Marketing Is No Longer About Funnels, It Is About Feelings, Flexibility, and Fast Action

The marketing playbook is being rewritten in real time. At the seventh edition of the Brand World Summit hosted by ETBrandEquity, a panel of India’s top marketing leaders came together to address a question that haunts every brand team today. How do you market in a world that changes faster than your strategy deck can be approved?

In a world once defined by volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity, VUCA has now taken on a new meaning. According to leading CMOs, VUCA now stands for versatility, uncomfortable feelings, collaboration, and agility. These four traits, they say, are not optional anymore but essential for survival.

Versatility means evolving with the audience, not just reacting to them. Sunder Balasubramanian of Myntra pointed out how the brand once targeted only urban women but now speaks to women in non-metro cities as well. The shift demands more than just translation of campaigns, it requires personalization at scale while keeping the brand identity intact.

Discomfort, as every panelist agreed, is part of the new job description. Rohit Bhasin from Kotak Mahindra Bank admitted that AI made him feel deeply uncomfortable at first. He believes marketers need to stop treating performance marketing and data platforms as someone else’s job. Owning the customer data journey and working closely with analytics and tech teams is no longer a choice. Those who fail to do so risk becoming replaceable, not by AI, but by better-prepared professionals.

Marketing complexity is now better framed as collaboration. Milind Pathak of Proximus Global shared how his team works with tech giants like Microsoft and Infosys, not just as vendors but as product development partners. These long-term relationships are designed to align business objectives, accelerate innovation, and deliver shared value. Collaboration like this allows marketing teams to take a longer view while other departments focus on short-term revenue.

Agility is perhaps the most important pillar of the new marketing mindset. Virat Khullar of Hyundai spoke about how traditional campaigns are no longer built to last quarters. They must evolve daily based on changing signals, whether that is consumer sentiment, competition, or content trends. With buying decisions influenced by everyone from kids watching reels to mothers doing research, agility is not about speed alone but about adaptability and awareness.

Ashwin Moorthy of Godrej reminded the room that the real challenge lies in sticking to the fundamentals while navigating multiple platforms, formats, and consumer mindsets. Whether it is general trade, e-commerce, or quick commerce, marketers must remain grounded in core principles like cost efficiency and brand saliency.

What emerged clearly from the discussion is this. The age of fixed playbooks is over. The most successful marketers today are not those with the best campaigns, but those with the fastest reflexes, the deepest discomfort tolerance, and the strongest partnerships across data, tech, and distribution.

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