Brent Smart: Good Marketing Isn't Brave, It's Smart
For Telstra CMO Brent Smart, true courage in marketing isn't about bold stunts, ambitious campaigns, or radical creativity – the brave marketers are the ones avoiding risk.
“If it’s more commercially effective to create great work, then it’s not brave; it’s just smart,” he said.
Brent’s comments were made at Unmade’s Sydney Compass event, and cut against the industry narrative that courage is synonymous with creativity and bold brand statements.
For Brent, it’s braver to blend in – especially when standing out can make the biggest brand impact.
“The bravest marketers,” he emphasised, “are the ones making the boring stuff.”
As marketing budgets are trimmed, brands are under more pressure to produce campaigns that are not just memorable, but measurably effective.
Short-termism, as Brent described it, has become the industry norm, and marketers are increasingly beholden to financial departments that demand immediate returns.
But Brent warned against the pitfalls of short-sightedness, noting that “weaponising procurement” and squeezing agency partners too hard leads to mediocre work.
“The best commercial decision you can make is to get discretionary effort from your partners.”
Yet, with artificial intelligence dominating industry conversation, many marketers hope the technology will increase both productivity and creativity. Other industry figures remain sceptical.
Brent and Jasmin spoke at Unmade's Compass event in Sydney last night. Right to left: Brent Smart (Telstra CMO), Jasmin Bedir (Innocean Australia CEO), Louise Barrett (Newscorp MD - client partnerships), Peter Horgan (outgoing Omnicom CEO), and Tim Burrowes (Unmade publisher).
The Compass panel, moderated by Unmade's Tim Burrowes, also featured outgoing OMG boss Peter Horgan, News Corp's Lou Barrett, and Innocean CEO Jasmin Bedir. The latter called the ongoing obsession with AI as a business tool “the latest gold rush.”
“It will change production processes, but it won’t replace the human insights and creative effort that make marketing work,” she said.
Instead, she advocated for “assisted intelligence” – AI tools that empower humans at work. Data, too, is a double-edged sword.
According to Brent, it is a tool, not a guide, and marketers must remain in control of strategy.
“Data will help you do it, but data won’t tell you how to do it,” he said.
The key for Brent is to harness data without being shackled by it, using insights to inform decisions without losing sight of brand-building.
“Building a brand is an art form,” he stressed. “It’s what sets great marketers apart.”
He also highlighted a significant and often overlooked area of focus: internal brand advocacy.
At Telstra, a key part of launching a campaign involves inspiring employees with the same energy that goes into external branding efforts.
“Make your staff proud to work for the brand,” he said, noting that this internal alignment fuels a brand’s success and creates a work culture where employees feel engaged and respected.
In his view, effectiveness is a misunderstood metric, and he challenged marketers to focus on effectiveness, not just ROI. A six-second ad might save money but lacks the emotional impact of a 60-second narrative.
“Efficiency is a bad measure,” he said, advocating for deeper storytelling that resonates with consumers.
“A six-second bumper is a reminder, but a 60-second ad is a story. It changes how you feel about a brand.”
In an era of contraction and uncertainty, he believes brands that commit to creative excellence, cultivating strong partnerships, and building diverse, dedicated teams will stand out.
“If I can do it at Telstra, you can do it wherever you are,” he said with optimism, reflecting his belief that intelligent, strategic creativity isn’t brave – it’s a no-brainer.
He also called for marketers to share their knowledge and best practices across the industry. While he acknowledged that some may see this as giving away a competitive edge, he believes in lifting the entire field.
“I want the whole industry to be better.”
Outgoing Omnicom Media ANZ CEO Peter Horgan had a similar opinion, coming from an agency perspective.
"The role of agencies is to support CMOs in succeeding internally against their competitors,” Peter said.
“In times when our industry has been distracted by trying to compete with firms like McKinsey and BCG, we need to focus on delivering results that allow us to thrive in our own space.
“The emphasis should be on marketing, advocating for the customer, and building strong business cases for marketing investments within a company’s environment. I believe that’s a topic often discussed behind closed doors, with many signs pointing towards the need for more transparency.”
However, Jasmin doesn’t want to give away the secret sauce entirely.
“Where there is mystery, there is margin,” she said. “There's a lot of agencies also trying to survive … if you want to make it all super transparent, and everyone talks about their methods and looking on the table, would that be enough to wipe out some businesses?”
Jasmin also raised concerns about the industry’s diversity — or lack thereof. Too many brands are still driven by the same perspectives, she said, leading to a sameness in creative output.
“If we have the same group of people, we end up with the same output,” she said.
