Coworking with Stacey Andrade-Wells

Each week, we spotlight Marketing Brew readers in our Coworking series. If you’d like to be featured, introduce yourself here.

Stacey Andrade-Wells is CMO of Liquid IV. Prior to joining Liquid IV, she spent more than seven years at Proctor & Gamble working on brands like Gain, Swiffer, and Mr. Clean.

Favorite project you’ve worked on? This year, I had the privilege of overseeing Liquid IV’s first-ever brand refresh. Our goal was to elevate the brand while honoring the invaluable feedback from our consumers and preserving the brand equity built over the past 12 years. Guided by extensive customer insights, we introduced a new visual identity, revamped packaging, an enhanced web presence, and a modernized logo. The aim was to ensure our customers fully understand how our product works. We wanted to be easily identifiable on the shelf, be transparent about our science, and showcase our delicious flavors with a more fruit-forward design.

A brand refresh can be delicate, with a high risk of alienating loyal users. However, I loved this project because it operated at the intersection of consumer insights, data and research, and creativity. With meticulous care, we launched something that not only grew our business but also delighted our consumers. I could not be prouder of our team.

What’s your favorite ad campaign? Our recent brand campaign, “Tear. Pour. Live. More.” is hands down my favorite ad campaign I’ve worked on so far. We set out to show the incredible transformation that happens when someone goes from being dehydrated to being fully hydrated and completely reinvigorated. What better way to illustrate this than with literal water jets propelling people through the city and their day? It was the perfect way to bring our brand’s benefits to life while educating consumers about the category and product usage. This campaign wouldn’t have been possible without our amazing agency partner, Anomaly.

If I had to pick another ad campaign that caught my attention this year, it would be the CeraVe ad featuring Michael Cera. Not only was it hilarious and memorable, but the flawless execution and thoughtful planning, especially leading up to the Super Bowl, were truly inspiring. This campaign really took the cake for me this year.

What marketing trend are you most optimistic about? Least? I am both most and least optimistic about artificial intelligence in the marketing space. On one hand, I am highly optimistic because I’ve witnessed firsthand how AI can enable our team to work smarter and faster, creating more room for creativity. We’re currently piloting various AI programs in both copywriting and consumer insights, and we’re continually exploring ways to expand its functionality and benefits for our teams.

However, my optimism is tempered by a recognition of the current limitations of AI. Liquid IV is a brand that deeply values one-on-one human interactions and authenticity, and not all AI applications align with these principles. As a brand committed to elevating the vitality of people and the planet, we understand that true vitality often happens outside of our homes and away from our phones, through genuine connections with our communities. This is one area we’ll continue to approach and develop thoughtfully within our brand operations.

What’s one marketing-related podcast/social account/series you’d recommend? Books are typically my medium of choice; I’d recommend all brand leaders read Breakout Brands by Jared Schrieber. Marketers often get knocked for not tying their activity systems to business results. I think Breakout Brands does a great job of using a data-based approach to demonstrate the value and effectiveness of different types of marketing activities. I love hearing from other brand CMOs to learn how they approach things, so Uncensored CMO and The CMO Podcast are great listens as well.