In this episode of South Africa Tech Marketers, we sit down with Tracey-Lee Zürcher-Campbell, Head of Marketing at Payflex, to unpack her remarkable pivot from storytelling in journalism to leading brand, performance, and Martech strategy in one of South Africa’s most recognisable fintechs.

With a tiny team, a powerful agency model, and a relentless focus on efficiency, Tracey-Lee shares how she’s built scalable systems, championed customer experience, and embraced AI — all while maintaining joy and emotional resonance in the brand voice. If you're an ambitious South African marketer wondering how to lead, adapt, and stay relevant in a tech-forward world, this conversation is packed with lessons you can apply right now.

The power of storytelling in performance marketing

Lessons from working across B2B, B2C, and B2G sectors

Building brand trust with just five in-house marketers

Why consistency beats complexity in fintech

Martech stacks and making tech “talk to each other”

Scaling with small teams: systems, agency partners & smart prioritisation

Practical use cases for AI in CX, content, and automation

Career advice: pivoting with purpose, not panic

The Peter Principle and how to avoid being promoted into failure

The underrated value of joy in marketing

You don’t need a huge team to build a powerful brand. At Payflex, just five in-house marketers — backed by great agency partners — deliver one of SA’s most trusted fintech brands.

Build with emotional clarity. Whether it’s B2C, B2B, or even B2G, people make decisions based on emotional drivers. Rational benefits are table stakes.

Adopt fast, integrate faster. Martech only works if your tools talk to each other. Tracey-Lee shares how Payflex built a connected stack using Asana, Zoho, Zendesk, and Netcore Cloud.

AI should reduce cost and increase joy. From cutting call volumes 40% with a chatbot, to using AI image gen for hyper-personalised campaigns — smart AI use starts small and solves real problems.

South African marketers must stay curious. Tracey-Lee regularly meets with unknown vendors just to explore what’s out there. Staying still is not an option.

Careers are non-linear. If you’re not where you want to be yet, you’re still learning. Tracey-Lee’s early “detours” made her a deeper, more versatile marketer.

Tracey-Lee Zürcher-Campbell is the Head of Marketing at Payflex, South Africa’s leading “buy now, pay later” platform. With a background in journalism and over 15 years of experience across performance, brand, and Martech, she’s helped legacy businesses and fast-growing scale-ups build trust with customers and stakeholders alike. She’s a relentless systems-thinker, an advocate for upskilling, and proof that South African marketers can thrive globally — without needing to relocate.

🔗 Connect with Tracey-Lee on LinkedIn