Ask The CMO: LG's Peggy Ang On The Need For 'Showtelling' And Improved EQ

All marketers today are focused on buzzwords such as hyper-personalization, human marketing, and the need to adapt to the emotion economy and age of the individual. What’s challenging however is figuring out how to harness these type of insights and areas of focus into meaningful actions that can make a measurable difference for a brand.

For my latest Ask the CMO column, a series dedicated to going behind the scenes with some of the world’s leading marketers to discuss latest challenges, opportunities and trends in marketing, I had the pleasure of speaking with Peggy Ang, VP of Marketing for LG Mobile Communications. Peggy is one of the world’s top marketers in technology, having worked at leading brands such as Samsung, Discovery and Sony. In full disclosure, I have known Peggy for many years and we worked together in a past life. That said, we haven’t caught up in ages, and I was super excited to hear about all that she’s been up to at LG Mobile. We discussed everything from her new LG V40 product launch, to brand purpose to emotional intelligence. Following is a recap of our conversation:

Billee Howard: Peggy, it’s so great to hear your voice. Tell me all about what you’ve been up to at LG and your thoughts in general on the changing face of marketing?

Peggy Ang:  Billee, can’t believe how long it’s been, so good to connect. So, marketing continues to evolve. I mean those things we did together in 2010 are now a thing of the past, right? I think marketing, especially in the year 2018 and onwards is becoming more high tech , yet it's also getting more high touch. The fact is as the technology gets more sophisticated with things like data analysis, data mining and predictive modeling, you ironically come to the realization that it's still all about the consumer and it's more than just names and numbers. It's also the experience and the emotional connection that you reach with your consumers.

So I think now people are getting back to the heart of what marketing is, and for all the big data and bets on technology, what it really boils down to is relationships with consumers and how real your connections are with them. I mean just when you think it is becoming more data driven, it's actually becoming conversely more tactile and relationship driven than ever before.

Howard: A lot of what you just said is a reiteration of much of the conversation out of AdWeek earlier this month.  I'd love to hear your thoughts on the emergence of human marketing, the need for hyper-personalization and what’s being called the “emotion economy.”

Ang: I was not able to get to AdWeek this week as we had a new product launch that I’ll discuss with you in a little bit, but I love those new buzzwords. Each of them deals with the individual person and a brand working to understand the consumer as well as their station in life. I would say since I joined LG a year ago, it has been a roller coaster. Our focus has been on how do we actually go beyond the buzzwords to take meaningful actions that make a measurable difference. Now there are new buzzwords, as you just mentioned to me, but it’s good to hear that the pieces we are working on will actually help in pushing the brand forward in the right direction. For me, what’s most important is how do we use all of these new ideas and insights to create true differentiation for LG.

Howard: Can you share some examples of new things you have executed since you arrived at LG last year that are making a real difference for the brand?

Ang: Sure. Yesterday we did our big launch event for the LG V40 ThinQ. When we created the strategy for it, we said at the start, how can we really demonstrate authenticity. We came up with our own buzzword of  'showtelling’ instead of storytelling to drive our ideas forward and bring them to life.  So the idea was simple. We have a phone that has five cameras and we said you know there's going to be at least a trillion photographs going to be taken this year of which over eighty percent will be taken from your phone. It's a verifiable fact and it's all about imagery so what do you do with that insight to make a difference?

Unlike the LG G7 ThinQ campaign where we took the approach of selecting a group of influencers in social media and created relationships with them around launch, this time we said let's talk about leading relevant communities. To do this we partnered with two climbers, Alex Honnold and Jimmy Chin and their communities of filmmakers and climbers. At our event last night, we didn’t do a PowerPoint overview of all the product features and attributes. We used the authenticity of our partners’ experience to tell our story.

We gave them the LG V40 and said you know what, test drive it, put it to the test. You do whatever you can with it and let's see what the photographs are. No guidelines, no what to do with the phone, just live your story and take the phone along for the ride. The phone has five cameras and It's easy to use. We trained them on the phones for about thirty minutes and said go with it.

The most amazing thing with the photos is that they were able to capture attention during a forty minute press conference through a breathtaking moment when we showed these spontaneous photographs that they took together when they were climbing. The gravity and depth displayed in the pictures, along with the passion they expressed, was the most powerful moment of our entire event. Of course you know Billee, we had our talking heads and I had my flashy video, but when those photos came up on a 7X12 big screen there was a gasp. In one photograph where you see the climber’s leg dangling you knew he was taking his own shot. It was incredible as people got to feel the product and understand it on a deeply personal and emotional level.

Howard: That is so cool. A lot of what you are talking about gets to the why as opposed to just the what…and an overall sense of brand purpose. What are your thoughts on folding purpose into your new role or how have you thought about that idea?

Ang: You know that's the one thing that we're still deciphering here as a corporation. LG, its purpose as a brand, is to create a society that is more mindful- that’s our CSR program. From a marketing standpoint, what we're looking at is how can we continue to enable people to do what they do best. Sounds very simple, but it’s true. We believe we're a technology company and we obviously seek to grow our business, but we're not just about the numbers of market share. We really believe that the technology we are creating will help consumers improve their lives.

So think of it this way: why five cameras on the new phone? People asked me that many times. In the end, we knew people don't want to miss the moment and if they had five cameras that work independently every camera would have a specific purpose. Can it have the clearest picture? Can I see more than what others are seeing? Creating a utility that captures truly special moments and ensures you don’t miss them. So we looked at those three basic things that consumers at the end of day want, and challenge any brand to provide, and we said how do we move forward? Do I think we now have the final answer to those questions? No, but as a brand we believe we are committed to keep taking that challenge forward. My job as a marketer now, from a purpose standpoint, is how can I enable people to do more of what they're doing, better, each and every day. As consumers are trying to figure out what LG’s role is in the category, and this David and Goliath story of smartphones, that's where marketing comes in. How do we provide the products that they want while also conveying to them that we are here to take the risk with them as they take those pictures and lead their lives.

Howard: Really cool and inspiring. Everything you’ve discussed is really driven by a desire to create deeply powerful emotional connections. Do you have thoughts on the importance of emotion or improved EQ for brands in the future?

Ang: EQ to me is more important than ever ironically as IQ is supposed to be taking over how we live our lives. You know artificial intelligence and virtual reality all deliver improved IQ and that’s great. But, at the end of the day, how those technologies come alive when people use them is really what puts EQ at the forefront.  For us, we don't look at it as like leading with our heart we're just leading with where the consumer is right now. The good news is EQ is something that has ebbed and flowed just because of all this noise about technology, and that's the nice thing about LG at this point, is that for all the things that the brand does related to technology, its essence as a brand since twenty years ago has been simply life's good. That line pretty much covers everything about the emotion that people have about their lives. This type of thinking allows us to really create relationships with our consumers on an emotional level and figuring out how to do that is always a challenge, but that’s why our job as marketers continues to be interesting right?.

Howard: I would think there would be both challenges and opportunities around the fact that mobile devices are the heartbeat of everyone's daily life. It’s the screen that everyone's using. In having the enormous responsibility for marketing that particular piece of hardware, there are probably a lot of opportunities with that, but challenges as well. What are your thoughts?

Ang: Absolutely. You know there's a yin and yang and it's markers like us, especially you, who see the challenges, yet look at the opportunities more and that's why we get along! (laughs) What’s important to note besides that, is that the challenges are very simple. It's a David and Goliath world right? We are the number three brand in smartphones and we have to find our voice and not leave it to the technology alone, whose voice is still about speed, feeds and technology alone.

Marketers like me are coming onboard to say nope that's not what's going to drive us. As technology gets more parity there are also more choices and the goal is to figure out how do you stand out, just like any human being when you're at a party, for example. What you have to do is offer not just a device but a connecting thread between your brand and their brand. You know how savvy consumers are now as each individual believes they are a brand unto themselves. Especially the next generation. You know I always envy the millennials and the next generation because they really come into the world saying I've got a brand and I want to live that brand to the fullest. That's what's happening right now. It is that determination and confidence that can allow brands like LG to break through.

I just had a meeting with my senior team two days ago and I told them all of this and said all I see is opportunity. Many people here want us to focus solely on what is the purpose of the device. I say, wrong question. It's not the purpose of the device, It's the purpose of the brand and why they have to hold it in their hands every day.

Howard: That’s why they are so lucky to have you! (laughs) You know when we last worked together you were at the market incumbent. Now you are leading a challenger. What best practices can you share to think about when you are a challenger brand?

Ang:  One thing: You are a consumer marketer, you represent the brand. What you have to do you is always remember that’s who you’re here to serve. That bode well for me when I started at my old company, they were a challenger brand that grew into a market giant. When people ask me why I came to LG, I say it’s because LG was actually one of the brands we kind of usurped back in the day. I'm still trying to push, and that to me, taking on that type of challenge is what makes me love my job and what I do as a marketer.  LG has a DNA of winning, which is a strong indicator that we can get our market leadership back. But, winning now, in 2018, is different from winning in 2006.

The last time they were leaders, there was a whole different generation of consumers. Marketers like me know you can’t show a consumer you are a one trick pony. What used to work before, won’t work today. In the past a more static event, like the 3D staged concert in Times Square we did together, would work, but today a disruptive event where we put a dishwasher water park in New York City is what makes the difference and drives a real connection with consumers.

Creativity fuels it all, focus must always be on the consumer. Most of the time you're right, you have some misses, but at the end of the day if you follow your gut and your gut is with the consumer and what they think, you have the best chance to win.