Young Marketer Says - Ayushi Mona

1) So, let’s start with a little background—where did you grow up, and what interested you as a kid? Any early passions that shaped who you are today?

I grew up in Delhi, a city I am deeply fond of and continue to be nostalgic about (AQI be damned).

As a kid, I was an avid reader. I would get my classmates to trade me their library cards and issue books for me after I had maxed out my limit. I read and finished a book every day after school.

Reading copiously from an early age instilled a love for the written word and an empathy towards people in situations different from mine.

I think these two traits made me eventually gravitate towards a career in marketing.

It also made me ‘internet famous.’ My earliest brush with content creation was writing 1000+ answers on literature on Quora which led me to list thousands of books I had read on Goodreads, run Broke Bibliophiles, work with publishers, and encourage thousands of people (online and offline) to read more.

2) Did you have any childhood heroes? Someone you looked up to and thought, ‘I want to be like them one day’?

Growing up in a conservative environment like most Indian women, I was in awe of a lot of working women and professionals.

I had become a fan of Sheila Dixit who had visited my school as a chief guest once. I also had clips of people like Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Naina Lal Kidwai, and Oprah Winfrey.

Instinctually, even as a kid, I knew the world was harder for women, and here there were these articulate, confident women patiently moving wheels that moved the economy or made a difference.

3) I see you started your career in banking with Axis Bank. How did that come about? And what was that experience like for you?

Axis Bank launched its inaugural ‘Graduate Leadership Program’ in 2013-14 to hire top talent from non-engineering campuses in HQ roles. I went through this immersive selection program from thousands of students across campuses that involved multiple quantitative and psychometric tests, group exercises, interviews, and branch banking stints.

I was one of the 14 people from all over India who made it. The rest of us from that cohort today include a Shark Tank Founder, an IAS officer, a global consulting leader, and so on.

Working at Axis Bank shaped me into the professional I am today. I became a Product Manager at 20 directly reporting to a Senior Vice President and got to own massive initiatives.

It was an incredible role, with a wonderful manager just at the right time when digital payments were rapidly growing.

4) Why did you choose to apply to MICA? And why a career shift to Marketing?

MICA was an accident. The process involves applying, giving CAT & MICAT followed by group exercise and personal interviews.

I had coincidentally given CAT, without any prep, along with a friend who asked me to teach him for moral support. He aspired to go to MICA as his sister was a brand manager in P&G.

My roommate at the time was a journalist who knew many MICANs and told me I should give MICAT-II a shot given I had a by-the-way CAT score.

I was not keen on it till the last moment but I interviewed on campus and to quote a cliche, felt like I would belong and accepted the admission.

A career shift in Marketing was also not on the cards despite going to MICA given I had core product experience. I majored in Media and minored in Analytics and wanted to move to a more ‘dhandha’ role as opposed to more creative-led marketing. However, I landed a campus job and got exposed to rebranding, ATL, social media marketing, BTL, and so on.

Not being in awe of Mad-Men-esque marketing has also helped me maintain perspective and retain a detached, business-first approach.

It’s led me to steer and experiment with peripheral skillsets like advocacy, retention, teaching, PR, partnerships, and sales because I didn’t want to be boxed into ‘creativity for the sake of creativity’ roles.

5) You've worked across quite a few different industries—what were some key takeaways from each, and how did you adapt to those shifts? What is your role now?

I’ve been in banking, retail, pharma, VC, and logistics. I’ve consulted 25+ businesses covering a few more categories and industries!

I’ve also been in a new functional role in a new industry each time around.

Many folks I know find my career moves a little vertigo-inducing and I don’t blame them. However, I think there are commonalities in all my roles:

● As Charlie Munger said, don’t sell what you won’t buy. I avoid categories I don’t believe in morally.

● All my roles have been about knowing the audience and doing what’s best for them - whether it’s a new product, consumer insight mining or making a film that speaks to their aspirations

● I like difficult problems - regulated industries, Tier 3 audiences, and demanding TGs (SMEs, patient communities). I gravitate towards hard problems. A lot of marketers gravitate towards things they are into - bikes, sunscreens, vacations. I like industries I wouldn’t be exposed to if I were not working in them.

Observing people and working hard is enough to auto-adapt into a new industry. It’s a lot easier than many people would think. It’s a lot less risky than many hiring managers believe.

I have also been the first hire in 4 out of my 5 roles so far. I had the chance to contour the role to what I could do and what the business wanted delivered.

I am currently consulting with SMEs and startups before I jump to my next role and challenge. I also continue to teach digital marketing programs with Kraftshala who I’ve now been working with for the last 6 years!

6) Marketers work on many campaigns over the years. Are there any standout campaigns or initiatives you launched that you’re especially proud of?

My favorite marketing campaign has been ‘Beat Heart Failure’ which we did as a 3-member team at Novartis in partnership with Times of India. I was the junior most person on the campaign led by veteran communicators on both agency and brand side but I got the opportunity to orchestrate media planning and measurement.

It’s a campaign that got laurels not just in traditional advertising awards but was recognized by Organization of Pharmaceutical Producers of India, ministry acknowledgment, consumer engagement, and appreciation from healthcare professionals.

It’s rare to have the fortune to do a creative-led, multi-channel, integrated marketing campaign at a tiny budget that gets recognition from all stakeholders.

7) Marketing today is split into many specialized roles—brand marketing, performance marketing, CRM & retention, content, and more. In your view, what are the must-have skills to be a good marketer in today’s landscape?

I call myself a ‘full-stack marketer’ because I believe you need to have all the skills to be a good marketer in today’s landscape. It sounds intimidating but that is what commitment to craft is!

Specialist marketers face the ‘when you’re a hammer, everything looks like a nail’ problem.

I think performance marketers especially become siloed and oblivious to everything else.

In my view, a functional understanding of interlinkages of channels and tools is imperative as you grow into your career. You may not be executing but you should be able to audit, direct, assess, and iterate.

I would recommend developing some soft skills to be a good marketer:

● Giving feedback eloquently and evocatively. Almost all frustration emerges from poor feedback mechanisms.

● Becoming observant and obsessive about purchasing and product experience beyond creative and channel.

● Saying ‘No’ without guilt, anger, or regret. It’s now a norm in companies to helicopter over the marketing team to generate quick wins that are inconsistent with brand ethos and long-term vision.

8) If you were to advise a person starting their Career in Marketing, what would be the top tips?

This is probably my favorite question because I enjoy supporting early-career talent. Here’s what I would say:

● Find a boss who treats you as a person, not a resource

● Don’t limit yourself and don’t tolerate anyone who limits you

● Spend time with other departments - finance, sales, customer support

● Develop a deep distaste for exaggeration, complication and jargon

● Be the best at whatever you do. No work is too small.

9) Thanks for your time, Ayushi! Let’s wrap this up with a fun one—if you had to describe yourself in just three words, what would they be?

Obsessive

Experimentative

Proactive

Thank you for asking! ??