The Real Role of a Chief Marketing Officer with Chris Moloney

TMI with Kevin Ryan

Chris Moloney, Chief Marketing Officer and Head of Partnerships for TaxSlayer, joins the show today. Chris shares his wisdom from his prior roles including CMO of CAN Capital, CEO of GREMLN Social Media, and Chief Marketing Officer for Wells Fargo Advisors, Experian, and Scottrade. Chris discusses exactly what he does inside his role, how companies can better face customer issues and challenges, and his experience using influencer marketing. Chris also shares what not to do when interviewing for a role, and why the Chief Digital Officer title might be dwindling down even further in the future.

Takeaways:

[2:50] Chris talks about an interview with Neiman Marcus where it may have just been a ploy to get him head-to-toe in their clothing. He didn’t get the job, but at least he looked great.

[11:08] The Chief Digital Officer is a nebulous title, but they do have the decision making power on how to structure the tech stack and optimize campaigns. Chris does see the title declining in popularity and if you have a Digital CMO who works with a CIO, that may be a better model.

[16:03] Just a few of the responsibilities of a Chief Digital Officer can include getting analytics in place, testing multiple websites and building out CMS.

[17:01] Even if the management is looking to change the structure and grow, there may be senior leadership that is averse to doing things differently.

[19:31] Chris spent the first three to six months of his job understanding the emotional play of his customers and how he may better get to know how his company is truly perceived by active users.

[24:56] Just picking up the phone and talking with a customer may seem like it’s gone out of style, but it’s an easy way to get to the bottom of a situation and determine whether or not it’s really an issue.

[42:06] Chris is a fan of using affiliates, but you have to make sure you can control the message and that they are representing your brand correctly.

[51:42] If you put “guru” or “rockstar” on your resume or LinkedIn, be ready for some extreme rapid-fire questioning on your interview.

Quotes:

• ● “You can’t be a good CMO now without being a good Chief Digital Officer.”
• ● “I’ve always tried to keep the business world and political world as far apart as possible.”
• ● “If you say you are an analytics guru, watch out.”
• ● “Please, no more pictures of you onstage speaking using a Britney Spears mic.”
• Mentioned in This Episode:
• Chris Moloney LinkedIn
• TaxSlayer
• John Oliver on Public Shaming
• @jordanbpeterson
• Biz Rate
• Chris Moloney