Speaking Human

We take a bite out of the latest Apple event to find out if the products and presentation from Tim Cook and co. live up to the mammoth media buzz. Mmmmm, apples… Get show notes for this episode and check out past episodes of the Speaking Human podcast by visiting thinkmonsters.com/speakinghuman.

We grunt with everyone’s favorite Austrian bodybuilder, former governor and 80s action star as he flexes his comic muscle in a new marketing campaign for Realestate.com Australia. Get to the chopper!!! Get show notes for this episode and check out past episodes of the Speaking Human podcast by visiting thinkmonsters.com/speakinghuman.

We stare endlessly at the recently redesigned Airbnb logo in hopes of seeing all the strange interpretations that have surfaced on social media. Oh my god, I do see it! It looks like a… Get show notes for this episode and check out past episodes of the Speaking Human podcast by visiting thinkmonsters.com/speakinghuman.

We declare our brand winners of the bloody, sweaty and hard-fought marketing battle that was the 2014 World Cup. Victory! Get show notes for this episode and check out past episodes of the Speaking Human marketing podcast by visiting thinkmonsters.com/speakinghuman.

We marvel at the magnificent Marvel marketing machine by thoroughly examining Thor’s new anatomy, gauging audience expectations for Guardians of the Galaxy, and getting amped up early for the ultimate superhero sequel. Avengers assemble! Get show notes for this episode and check out past episodes of the Speaking Human marketing podcast by visiting thinkmonsters.com/speakinghuman.

We toast our 21st episode by taking 21 shots, jumping in a Dodge Charger with the Duke boys, and watching them outrun the law while surfing Autotrader.com. Yee-haw!!! Get show notes for this episode and check out past episodes of Speaking Human by visiting thinkmonsters.com/speakinghuman.

We crash the World Cup to explore how Beats by Dre managed to become the world’s coolest brand by getting banned from the world’s biggest marketing stage. Goooooooaaaaaaaalllllllllllllll!

We celebrate the arrival of summer by sitting around the campfire, singing along to the S’more Song, and discussing DQ’s new marketing campaign. It’s gonna be a hot one!

We imbibe the latest packaging innovations from top beverage brands. We verify the icy-coldness of Coca-Cola; warm up to the holiday season with Starbucks; and get drunk on originality with Absolut vodka. Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug!

We celebrate and denigrate the latest bizarre celebrity-brand pairings. We ride in a Dodge Durango with Ron Burgundy; watch Jean Claude Van Damme make a double impact for Volvo; and try on clothes made from cool by Christopher Walken. Wowie. Wow. Wow.

We discuss the high-stakes game of summer movie marketing. We’ll tell you what blockbuster marketing drove our butts to cinema seats and what films flopped at inspiring us to leave our air-conditioning and HDTVs.

We peep into the marketing future and catch a glimpse of Oreo dipping its cookies into robotics, Lexus driving the red carpet at the Oscars, and Google converting us into a culture of cross-eyed nerds.

We answer the call on smartphone marketing by checking out the view from the top with Apple, bashing the big guy with the aggressive marketers at Samsung, and contemplating the future for another fruit-named phone—the Blackberry.

We watch in awe as GE rounds up some familiar robot faces, Apple plays Ping-Pong with Venus and Serena, and Planet Fitness sounds the alarm on lunks.

We bust out the barbecue, beer barrels and body paint to cheer wildly as a band of vicious competitors vie for glory on Super Bowl Sunday. That’s right, we’re talking about the brutal battle for brand supremacy during the big game. Find out who came out on top and who just flushed millions down the Port-a-John.

We go through the marketing ringer as Hasbro forces us to fight for the right to use the iron in Monopoly, Axe Body Spray sends us into space smelling really good, and Zicam makes us do battle with a boogery beast.

We throw out our typical podcast format to end the year in big, bold, epic style by exploring the good, the bad, and the ugly underbelly of marketing in 2012. That’s right, folks—it’s our best of the year blowout bonanza!

We flashback to the decade of alt rock, Topanga and Jumanji, exchange LOLs and OMGs with the Pope on Twitter, and celebrate the holidays with Clark Griswold and a pair of Old Navy pop pants.

We crown social media king of the porcelain palace, celebrate twenty years of finger-tapping talk, and get brand-brainwashed by the rhythm and motion of the most-watched YouTube video of all time.

We hold a memorial for a snack food thought to be indestructible, debate whether we or you should get a Wii U, and try to determine if mobile devices are destroying our souls. And in a last hurrah before the apocalypse, we watch in awe as Black Friday goes nuclear and swallows Thanksgiving whole.