Rebecca Turnbull
Senior brand marketing manager
Rightmove
Having started her career agency side, Rebecca Turnbull made the switch to brand when she joined Rightmove in 2023. She believes exposure to “many different brands and shapes of problems” while working in creative agencies has benefitted her hugely. It has also taught her how to be proactive and bring stakeholders together.
Turnbull was promoted to her current role earlier this year, with her nominator saying she’s had a “transformative impact” on Rightmove’s marketing.
She led the launch of the brand’s first campaign using generative AI, for example, which her nominator says “not only drove awareness but also established a blueprint for future AI-enabled marketing across the business”.
Turnbull sees AI, and any technology that “removes friction” in how brands interact with consumers, as the biggest opportunity marketing leaders of the future should be embracing. Whether that’s evolving day-to-day processes or unlocking “greater creative power and ability to scale”, she believes the scope is huge.
But at the same time, she is cognizant of the fact AI also brings with it a new set of challenges.
“As marketers, we definitely need to be T-shaped – to be able to confidently flex from big picture strategy to how to get the most from each media channel and format.”
“In addition to technical use cases, we’re focusing on ethics and quality to ensure that we as a marketing team and our agencies are absolutely in the driving seat,” she says.
This means constantly iterating guidelines and establishing feedback loops to ensure the use of AI is purposeful and the impact is measurable.
“The challenge is maintaining the right balance to ensure there’s a culture of considered experimentation,” she adds.
The use of creators has been another focus for Turnbull and something she believes will only increase over the next decade, meaning marketing leaders of tomorrow will need to get “even more comfortable with even less control”.
“Media consumption has changed a lot since I started my career and fragmentation undoubtedly comes with its own challenges, but it’s an opportunity to develop different, interesting ways of building a brand story beyond big set-pieces,” she says. “It means that as marketers, we definitely need to be T-shaped – to be able to confidently flex from big picture strategy to how to get the most from each media channel and format.”
For anyone looking to build their career in marketing, she advises building transferrable skills and not being put off if they don’t fit the mould 100%. “Teams are stronger when there’s people with a mix of experience,” says Turnbull.
Taking all this into account – alongside the fact she supports the development of others by coaching team members and encouraging a culture of creativity, experimentation, and accountability – Turnbull’s nominator says she “exemplifies the next generation of marketing leaders: commercially astute, creatively bold, collaborative and future-focused. Her track record already speaks volumes – and she’s only just getting started.”
