David Ferreira, CM, Manager, City Marketing and Planning at The City of Mississauga explains why he is fascinated with human behaviour, what attracted him to marketing, the valuable lessons he learned from the pandemic, and why developing a brand story, logo and visual identity for Mississauga was and still is the most rewarding moment of his career.

Ethics, Standards and Continuous Learning

The Chartered Marketer program elevates the discipline of marketing—internally and externally—by creating a consistent and rigorous pathway for professional development. The emphasis on ethics, standards, and continuous learning provides the marketing profession with a level of integrity and credibility that is vital in today’s ever-changing landscape.

Human Behaviour and the Nature of Marketing

I have always been fascinated with human behaviour—how people think and how their values and perceptions influence their actions. Market research is interesting because when you combine it with existing attitudes and potential opportunities, you can reveal insights to build brand identities, tell compelling narratives, generate awareness, and influence behaviour.

The other element that appealed to me was the interdisciplinary nature of marketing. The best and most effective campaigns seamlessly combine research, design, media, public relations, advertising and other disciplines to promote and reach an audience with a targeted message. When I joined the public sector, I realized I could use these skills and tools anywhere to build successful place brands and drive awareness and behavioural change for social goods, such as taking climate action, improving road safety, communicating public health information, and so on.

Taking the Next Step

Allen Saunders said it best in 1957 when he wrote, “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.” The same is true of a person’s career. There are big moments in one’s career, but the truth is that every decision you make—whether big or small—is a building block for your personal brand.

Are you willing to:
• Help colleagues?
• Take risks?
• Step outside your comfort zone?
• Embrace new challenges?

There will be times when important career decisions must be made, but your daily actions will determine whether you are prepared and well-positioned to take the next step.

 

The Right Channels

With the continued hyper-targeting of content, the fragmentation of audiences and the ever-expanding volume of content, the ability to gain the attention of our audiences is the greatest challenge we face as marketers. We must identify the right channels/platforms and align and match them with the correct format, message, and time of day to ensure the target audience consumes the message. If you can achieve that feat, you will retain the consumers’ attention while your competitors search for ways to pull them in their direction.

Effective and Timely

The best way to stay up-to-date on marketing trends is to stay well-rounded and current on popular culture and world events. To be effective and timely, marketers must understand how opinions, perceptions, and values evolve into the broader world. Regarding marketing trends, I have always valued the thoughts and insights of my networks and turned to industry organizations like the CMA and the valuable webinars, courses, and events they hold throughout the year.

Core Strategic Function

The growth in marketing’s importance in both the private and public sectors has reshaped how marketers view their role(s) within their teams. Marketing is increasingly a core strategic function, and the CMO is increasingly seen as someone who helps shape an organization’s strategic direction.

Learning New Ways

The pandemic was the biggest challenge I have faced in my career. Learning new ways of working and keeping a team engaged while isolated and working alone was challenging. The pandemic also taught us a valuable lesson that while change can be uncomfortable at first, over time, what was once out of the norm can quickly become standard practice that we can’t live without.

Defining Moment

I’ve had several achievements I am proud of, however the most rewarding was the development of the City of Mississauga’s new brand in 2014. Leading an internal project team and working with an external consultant, we had to identify the defining characteristics of Mississauga’s brand story and develop a new logo and visual identity. Through an extensive consultation process that brought together the feedback and input of residents, businesses, visitors, community partners, and staff, we were able to articulate a brand narrative that is clear, compelling and uniquely Mississauga.

Mississauga’s brand success is due to its feeling as fresh and modern today as it did when it launched ten years ago. The City of Mississauga has been recognized nationally and internationally as a leader in place branding. As the brand has evolved over the last ten years, we’ve learned many valuable lessons. Most importantly, the work of place branding and city building is never complete, and it’s critical that both remain aligned. As the city develops and changes, so must the brand. As Mississauga celebrates its 50th anniversary, I’m excited to see the brand continue to flourish and grow.

Engage and Empower

The marketing trend that excites me the most is the ability of marketing to engage people, raise awareness and empower audiences to act in a way that increases the social good. Societies around the world are facing several significant opportunities and challenges that have the potential to transform how we live, work and play.

Enabling residents to make informed decisions and take positive actions to address these issues will be critical – and marketing will always have an important role to play.

David Ferreira, CM
Manager, City Marketing and Planning at The City of Mississauga