5 Minutes with… Suzie Shaw
Suzie Shaw is a Greenpeace assembly member, a guest lecturer at Sydney University, founder of SWIMM Australia (Senior Women in Media and Marketing) and the CEO of We are Social Australia.
While at We are Social, she has worked with clients such as Samsung, TikTok, Zip, Kayo Sports, Adidas, and Netflix. Remaining at the forefront of the social media game, Suzie and We are Social continue to create content that draws attention from press media all around the world.
In her free time, she writes everything she has learnt about being a working mother with teenagers on her popular blog, What Do I know?
Suzie caught up with LBB’s Casey Martin to expand on her work life balance, why staying ahead of the curve is necessary in the social world, and how being a member of Greenpeace affects her day-to-day life.
LBB> What inspired you to start SWIMM Australia, and what impact have you seen it have in the Industry?
Suzie> When I returned to Sydney after living in London for 14 years, I found there were horrifically few women in leadership positions in Australia. So, inspired by some great networking and mentoring groups in London, I set up SWIMM (Senior Women in Media and Marketing) with a couple of industry mates. It’s been invaluable in terms of building a network of like-minded women who support and inspire each other, through a series of events that have featured speakers like Kath Viner, founding editor of Guardian Australia (and now the Guardian’s first ever female editor in chief), Allegra Spender, MP for Wentworth, and David Gonski, to name a few.
LBB> As an active member of Greenpeace, how do you balance your passion for environmental activism with your responsibilities as CEO of We Are Social?
Suzie> I’m a member of Greenpeace’s General Assembly which is a voluntary position and involves supporting their board, as well as their incredible executive leadership team.
In the grand scheme of things, it’s something I’m passionate about, so it’s no trouble at all to balance alongside my professional responsibilities.
Greenpeace is laser-focused on climate action and has been extremely effective at campaigning for meaningful change in Australia in the face of what is a climate emergency for our country. They’ve been instrumental in getting AGL, who were responsible for 8% of all emissions in our country, to shift their strategy away from fossil fuels, as well as lobbying 20 of Australia’s largest businesses to commit to switching to renewable energy by 2025.
Quite frankly it’s been a privilege to be able to support them in any way I can.
LBB> What trends do you see emerging in the social media landscape, and how do you anticipate We Are Social adapting to stay ahead of the curve?
Suzie> Social is an extremely dynamic space, with constant change and innovation, so it’s critical to track trends, platform changes, and consumer behaviour. We do this constantly with our team of dedicated social strategists and cultural and quantitative insight teams, publishing data and reports internally and externally to help our team and our clients stay ahead of the curve.
The most significant shift in the last five years has been the emergence of TikTok. It’s now used by over 8.5 million Australians, has an extremely high open rate, and the average time spent on-platform is nearly 30 hours per month. Additionally, it’s increasingly attracting more mature audiences, who are consuming high volumes of a variety of entertainment content.
It’s become a key platform in the lineup of channels we’re employing for brands, as both an owned and paid channel, and it has introduced a very diverse set of creators to the social landscape.
Another key feature of the landscape is the creator economy. Creators are the new generation of publishers, and have built large and engaged audiences, so collaborating with them effectively is critical to reaching audiences. Unlike working with a traditional media owner, which is a relatively straightforward pay-to-play scenario, integrating authentically with creators is an art, and one we’ve been honing over the last 13 years. Creators can be a powerful gateway to large or niche communities, and marketers need to navigate this carefully to ensure they get the most out of the partnerships.
Another exciting opportunity is gaming, which we see as the next frontier in social. It’s now a mainstream activity enjoyed regularly by 3 in 4 Australians, across all ages and genders. To respond to this trend, last year we launched We Are Social Gaming, a specialist practice that helps brands understand where and how to make the most of this opportunity.
LBB> In your experience as a leader in the advertising industry, what do you think are the key skills and qualities required to succeed in this field?
Suzie> Ultimately, we’re consultants, spanning many industries, brands and challenges, which is part of the joy of the job, but it means you have to be good at knowing a little about a lot. This requires one to be an agile thinker and have an ability to skate across a great breadth of information, and then – when necessary – dive deep very quickly.
You also need to be versatile in terms of getting the best out of different types of people.
Finally, it can be high-pressured and relentless, so you have to be quite resilient.
LBB> How have you seen the role of social media evolve over the course of your career?
Suzie> It’s gone from being an afterthought to the main event for many consumers, and hence brands. Once free, it’s now very much a paid channel and the number of platforms, formats, and use-cases have ballooned. As a result, social media has become a complex yet critical marketing capability.
LBB> How has the customer experience evolved because of social media, and where do you see it going?
Suzie> A lot is happening around social media and commerce, with AR, interactive shopping experiences, virtual influencer collaborations, live shopping events and shoppable posts, creating new ways for marketers to reach their consumers and add value to their shopping experience.
Again, the creator economy has really impacted the way people discover brands. When carefully aligned to the category, brand or product, creators have the power to influence like a highly effective sales assistant. As a result, these creators are now recognising their worth and increasingly monetizing their profiles and building their own branded empires. For their fans and followers, they are becoming the new power-brands.
LBB> What advice would you give to your younger self?
Suzie> It’s a marathon, not a sprint. Don’t be in a hurry to get there, and recognise there’s lots to learn along the way.
When shit hits the fan, write down what you learnt from it, as that’s often all you can get out of a bad experience.
When you’re feeling stressed, actively try to step back and take a ten-thousand-foot view to gain perspective
