Timea Kadar, Chief Marketing Strategist, Francis Cooper Marketing Consultancy
Timea wanted to be a marketer since she was a teenager to help her dad's business. After completing her BA and MA in marketing, she worked as a CMO at large corporations. She is currently the Chief Marketing Strategist at Francis Cooper, helping companies of all sizes be successful with their marketing activities. She is the author of two books (Your Story - the art of business storytelling and The USP is You - Build your Personal Brand). Timea won the Best Marketing Mentoring Specialist - London 2021 Award. She is a fellow member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing and the Association of Business Mentors. Timea is a trustee at the Time and Talents, a local charity in Rotherhithe, working on equal chances for everyone in the community.
What is your favourite social media platform, and why?
LinkedIn because I consider it as an online networking platform. It has the highest engagement, and I meet amazing people and build great connections. For private purposes, I enjoy Instagram the most; it's like an endless photo album.
Tell us about you and your current role or area of interest.
I mentor the CEOs and marketing teams of companies to plan and execute their marketing strategy. I meet them every month and act as an interim marketing director to advise on their activities. I love doing it, as this way, both parties are more accountable and seeing them succeed feels amazing. I also deliver marketing-related training to teams, including content marketing, copywriting, LinkedIn or personal brand building.
What do you like about your career or area of focus?
I'm in love with marketing even after 21 years! I love how it constantly changes, I can always learn new things, but some of the core fundamentals are the same. Mentoring and training give me the joy of seeing others succeed, which eventually feels much better than our own success.
What is the best advice you have ever received?
To build on my strengths and become outstanding at those rather than trying to focus on bringing my weaknesses to a mediocre level. It helped me let the pressure go that I should be focusing on developing everything because it's impossible.
What inspires you, motivates you, or helps you to move forward?
I always have new ideas, and it motivates me to see how these evolve and how they work in practice. So many things to look forward to.
What are you proud of in your life so far?
I'm very proud of still being here, in the same profession after 21 years. Having been able to keep up with the latest changes (just completed a course on Tik Tok), but being loyal to the basic principles (giving value). I'm proud of the results, achievements, but also the learning curves, the failures. And most of all, the relationships I have made.
What is your preferred way to meet new people/network?
I use LinkedIn strategically, attend a range of networking events offline and online, join Clubhouse events and conferences. I follow a structured way of finding out what others think and need and trying to help first. I love curated groups like the Business Leaders' Family and Language Professionals' Networking Event. The quality of members is outstanding. I also started my own networking group, London Marketing Club, which we take to private business clubs to meet their members.
What skills or qualities do you feel have helped you?
Empathy, the ability to listen and the willingness to help.
What do you wish you had known when you started out?
That not everybody is a giver, there are some takers, and it's good to recognise them on time.
Who do you most admire in business, academic or creative circles and why?
I really admire those people around me who launch new products, run events, update their business model and do something for their growth every day, no matter what. They are my heroes, and I take inspiration from them. I follow Ann Handley, an amazing content marketer, her biweekly newsletters are legendary, and even she still takes time to keep in touch with people who message her. Then there's Vanessa Vallely OBE, and I had the pleasure of interviewing her; it's fascinating how she followed her dream and now helps other women do that with WeAreTheCity.
Outside of your professional/work area, what hobbies or interests do you have or what other areas of your life are of real importance to you?
It might sound like a cliche, but spending time with my family helps me switch off. I work hard, play hard, and when I'm with them, I don't think of work. We love skiing, cycling, geocaching. I have a passion for exploring the unbeaten track. I used to dance Argentine Tango, both the music and the dance are fascinating. I write short stories, long stories, anything, and I can never be too tired to write.
Has the pandemic had a positive or a negative effect on you and/or your business, and how have you been managing it?
If we look at the numbers, it had a positive impact: as I deliver my service online, so I could go on with that, and in the pandemic, more companies realised they need a solid marketing strategy. But if I look at the human side of it, which I always do: I couldn't go on with the offline events, training courses and speaking gigs are not the same online, and it was heartbreaking to see so many great businesses fall. Online meetings and networking have helped a lot to feel closer to each other, and I started daily jogging and lost 6 kilos which I have tried to do unsuccessfully for years:)
Do you have a mentor or have you ever mentored anyone?
I do mentor as part of my job, but I also mentor on a voluntary basis. There are great programs where I met amazing mentees: the University of Westminster, LMF Network and the Chartered Institute of Marketing.
What advice would you have for someone looking to get into the same area of work or interests?
It's good to do some studies - not necessarily university - to get the basic principles right. Then learn by practice, marketing is not really an academic profession. The best is to start working at a company as part of a team to see the whole process. Find a place where they focus on results. Build your portfolio. And do pet projects. It's so easy to experiment with a social media channel, writing a blog, setting up a website and see how these things work. Then results sell you.
What do you feel is the most common reason for people failing or giving up?
Because they think there's a golden bullet to success. That one campaign, or ad or post. That will solve EVERYTHING. And when it doesn't, they are discouraged and say it doesn't work. When you can embrace that not everything will work for the first time - or at all - then you can be successful.
Is there a phrase, quote or a saying that you really like?
It matches the above question: when you're in hell, keep going. We don't talk a lot about failures (it has fortunately changed now in the pandemic), but everybody without exception has worse periods. If we stop there, we stay there. I love the challenge side of it and thinking hard about what could be done to get out.
What companies, brands, or institutions do you like or do you think are getting it right?
I love Hopin, the leading virtual conference platform. They are growing so fast and are great at community building. And the speed networking function is awesome. I follow the communication of new generation banks like Monzo, Starling, Tide and insurtech startups. They are living testament to the fact that just because it’s finance, it can sound human and be human. Catapult UK is a brilliant accelerator for tech startups with exciting events and a very nice office. Vitality is a great example of how the brand can have a positive impact on its customers' lives. Through their partnerships with Apple and WW, they change the way people live. I like to study Grammarly for storytelling in a seemingly boring subject that we thought belongs to school only. And if anybody wants to be inspired about customer care and what premium means without feeling intimidated, they should go to Fortnum and Mason.
How do you define success, and what lessons have you learned so far that you could share with our audience/readership?
Success means freedom, and freedom doesn't necessarily equal the title, salary, size of business or possessions. It's the freedom to do what I want, how I want with whom I want. And to share success with others.