How to earn the board’s respect

This newsletter comes from the hosts of The Marketing Architects, a research-first show answering your biggest marketing questions. Find us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts!

This week, we're exploring what it takes to earn respect in the boardroom with Kimberly Gardner, CMO of Tractor Supply Company. From financial fluency to customer obsession, she shares how marketers can speak the language that matters to leadership. 

—Elena  

Nearly 7 in 10 marketers believe the industry lacks financial fluency.         

Research from Marketing Week shows only 12% of marketers say their teams are “definitely strong” in financial skills. Meanwhile, just one in five CMOs have truly collaborative relationships with their CFOs. 

How to earn your seat at the table.                      

Respect in the boardroom isn't earned through creative awards or industry accolades. It comes from understanding what actually drives business results. 

Kimberly Gardner's approach at Tractor Supply offers listeners a masterclass in marketing leadership: 

1. Start with business outcomes first. Every campaign should begin with clear financial goals like traffic, transactions, and revenue, not creative concepts.
   
2. Speak the language of investment. Frame marketing spend as investments with expected returns rather than costs.
   
3. Measure what matters to the business. Track customer lifetime value, basket size, retention rates, and how marketing ladders up to P&L impact.
   
4. Integrate brand and performance. Great brand work should drive retail action. Every performance piece should enhance brand perception. The separation is artificial.
   
5. Stay customer obsessed. Every decision should pass the test: "How does this help our customer?" Business results follow customer obsession. 

Listen in on our discussion.

“Over two-thirds of marketers think there is ‘room for improvement’ on financial fluency”     

This Marketing Week article examines the importance of financial fluency and how they enable you to speak the language of the boardroom and earn respect at the executive level. 

Read the article.

Start with business outcomes.       

“Marketing is not an expense. It's an investment that should generate measurable returns. " 

— Philip Kotler, Marketing Professor and Author