Senior Art Director For Lucid Motors Martha Karnsund
Great artistic work in any medium is very fluid. Marketing is no exception. Often it goes unnoticed because even as it hits the nail on the head it remains natural. Martha Karnsund believes this wholeheartedly and is known for a catchphrase that encapsulates this all too well: “A good marketing campaign shouldn’t let the consumer know that it’s actually a marketing campaign.” In Karnsund’s eyes this should be common sense but when rubber meets the road fluidity is often hard to create and even harder to replicate. Despite this, she has been remarkable in her ability to capture it in her work time and time again.
Great marketing provokes the mind and connects to consumer sentiment and emotions. It can inspire and if it’s noteworthy its influence will outlive its creator. As mentioned oftentimes this is the case because it does not come across as obvious advertisement. Karnsund has a unique gift in this realm and her work is on full display with the latest launch for Lucid Motors and the complementary marketing presence for their latest cars.
In an industry dominated by men, Karnsund has cemented herself. She’s the first Senior Art Director for Lucid Motors; a publicly traded car manufacturer on the edge of greatness in the Electric Vehicle (EV) space. If Lucid and the EV market take off in the way many believe, our climate crisis could take a turn for the better.
To appreciate her impact today it’s best to start at the beginning. For starters, she’s a foreign born talent from Stockholm that fell in love with San Francisco. It’s no secret that the streets of San Francisco and Silicon Valley alike are paved with problem solving ideas, and a vibrant “can do” attitude. Both of which drew her in and beckoned her stay.
Karnsund’s meteoric rise began at an agency called Partners in Crime located in the Marina District of San Francisco. She collaborated closely with Creative Leadership and Founders and worked with a number of established brand names such as Bank of the West, Osprey Funds, and Right Rice. Being that the bay area is no stranger to start-ups, she also got an opportunity to share her design and marketing talents with other upcoming brands such as Floortopia, Caddis Eyewear, and Reboot.
Establishing herself in the advertising world gave Martha a unique perspective that has served her well. Clients often remark that she’s able to see around corners in the creative process and identify gaps that they wouldn’t have been able to themselves. She credits her ingenuity with her Swedish upbringing that has acted as her foundation.
Whilst at Partners in Crime, Karnsund pushed the firm in the direction of working with sustainably driven companies. Ever the purpose-driven strategist, she saw and understood the value of choosing to work with green companies. Martha helped PIC to balance sustainable expectations with bottom line outcomes. She’s since remarked that “Innovative and creative companies don’t need to compromise ecologically and sustainably”. We only have 1 planet.” Those experiences guided her to make the conscious decision of choosing her current employer, Lucid Motors, who shares the same values.
Contrary to traditional marketing methodologies Martha sees campaigns and products in a similar light. Without first rate innovation neither can positively impact the other. While it goes against the grain for some, she sees it plain as day when one examines the advertising industry as a whole over the last hundred years.
In reviewing history she sees it littered with tired, commonplace, vanilla marketing, and many campaigns tend to blend into each other. Karnsund sees “different” as interesting and has come to respect that today consumers are smarter. Likewise the business side has changed too and performance is everything. In Karnsund’s eyes this is dictated by innovative, compelling design, user-friendly technological solutions, and sustainability.
And… as any Art Director/Designer worth their salt will tell you: “A good marketing campaign shouldn’t feel like a marketing campaign.”
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