TWICM 220: Make Your Mark Ep 2 with Stephanie Bell of Mercedes Ireland

Make Your Mark: Stephanie Bell, Head of Marketing for Mercedes-Benz in Ireland joins That’s What I Call Marketing to discuss building commercial credibility, making a global brand relevant locally and earning support for ambitious marketing.

You’ll hear what “speaking the language of the business” actually looks like, how Stephanie secured backing for The Traitors Ireland partnership and why building relationships with future buyers matters alongside delivering sales today.

When sales fall, pausing marketing can seem like the obvious response. Stephanie shares how she challenged that thinking by starting with the revenue target, working back to the number of customers needed and explaining how marketing would help deliver them.

That commercial grounding runs through a career spanning Diageo, Heineken, FMCG, not-for-profit and automotive. It also shaped her approach to The Traitors Ireland: a partnership the business initially turned down, which went on to deliver almost 30 minutes of on-screen car exposure. Stephanie discusses the 40% year-on-year growth in GLC sales that followed, the lessons from the first series and the creation of four locally produced Irish TV ads for the second.

In this episode, we cover:

– What commercial and trade marketing roles taught Stephanie about customers, margins and making a case for investment.

– Working on Orchard Thieves and adapting lessons from Diageo and Heineken to businesses where marketing has to earn its influence.

– Securing local and global approval for The Traitors Ireland, with conviction rather than certainty.

– Why Irish creative and cultural relevance matter, even when you have a globally recognised luxury brand.

– Balancing immediate sales with future demand across Mercedes-Benz and BYD, while responding to electrification and changing buyer behaviour.

– Making professional development part of the working day and helping a team build its skills and confidence.

A useful listen for marketers interested in brand strategy, sponsorship effectiveness, commercial impact, global and local marketing, marketing leadership and career development.

That’s What I Call Marketing is the podcast for marketers who care about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.

Follow the show for more conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, professors, authors, thinkers and practitioners.

Find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.com

MAKE YOUR MARK | IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE MARKETING INSTITUTE OF IRELAND

This is episode two of our three-part Make Your Mark series, created in partnership with the Marketing Institute of Ireland. The series explores different routes through a marketing career and how marketers make their mark through expertise, confidence, continued learning and the impact of their work.

The Marketing Institute of Ireland supports marketers through its competency framework, professional assessment and certification, CPD and training.

Find out more: https://mii.ie

TIMESTAMPS

02:55 Stephanie’s path from commercial roles into marketing

04:47 Learning brand marketing at Diageo and Heineken

06:15 Orchard Thieves and challenging the cider category

07:56 Bringing big-company experience into smaller businesses

10:02 “Sales are down”: making the commercial case for marketing

12:26 Building credibility with commercial stakeholders

13:40 From FMCG and not-for-profit into automotive

15:33 Managing Mercedes-Benz in Ireland: global brand, local market

18:50 The Traitors Ireland: taking the risk and securing support

22:23 Creating Irish TV ads for the second series

23:48 Conviction rather than certainty

25:08 Balancing current sales and future buyers

27:52 Electrification and the better-informed car buyer

28:38 Developing your own skills and supporting your team

32:27 Challenging “we’ve always done it that way”

34:27 Winning Best Entertainment Sponsorship

That’s What I Call Marketing is where marketers come for real conversations about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.

Hosted by Conor Byrne, the show features conversations with CMOs, marketing leaders, agency leaders, authors, thinkers and practitioners about what good marketing looks like in practice.

Listen, follow and find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.com

Connect with Conor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrneirl/

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