Pulse Check: Marketing Truths — Part 1

About The Episode:

Ryan Morabito sits down with Seth Matlins, Managing Director of the Forbes CMO Network. With decades of experience on both the agency and client side, Seth unpacks what makes modern CMOs successful, how AI and ambiguity are shaping the future of marketing, and what higher ed leaders can learn from commercial brand strategies. This episode is a masterclass in marketing leadership, strategic storytelling, and bold decision-making.

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Key Takeaways

• Today’s CMOs must be commercial leaders — it's not just about brand; it's about business growth.
• High tolerance for ambiguity is essential in today’s ever-evolving marketing landscape.
• AI in higher education marketing is no longer optional — CMOs must experiment and deploy intentionally.
• Bridging the C-Suite gap starts with understanding and speaking the language of your internal stakeholders.
• Measurement should go beyond enrollments and donations — value creation and differentiation are key performance indicators.
• Brand is still the ultimate growth engine — especially in a crowded and noisy higher ed market.
• Testing is helpful but not gospel — courage and strategic vision matter just as much as data.
• Human-centered communication wins — personalized, authentic outreach can make a lasting impression.
• Higher ed marketers must break down silos to create cohesive, enterprise-level impact.
• The best marketers think like CEOs — not just of campaigns, but of the marketing function itself.

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What does Seth Matlins actually do at Forbes?

Seth is the Managing Director of the Forbes CMO Network, where he curates and connects global marketing leaders to explore the evolving role of the CMO. Rather than filling the role with a journalist, Forbes chose a practitioner — someone with real-world experience on both agency and client sides. Seth’s mission? To make marketing better understood as a critical business driver, both within organizations and across the global economy.

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What do the best CMOs have in common?

According to Seth, the most successful CMOs view themselves as commercial leaders. They bring strategic vision to business decisions, not just marketing campaigns. They also exhibit bravery, a tolerance for ambiguity, and a willingness to fail forward. These CMOs embrace complexity, make decisions with imperfect information, and view failure as a learning tool, not a setback.

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How can higher education CMOs better collaborate with leadership?

Seth offers this foundational truth: Know your audience — including your internal one. CMOs need to take time to understand their leadership peers’ perspectives, speak their language, and align around shared goals. Without internal buy-in, marketing can’t reach its full potential. In higher ed, this might mean translating campaign outcomes into language that resonates with presidents, provosts, and CFOs.

What are key indicators of marketing success beyond enrollments?

While Seth is the first to admit he’s not a higher ed marketer, he emphasizes the universal importance of value creation. CMOs should measure how effectively they’re capturing attention, shifting attitudes, and influencing behaviors. Understanding the "value case" — for students, families, and donors — helps institutions compete in an increasingly crowded and commoditized market.

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How should higher ed think about AI and automation?

Seth urges marketers to experiment aggressively and deploy intentionally. AI in higher education is moving fast, and while it brings powerful efficiency, marketers shouldn’t forget about effectiveness. There’s a danger in treating AI purely as a cost-saving tool. Instead, CMOs should be asking: How does AI change what our audiences expect, how they search, and how we communicate with them?

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What advice does Seth have for aspiring CMOs?

Don’t wait for permission. Seth didn’t have a formal marketing degree — he grew up around marketing and simply started doing it. He encourages marketers to learn the language of business, understand P&Ls, and recognize that marketing is a strategic function, not just a creative one. For those rising through the ranks, think like a CEO of your function — hire well, think big, and make strategic sacrifices.

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How can schools stand out in a crowded market?

Being different isn’t enough. Seth challenges higher ed marketers to be valuable and human. He recounts a college that stood out during his daughter’s application process with a warm, funny message — not a flashy brochure. Authentic, personal communication created emotional resonance. In short: Higher ed marketers should stop leading with what they do and start focusing on what prospective students are buying.

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How should marketing leaders think about social media today?

Seth pulls no punches here: social media is media, and it's increasingly less "social." With content overload and algorithm-driven silos, students (and their parents) need to be equipped to critically analyze what they see. Higher ed marketers must focus less on feeding the content machine and more on creating value-driven, targeted media that aligns with their audience’s needs and context.

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Are CMOs gaining more credibility?

Seth is hopeful, not optimistic. He’s seeing more CMOs move into CEO and board-level roles — a sign of growing respect for marketing's influence. But there’s more work to do. CMOs must aim higher, not just for their next marketing gig, but for true leadership roles. It starts with ambition, fluency in business strategy, and the courage to take smart risks.

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What can higher ed learn from corporate brand building?

A lot. From experiential marketing to value-based differentiation, Seth encourages universities to look beyond traditional tactics and focus on what makes them distinctive. This includes engaging in national discourse, leveraging storytelling, and bringing humanity into their communications. His final lesson? “Don’t show them the house you want to sell — ask them about the house they want to buy.”

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Enrollify is produced by Element451 — the next-generation AI student engagement platform helping institutions create meaningful and personalized interactions with students. Learn more at element451.com.

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