Inside The C-Suite With Visa's CMO Frank Cooper On The NFL, AI, and Marketing

Key Concepts

Marketing Impact and Timing: The idea that being too early in marketing can be as detrimental as being too late.
ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds): A preferred investment vehicle for its diversification and broad market exposure, as opposed to individual stocks.
Everyday Consumption: Investing in products and services used daily, which tend to be resilient through economic fluctuations.
AI in Marketing: Shifting from using AI for efficiency to leveraging it for competitive advantage across the entire marketing spectrum.
AIGC (AI-Generated Content): The potential of AI in content development, both exciting and concerning.
Visa's NFL Pivot: Moving away from a broad league sponsorship to focus on deeper engagement with individual teams and creators.
Fan-Centric Approach: Prioritizing what fans care about most (teams, players) when making sponsorship decisions.
Creator Economy: The growing importance of creators and influencers in marketing strategies.
Storytelling in Marketing: The enduring power of narrative in connecting with audiences and driving behavior change.
WNBA and Women's Sports Momentum: Recognizing the significant growth and cultural impact of women's sports.
CMO's Role: Driving profitable growth by influencing perceptions, emotions, and behaviors, not just creating advertising.
"Fat T" Professional: A model for future professionals characterized by broad curiosity and multiple specializations.
Empathy and Courage in Business: Essential traits for understanding others and navigating change.
The "Great" CMO: A leader who focuses on building and empowering talented teams rather than personal achievement.

Summary

This discussion features Frank Cooper, CMO of Visa, in conversation with Jabari Young of Forbes on the Enterprise Zone at NASDAQ. The conversation delves into Cooper's career, investment philosophies, marketing trends, and strategic decisions at Visa.

Investment Philosophy and Personal Finance

Cooper emphasizes that timing is crucial in marketing, stating, "being too early is the same as being too late." He shares his investment strategy, learned from his time at BlackRock, advocating for ETFs over individual stocks for those not actively trading daily. He favors investing in "things that are used every day," citing examples like toothpaste and deodorant, and drawing a parallel to the payments category, which he believes maintains its relevance through economic ups and downs due to its integration into everyday routines. Regarding cryptocurrency, Cooper admits his portfolio is "weak," attributing this to a past regret of not investing early in Bitcoin. He generally leans towards safer investment options.

2025 Business Review and Marketing Outlook

Visa's fiscal year runs from October to September, and Cooper reports that 2025 has been an "eventful year" with a "robust" performance in the payments category. Key growth areas include strong consumer spending, cross-border travel, and continued e-commerce expansion. He expresses particular excitement about the video gaming sector and the emerging trend of "agented commerce," which he views as a "marketer's dream" rather than a threat. Cooper defines the ultimate goal of marketing as "driving profitable growth by changing people's perceptions, emotions, and behaviors."

Musical Inspiration and the Human Element

Cooper's musical soundtrack for 2025 has been a journey back in time, focusing on soul music with live instrumentation, citing artists like Teddy Pendergrass and Luther Vandross, and also looking forward to contemporary artists like Daniel Caesar. He believes live instrumentation and "real musicianship" will "explode" because it is "uniquely human" and cannot be replicated by AI, even acknowledging the charm of imperfections in live performances. He has actively sought out live music experiences.

The Essence of Marketing: Storytelling

When asked to explain his profession to a fifth-grader, Cooper describes marketing as creating "words, images, sound that motivate you to buy things" across various screens and speakers. He highlights that the "heart of it is story," and while the methods of storytelling evolve, the fundamental act of narrative creation remains central to marketing.

Visa's Strategic Pivot: NFL Partnership

A significant topic is Visa's decision to pivot away from its large league contract with the NFL, which expires in March 2026, to focus on individual teams and creators. This move comes as American Express is reportedly taking over the official payment card sponsorship. Cooper explains that while Visa "loves the NFL" and acknowledges live sports as a powerful advertising platform, their analysis indicated that investing in "teams and players and other influencers" offered a better strategic return on investment than paying the "rights fees" for the overall league shield. The goal is to "go deeper" with more teams and players, fostering new partnerships and maintaining or increasing media spend, even without the league's official shield. This decision was driven by an assessment of the "opportunity cost" and the rising inflation of major sports properties (around 8.5% annual increase). The pivot also opens opportunities in other areas like video gaming and music.

Emerging Marketing Trends: AI and Beyond

Cooper identifies the primary trend as the use of AI, but advocates for a shift from "using AI to working with AI." He emphasizes training marketing executives to collaborate with AI to achieve "exponentially more" rather than simply seeking efficiency or headcount reduction. He sees AI as a tool for "advantage," not just efficiency, impacting everything from insights to measurement. He uses ChatGPT and Gemini daily and is exploring Sora for content development. He also highlights "agented commerce" as a fascinating area, envisioning a future where AI agents manage routine shopping, allowing humans to focus on the enjoyable or rich shopping experiences.

Sports League Partnerships: A Word Association

Cooper offers a single word to describe his perception of various sports leagues from a partnership standpoint:

Major League Baseball (MLB): "Resurgence," noting its recent vibrancy and connection with younger generations.
National Hockey League (NHL): "Small but fervent," acknowledging its dedicated but smaller aggregate fan base.
Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA): "Renaissance," highlighting the league's growth, athleticism, and the emergence of compelling rivalries.
National Women's Soccer League (NWSL): Visa has been invested in women's football for over 20 years, and Cooper sees it as "the future," with players rising as global stars. He confirms Visa's commitment to investing more in women's sports, citing gender parity in Team Visa athletes and the cultural momentum.
National Basketball Association (NBA): Despite current challenges like betting scandals and ownership allegations, Cooper expresses confidence in the league's leadership, particularly Adam Silver, and its global expansion potential (NBA Africa, Basketball Africa League). He sees potential for future partnerships.

The CMO Role and Consumer Behavior Change

Cooper clarifies the biggest misconception about marketing: that it's solely about advertising or creating "sizzle." He reiterates that the ultimate goal is "profitable growth." He explains how Visa influences consumer behavior by encouraging the adoption of Visa credentials in digital wallets, making them the default payment method. He also emphasizes the foundational aspects of Visa: acceptance and security, and building trust, particularly for solo travelers. He notes that consumers increasingly view transactions as a reflection of their potential and aspirations.

Personal Journey and Influences

Cooper shares his upbringing in San Francisco and Carson, California, crediting Carson for instilling "grit and resilience" and San Francisco for exposure to technology. His parents, a technologist father and a teacher mother, shaped his approach, blending teaching and technological understanding. He was drawn to kung fu movies as a child, appreciating the "underdog story" and the triumph of those not initially perceived as powerful. He recounts playing basketball against Darryl Strawberry in high school and a pivotal game against Kevin Johnson at Berkeley, which taught him the importance of dedication and continuous improvement for achieving greatness.

Career Pivots and Entrepreneurship

After graduating from UC Berkeley with a business administration degree and attending Harvard Law School, Cooper initially saw law as a safe career path. However, he was advised to identify his passion and combine it with his talents. This led him to the entertainment industry, where he saw the significant contribution music could make. He sought environments with "fundamental change" and leadership willing to drive it, embracing continuous learning and adaptability.

Early Online Media Ventures

Cooper co-founded Urban Box Network (ubo.net) in 1998, an online media company. He describes the pitch to investors in the late '90s as focusing on dominating a market over time, rather than immediate profitability. The pitch centered on identifying a "market that transcends race, gender, geography, ethnicity," which they termed "urban," highlighting its substantial spending power.

The Impact of Loss and Visionary Partnerships

The death of his partner George Jackson in February 2000 was a profound loss, marking the "beginning of the end" for their venture. Jackson, a producer of films like "New Jack City" and "Jason's Lyric," is described as a "kind visionary." Cooper reflects on the importance of mentors like Clarence Avant, who guided both him and Jackson.

Working with Superstars and Problem-Solving

Cooper shares his experience working with stars like Beyoncé, emphasizing their "attention to detail." He advises young marketers to balance respect for celebrities' achievements with professionalism, understanding their aspirations beyond their current fame. He focuses on identifying what can be achieved together that neither party could accomplish alone, building relationships based on shared ambitions rather than purely transactional deals. He likens this to Clarence Avant's skill in "solving people's problems," which builds a strong network.

Biggest CMO Failure and the Translation Layer

Cooper identifies his biggest failure as a CMO as not adequately translating "what marketing does into the simplest terms that non-marketers can both understand and believe in." This lack of clear communication, he explains, hinders budget increases and full buy-in from the C-suite. He has since developed the concept of "profitable consumer behaviors," such as loading a credential into a digital wallet, which is a clear leading indicator of business outcomes and understandable to all stakeholders. He sees this "translation layer" as a crucial role for CMOs.

Advice for Future CMOs: The "Fat T" Model

For aspiring CMOs, Cooper advises becoming a "fat t" professional: someone who is "really curious" and learns horizontally across many disciplines, but also possesses "multiple specializations." He stresses the need for continuous learning and adaptability in a rapidly changing landscape, warning that perfecting current skills will not suffice for future success.

Investment and AI Concerns

Cooper's preferred investment is still in the US, despite its polarization, believing in its historical capacity for innovation. He is inspired by "agented commerce" but concerned about the pace of AI development and whether organizations are adapting quickly enough. He sees AI as a tool for advantage, not just efficiency.

The Difference Between a Good and Great CMO

A "good" CMO possesses technical skills, data literacy, storytelling ability, and taste. A "great" CMO, however, understands that success is not about personal achievement but about building and empowering a talented team whose complementary skills drive collective success. This is encapsulated by the idea, "It's not about you."