37 US Brands with New CMOs (Q2 2023)

As we know, CMOs have been known to switch roles more often than the other C-suites. Moving to different companies allows CMOs to gain diverse experiences, work with different teams and industries, and enhance their skill sets. Additionally, the fit between a CMO and a company’s culture is crucial for success. If there’s a mismatch in values, work environment, or leadership style, it can lead to dissatisfaction and prompt a CMO to seek opportunities elsewhere. As the marketing landscape evolves, so too do the requirements placed on these leaders.

Now that we know the why, here’s a sneak peek at who some of these new CMOs are. Keep reading for additional insights on three US brands that have recently hired — plus additional information such as each brand’s spending power, spending insights, and agency relationships…

1)  Bojangles

• Estimated media spend: $10,834,970
• CMO: Tom Boland

Sales lead: Reach out to the new CMO to offer ad space and inquire about agency opportunities. In March, Bojangles hired Barstool Sports’ marketing VP, Tom Boland, as the fast food chain’s new CMO. Boland is responsible for media planning, creative partnerships, finding new customers, and coordinating with other departments. Incumbent CMO Jackie Woodward will remain with the company until September to help with the transition.

Bojangles’ target demographic: Male Gen-X and millennial sports fans

Bojangles will likely:

• Continue increasing ad spend
• Review the current agency roster/hire additional assistance
• Focus on growth (recent growth VP hire)

Broadcast insights (TV ad creative spend, effectiveness, impressions, and performance)

• YTD spend: Bojangles spent about $255.1k on national TV ads YTD after not allocating any budget toward this channel during the same time period of 2022.
• 2021-2022 spend: Full-year spend jumped from $23.1k in 2021 to $395.5k in 2022.
• Ad programming: It placed ads during programming such as College Basketball, Women’s College Basketball, O’Neill Outside, The Rally, and World Poker Tour.

Digital and social insights (digital ad spend, effectiveness, impressions, and performance)

• YTD spend: Bojangles spent around $780.3k on digital display ads YTD, an 8% increase from $728.7k spent in this channel during the same time period of 2022.
• YTD data: 103.4m impressions via Facebook (68%), Instagram (29%), YouTube (1%), and desktop display (1%).
• 2021-2022 spend: Full-year spend increased by 22% from $4.1m in 2021 to $5m in 2022.
• Ad location: It placed 100% of these ads directly onto sites such as facebook.com, instagram.com, youtube.com, wsoctv.com, and wistv.com.

Additional channel insights: Bojangles also invests in OOH and local broadcast.

Agency analysis: CMO hires are the number one sign of potential agency shifts. Current roster:

• EP+Co. Headquarters: creative AOR
• AC&M Group: multicultural AOR
• In-house: media

2)  Nissan

• Estimated media spend: $366,321,864
• CMO: Marisstella Marinkovic

Sales Lead: Effective March 2023, Marisstella Marinkovic is the US CMO at Nissan. Marinkovic joined from Kia, where she was the director of marketing operations and strategy. She will now lead Nissan’s following duties: marketing communications and media; data innovation and customer experience; brand value; customer trust and insights; and brand and product marketing. Marinkovic’s work will support Nissan’s NEXT transformation plan to build a stronger future for Nissan’s American business. She succeeds Allyson Witherspoon, Nissan’s incumbent CMO of four years, who now leads global marketing while based in Japan. This announcement comes on the heels of the launch of a new flat logo.

Nissan’s target demographic: Male Gen-Z and millennials, especially sports enthusiasts

Nissan will likely:

• Shift strategy
• Continue increasing digital spend
• Conduct agency reviews

Broadcast insights (TV ad creative spend, effectiveness, impressions, and performance)

• YTD spend: So far this year, Nissan has allocated roughly $17.3m toward national TV commercials, a far cry from the roughly $45.1m allocated within the same 2022 timeframe.
• Last year: The automaker allocated around $169.9m toward this channel last year after allocating % more, around $201.7m, in 2021.
• 2023 ad programming: Nissan’s 2023 commercials have targeted male sports enthusiasts watching shows such as NBA Basketball, College Basketball, NFL Football, College Football, and SportsCenter.

Digital and social insights (digital ad spend, effectiveness, impressions, and performance)

• YTD spend: The company has spent approximately $20.7m on digital ads YTD, 22% more than the approximately $17m spent by this point last year.
• YTD data: Since the beginning of 2023, Nissan has earned around 1.9b digital impressions via Facebook (37%), desktop video (25%), YouTube (14%), Instagram (11%), desktop display (10%), and mobile display (3%) ads.
• The company has placed most of this year’s desktop video ads site direct onto destinations such as missyusa.com (74%), Twitch, yahoo.com, backchina.com, and cbssports.com.
• Last year: In 2022, Nissan’s estimated full-year spend decreased by 25% to $67.6m from that of $80.8m in 2021.

Agency insights: Get on Marinkovic’s radar in case her hire precedes agency reviews. Current roster:

• TBWA \ Chiat \ Day: Creative, digital, and social AOR
• GMR Marketing: Creative and experiential AOR
• Critical Mass: Digital AOR
• The Tombras Group: Digital AOR
• OMD: Media AOR
• fluent360: Multicultural AOR
• imre: PR AOR

3)  Serta Simmons Bedding