Cem Ernaz
Senior manager, search engine marketing
Hiscox
Cem Ernaz is described by his nominator as a “cracking” leader who has “done wonders” for the Hiscox brand since joining the insurer in 2019 as an SEO specialist.
Promotions over the intervening six years have seen Ernaz rise from SEO manager to his current role as senior manager for search engine marketing.
He says several “major transformative trends” have unfolded since he kickstarted his marketing career, from the emergence of higher-quality analytics and greater marketing integration, to the boom in social media and AI.
As a performance marketer with a background in search and content marketing, Ernaz has also noted a widening gap between peers with a “growth hacking approach” and those whose work is anchored in brand and consumer-centric principles.
“The ascendance of AI-enabled capabilities is exacerbating the disconnect between the two schools of thought. Unfortunately, the growing gap is eroding the already stretched relationship between the public and marketers,” he states.
“I am personally being a lot more selective with who I follow for advice in the industry and recommend to peers for inspiration.”
“It is a great time to share and learn from others.
I would recommend all marketers attend and participate in industry conferences and gatherings.”
While artificial intelligence is exposing differences, Ernaz sees the benefit of using AI-powered tools for content production and quality assurance, based on best practice.
“It is a great time to share and learn from others. I would recommend all marketers attend and participate in industry conferences and gatherings. I have personally observed that conferences have richer and more actionable content in the last two years,” he states.
Joining forces is crucial at a time when marketers face “information pollution”, particularly about AI, he says. Ernaz has observed common misconceptions around how AI tools like Large Language Models (LLMs) work and how ‘intelligent’ they are.
Ernaz acknowledges keeping abreast of evolving AI tech is a job in itself, while marketers also face the perennial challenge of educating stakeholders and managing expectations.
Looking ahead to the next decade, he believes fundamentals around prioritising creativity, knowing your target audience inside out, building the right proposition and embedding data-driven decision-making will be as important as ever.
However, the emergence of hyper-personalised platforms and tools like agentic AI ‘assistants’ are added complications, as human participation in purchase decisions looks set to decrease. As a result, marketers will need to develop a better understanding of AI behaviour to optimise their assets, Ernaz suggests.
He expects to see marketing work more closely with IT and business transformation teams, while hands-on experience of web development could prove crucial. With so much change afoot, Ernaz’s advice to any marketer starting out is to develop a versatile skillset and avoid trying to specialise too soon.
“They should also mentally prepare for rapid and constant change,” he adds. “They should not shy away from asking for help and guidance from more experienced peers.”
