From Lonely Marketer to Movement Maker: How TMC’s “Marketers Day” Sparked a Community
A candid, practical deep-dive with Chanel from The Marketing Club on turning a Slack group into a cross-Tasman movement, from programming and sponsorship to paid memberships and the new TMC podcast.
If you’ve ever been the only marketer in the room, you’ll know the mix of autonomy and isolation it creates. That tension sits at the heart of this week’s episode of Canned the Marketing Podcast, where hosts Ben van Rooy (Human Digital) and Steph Quantrill (Cue Marketing) go inside The Marketing Club (TMC) with founder Chanel Clark; fresh off launching the first-ever Marketers Day. They set the tone early: creativity, purpose, and human connection are the point, not the by-products.
Ben calls the event “top notch” on every dimension; speakers, venue, catering, sponsors, signalling this wasn’t just another badge-and-lanyard conference; it felt like a marketing festival.
What follows is a build-in-public masterclass: where the idea came from, the messy middle (timelines, budgets, committees), the reality of community growth, and how TMC is evolving with mentorships, paid memberships, and a new podcast. Consider this your long-form companion to the episode with key quotes and timestamps so you can jump straight to the moments that matter.
The spark: from “first marketing hire” to first-time festival
Chanel traces the idea for TMC to a run of roles where she was repeatedly the first marketing hire; empowering at first, isolating later. That’s when she decided to build the thing she needed: a space where marketers could learn, vent, and get unstuck together.
When the flood of “you should cover this” feedback outgrew the cadence of TMC’s educational and networking events, Chanel made the call: go big. She doesn’t even like the word “conference”; the aim was a festival feel built from the community’s own data and desires.
Behind the curtain was a volunteer committee, rebuilt at the start of the year. Once in place, Chanel famously “briefed” the team as if Marketers Day was already in motion, a clever momentum hack when a bold idea needs collective belief.
Key themes and arguments
1) Design from real demand (not your assumptions)
Programming started with two years of feedback forms and DMs, clustered into themes, then shaped into panels; the MVP for launch approach. The goal: keep energy high, avoid afternoon slump, and ensure every voice adds something new. , ,
2) Curate chemistry, not just CVs
Panels were cast to disagree productively and bring varied vantage points (agency, venture studio, creative, founder). The result: fresh, scrappy ideas instead of corporate sameness.
3) Community growth is a flywheel (and yes, LinkedIn still works)
TMC grew word-of-mouth through candid LinkedIn posts and IRL meetups; each event generated dozens of next-day shares, compounding discovery. Slack was chosen because it met people where they already were.
4) Price for inclusion, plan for sustainability
Chanel’s north star: people over money but not at the expense of survival. That meant affordable tickets, relentless sponsor outreach, and eventually a paid membership to cover real costs (goodbye, self-funded spring rolls).
5) Do the brave thing first, then scale
TMC’s next horizon includes mentorships, paid tiers, and a new podcast (“The Marketing Clubhouse”) launched audio-only to validate before adding video/studios. It’s the MVP mindset, again.
Challenges & realities (the unvarnished version)
Budgets and sponsors in Q4
Running a first-time event in October meant most partner budgets were already committed. Many loved the concept but needed to see v1 before backing v2, classic cold-start friction. Chanel’s workaround: hustle DMs, be transparent, and accept that year two = easier.
Committee capacity
TMC is volunteer-run; rebuilding the committee took time, and that pushed timelines. Chanel overcame inertia with a “this is already happening” brief that converted uncertainty into execution.
Programming trade-offs
Workshop + panel would be ideal, but for the first year, the team prioritised tight, panel-driven flow to reduce operational risk and maintain energy.
Merch, logistics, and the bell curve of T-shirt sizes
From oversized goody bags to T-shirt size chaos at registration (pro tip: people switch sizes on the day), the human details mattered, and produced learnings for next time.
Lessons, insights, and takeaways
1) Start with a community-first hypothesis
If the real problem you’re solving isn’t “together is better,” don’t fake it. Modern audiences sniff out performative “community” instantly. Chanel’s transparency created trust, and trust created growth.
2) Use an MVP for launch mindset
Panels over complex formats. Audio over video. Slack over a new platform. Reduce friction everywhere, for your team and your audience.
3) Curate for contrast
Aim for panels where smart people can disagree well. It’s the antidote to “six people saying the same thing”.
4) Engineer your flywheel
Every IRL event should earn dozens of organic posts the next day. Photograph, tag, and make sharing effortless; that visibility fuels the next RSVP wave.
5) Price accessibly, then add value layers
TMC’s move to paid memberships came after a clear tipping point: the community outgrew what one person could subsidise. Paid tiers are a promise to serve better, not a paywall for its own sake.
6) Choose the right start city for the story
Auckland first, Sydney next: sometimes community logic beats commercial logic because it sets the cultural DNA you’ll scale later.
Practical tips & playbook
Harvest feedback like a product manager.
DM attendees personally; ask “what should we do next?”; cluster responses; program from patterns.Write the “already happening” brief.
When momentum is fragile, present a concrete plan with dates and roles. People commit to clarity.Cast for perspective, not just prestige.
Build panels across roles (agency, founder, creative, venture studio) to prevent echo chambers.Pick platforms your audience already uses.
Slack > new tools; IRL meetups > abstract “community.” Remove adoption friction.Own the boring stuff early.
Budget cycles (avoid late-year launches), merch sizes, and registration logistics can make or break perceived quality.Design for shareability.
Plan a group photo, sponsor moments, and micro-stories (e.g., legendary goody bag) that attendees will proudly post.Stage-gate your expansions.
Launch your podcast audio-only, validate cadence and audience fit, then add video and studio polish later.
The texture of the day
Marketers Day wasn’t just smart; it was sensory. From the heavy (in a good way) goody bag stocked with hydration, supplements, skincare, and PB, to the purple TMC totes and tees, the event felt personal and over-delivered on delight, the kind of detail attendees brag about online.
Chanel is clear: commercially, Australia might have been easier. But TMC began in New Zealand, and launching Marketers Day in Auckland encoded values the team wants to scale, grassroots, warm, proudly local, before going bigger (Sydney next). That sequencing is strategic brand building, not sentimentality.
What’s next: mentorships, memberships, and the mic
TMC has moved beyond meetups:
Mentorships: peer-to-peer across “all ages and stages,” often matching people at similar levels who want a thought partner, not a boss.
Paid memberships: a necessary evolution to keep the community inclusive and sustainable, the precise definition of valued value.
Podcast (“The Marketing Clubhouse”): audio-first interviews from students to C-suite, mirroring the breadth of the community itself.
Marketers Day proves that movements beat moments. When you design from demand, curate for contrast, and build with radical transparency, a “first-time event” can feel like a long-running tradition on day one. That’s the lesson from Chanel and TMC: do the brave version now, then scale what works.
Watch / listen to the full episode for the candid, tactical details straight from the source, and if you took value from this deep dive, subscribe right here on Substack so you don’t miss the follow-ups (including our upcoming episodes on brand co-labs and personal branding).
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