James Kotecki (00:08):
This is CES Tech Talk. I'm James Kotecki, bringing you an interview that I recorded live at the C Space Studio at CES 2023. Enjoy. Ooh, welcome back. You're in the C Space Studio here at CES 2023. We are sponsored by Salesforce and we are joined by Najoh Tita-Reid, the global CMO of Logitech. Thanks so much for joining us here today.
Najoh Tita-Reid (00:32):
Thanks for having me.
James Kotecki (00:33):
What is the Logitech brand mean in 2023? I think I know what Logitech does in terms of webcams. I think probably most people know that, but how do you define the brand?
Najoh Tita-Reid (00:43):
I think for me, the brand is all about enabling all people to pursue their passions. And in 2023 it will be no different. It is such an amazing privilege to be able to help consumers and customers pursue their passions in different ways. And I think in 2023 we'll continue to be more relevant than we've ever been across how people play, how people work, how people live.
James Kotecki (01:05):
Now, how long have you been in this role?
Najoh Tita-Reid (01:06):
So I've been in this role for a little over a year, but I've been at Logitech for about three years.
James Kotecki (01:11):
So you did see through the pandemic then?
Najoh Tita-Reid (01:11):
Absolutely.
James Kotecki (01:14):
And obviously the massive growth in people talking on webcams and engaging in that way. Coming out of the pandemic, how do you snapshot where we are right now in a macro sense in terms of how people are working and living and using these products at home? Obviously in the pandemic, we knew everybody's at home and they need these products. Now, it seems like the Wild West, everybody has their own definition of what they should be doing and what's going on.
Najoh Tita-Reid (01:36):
Yeah, I think the snapshot would be, we have gone from being a peripheral to being essential and people's lives. And to be able to have that experience within three years has been amazing opportunity to become more relevant and to make sure that we are as meaningful in people's lives as we've always wanted to be. But the acceleration has been tremendous.
(01:55):
To be able to have people who never thought about having a personal workspace at home and now can't imagine living without one, right? People who were kind of gaming for fun, it was for kind of a small niche population. Where now, everybody is a gamer. In fact, the word gaming becomes even irrelevant because doesn't everyone do it, right? And people who create, were very, very, very kind of a very small elite group of people who create, and now anybody can do what we are doing right now from their bedroom with the right equipment. And so Logitech works to help people have those tools to be able to do the things that they love in a way that's much more democratic than it was. So I hope to allow people to democratize things that they could not before the pandemic.
James Kotecki (02:38):
And when you look at the data that you have about what people are buying, does that show you trends or point to clues about the future of this work from home, work hybrid, work anywhere kind of world?
Najoh Tita-Reid (02:48):
Yes, it definitely does. For one, for people who still are weathering, deciding whether hybrid is here to stay, I would say absolutely hybrid is here to stay. This notion of being able from work from anywhere, especially for generation Z and A, is a non-negotiable, right? They expect to have the freedom, flexibility to work from anywhere to do anything with whom they want, be inclusive as they do that. And so the trends are that if you are not enabling that you will cease to be relevant.
James Kotecki (03:18):
And so how do you think about pitching this stuff to Gen Z? Do you think about that as a fundamentally different category? Everybody's trying to figure out, obviously the young hot generation coming up now. It used to be millennials, now it's Gen Z. Do you think of them as a separate entity with certain unique attributes?
Najoh Tita-Reid (03:34):
It's so interesting. I think it's more about how you approach the generation. We all kind of use technology somewhat similarly, but the role that it plays in the lives of people, varies. And so as we were marketing before, it was kind of these tools that can help you as you work with the PC and now these are just tools that help you live your life.
(03:58):
People can't imagine not being able to go into wherever they want to, open their laptop, be able to work from anywhere that's like a... so we might as well make sure that if you have a mouse, it works on any surface. If you have headphones, it works and integrates into your life that we fit into their lifestyle as opposed to them coming and buying products that don't, that's a major change with this generation.
James Kotecki (04:23):
I understand that you're responsible for both marketing and direct to consumer e-commerce at Logitech. So how do you kind of coordinate or think about those two sides of the business?
Najoh Tita-Reid (04:32):
So to me, they're not two different sides to the business. I think there was a time when it was e-commerce over here and kind of big brand marketing over here. Now I don't know how you can have a brand and provide a relevant experience without taking it to e-commerce. And so the opportunity that we all have as marketers is to bridge that gap and to make sure that your hardware, your software, your e-commerce, your stories, your values are all the way through the funnel and that people don't see a difference and when they see something, a commercial and when they go online to purchase or on social media. And so integrating those is weirdly where I see the change.
James Kotecki (05:15):
A lot of the way that people may experience your products is indirectly because people that are creators that they are watching are using these products. And some of them, if they're webcams, for example, if the webcam isn't on camera because it is the camera. So then how do you build your brand into those influencer experiences when they're using those products? And then how does that permeate out to the people who are consuming that content?
Najoh Tita-Reid (05:35):
That's such a great question and it's not so easy for a brand to do. I think one of the ways that we have decided to do that is not necessarily work to use creators, but to be able to partner with creators in a way that allows our brand to come to life. It is a very different approach as a CMO where you were very used to historically owning and controlling your brand.
(05:57):
I've had to let go of that brand and put the brand in the hands of influencers and creators so they can tell their own story and they can show what they're using to do their videos and they can show what they're using to create. And when they tell it's much more powerful, much more authentic. And so it is partnering with that community to tell the story in a way that I think they can sometimes do it as well, if not better.
James Kotecki (06:20):
You talk about letting go of some of that control. There may be other marketers here at CES that want to do that and want to try to make the case to other people in the organization to do that. How do you recommend people make that case to others in the org?
Najoh Tita-Reid (06:32):
So the first thing I would say is you really do have to throw out so many things that we were taught. In order to be a relevant marketer, you've got to absolutely unlearn some of the things of the past and relearn how to adapt in this environment. And so I'd first say kind of look at the values that you had from a marketing perspective that you were holding so dear and tight that only you could do things and only you could tell people what to do. And let that go and realize that this generation is brilliant, and allow them to create and live their passions and just give them the tools that enable them, and you will see magic happen.
James Kotecki (07:07):
Speaking of magic, let's talk the metaverse for a second. It is a term that we constantly talk about here in the C Space Studio, but I always wonder, do people like that term? Do you like this term? Do you use that particular term? Do you feel like you're building and contributing to the metaverse, whatever that means to you?
Najoh Tita-Reid (07:23):
I think it's a great question. I use the word metaverse because I'm a marketer, so I use the language that people use to understand. Me trying to create a new term where you don't understand it is irrelevant because my job is to communicate effectively. I would only say that the term metaverse is a little bit of a fallacy because there's metaverses, there are actually different metaverse. And so it is important to understand there's not one, there's multiple.
James Kotecki (07:46):
Right. So are you thinking about Fortnite for example, like specific video games as a particular metaverse or the Facebook version of the metaverse, those kind of things?
Najoh Tita-Reid (07:54):
We definitely think about the metaverse and we definitely work to make sure that we're relevant in and outside of the metaverse. metaverse started in gaming and thankfully we are a top gaming organization with Logitech G, which is such an amazing brand in products and services and software. But metaverse has expanded, right? metaverse is going to impact our lives in a variety of ways.
(08:16):
And at Logitech we look to say, how do we make sure that we continue to allow people to work and play and create in a new realm using our products? And so we're always thinking about how to be relevant. We have a key keyboard that is live in the metaverse, right? We have a partnership with Oculus where we have a headset and we've got speakers and we're able to enable that VR experience in a essential way. And so we work to partner to make sure that we enable what happens inside of there and that we're relevant there as well.
James Kotecki (08:50):
You're the CMO, you have incredible message discipline, but can you tease anything for us as far as the product roadmap in terms of what's coming down the road and because obviously look, so much of this has to do with the physical products that enable all these content, all these experiences, it all comes down to really the technology that we're using in Logitech is making and developing a lot of that. Can you tease anything or tell us what's on the horizon?
Najoh Tita-Reid (09:11):
Let's see. So there's a lot on the horizon. Of course, I can't break any rules, but I would say the people who are looking for innovation, especially in this space, when you think about the areas I talked about, right? Work, creating, playing. When you think about this hybrid working, some of our technology would be able to really enable equity in the workplace. And so what would that look like? We make video conferencing equipment, so we make the cameras and speakers and boxes and meeting facilitation. We will be able to create this type of studio, studio experience within an office or a home.
(09:55):
We are sitting right now with, I don't know, three or four cameras. You'll be able to do that in the power of your own space at an affordable price. So we are bringing that technology to how you work. That's one example, but it's about equitable meetings. So the point is none of us should feel like you're at home and you can barely see the meeting. You should be able to see everybody in studio. [inaudible 00:10:18] Yeah, like you think about sports and what's happened with sports. Now you feel like it's better to be on the field we'll do that from work and I can keep going on, but there's a lot.
James Kotecki (10:25):
Well, that's so cool. I can't wait to interview you in that kind of new technological environment. Final thought. You started your career at Proctor and Gamble, I believe?
Najoh Tita-Reid (10:34):
Yes.
James Kotecki (10:34):
Is there a lesson from there that sticks with you as you are in now in this high tech space?
Najoh Tita-Reid (10:38):
Absolutely. I think what Procter and Gamble has always instilled is put the consumer first at the center of everything that you do. And as a tech and in a tech space, people tend to want to put the product first because the technology is so amazing. But what I believe that I bring to tech is a human-centric approach. And thankfully, Logitech is a human-centric company. And I would say for those that want to win in tech, if you put the human in the center, if you take that lesson from another industry, you will be unstoppable.
James Kotecki (11:07):
Well, there's not a better conclusion to our interview than that. Najoh Tita-Reid at Logitech. Thank you so much for joining me here in the C Space Studio.
Najoh Tita-Reid (11:13):
Thanks for having me.
James Kotecki (11:15):
Well, I hope you enjoyed that live conversation from CES 2023. Look up the CES C Space Studio for more conversations like that and get even more CES at ces.tech. That's c-e-s dot t-e-c-h. And of course, please subscribe to this podcast so you don't miss a moment. I'm James Kotecki talking tech on CES Tech Talk.