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

Steve Rawling is the creator of the innovative cards decks—Workshop Tactics and Storyteller Tactics. These popular tools help organizations like Apple and Facebook generate creative ideas and, most importantly, put them into action. As a user of the decks, I couldn’t wait to chat with Steve this week on the On Brand podcast.  About Steve Rawling Steve Rawling is a former BBC TV journalist, turned international author and consultant on business storytelling. He's told over 20,000 stories in his career, so he can probably help you tell yours. Steve's latest venture—a deck of cards called Storyteller Tactics—smashed its target when it went live on Kickstarter, raising $100k in a few weeks. It has now sold over 60,000 copies to people in companies like Apple, Facebook, and IBM. Episode Highlights Cards vs. books. Steve and I are both lovers of books—especially books on workshops and storytelling. However, it can be hard to put the ideas inside these great books into action. “It’s hard to think on paper.” This p

Michelle Gladieux is President of Gladieux Consulting and author of the new book Communicate with Courage: Taking Risks to Overcome the Four Hidden Challenges. Communication is an essential building block in leadership at all levels. And yet it's frequently misunderstood. Michelle demystified this and provides help in overcoming some of the biggest challenges this week on the On Brand podcast. About Michelle Gladieux Michelle Gladieux is President of Gladieux Consulting, a Midwest-based team known for the design and presentation of seminars in communication and leadership topics around the U.S. She’s the author of Communicate with Courage: Taking Risks to Overcome the Four Hidden Challenges. She facilitates strategic planning and executive coaching for clients in diverse industries, governments, non-profits, and in academia and has 18 years of collegiate teaching experience at three universities in her home state of Indiana. Episode Highlights Communicating from the heart(land). I asked Michelle if being fr

Alex Moulton is Chief Creative Officer at Trollbäck+Company, a firm known for designing strategic, sustainable brands including the UN's sustainability goals. When he's not leading creative efforts at Trollbäck, you can find Alex working as a DJ and composter. We discussed all of this and more this week on the On Brand podcast. About Alex Moulton Alex Moulton is Chief Creative Officer at Trollbäck+Company and oversees its exceptional creative and strategic thinkers, designers, and makers to build strategic identities, sustainable brands, and moving experiences. Alex has worked across a diverse range of businesses and institutions including Apple, Google, NBC Universal, NFL, Samsung, Viacom, and West Elm. Outside his work at Trollbäck+Company, Alex is A DJ, composer, and avid speaker about topics at the intersection of music and design. Moulton has also been featured in Billboard, V Man, Electronic Musician, and XLR8R, and has performed at The Guggenheim.   Episode Highlights How does a brand strategist end u

Owen Garitty is the Founder and Lead Creative at FPW Media, a creative shop focused on long-form brand storytelling. Since Owen began work as a photographer at the age of 15, he’s approached everything from photos to movies to content with an eye for visual storytelling. We discussed all of this and more this week on the On Brand podcast. About Owen Garitty Owen Garitty is the Founder & Lead Creative at FPW Media, a creative studio that specializes in designing and implementing effective marketing strategies and meaningful media content for clients. With a repertoire ranging from creative direction to international business consulting, speaking on marketing and branding, Garitty's skills and dedication have earned him and his company numerous accolades, including being recognized in Adweek's list of 100 fastest-growing agencies in both 2020 and 2022. His ability to adapt to the constantly changing demands of the industry has helped him drive success for his clients.   Episode Highlights Wait, Owen’s agency w

Precious Williams is a 13-time national elevator pitch champion, a four-time best-selling author, and has been featured on “Shark Tank,” CNN, The Wall Street Journal, Black Enterprise Magazine, and more for her killer pitches. We discussed all of this and more—plus her new book Rainmaking 101 from Day One—this week on the On Brand podcast. About Precious Williams Every time you open your mouth, your prospects will be throwing money at you.  Learn the simple steps to wowing your customers with a perfect pitch with Precious L. Williams, the #KillerPitch Master. Precious L. Williams is a 13-time national elevator pitch champion. She has also been featured on “Shark Tank,” CNN, Wall Street Journal, Forbes Magazine, Black Enterprise Magazine, Essence Magazine, and the movie “LEAP.” Her current clients include Microsoft, LinkedIn, Google, NBCUniversal, Federal Reserve Bank, Intuit Quickbooks, Yelp, Harvard University, and more. Precious is a dynamic international professional speaker, effective corporate trainer,

Dave Delaney is a communication expert and founder of FutureForth. He brings his Nice Method to his work as a keynote speaker, author, and consultant—helping leaders and aspiring leaders improve their communication and relationship building. We discussed all of this and more this week on the On Brand podcast. About Dave Delaney Dave Delaney is a communication expert and founder of Futureforth.com. He teaches leaders the Nice Method, which emphasizes compassion, empathy, and inclusivity in communication. He's worked with brands like Google and LinkedIn and is a keynote speaker and author of several books, including “New Business Networking” and “The Nice Method.” Dave is passionate about helping others improve their communication skills and building stronger relationships.   Episode Highlights Why do we so often forget the “nice” in our communication with others? Dave summed it up in one word—empathy. “We don’t pause long enough in our back and forths. Slowing down is a big part of my work.” Nice networking.

Nick Scott is the Creative Director of Studio Hansa. The firm leverages his background as a filmmaker by specializing in creating truly moving content for brands like the BBC, Chivas, Google, and, recently, Ukraine’s public broadcasting company. We discussed all of this and more this week on the On Brand podcast. About Nick Scott Founding the studio with over 20 years of experience at the highest levels of filmmaking, Nick Scott has directed numerous international TV series, multiple BAFTA, and Oscar-qualifying shorts as well as documentaries for world-leading brands. His storytelling lists award-winning and entertainment projects across household name brands such as BBC, Film4, Virgin, CBS, Tilda, Chivas, Novotel, and Google. Nick has just completed his first feature film: Me & The Sea Episode Highlights “Simple brands are the best brands,” Nick said. “Simple brands have simple stories just like the best novels and the best movies have simple loglines.” But the foundation is key. And what’s at the foundati

Amrita Muthur is the VP of Marketing at Superside, a new platform revolutionizing the design of marketing creative in our fast-paced world. She went from being the first marketing hire to overseeing a 400% year-over-year growth strategy. We discussed all of this and more this week on the On Brand podcast. About Michele Arnese When Amrita Mathur joined Superside as their first marketing hire in 2019 there was no product, no platform, and no recurring revenue. No stranger to being called in when companies are at a strategic inflection point with their growth strategy, she did what she’s spent a career in B2B marketing learning how to do: implemented a marketing-led growth strategy that translated into $8 million in subscription revenue in the first year and 400% year-over-year growth since then. Now as VP of Marketing, her team is revolutionizing design at scale for ambitious brands like Amazon, Meta, Shopify, and Coinbase. Episode Highlights No product? No platform? No recurring revenue? That sounds like a s

Michele Arnese is the founder of the leading Sonic Branding Agency amp. His team has developed audio brands for clients such as Mercedes-Benz, Mastercard, BMW, UniCredit, and more. We discussed how to build audio brands, sonic identity, and more this week on the On Brand podcast. About Michele Arnese Designed in Italy and assembled in Germany, Michele is a self-driven strategic and creative thinker with a strong entrepreneurial approach: he founded the worldwide leading Sonic Branding Agency amp in 2009. In the field of audio branding, he’s considered one of the world’s foremost experts, with clients including Mercedes-Benz, Mastercard, Deloitte, Porsche, BBVA, Geberit, BMW, UniCredit, MINI, Triumph, The Linde Group, and a range of international awards for his work with amp (among others, four Red Dot Awards in a row and an ADC in silver). He's a member of the prestigious Audio Branding Society and also a Guest Professor at the renowned design university NABA/Nuova Accademia delle Belle Arti in Milan, where

Emmanuel Probst leads brand thought leadership at Ipsos and is the author of the Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestseller Brand Hacks. His latest book is Assemblage: The Art and Science of Brand Transformation. We discussed all of this and more this week on the On Brand podcast. About Emmanuel Probst Emmanuel Probst is Global Lead, Brand Thought-Leadership at Ipsos, adjunct professor at the University of California at Los Angeles, and the author of Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestseller Brand Hacks. He supports numerous Fortune 100 companies by providing them with a full understanding of their customer’s journey. Emmanuel holds an MBA in Marketing from the University of Hull, United Kingdom, and a Doctorate in Consumer Psychology from the University of Nottingham Trent, United Kingdom. His latest book is Assemblage: The Art and Science of Brand Transformation. Episode Highlights Technology and COVID have changed a lot about consumer behavior but … “You also have to look at what hasn’t changed,” Em

Rebecca Jolly is co-author of the new book How Music Grows Brands. As a consultant she focuses on innovative brand solutions across the music and entertainment industries to drive growth and connect with audiences. She discussed how brands need to approach music differently this week on the On Brand podcast. About Rebecca Jolly Rebecca Jolly is a global business consultant focused on innovative brand solutions across the music, publishing, and entertainment industries, utilizing the power of music to drive growth, connect with audiences, and as a vehicle for change and impact. She's worked for and with music entities including Beatport, Spotify, SFX Entertainment, Mixmag, and MassiveMusic in New York, London, and Amsterdam. Her brand work extends into some of the biggest global consumer brands including Microsoft, Budweiser, Samsung, Diageo, and New Balance. Rebecca's work has been featured in Billboard, Entrepreneur, and Music Week. Rebecca speaks regularly on industry panels, including Cannes Lions, SXSW,

Ann Handley is the Chief Content Officer at MarketingProfs and the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Everybody Writes. Recently, she embarked on a “down-to-the-studs” second edition of the book—revised, expanded, and 10% funnier. We talk about all of this—including why she didn’t want to promise more than 10% funny—this week on the On Brand podcast. About Ann Handley Ann Handley is a Wall Street Journal bestselling author who speaks worldwide about how businesses can escape marketing mediocrity to ignite tangible results. IBM named her one of the seven people shaping modern marketing. Ann is a digital marketing pioneer and the Chief Content Officer of MarketingProfs, the leading marketing training company with more than 600,000 subscribers. She is the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Everybody Writes: Your Go-To Guide to Creating Ridiculously Good Content, and co-author of Content Rules: How to Create Killer Blogs, Podcasts, Videos, Ebooks, Webinars (and More) That Engage Customers and Ignit

Mark Carpenter is a serial storyteller and co-author of the best-selling book Master Storytelling. Mark shared how you can be more intentional as you tell stories in your work building brands, inspiring teams, and leading in both work and life. Master storytelling by listening to Mark this week on the On Brand podcast. About Mark Carpenter Mark Carpenter is a serial storyteller. Even as a child, he loved to tell stories (mainly to get attention). He leveraged that ability into a career in marketing communications and public relations, then as a college professor and corporate facilitator. Now, he teaches people how to more intentionally tell stories that teach, lead, sell, and inspire to accomplish business and personal goals. He is the co-author of the best-selling book Master Storytelling: How to Turn Your Experiences Into Stories that Teach, Lead, and Inspire and co-creator of the Master Storytelling Workshop. Leveraging a 20-year career in corporate communication, 10 years working as an adjunct professor

Ulli Appelbaum has held senior strategy and account planning roles at some of the largest advertising agencies in the world, working with brands like Wrigley, Hallmark, Nestle, and Chrysler along the way. His latest book is The Brand Positioning Workbook, which we discussed this week on the On Brand podcast. About Ulli Appelbaum Born in Germany, raised in Africa and Belgium, and now living in the US, Ulli Appelbaum has held senior strategy and account planning roles at some of the largest advertising agencies in the world including BBDO Germany and Chicago, Leo Burnett Budapest, Frankfurt & Chicago, Fallon Worldwide in Minneapolis, and SapientNitro in Chicago, L.A., and Minneapolis. His insights and strategies have helped brands such as Wrigley, Nestle Purina, Harley Davidson, Hallmark, Nestle, Procter & Gamble, Chrysler, and many more. In 2014, he launched First The Trousers Then The Shoes Inc. a brand research and strategy consultancy based here in Minneapolis working for clients including Siemens, Outlaw

Rebecca Coleman is the President of The Narrative Group and leads US operations for We Are Social. Her work is defined by the innovative approach of earned-led thinking, which has been used by brands including Mcdonald's, Harmless Harvest, and Universal Pictures. We discussed all of this and more this week on the On Brand podcast. About Rebecca Coleman Rebecca Coleman holds over 20 years of experience in building great relationships with clients and even better campaigns for their brands. Currently, she is President at The Narrative Group, an award-winning creative agency that specializes in earned-led brand experiences for some of today’s biggest brands including McDonald’s, Harmless Harvest, and Universal Pictures. Previously, Rebecca founded Something Massive, a strategy-led advertising agency and production company with clients like Plum Organics, Oikos, and KIND. Episode Highlights News about The Narrative Group. As we began the interview, Rebecca shared that her company, The Narrative Group, just merg

Mark Kilens is Chief Marketing Officer of Airmeet, a virtual and hybrid event platform. While it’s been a challenging couple of years, events of all kinds—virtual, hybrid, and live—are critical components of the content marketing landscape. Mark and I discussed all of this and more, this week on the On Brand podcast. About Mark Kilens As Chief Marketing Officer of virtual and hybrid event platform, Airmeet, Mark Kilens leads a global team of marketing professionals who are working to advance the event-led growth movement across the B2B events category. Kilens has 15 years of marketing leadership experience. His main goal is to help global businesses engage and grow their customer base through event-led growth practices. This consists of using immersive and integrated events across the entire customer journey to create a highly personalized digital experience. Prior to joining Airmeet, he served as VP of Content and Community at Drift, and oversaw Drift Insider, a community of 50,000+ members. He also previou

Linda Fanaras is CEO/Strategist of Millenium Agency, where she helps B2B brands develop integrated campaigns that get results with her innovative approach of transforming market research into powerful campaigns. This isn’t always easy—especially when it comes to B2B. We discussed all of this and more this week on the On Brand podcast. About Linda Fanaras Linda A. Fanaras, CEO/Strategist of Millennium Agency, is an award-winning executive marketer with exceptional leadership and communication skills, relationship-building expertise, and a proven track record in executing strategic marketing campaigns that improve marketing ROI and CLV. Linda is highly experienced in brand analysis and structure, positioning and messaging that engages, the development of integrated digital marketing campaigns, and the formulation of creative concepts for B2B manufacturing and software technology. Focused on motivational and positive inclusive leadership skills, she drives marketing teams to achieve exceptional results. Episod

John O’Melia serves as Chief Customer Officer at Contentsquare. His Customer Success team works to ensure that brands of all shapes and sizes are able to understand what’s happening with their brands online and, more importantly, why. We discussed all of this during our conversation on the On Brand podcast. About John O'Melia John O'Melia was previously the CEO of Seal Software, which was acquired by DocuSign in 2020. He has also held senior leadership positions in Customer Success and Sales at EMC. Earlier in his career, he was a partner at Coopers & Lybrand/PwC where he oversaw global projects in multiple industries. Over the course of his career, he has always sought to truly understand customers’ needs and aspirations associated with their investment in technology and to ensure they realize the maximum possible return. John joined Contentsquare in early 2021 as Chief Customer Officer. His Customer Success team works to ensure all customers harness the full power of Contentsquare’s technology to drive sig

Tom Höglund is one of the founding team members at Epidemic Sound, which helps connect brands with the music they need to tell their stories. But when it comes to music rights, complexity lurks around every corner. He shared this story and more this week on the On Brand podcast. About Tom Höglund Tom Höglund is one of the founding team members at Epidemic Sound and has been responsible for several different functions at the company as it has scaled, reaching a $1.4B valuation in 2021. Tom developed Epidemic Sound’s innovative digital rights model, which paves the way for creators — everyone from YouTubers to small businesses to the world’s largest brands—to use restriction-free music to take their content to the next level. Tom is also an early-stage investor in companies primarily geared towards creator monetization and B2C and B2B SaaS solutions. Episode Highlights “The future of content creation will be fragmented,” Tom said of video’s prevalence in both branded content and creator content. “We want to p

Ellen Marie Bennett is the founder and chief brand officer of Hedley & Bennett. If you’re a foodie, you’ve seen Hedley & Bennett aprons on some of the world’s best chefs. I saw one on Stanley Tucci and knew if I was going to be a serious home cook, I had to have one. Ellen shares how she created this brand 10 years ago—at the age of 24—this week on the On Brand podcast. About Ellen Marie Bennett As a 24-year-old line cook, Ellen Marie Bennett couldn't stand the kitchen staff’s poorly designed, cheaply made aprons. So when her head chef announced he was ordering a new batch, she blurted out, “Chef, I have an apron company”—even though she had no company, no business plan—just a glimmer of a design idea and a business license. Through hustle and a willingness to leap into the unknown, time and time again, she built that first order into a multi-million-dollar company called Hedley & Bennett, making aprons and kitchen gear worn by many of the world’s best chefs and home cooks everywhere.   Episode Highlights “Y