The Reach Delusion: How Marketers Are Wasting Millions & What You Need To Know

In this compelling episode of That's What I Call Marketing, Conor Byrne sits down with Professor Felipe Thomaz, an Oxford-based academic whose research is reshaping how marketers approach media planning and campaign strategy. From his unconventional journey — starting in Brazil, moving through a myriad of industries, and landing at the University of Oxford — to his groundbreaking work on marketing effectiveness, Felipe shares insights that every marketer needs to hear.

Key topics include:

The Role of Media Synergies and Complementarity: Felipe explains why combining media channels isn’t just about reach but about leveraging their unique functionalities to achieve business outcomes.

Challenging Established Marketing Theories: Hear why Felipe’s data-driven research calls into question some widely accepted marketing principles, including those inspired by Byron Sharp.

AI and the Marketplace: Discover how artificial intelligence is not just transforming how marketers create campaigns but fundamentally changing how consumers buy and engage with products.

Campaign Effectiveness: Learn why only 1% of campaigns deliver exceptional results and how most fall short, along with strategies to break out of mediocrity.

Understanding Consumer Journeys: Felipe reveals insights from analysing over a million customer journeys, showing how different channels impact people based on their decision-making tendencies.

If you’re a marketer seeking an edge, this episode offers practical advice, evidence-backed insights, and a glimpse into the future of marketing. Whether you’re in brand management, media planning, or digital marketing, this conversation is your roadmap to outperforming the competition. Access the paper here https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3836621

00:42 Early Life and Career Path

02:37 Research Focus and Government Work

03:47 Marketing Insights and Strategies

04:20 The Power and Complexity of Marketing

08:00 Brand Awareness and Decay

10:06 Research and Publications

11:04 Challenging Established Marketing Theories

18:54 Campaign Efficiency and Optimization

27:38 The Client-Agency Dynamic

28:03 Oversimplification in Media Planning

28:25 The Importance of Honest Conversations

29:08 Channel Selection and Audience Targeting

30:09 Understanding Media Functionality

31:38 The Role of Different Channels

36:16 Avoiding the Scattergun Approach

39:07 Analyzing Media Strategies

42:21 Opportunities in Media Pricing

53:44 Future of Marketing and AI

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