TMM IRL: When marketing meets culture – the mistakes we don’t see coming

The Marketing Meetup is a global community for marketers, and the marketing-curious. This is your space to keep up to date and meet like minds, in an environment that prioritises kindness and learning you can actually put into action. ​We’re heading back to the lovely Volta for this event, where the vibes are chill and friendly, and you’ll be welcomed in with big smiles and cheerful chat 🙂 ​Come say hello, grab a snack, listen to a speaker or two to get the ideas flowing, and savour the time to have real conversations with real humans. No selling or networking bingo, just good people being good people. ​This is the kind of night where you walk home at the end thinking, “I’m not the only one, after all.” ​Let’s have a fab night with some fab people. You’re invited, of course. ******************* ​Speaker: Maria Prudnikova, Marketing & Communications Advisor at Doane Grant Thornton LLP Topic: When marketing meets culture: the mistakes we don’t see coming You can have the right strategy, the right message, and a great creative idea—and still realize too late that you missed the cultural context. With nearly two decades of experience in communications and marketing across India, Russia, Finland, and Canada, Maria Prudnikova shares funny, expensive, and eye-opening stories of what happens when cultural context gets overlooked. From gifting etiquette and funeral-food sandwiches to metric and imperial misunderstandings and campaigns that sparked unexpected reactions, we’ll explore how small cultural blind spots can create anything from awkward moments to reputational risks. You’ll leave with a practical cultural lens that helps you become the person in the room who asks the right questions early—saving your team time, money, and unnecessary revisions. ******************* ​Here’s how the evening unfolds: ​6:30 pm Doors open: snacks, smiles, warm welcomes, and that lovely buzz of people arriving ​7:00 pm A hello from us, then over to our speakers ​7:45 pm Talks done, and plenty of time for open conversation, new connections, and zero pressure chatting ​8:30 pm Home time, with new connections, ideas in your head, and a smile on your face 🙂 ******************* ​A heartfelt thank you to our brilliant supporters. We literally couldn’t do this without them. ​Volta, Canada’s East Coast Startup Hub and Co-Working Space. They connect tech entrepreneurs with programming, resources, and space to scale and grow their companies in the tech and innovation ecosystem. Check them out at https://www.voltaeffect.com/ ******************* ​This is a donation ticketed event. Ticket price is yours to choose, from $10 to $50 😊 ​We genuinely mean it when we say everyone is welcome here. So, if the minimum donation is a stretch right now, please just reach out to el@themarketingmeetup.com. We’ll always do our best to include you. ​If you know a marketer who’d love this, please do pass it on. This community grows one person at a time, thanks to the wonderful members – like you – spreading the word. ​Just one little ask: if you sign up and can’t make it, please let us know so we can offer your spot to someone else. We know that certain things crop up (we’re only human!), but after three unnotified no-shows we’ll need to prioritise other community members, out of fairness to everyone who puts time and heart into making these evenings happen. 🙂 ******************* ​See you there!