Martech 360 Interview With Justin Hayashi, Chief Executive Officer, New Engen, Inc.

The only thing we know for certain is that change, technological or otherwise, is inevitable and constant in this space.

Justin, the world around has changed and it continues to evolve. Can you walk us through your digital journey from your early days?

My very first role coming out of college was in economic development for the government. From there, I moved into a management rotation program at Boeing. What I learned from those two early experiences is the challenges larger organizations face in moving quickly and the impact that has on an organization’s ability to learn and find the most effective path forward. That led me to seek an opportunity at a much smaller company, which is how I came across Zulily.

I took a business manager role at Zulily, an eCommerce company, and eventually grew to lead customer acquisition and analytics, which is how I got into the paid advertising and digital side of the business. I naturally gravitated towards the analytical side of marketing, in part because of the measurable impact you can drive.

Zulily is a flash deal site which means products and campaigns to drive purchases of those products have to change every single day. This required a whole new level of agility with campaign setup and creative development, and optimization of both, and drove home the power of swift, data-driven action in making larger incremental gains. My time at Zulily helped me realize there were major gaps in performance marketing and agile services, technologies, creatives, and solution providers in the space – which led us to found New Engen.

Pandemic changed the way we operate and digital for sure is a winner. How did you and your team adapt to the challenges posed by COVID-19 ?

COVID was a very strange period that I hope we only live through once in our lifetime. At first, it was hard to gauge what the future was going to look like. Budgets and marketing efficiency were dominant focus areas for brands.

As CEO, it was an important time to lead from the front and to be present for the team. COVID was obviously a massive disruption, not only to our business but to folks’ personal lives. One of our main areas of focus in those early days was simply to make sure that everyone felt supported and had the resources they needed to be successful. But, as we all got situated and began working and collaborating from home, finding balance and connection, and new ways to work with each other, we started to find our groove.

There was a tailwind to a degree I’ve never seen where customers were buying online, and digital channel inventory opened up because there were so many people at home. And advertising costs temporarily got cheaper.

In addition, there was a lot of investment in digital infrastructure with not enough talent to keep up with the pace of demand. It’s interesting thinking about 2022 as we come off so much aggressive growth – what’s “normal” versus the accelerated state we were in the last few years?

What sets New Engen apart from competition since digital agency space is crowded ?

New Engen’s ability to deliver agile creative powered by performance media and measurement sets us apart. By definition, our offering is geared for performance, and creative innovation – finding the most powerful possible intersection of creative, technology, data and the psychologies of response – is central to that. As just one example, instead of say focusing on something like a Super Bowl commercial that wins us a 60 a second ad, we set our eyes on digital first content that will supercharge growth in an accountable, measurable way. We’ve got everything from video editors, performance designers, media strategists, data scientists, influencer marketers – all the ingredients of an agile content team that ensures you are cycling through in the most performant way across the entire digital ecosystem.

As a digital marketer, how difficult is it to predict technological changes that will impact the future of commerce and as a leader how do you prepare yourself and clients for this change ?

New Engen has had the privilege of working with over a hundred different brands in different spaces – some of which are multi billion dollar retailers, early-stage direct-to-consumer startups and everything in between. That gives us really rich aggregate data to internally examine and study emerging trends. As far as the ability to predict, we spend a lot of time researching, reviewing reports, and seeking input from trusted partners and advisors outside of the organization. The only thing we know for certain is that change, technological or otherwise, is inevitable and constant in this space. For that reason we always try to take an approach that prioritizes flexibility and agility, so that our clients are ready to respond to whatever change comes next.

Experience changes perceptions and in the high speed world, social media is breaking perceptions- what advice do you have for Digital marketers on how to build a brand in this environment ?

It’s become significantly harder to create a valuable brand today than it was even a couple years ago. Brands used to be able to focus on one platform, such as Facebook or Instagram and build a very valuable business offering. In fact, eMarketer just forecasted an expected 7% decline in time spent on Meta platforms. There’s also online streaming and video streaming that has split up the time and attention of eyeballs in a meaningful way.

As we think about what that means today, you have to be much more proficient on the various social media platforms out there. You have to have different types of content and strategies. For instance, tapping into influencers is a key component to building a winning brand. I would say easy wins are gone, but with a more thoughtful, harder road it can be done.

As a business leader, what metrics do you use to define success? Top 5 apps that you use for business?

New Engen has two leading indicators of success: employee satisfaction and client satisfaction. Our people are our business – we’re here to provide expertise and talent that’s above and beyond what else you can get out in the market. We do that by ensuring our staff is well trained and taken care of — which we measure through monthly and yearly surveys. On the client side, we measure satisfaction through NPS scores and regular deep dive conversations with senior client stakeholders.

Outlook is my number one most used app, followed by Slack. I’m sure that’s the same for a lot of people working in the corporate world. From a personal perspective, I’m on an Audible kick and get a lot of value out of that.

What advice would you give to someone who aspires to be a Business Leader?

Make sure your motivations are right. Many people want to be a leader purely for the sake of being a leader or having control. Those are the wrong reasons. Be passionate about what you are doing day to day because it’s a long road and will be a grueling experience if you don’t enjoy it. Burnout is real and can take a toll on your friendships and your family. Businesses go through ebbs and flows in their market, and the people who are truly invigorated are far more likely to succeed.

Your top pick for a book on leadership that everyone should read?

The book that impacted me the most personally was Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. However, I don’t think it promotes a healthy lifestyle and by no means would I push anyone to read it and live by it. What I loved about that book is that it gave me concrete, detailed examples of how excellence is created. It taught me about the outcomes that can be created by a commitment to persistence, passion and perseverance. The leadership book I would actually recommend folks read is “The Advantage” by Patrick Lencioni. The book breaks down important lessons around how to cultivate a healthy organization through easy-to-read stories and examples.

Could you name one person that you would like to see featured here?

Nora Bafus, Executive Creative Director at New Engen

Thanks Justin!

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