Podcast Summary: Uncensored CMO

Episode: The creative genius behind Amazon’s world beating advertising – Jo Shoesmith

Host: Jon Evans
Guest: Jo Shoesmith, Chief Creative Officer at Amazon
Date: December 10, 2025

Episode Overview

In this lively and insightful episode, Jon Evans welcomes back Jo Shoesmith, Amazon’s Chief Creative Officer, for an in-depth conversation about building industry-defining creative at one of the world’s biggest brands. They explore the evolution of Amazon’s in-house creative team, the realities of client-agency collaboration, truth in storytelling, the balance between consistency and novelty in brand building, and the nuanced human elements that drive advertising effectiveness—even as the industry speeds toward an AI-powered future.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Role and Structure of Amazon’s Creative Team

[00:14-01:22]

• Jo describes her central role: overseeing a vast spectrum, from Prime to Alexa to new health offerings.
• Amazon employs both an integrated in-house agency and external agency partnerships, tailored by project scale.
• The team’s aim: “Ultimately, you want it to become more light touch over time as we establish much more of a playbook for what our brand should look like and be recognized in the world.” – Jo Shoesmith [00:58]

2. Lessons from Agency to Brand Side

[01:22-03:48]

• The shift from agency to client was "humbling" and broadened Jo’s perspective on priorities and the operational complexities behind seemingly simple ideas.
• Understanding business constraints is critical: “I massively oversimplified. And so now I really understand, okay, there's consequences and trade offs and business decisions... they're not being rejected because someone's not brave enough.” – Jo Shoesmith [03:11]

3. The Reality of Implementing Ideas

[03:48-04:18]

• Great ideas are worthless if they can’t be executed within the constraints of the business.
• Execution is “90% of the job,” with customer experience as the ultimate priority.

4. Amazon’s Approach to Media and Innovation

[05:02-06:13]

• Amazon tailors media by region, using mass media (TV, out-of-home), emerging formats (Prime Video pause ads), and continually searches for inventive “surfaces” for messaging.

Memorable Moment:

“You may even have seen recently on Prime Video streaming, when you pause that's an ad space now... it's kind of looking around corners... not in a way that's obnoxious.” – Jo Shoesmith [05:56]

5. What Drives Amazon’s Creative Success

[06:44-08:58]

• The secret: emotional, simple, universal stories rooted in cultural context, with distinctive brand assets woven seamlessly.
• Simplicity is key: “The industry often overwrites for 30 seconds... we do try and really go back to what’s the simplest expression of this story.” – Jo Shoesmith [08:02]
• Consistent collaboration with directors who understand the brand voice creates creative shorthand and better outputs.

6. The Science of Storytelling in Advertising

[08:58-10:34]

• Jon references Orlando Wood’s work on right- vs. left-brain advertising, emphasizing that Amazon’s emotionally resonant, story-driven approach appeals to the right brain.
• “We are in the entertainment industry as well... There is this storytelling culture that's building. ...To get someone invested in a character in 30 seconds is quite a task.” – Jo Shoesmith [09:50]

7. The Power of Consistency

[10:34-12:43]

• Amazon’s radical approach: designing campaigns meant for three to five years, not annual overhaul.
• Data confirms: consistent, emotional, recognizable campaigns outperform.
• “...the more people get familiar with something, actually the more they like them.” – Jon Evans [11:16]
• “We rarely wear spots out. ... If they’re well made, they can be off air for a couple years and come back.” – Jo Shoesmith [12:23]

8. Understanding the Audience—Beyond Gen Z Stereotypes

[13:54-21:01]

• Gen Z is overrepresented in ads, but research finds they feel less positive when seeing themselves stereotyped.
• Intergenerational and emotionally authentic stories resonate far better.
• “It's about time we started all shifting to that mentality... There is more layers to the onion of Gen Z.” – Jo Shoesmith [20:08]

9. Finding the Real Story in Production

[21:23-28:03]

• Jo tells moving stories from Amazon campaigns in Japan and India, where production insights (such as the emotional motivation of a young boy or working mothers) pivoted the narrative to deeper, more resonant themes.
• Flexibility and openness are essential:
  “Being open to the idea of a story unfolding through that process is thrilling.” – Jo Shoesmith [28:03]

10. The Role of AI in Amazon’s Creative Process

[29:50-34:32]

• AI is viewed as another tool—great for efficiency, like analyzing millions of reviews, or automating production—but not a replacement for human judgment.
• “Don’t start with the technology. Start with the problem and then decide whether the technology is appropriate.” – Jo Shoesmith [31:37]
• Notably, Ryan Reynolds is rumored to ghostwrite poetic Amazon reviews! [31:49]

11. Agility and the Culture of Forward Momentum

[35:31-36:26]

• Amazon’s agility comes from “really smart team of leaders looking forward, not backwards. ... That tolerance of forward, kind of constant forward momentum and always looking to what's next... is what's enabled us to move fast.” – Jo Shoesmith [35:52]

12. The Underappreciated Power of Brand Foundations

[36:37-39:46]

• Standardizing the brand’s visual identity globally has had massive impact, even though it’s “not the sexiest” work.
• “It’s so foundational to consistency… If we can start to have that layer... I’m making it easier on the customer because they know who’s talking to them.” – Jo Shoesmith [37:57]

13. Final Reflections on Consistency

[39:46-40:36]

• Both Jon and Jo agree that the “compounding effect of consistency” is the single biggest lesson, but one only visible with time and patience.
• “Takes at least three years to have an impact... Even to be able to go, well, that didn't work, we can optimize it or change it. But it does take... time.” – Jo Shoesmith [40:22]

Notable Quotes

• On switching to client side:
  “Creativity is the product of the agency. When you go brand side, creativity is one of the many things you do in the brand.” – Jo Shoesmith [01:34]

• On brand courage:
  “The idea that like a client’s not brave enough means you haven't really understood the why the business why behind why they're not doing something.” – Jo Shoesmith [03:30]

• On creative process:
  “You have to kind of let [the story]... unfold through the process. You don't judge it too soon.” – Jo Shoesmith [27:56]

• On AI’s true role:
  “Don’t start with the technology. Start with the problem and then decide whether the technology is appropriate for that problem.” – Jo Shoesmith [31:37]

• On emotional storytelling:
  “To get someone invested in a character in 30 seconds is quite a task. …If you bombard that with too many deviations... it becomes really complicated.” – Jo Shoesmith [09:50]

• On brand consistency:
  “...it takes at least three years to have an impact.” – Jo Shoesmith [40:22]

• Fun Fact:
  “Ryan Reynolds ghostwrites reviews on Amazon.” – Jo Shoesmith [31:49]

Timestamps for Important Segments

| Segment | Timestamp | |-----------------------------------------------|---------------| | Amazon creative structure & role | 00:14–01:22 | | Lessons from agency to client | 01:22–03:48 | | Execution vs. ideation, customer experience | 03:48–04:18 | | Media innovation (pause ads, etc.) | 05:02–06:13 | | Amazon’s storytelling framework | 06:44–08:58 | | Simplicity and partnership in creative | 08:02–08:58 | | Right-brain vs. left-brain advertising | 08:58–10:34 | | Long-term campaign consistency | 10:34–12:43 | | Gen Z, stereotypes, intergenerational themes | 13:54–21:01 | | Discovering real stories in production | 21:23–28:03 | | AI in creative work at Amazon | 29:50–34:32 | | Brand agility and leadership culture | 35:31–36:26 | | Brand architecture & standardization | 36:37–39:46 | | Compounding effect of consistency | 39:46–40:36 |

Tone & Takeaways

The episode is candid, fast-moving, and full of practical and philosophical wisdom. Jo’s direct, humble perspective balances creativity’s artistic side with the realities of scale, operations, and patience. There is a strong focus on service to the customer, storytelling built on truth, and the compounding power of creative and brand consistency—offering marketers fresh permission to slow down, simplify, and trust the process.