Meet Annie Lopez-Kiperman, who has been named a 2024 Marketers To Watch in the Marketers That Matter series partnered with The Wall Street Journal, recognizing leaders for their innovative work and leadership.
Annie is a legacy multicultural and global advertising account lead who jumped from the agency world to brand marketing at Kaiser Permanente a year ago. She leverages her many years on the agency side to help collaborate across Kaiser Permanente and its vendors. She is an entrepreneur at her core, having started her own wardrobe and styling business and a small talent agency. Accolades and accomplishments aside, she is most proud of being a mom to “two amazing young adults who make me proud every day and keep me on my toes with their wit and wisdom.”
Keep reading to learn Annie’s perspectives on how the latest research on social media will impact the future of brand marketing, her latest campaign featuring the starting defender for the U.S. women’s national soccer team, what excites her most about marketing at Kaiser Permanente, her best career advice, and more.
What gives me joy outside of work…
I recently moved to Southern California and have to say that the combination of mountains and ocean is pretty awe-inspiring. So far, the views are not getting old.
Every marketer should read...
Ogilvy on Advertising by David Ogilvy. The only time I’ve missed a flight (when it was my fault) was because I was so engrossed reading it at my gate!
Podcasts every marketer should listen to…
I never miss an episode of Pivot from Vox Media. Julia Louis Dreyfus’s podcast, Wiser Than Me, has exposed me to amazing and brilliant older women—we should all listen to their stories and learn from their experiences.
Future of Marketing
Q: What’s one thing coming down the marketing pike you are most excited about?
Having a deeper understanding of the trends and pressures that consumers experience in the healthcare space. These learnings inform new ways of connecting with Kaiser Permanente’s potential members and developing products that address the benefits consumers seek. I’m excited about being able to deliver what consumers want, which will, in return, positively impact their health and the health of the community at large.
Q: What widely accepted “marketing truth” do you wish the industry would change?
I’d like to challenge the over-simplification of creating content. There is no magical “quick way” to make high-quality content. However, there is a way to make content that is hard-working, thus extending its ROI, but that means putting in the work beforehand: well-executed strategic briefs, insights rooted in data, proper timelines to develop the work, single-minded focus, and a realistic budget.
Q: What’s your prediction for Brand Marketing over the next few years?
The latest data and research highlighting the negative effects of social media on young people will lead us to new ways of connecting with our future consumers. I’m not predicting social media will go away by any means, but I think we’re about to embark on a shift in behaviors, and our approach to marketing via social media or potentially other channels will need to adjust as well. Whether the behavior shifts stem from new policies like no phones in school or because younger audiences are opting out of social media on their own accord, marketers will need to evolve current strategies that have previously proved successful.
Brand Marketing at Kaiser Permanente
Q: What’s something exciting you’re currently working on at Kaiser Permanente?
We recently launched a new film with KP brand ambassador Naomi Girma in our ongoing campaign. Naomi is one of the top soccer players in the nation and will represent the United States in the Olympics this summer as a starting defender for the U.S. women’s national soccer team. At Kaiser Permanente, one of our core beliefs is supporting the mental health needs in the communities we serve. Partnering with Naomi made so much sense as shedding light on the importance of mental health is also part of her platform. Naomi wants to use her voice to help change the conversation about mental health and support people feeling safe to openly discuss how they are feeling versus silently struggling.
Leadership and Career Advice
Q: What leadership muscle is most important for marketers to exercise?
Effective communications. If you double-click on that, it’s about the right communications, message, delivery system, timing, and clarity. In this overly saturated and noisy world, how do you convey the key information at the right time, with the right context, and with the right amount of detail to move a project forward or to create change? That’s the skill that always needs tending to as our audiences and stakeholders shift over time.
Q: What’s the most game-changing career advice you‘ve received?
My dad always said, “Work is work.” This advice set a realistic roadmap for me and didn’t sugarcoat what the workplace represented. It taught me that work is going to involve long hours, continued effort, and challenges, but it can also provide joy, inspiration, discovery of new passions and talents, lifelong friendships, and a sense of accomplishment. At Kaiser Permanente, this means supporting our mission of providing high-quality, affordable healthcare services to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. It is the most rewarding part of what we do.
Marketers to Watch is a recognition series to spotlight highly innovative and forward-thinking marketing leaders in the community. If you have someone you’d like to nominate for the series, apply here.
