WARC's Lena Roland to discuss best practices for generative engine optimization.

Marketing measurement is in a constant state of flux. This deep-dive examines the changes marketers need to know and plan for. WARC's David Tiltman talks to Henry Innis, co-founder and CEO of Mutinex, about what to expect in 2026.

The festive season is getting started, and many brands are feeling the crunch. WARC's Rica Facundo and Biprorshee Das discuss best practice strategies for marketing in the festive season.

TV is often dismissed as 'traditional' media, yet it's still a proven performance multiplier. Angela Voss, CEO of Marketing Architects, joins WARC's Ann Marie Kerwin and Alex Brownsell to explore how TV has become overlooked as a full funnel channel and why that needs to change. This episode is sponsored by Marketing Architects.

Les Binet and Will Davis share new research on efficiency vs reach, Alastair Macrow (McDonalds) cracks the C-suite code, and big picture effectiveness trends from the IPA's Laurence Green and WARC's David Tiltman. Recorded live at the IPA Effectiveness Conference 2025 with WARC's Anna Hamill.

Groundbreaking new studies on influencer measurement, music's outsized impact on effectiveness, and provocations on AI. Recorded live at the IPA Effectiveness Conference 2025 with WARC's Anna Hamill.We hear from Dom Charles, Managing Director for Audience Intelligence & Marketing Science at Wavemaker UK; Roscoe Williamson, Global Strategy Director, MassiveMusic; Will Lion, CSO, BBH; Oliver Feldwick, Chief Innovation Officer, T&P; Sandra Peat, UK Partner, Spikes

The world is changing, and strategy skillsets need to evolve with it. As part of Future of Strategy week, Tomas Gonsorcik, Elizabeth Paul and Joe Burns join WARC's Ann Marie Kerwin to discuss how strategists can future proof their skills for a new era of marketing.The Future of Strategy 2025 report, which includes quantitative and qualitative data analysis, expert commentary and advice from leading strategists, is available to WARC members now.

According to WARC's new Future of Strategy report, strategists are feeling stuck. Siddhant Lahiri and Steve Walls join Rica Facundo to discuss how strategy can get its groove back.The Future of Strategy 2025 report, which includes quantitative and qualitative data analysis, expert commentary and advice from leading strategists, is available to WARC members now. 

80% of strategists believe the discipline faces a crossroads as agency business models strain. For Future of Strategy week, Suzanne Powers, Faris Yakob and Tom Morton are back with WARC's Lena Roland to discuss WARC's annual survey of strategists.The Future of Strategy 2025 report, which includes quantitative and qualitative data analysis, expert commentary and advice from leading strategists, is available to WARC members now.

100 things a planner should know' has been a strategist's field manual for years. Its author, Charles Wigley, joins WARC's David Tiltman to discuss some of that advice, how he applied it in his own career – and what it means in the current industry climate.

The Amazon/Alphabet/Meta triopoly is on track to record real growth of 89.1% between 2020 and the end of 2027, almost five times faster than all other media owners combined, according to WARC's Q3 2025 global forecast. WARC's James McDonald and Alex Brownsell crunch the numbers.

Structured, data-driven thinking scales companies. Should marketers adopt the same mindset? Sorin Patilinet joins WARC's David Tiltman to discuss his new book, Marketing Effectiveness: Applying Marketing Science for Brand Growth.

Reddit's ad revenue is forecast to grow 49.6% this year. WARC's Alex Brownsell and Celese Huang, with VCCP's Ayaz Hussain, discuss what Reddit offers marketers in search of organic community.

What do Apple, Disney and Pedigree have in common? They're all ecosystem brands. WARC's Anna Hamill and Catherine Driscoll discuss insights from The WARC Guide on how build a successful ecosystem brand, or partner with one.

With Labubus and K-Pop Demon Hunters offering escapism from the headlines, WARC's Rica Facundo explores the role of pop culture in soft power with Michael Patent (Culture Group) and Shilpa Sinha (McCann APAC).

Aussie telco Telstra has successfully implemented core effectiveness principles across its brand. CMO Brent Smart joins WARC's Anna Hamill to discuss Telstra's brand evolution.

Aussie telco Telstra has successfully implemented core effectiveness principles across its brand. CMO Brent Smart joins WARC's Anna Hamill to discuss Telstra's brand evolution.

A fierce debate has broken out about the definition of television in 2025. Should TV advertising be defined by format, device or media owner? WARC's David Tiltman and Alex Brownsell are joined by guest editor Omar Oakes to examine the evidence.

Les Binet and Sarah Carter - two of marketing's most influential thinkers - join the pod to discuss where effectiveness is now, and where it's going next. Hosted by WARC's David Tiltman.

In today's climate, consumers are more nervous to spend. Brands need to show real value and connection and new usage occasions can help lower price sensitivity, and curb sales decline. WARC's Vaniele Casimir and Ann Marie Kerwin share examples of brands making the most of this strategy.

Not all influencer content is equally valuable in driving revenue. Dan Wilson, Co-Founder/Chief Data Officer of Charlie Oscar, joins WARC's Paul Stringer to discuss keys to creator effectiveness, based on evidence from 30 brands.

How can marketers reconcile the need for growth with the need for sustainability? Award-winning brand strategist Benoit Wiesser, Sustainable Marketing Compass' Alexis Eyre, and former Dove CMO Alessandro Manfredi discuss why we need Effectiveness 2.0.

What are the big trends in creative effectiveness for 2025? WARC's John Bizzell and Anna Hamill examine the big narratives emerging from this year's Creative Effectiveness Lions.

Leo India is the world's top ad agency for effectiveness, according to the 2025 WARC Rankings. WARC's Rica Facundo talks to Amitesh Rao (CEO) and Rajdeepak Das (CCO Publicis Groupe South Asia) about embedding effectiveness into agency culture.

Canva's journey from startup to global design brand has been nothing short of extraordinary. Canva's Kristine Segrist, Global Head of Consumer Marketing, joins WARC's Anna Hamill to share how its marketing strategy evolved as the company has grown.

New research from Fospha explores how quickly e-commerce marketers can expect to see payback from long-term brand building activity. Sam Carter, Fospha's CEO, joins WARC's Alex Brownsell to share the findings.

Industry legend Sir John Hegarty joins to talk all things creativity, his AI optimism, reframing risk, and...Taylor Swift? Hosted by LIONS' Paul Kemp Robertson. Check out the video version on WARC's YouTube channel.

The decline of the open internet, the rise of sell-side curation, and the next era of brand safety. WARC's Paul Stringer is joined by Joe Root, CEO/co-founder of Permutive to discuss the biggest trends shaping programmatic advertising in 2025.

With eight $1 billion+ brands, Kraft Heinz's commitment to building creative platforms is essential to growth. Chief Growth Officer Diana Frost joins the pod to discuss how Kraft Heinz is rethinking marketing effectiveness. Hosted by WARC's Ann Marie Kerwin.

Brian Morrissey (The Rebooting) joins to discuss big shake-ups in media including the impact of AI, Trump 2.0, and new revenue models with WARC's Alex Brownsell and David Tiltman.

Mark Ritson goes off-script to answer listener questions about Byron Sharp's view on pricing, agency upheaval, creators, AI, brand mega-deals and more with WARC's David Tiltman. Check out the video version on WARCs YouTube channel.

More and more senior strategy leaders are leaving ad agencies to go independent. Tom Morton, Suzanne Powers and Faris Yakob join the pod to discuss what the indie life offers. Hosted by WARC's David Tiltman.

E.l.f Beauty has seen 24 consecutive quarters of sales growth and market share gains. CMO Kory Marchisotto joins to discuss how marketing has played an outsized role in e.l.f's growth. Hosted by WARC's Anna Hamill.

Retail media's questionable creativity credentials may be holding it back from securing a greater share of brand marketing budgets. Commentators Andrew Lipsman, Colin Lewis and Kiri Masters joined WARC at Cannes Lions to explore how the industry can respond.

Aussie insurance giant Suncorp knows a thing or two about resiliency: both as a 120+ year brand, and through helping its customers in the toughest of times. Mim Haysom, EGM - Brand & Marketing, joins WARC's Rica Facundo to discuss what effectiveness means to Suncorp.

It's a Contagious takeover episode! Unilever's Esi Eggleston Bracey talks about the company's marketing refresh, and TikTok star Eugene Healey (eugbrandstrat) discusses why brands want to turn up in culture with Contagious's Adam Richmond.

Instacart grew from a tiny start-up in 2012 to 82.3 million grocery orders in Q1 2025. CMO Laura Jones joins the pod to share how marketing played an important role in that growth. Hosted by Ann Marie Kerwin, Americas Editor, WARC Strategy.

Creative Strategy Lions jury president Pats McDonald and juror Yusuf Chuku share tips on what drives outstanding creative strategy, jury deliberations and much more with WARC's John Bizzell.

Shoppers around the world buy Unilever's Dirt Is Good laundry products 120 times per second. Tati Lindenberg, Chief Brand Officer for Dirt Is Good, joins to discuss localising a global masterbrand, partnerships with Arsenal FC and much more. Hosted by WARC's Anna Hamill.

2025 Creative Effectiveness Lions jurors Andrea Diquez (Global CEO, GUT) and Martin Beverley (CSO, Ace of Hearts) share insights into the jury's decision-making process, the campaigns that impressed them, and tips on how to win a Lion. Hosted by WARC's John Bizzell.

How Brene Brown quotes helped Mercado Libre win dozens of Lions, some real talk on creators and inside stories from a Lions jury room. Hosted by WARC's David Tiltman.Guests: Sean Summers, Chief Marketing Officer, Mercado Libre; Fernando Ribiero, Global Chief Strategy Officer, GUT; Anastasia Leng, CEO and Founder, CreativeX; John Bizzell, Head of Awards, WARC

Mind-blowing new research on reach promises to reshape media investment. We also discuss Love Bonito's brand growth story and keys to multimarket success.Guests: Felipe Thomaz, Associate Professor of Marketing at the University of Oxford; Stuart Bowden, Global Chief Strategy and Product Officer at WPP Media; Gurdeep Puri, Founding Partner at the Effectiveness Partnership; Andreas Krasser, CEO, DDB Hong Kong; Dione Song, CEO, Love Bonito

It's time to shake up how we think about creativity. Experts guests including System1, Heineken, Rob Campbell, Paula Bloodworth and Kantar drop by the pod with their perspectives on where creativity is going next.Guests: Paula Bloodworth, Founder and Chief Strategy Officer Alien Baby, Chief Marketing Officer of Idris Elba's IE7; Rob Campbell, Chief Strategy Officer, Colenso; Andrew Tindall, SVP, Global Partnerships, System1; Natasha Maharaj, Global International Brands Director, Heineken; Vera Sidlova, Global Creative Thought Leadership Director, Kantar

Brand building in a complex media landscape is the talk of the Croisette. Festival speakers including McDonalds, Spotify, Dr Grace Kite, the IPA, and Tracksuit join us to share about how to get it right.Guests: Michael Ainette, Chief Creative Officer, FCB New York; Rich Frankel, Global Creative Director, Spotify Advertising; Dr. Grace Kite, VP Analytic Partners; JJ Healan, VP of U.S. Marketing, Brand, Content & Culture; Laurence Green, Director of Effectiveness, IPA; Connor Archbold, Co-CEO of Tracksuit.

We're in Cannes! Expert speakers drop in to discuss unshittifying CX, the 'eye-watering' financial impact of dull media and how to unearth more insightful trends. Guests: Yael Cesarkas, Executive Strategy Director, R/GA; Dr Karen Nelson-Field, Founder, Amplified Intelligence; Adam Morgan, co-founder, eatbigfish; Amy Daroukakis, Founder, Culture Connectors. Hosted by Rica Facundo, Managing Editor - APAC, WARC.

Building influence in the C-suite, the creator takeover and 'unshittifying' CX... it's all happening at Cannes Lions 2025. WARC's David Tiltman and Anna Hamill discuss the big stories to watch at Cannes this year. Find out more about Creative Impact here.

Kidults, social fitness and the rise of conservative video... WARC's Adi Kishore and Stephanie Siew dig into entertainment and leisure trends marketers need to know.

Brand strategy has been 'enshittified', argues Richard Huntington, CSO of Saatchi and Saatchi, in his new book Feral Strategy. He speaks to WARC's Lena Roland about why marketers need to throw off the constraints of orthodoxy and dogma to fix bland and uninspiring work.

S4 Capital's Sir Martin Sorrell joins the pod to talk industry upheaval, AI, and how Asia is setting the pace for advertising's next era with WARC's Rica Facundo.WARC's report,The Pace Principle, is a landmark analysis and mythbusting guide built on consistent data from across Southeast Asia, Greater China, and India, to prove what marketing strategies work in dynamic markets like Asia to drive outsized impact. WARC Members get the full report along with practical insights to help CMOs and marketers of every level to apply these ideas to their own work, exemplary case studies, and a deck's worth of charts to help you drive growth in dynamic and diverse markets. If you're yet to subscribe, don't worry - you can also get a sample report here.