On Brand: A Podcast About Branding For Brand Builders, By Brand Builders

“The art of the question has fundamentally been lost.” As a global speaker and consultant in digital marketing and sales, Marcus Sheridan has made name for himself and his business by answering all of the questions. I couldn’t wait to talk to the content marketing legend and author about all of this, on this week’s On Brand podcast.  About Marcus Sheridan Called a “web marketing guru” by The New York Times, the story of how Marcus Sheridan was able to save his swimming pool company, River Pools, from the economic crash of 2008 has been featured in multiple books, publications, and stories around the world—and is also the inspiration for his newest book, “They Ask, You Answer.” Today, Sheridan has become a highly sought after global speaker and consultant in the digital sales and marketing space, working with hundreds of business and brands alike to become the most trusted voice of their industry while navigating the ultra-fast rate of change occurring within consumers and buyers today. Episode Highlights The

On this week’s Social Sound Bite – recorded live at the KXIC studios in Iowa City – Jay and I discussed some new stats on Instagram Story use vs. Snapchat Story use. While everyone loves talking about Snapchat, it looks like Instagram is currently winning the story wars. Listen for the full sound bite and enjoy these useful links to the news, trends, and tips included in this week’s show.  Beyond the Sound Bite Here’s the full story at TechCrunch – Instagram Stories is stealing Snapchat’s users. Remember, the Social Sound Bite is just the appetizer! On Monday morning we’ll serve up a fresh new episode of the On Brand Podcast. Last but not least … Subscribe to the podcast – You can subscribe to the show via iTunes, Stitcher, and RSS. Rate and review the show – If you like what you’re hearing, head over to iTunes and click that 5-star button to rate the show. And if you have a few extra seconds, write a couple of sentences and submit a review. This helps others find the podcast. OK. How do you rate an

"The only way to stand out is to build a brand." B2B marketers often focus most of their energy on sales funnels, lead generation, and analytics. But how do you stand out in the noisy marketplace? A few weeks ago, Jay Acunzo told a story on the podcast about how Drift made the bold move of un-gating all of their content. I couldn't wait to hear this story first hand from Drift's Director of Marketing Dave Gerhart on this week's episode of the On Brand podcast.  About Dave Gerhardt Dave Gerhardt is the director of marketing at Drift, a Boston-based startup that helps sales and customer success teams connect with their customers. Dave has spent the first seven years of his career working at SaaS marketing companies, including HubSpot and Constant Contact, and he was recently named one of Boston's 50 on Fire for 2017. He's also the co-host of Seeking Wisdom, a podcast about health, wealth, life, and learning. Episode Highlights Why would a brand un-gate all of their content?? Content marketing is powerful — espe

On this week's Social Sound Bite – recorded live at the KXIC studios in Iowa City – Jay and I discussed recent "rogue tweets" from Badlands National Park, in response to an alleged media blackout for federal agencies from the Trump White House. Listen for the full sound bite and enjoy these useful links to the news, trends, and tips included in this week's show. Beyond the Sound Bite Badlands National Park Twitter account goes rogue, starts tweeting scientific facts (CBS News). After the "rogue tweets" were deleted, some employees created an Alternate National Park Service Twitter account (on their own time and without public resources). Remember, the Social Sound Bite is just the appetizer! On Monday morning we'll serve up a fresh new episode of the On Brand Podcast. Last but not least … Subscribe to the podcast – You can subscribe to the show via iTunes, Stitcher, and RSS. Rate and review the show – If you like what you’re hearing, head over to iTunes and click that 5-star button to rate the show.

"You are the steward of the cluster that’s drawn to your brand.” Today, we’re simultaneously in control of our brands and not in control, as we build an increasingly diverse audience across diffused media platforms and touch points. It’s this dynamic that Gabriella Mirabelli spends most of her time helping big media and tech brands navigate. We talked about millennials, media brands, and more this week on the On Brand podcast.  About Gabriella Mirabelli Gabriella Mirabelli is the foremost authority on translating millennial behavioral trends for executives at major media enterprises. She was listed on Inc. as one of the "5 Unsung Heroes of New Media" and is the CEO and co-founder of ANATOMY, a New York based, Emmy Award winning creative agency and branding consultancy. As the host of The Up Next Podcast, she talks with the brightest innovators, risk takers, and disrupters on the front lines of change from Hollywood, Wall St., Silicon Valley, and beyond. Over the last half decade, Gabriella has studied how the

“Brands that we look to, that are charismatic, know their audience. They know who they are.” Stories, personality, and experiences are the building blocks of modern brands of all shapes and sizes. This week, Carla Johnson of Type A Communications and co-author of Experiences: The 7th Era of Marketing stopped by the On Brand podcast to discuss all of this.  About Carla Johnson Carla Johnson helps marketers unlock, nurture and strengthen their storytelling muscle so they can create delightful experiences for audiences. She works as a trusted advisor at the highest level of blue-chip brands to establish open conversations, instill creative confidence and inspire an environment of receptivity that develops highly prized teams and stellar business results. Carla has worked with companies that include American Express, Dell, Emerson, Motorola Solutions, VMware, Western Union and Smurfit Kappa on how to tap into a wellspring of ideas and unveil new ways to bring their brand stories alive in fun and captivating ways.

“All advice is bad advice unless it’s contextualized to you.” As marketers and brand builders, we get advice left and right. Do this, not that. Send this many emails. Write this many blog posts. This week, Jay Acunzo of the Unthinkable podcast reminded us that we need to always ask ourselves why we’re doing this and who we’re doing it for if we want to close the chasm between average and exceptional.  About Jay Acunzo Jay Acunzo jokes that he’s the world’s most passionate “craft-driven” marketer. He is a highly sought after keynote speaker, writer, and host of the atypical-sounding podcast Unthinkable. Jay launched his career at Google as a digital media strategist, led content marketing for multiple startups, followed by the VC firm NextView, and today, he hosts his weekly show and travels the world exploring how people can trust their intuition to do more exceptional work. Episode Highlights Jay calls himself a “craft-driven marketer.” “Anything that’s craft driven is where the process is the point.” While

On this week's Social Sound Bite – recorded live at the KXIC studios in Iowa City – Jay and I discussed a recent Twitter exchange between fast food giant Wendy's and a social media troll. Instead of following conventional wisdom and ignoring the troll, Wendy's engaged. The results will surprise you. Listen for the full sound bite and enjoy these useful links to the news, trends, and tips included in this week's show. Beyond the Sound Bite Wendy's Put a Troll on Ice With 2017's Best Tweet So Far (Adweek). Remember, the Social Sound Bite is just the appetizer! On Monday morning we'll serve up a fresh new episode of the On Brand Podcast. Last but not least … Subscribe to the podcast – You can subscribe to the show via iTunes, Stitcher, and RSS. Rate and review the show – If you like what you’re hearing, head over to iTunes and click that 5-star button to rate the show. And if you have a few extra seconds, write a couple of sentences and submit a review. This helps others find the podcast. OK. How do y

In 100 episodes we’ve had a lot of our expert guests define what branding is. Today we add a new definition to that list. Seth Godin joined me to celebrate, as he said, “showing up 100 times.” I’m happy to do it and happy to bring you more great guests like Seth in the future. Enjoy this week’s 100th episode of the On Brand podcast featuring the one, the only Seth Godin!  About Seth Godin Seth Godin is the author of 18 books that have been bestsellers around the world and have been translated into more than 35 languages. He writes about the post-industrial revolution, the way ideas spread, marketing, quitting, leadership and most of all, changing everything. You might be familiar with his books Linchpin, Tribes, The Dip, and Purple Cow. In addition to his writing and speaking, Seth founded both Yoyodyne and Squidoo. His blog (which you can find by typing "seth" into Google) is one of the most popular in the world. He was recently inducted into the Direct Marketing Hall of Fame, one of three chosen for this ho

This week we have a very special episode of the On Brand podcast! Actually, it’s Part 1 of a two-episode special commemorating 100 interviews with industry-leading brand builders. To kick off Part 1, we go back to the beginning. Our first guest ever on January 1, 2015, was Patrick Hanlon, author of Primal Branding and The Social Code. A lot has changed since then and I couldn’t wait to catch up with On Brand guest #1. About Patrick Hanlon Patrick Hanlon is one of the leading brand practitioners in the world. He is CEO and founder of Thinktopia, a global strategic and brand transformation practice for Fortune 100 companies including American Express, Levis, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Kraft Foods, Johnson & Johnson, Yum! Foods, Wrigley, PayPal, Gap, the United Nations and others. His book Primal Branding, is the seminal work that looks at brands as belief systems that people opt-in to. Hanlon’s Primal Branding construct is now recognized by YouTube, as their recommended method f

“I don’t look far enough ahead to call myself a futurist.” Instead, Rohit Bhargava focuses on being a “non-obvious” trend curator, to the benefit of brands big and small. Each year since 2011, he has curated the digital trends businesses need to be aware of in his Non Obvious book series. The 2017 edition just came out and I couldn’t wait to ask Rohit about it on the On Brand podcast. About Rohit Bhargava Rohit Bhargava is a “non-obvious” trend curator, founder of the Influential Marketing Group, and an expert in helping brands and leaders be more influential. He is the Wall Street Journal best-selling author of five books on topics as wide ranging as the future of business, building a brand with personality, and why leaders never eat cauliflower. Rohit has advised hundreds of global brands and also teaches marketing at Georgetown University. A two-time TEDx speaker, Rohit has keynoted events in 31 countries and is regularly featured as a marketing expert by media such as The New York Times, Harvard Business

“Most content marketing is stuck in the ‘meh’ gear.” Robert Rose knows a thing or two about content marketing. He literally co-wrote the book on it. As Chief Strategist for the Content Advisory Group with the Content Marketing Institute and a Senior Contributing Consultant for Digital Clarity Group, he helps organizations throughout the world enhance their content marketing and customer experience. We talked about content today, tomorrow, and the new year ahead on this week’s episode of the On Brand podcast. About Robert Rose Robert Rose is in the business of helping marketers become stellar storytellers. He is the Chief Strategist for the Content Advisory Group with the Content Marketing Institute, and a Senior Contributing Consultant for Digital Clarity Group, Robert helps develop content and customer experience strategies for large enterprises such as Oracle, The Bill And Melinda Gates Foundation, Allstate Insurance, Microsoft, Capital One, AT&T, Petco and UPS – helping them create powerful customer experi

On this week's Social Sound Bite – recorded live at the KXIC studios in Iowa City – Jay and I discussed several new features making their way to Instagram including liking comments, blocking comments, and reporting abuse anonymously. Listen for the full sound bite and enjoy these useful links to the news, trends, and tips included in this week's show. Beyond the Sound Bite Instagram will soon let you like comments — or even turn them off completely (Washington Post). Remember, the Social Sound Bite is just the appetizer! On Monday morning we'll serve up a fresh new episode of the On Brand Podcast. Last but not least … Subscribe to the podcast – You can subscribe to the show via iTunes, Stitcher, and RSS. Rate and review the show – If you like what you’re hearing, head over to iTunes and click that 5-star button to rate the show. And if you have a few extra seconds, write a couple of sentences and submit a review. This helps others find the podcast. OK. How do you rate and review a podcast? Need a q

"The future for both organizations and entrepreneurs is in leveraging innovation techniques to design masterful customer experiences." Nicholas Webb knows a thing or two about both customers and innovations. As an inventor, he's been awarded over 45 patents. He now channels his innovative skills to help some of the world's top brands excel at customer experience. We discussed all of this and more on this week’s episode of the On Brand podcast. About Nicholas J. Webb Nicholas Webb is a world-renowned technology futurist innovator. As an inventor, Nicholas invented one of the first wearable technologies and one of the world’s smallest medical implants. Nicholas has been awarded over 45 patents by the US Patent Office. Nicholas is the author of several best-selling books including, The Innovation Playbook and his recently released number one best-selling book, What Customers Crave. As the CEO at Cravve, Nicholas works with some of the top brands in the world to help them lead their market in enterprise strategy,

On this week's Social Sound Bite – recorded live at the KXIC studios in Iowa City – Jay and I discussed a question on the minds of many social media marketers — should you use hashtags on Facebook? We found answers in some recent research. Listen for the full sound bite and enjoy these useful links to the news, trends, and tips included in this week's show. Beyond the Sound Bite Should You Use Hashtags on Facebook? Here's What the Research Says (Social Media Today). Remember, the Social Sound Bite is just the appetizer! On Monday morning we'll serve up a fresh new episode of the On Brand Podcast. Last but not least … Subscribe to the podcast – You can subscribe to the show via iTunes, Stitcher, and RSS. Rate and review the show – If you like what you’re hearing, head over to iTunes and click that 5-star button to rate the show. And if you have a few extra seconds, write a couple of sentences and submit a review. This helps others find the podcast. OK. How do you rate and review a podcast? Need a qu

“We have to make a distinction between the name and the brand. The name piques your interest or curiosity. It’s like having someone over for coffee or dinner. The brand is the impression that’s left after the experience.” As the president and creative director of a verbal identity firm, brand names are Mike Pile’s business. We took a deep dive on this critical brand touch point on this week’s episode of the On Brand podcast. About Mike Pile Mike Pile is president and creative director of Uppercase Branding, a verbal identity firm that specializes in creating powerful and evocative brand names for new companies, products, and features. He has more than 25 years’ global brand development experience with advertising agencies, Fortune 500 firms, and startups. A name is the single most-used word in any marketing communication program, so Mike believes that a compelling brand name is a company’s most potent brand asset. While a name can’t help a bad business model or product, it can significantly aid a good concept

“You have to look beyond the color and logos with brand identity. They're really the product of something deeper." It's this kind of brand introspection that Gregory Diehl excels at. As the author of two best-selling books including Brand Identity Breakthrough, Gregory has a unique, global, and modern perspective on how we build brands both online and off. We discussed all of this and more on this week's episode of the On Brand podcast. About Gregory Diehl Raised in California, author Gregory Diehl embarked at age 18 on a global quest for learning, self-discovery, entrepreneurship, and inquiry. Since then, Gregory has lived and worked in 45 countries and continues to use his experiences to help others along the path of self-fulfillment through exploration. This year, he published two Amazon bestsellers in business, travel, and personal development. He helps entrepreneurs prepare complex value messages across many mediums, and offers unconventional lifestyle coaching and brand identity consultancy for impassio

“A brand is not just to make marketing better. It’s to lead the company into the future.” Erich Joachimsthaler of Vivaldi Partners has a decidedly global perspective on brand building. The author of Brand Leadership and the new Hidden in Plain Sight has spoken at conferences and corporate events around the world in English, German, and Spanish. We discussed the most recent developments in brand strategy and evolution on this week’s episode of the On Brand podcast. About Erich Joachimsthaler After a career of 15 years in academics and extensive professional work experience in several large multinational companies, Erich Joachimsthaler founded Vivaldi Partners. He is actively engaged in many consulting projects for leading companies and brands. In addition to his consulting work, Erich does extensive research on global brands and the formulation of corporate and business-unit level strategies. A sought-after speaker, he also conducts executive-level conferences and workshops around the world in English, German,

"The value of an editor cannot be understated. The editor is the proxy for the audience." As the Chief Content Officer of MarketingProfs and the best-selling author of Everybody Writes and Content Rules, Ann Handley knows a thing or two about writing and editing. Most marketers have staffed up for content creation but what about editing? How do you know if you're creating what's best for your audience and brand. We discussed all of this with Ann on this week’s episode of the On Brand podcast. About Ann Handley Ann Handley is a Wall Street Journal best-selling author, keynote speaker, and the world’s first Chief Content Officer. Ann speaks and writes about how you can rethink the way your business markets. Cited in Forbes as the most influential woman in Social Media and recognized by ForbesWoman as one of the top 20 women bloggers, Ann Handley is the Chief Content Officer of MarketingProfs, a training and education company with the largest community of marketers in its category. She was a long time monthly co

On this week's Social Sound Bite – recorded live at the KXIC studios in Iowa City – Jay and I discussed what people are tired of hearing about on social media these days — the 2016 presidential election! New data from Pew Research shows that most have had enough. Listen for the full sound bite and enjoy these useful links to the news, trends, and tips included in this week's show. Beyond the Sound Bite Politics, Fatigue and the Social Echo-Chamber Effect (Social Media Today). Remember, the Social Sound Bite is just the appetizer! On Monday morning we'll serve up a fresh new episode of the On Brand Podcast. Last but not least … Subscribe to the podcast – You can subscribe to the show via iTunes, Stitcher, and RSS. Rate and review the show – If you like what you’re hearing, head over to iTunes and click that 5-star button to rate the show. And if you have a few extra seconds, write a couple of sentences and submit a review. This helps others find the podcast. OK. How do you rate and review a podcast?