Marketing with Purpose Kit: Traditional CMO vs. The Category Architect

**SPEAKER_2** (0:04)
The Bliss Business Podcast, the show about empathy, connection and consciousness in business. Today's episode is brought to you by Zero Company, your paid search, social media, and programmatic ad experts.

**Stephen Sakach** (0:18)
Welcome back to the Bliss Business Podcast Series, Marketing with Purpose. This is the show where we explore how to build brands that connect deeply, communicate authentically, and grow with intention. I'm Stephen Sakach here with my co-host Tullio Siragusa and Mike Liwski. Hey, guys. Hey, Stephen.

**Tullio Siragusa** (0:37)
We're here on purpose.

**Stephen Sakach** (0:39)
All right. Yes, we are. So in today's episode, we're going to explore a shift happening in the world of marketing leadership from the traditional CMO to the category architect. What's the difference, and what does it have to do with purpose-driven marketing? Let's unpack it.

**Tullio Siragusa** (0:59)
So let's start.
I'm going to cut that out. Let's start by being honest about something. The role of the traditional CMO has been in a bit of an identity crisis. In fact, for years, CMOs were measured by short-term metrics. Leads, conversions, cost per click, ad spend efficiency. If you're in a B2B company, maybe how well you did with analysts and things like that. But the job has become very tactical, executional, and in fact, very often reactive.

**Mike Liwski** (1:37)
Yeah, Tullio, it does feel like it's in a sad state. So exactly as you mentioned, and really traditional CMOs have often found themselves as glorified campaign managers or scrambling to prove ROI for the board, on some 90-day cycle trying to hit some earning cycle or earnings report. Then in the process of that, they lose the opportunity to really lead the bigger narrative of the organization, the why that company exists. And unfortunately, they also miss out on the opportunity for the movement that is really behind the brand.

**Stephen Sakach** (2:18)
Yeah, and this is where many brands go flat. They kind of sound like everyone else, right? They compete on features, on discounts, on speed, but not on meaning. And meaning is really where loyalty lives, and that's where evangelists are made from your brand.

**Tullio Siragusa** (2:36)
Exactly, and the problem isn't necessarily the CMOs, it's the expectations that have been put on them, but it goes both ways. So what's the alternative?
Well, the alternative is the category architect. This is the purpose drew marker who isn't just trying to win a market, they're actually trying to shape one in some cases, or in other cases reshape one. So they're not just selling to an existing category, they're defining a brand new category based on the belief system that and worldview are fundamental human insight that is unique to the brand and unique to the needs of the customers or prospects they've identified in that marketplace.

**Mike Liwski** (3:22)
You hit the nail on the head, Tullio. That's the key difference right there, right? That the category architect is really building a movement behind their brand. They don't just say, here's why our product is better than the next person's, right? They say, here's what's broken in this particular industry, and here's a better way forward for handling that. It's really an invitation to the customers, right? To the whole marketplace to join something that's bigger than just that one single purchase.

**Stephen Sakach** (3:54)
Yeah, this is where purpose becomes powerful because when you architect a category around your why, you position your brand as a mission, not just a vendor. So people don't compare you side by side with others. You're not one of many. You're the only one doing it the way you do it, right? So let's look at a few examples. Think about what Salesforce did with the end of software. They didn't market themselves as a better CRM. They created a new category of cloud-based business platforms. The tagline was clear, bold and purpose-driven, no software. That's architecture.

**Mike Liwski** (4:34)
A home run for sure. So now let's consider another brand, Liquid Death, which many of you might be familiar with. I know it's certainly our kids are, and what they're doing. They don't just sell water, they sell an attitude, a movement against plastic waste, a parody of extreme brand building without a doubt.
They've architected a category that said, water can be punk rock and definitely stand out in that marketplace. So whether you love it or not, you without a doubt remember it.

**Tullio Siragusa** (5:07)
Exactly. That's what makes these examples stick, is that they're rooted in a belief, not just the business plan. That belief becomes the rallying cry for the brand and the magnetic pull for the audience. Even Steve Jobs was famous for this. You know, with the commercials, the crazies are willing to, the creative ones willing to change the world. Their product wasn't even that great at the time, but they created a community of creative people and fun people and those who are willing to break the rules. And that community paid off big time.