Nearly 100 AMADC members and marketers came together on
February 17 to attend the inaugural Masters of Marketing series
honoring Andy Yost, Chief Marketing Officer for
Gannett. Attendees began the evening at a networking session at City
Tap House and then walked to the Georgetown University School of
Continuing Studies for the presentation and moderated discussion
featuring Andy Yost and Ray Soto, Gannett’s
Creative Lead responsible for developing immersive storytelling content
through virtual and augmented reality applications. The session was
moderated by Mackenzie Warren, who directs training
programs for the 3,000 journalists across the USA
TODAY Network.
Nearly 100 AMADC members and marketers came together on
February 17 to attend the inaugural Masters of Marketing series
honoring Andy Yost, Chief Marketing Officer for
Gannett. Attendees began the evening at a networking session at City
Tap House and then walked to the Georgetown University School of
Continuing Studies for the presentation and moderated discussion
featuring Andy Yost and Ray Soto, Gannett’s
Creative Lead responsible for developing immersive storytelling content
through virtual and augmented reality applications. The session was
moderated by Mackenzie Warren, who directs training
programs for the 3,000 journalists across the USA
TODAY Network.
The session examined changing perceptions of the publishing
industry with a focus on how newspapers are adapting and improving how
they brand their content and connect with readers. For the USA TODAY
Network, Yost noted that this has required investments in new
technology with a focus on personalization and new products such as
virtual reality. During the session, attendees used USA TODAY Network’s
virtual reality application to view virtual reality content developed
by the Network, including one of the first street-level tours of Havana
following the decision to normalize relations with Cuba, and an “in the
cockpit” perspective with the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels squadron. Yost
noted that the Blue Angels piece was cited by Facebook founder Mark
Zuckerberg as an example of where the world of social media
is going.
This first-ever Masters of Marketing event included a question
and answer session in which attendees talked with Yost and his team
about recruiting, the importance of culture in fostering innovation and
the future state of publishing and established media brands. The
session closed with AMADC President Mike Gardner presenting Yost with
the Masters of Marketing Award created by AMADC to honor leading
marketers across the greater Washington region.