One of the first things that attracted Kelly Campbell to the role of Hulu CMO was the opportunity to drive growth. And that’s precisely what she’s done with subscribers up 60% within the past 18 months, going from 17 million to more than 28 million. Kelly first started her career in finance before spending 12 years at Google (one of which was in Japan), sharpening her leadership skills and falling in love with marketing.
“I fell in love with the functional role of marketing where you get to bring it together with the human psychology. You get to be creative… and you play a pivotal role in driving business forward.”
That love for marketing and the opportunity to help Hulu play a role in shaping culture was also a major draw and an area where the brand has thrived under Kelly’s leadership. From partnering with the World Record Egg (and its creators) to help bring awareness to mental health (an idea that came from Nick Tran, Hulu VP of Brand Marketing and Culture), to finding a unique way to advertise in sports.
Enter, the Hulu Sellouts campaign. To promote its live TV service, Kelly and team moved beyond standard sponsorships and large media buys and instead partnered with athletes who play a cutting-edge role in culture to help amplify Hulu’s message in an authentic and socially-driven way. The campaign’s most recent spokespeople include the U.S. Women’s National Soccer team (go U.S.A.!)
“I think you and I have both seen how this story can unfold, which is put your logo everywhere you possibly can in sports. And that gets expensive fast and the impact is debatable. So, we really challenged ourselves to think about, ‘what’s another way in?’”
Listen to this episode for more of Kelly’s inside scoop on Hulu’s latest campaigns, how she’s driving growth for the brand and her biggest career tips.
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On this Episode: Kelly’s Tips for Success
- Find trusted advisors and follow their advice. “There are a number of times when I have taken risks or made decisions that did not feel obvious to me and felt uncomfortable. But I had trusted advisors in my life who knew me well enough and they had way more experience than me to offer me the right advice.”
- Trust your instincts. “When it’s time to move on or when you’re not having as much fun as you should be, trust your instincts to figure out what to do next. I am a full-time CMO and a full-time mom and I come to work every day because I love what I do and I go home every day and I love every minute that I spend with my family. And I often say like, I have a very high bar for leaving the house in the morning. And so, I believe we all deserve to be in our dream job, in jobs that we love, and I hope people will trust their instincts and follow their dreams.”
- Think of work-life-balance as just life. “My life and my career are just both so important to me and so incredibly intertwined. And I think just getting over that idea of work and life and just thinking of it all as life has been really freeing for me. And also, just the idea of setting that bar in the first place for leaving the house. You know, there was a point in my life where I thought work was to pay the checks for life, and then I had kids and realize that we had enough checks to live life, but I love my career and it makes me a better person and a better mom. And it is important for me to do both.”
- Choose who you work with. “I work with people who are extremely respectful of any commitments that I have with my family, with my children and I’m so grateful for that. I don’t think I could ever work with anyone who wasn’t like that. We get to choose who we work with and I’m surrounded by really great people, whether I’m here at work or at home in my community.”
