Clique Hospitality

Joanna Sowers is the chief marketing officer at Clique Hospitality, leading digital and venue marketing strategy. Having advanced from social media management to executive leadership, she focuses on brand development, integrated marketing and building high-performing teams through mentorship and talent development.

Developing Talent through Hands-On Leadership

I was 22 when I started as a social media manager at The Light Group, working under Andy Masi. My first big project was Alibi Cocktail Lounge. When The Light Group was acquired, I followed Andy as he launched Clique Hospitality. Best call I ever made.

Back then, venue marketing directors handled traditional marketing and digital was outsourced. So we brought it in-house, and I built the department from scratch. I went from a one-person digital operation to digital marketing director, then VP of digital marketing, and I have been CMO since September 2025.

Having started at the entry level, I don't ask my team to do anything I haven't done myself. I also remember what it felt like when someone bet on me. Andy trusted me to create without boundaries, and an early mentor, Lauren Fredriksson, pushed me to chase ideas even when they seemed unconventional. I try to pay that forward. I hire for potential, promote from within whenever I can and teach with my own playbooks, recorded lessons and regular check-ins, so people learn on the job. Today, our venue and digital marketers are one department, and people who walked in knowing one slice of the job now run a venue's full marketing, or guide a team across several.

Measuring Social Media by Real Business Outcomes

Social media taught me that guests vote every day, in public, so you learn to listen fast and adjust without ego. A like is nice. A booked table is better. So we judge paid media by confirmed reservations.

“Every venue has one set of truths, and they have to match everywhere a guest might look.”

For insights, I listen to what guests ask. Where do I park? Is the game on? Each one's a content brief. I want the whole team to read the data. A lot of my coaching goes to venue marketers who came up on the traditional side, getting them comfortable with paid media and reporting, so insights don't stall at my desk.

Turning Creative Campaigns into Business Results

Consistency starts with facts. Every venue has one set of truths, and they have to match everywhere a guest might look. Opening Tailgate Beach Club at Mandalay Bay this year reminded me how much one stray detail can confuse a guest or a search engine.

Inside those guardrails, I want creativity loud. For Caspian's at Caesars Palace, we teased the opening with a cryptic ‘Caspian's Coming Soon’ campaign. For Amaya, a research trip to Cabo shaped the brand story. With influencers, I look for creators who would come anyway and let them tell it their way. Every big idea gets a business goal, but my rule is to celebrate the idea first and refine it later.

Aligning Marketing Promises with Operational Reality

The best marketing is a promise operations can keep. I pull in chefs, general managers, talent and designers early because whatever we promise online, the floor has to deliver on a busy Saturday. At Wax Rabbit in Durango, the team built a nightlife spot around vinyl in a streaming world, and it worked because design, music and marketing told one story.

Growing the team taught me even more, usually in a room where the ideas are flying and the espresso's flowing. Going from one person to a nationwide team meant clear roles, real resources and making sure remote teammates feel as empowered as anyone in the office. I give people real ownership, whether that's a venue or a platform, and then I trust them to run with it.

Leadership isn't about being the smartest person in the room. It's about making space for others to shine, then making a big deal when they do. I have always said collaboration is the best kind of chaos: the kind that turns ideas into openings, and openings into nights people still talk about.

Preparing for the Next Phase of Digital Marketing

Marketing leaders must prepare for three key shifts. First, AI-driven search. More guests see an AI answer before any links, and it's built from the same pages that search engines already index. So accurate, current information and content only your venue could write matter more than ever.

Second, measurement is tied to real outcomes. Brands that tie marketing to actual bookings will make smarter calls. Finally, guests want to feel a venue's energy before they walk in, which is why short-form video and creator content are part of the experience now.

Underneath all of it, invest in your people. Trends change weekly; curious teams keep up. As I tell mine, ‘Digital strategy is never finished. It's a living process that evolves as fast as our guests do.’