On Brand with Nick Westergaard
The On Brand podcast helps you tell stronger stories and build better brands. Each week host Nick Westergaard, author of Brand Now and Get Scrappy, interviews marketing and communication thought leaders or those working for innovative brands like Adobe, Ben & Jerry’s, HBO, Mastercard, Maker’s Mark, the Minnesota Vikings, Salesforce, and Whole Foods. For show notes and more, please visit http://onbrandpodcast.com.
1
The Market Disruptor's Dilemma with Olivia Mariani
As VP of Marketing at Curbio, Olivia Mariani leads is responsible for everything from brand to demand for the “fix first, pay later” PropTech leader.
32 min
2
Rethinking Brand Innovation with Carla Johnson
Carla Johnson is one of the world’s leading innovation architects and the author of the new book RE:Think Innovation.
32 min
3
Immersive Content Experiences with Jamie Gier
Jamie Gier is CMO of Ceros, helping top brands like NBC Universal, United Airlines, and United Healthcare create immersive content experiences.
28 min
4
Lessons from Political Brands with Zee Cohen-Sa...
Zee Cohen-Sanchez is the founder and executive director of Sole Strategies, a woman and minority-owned organization built by a team of political experts who specialize in strengthening grassroots campaigns at the community level.
28 min
5
Finding the Right Marketing Team with Rob Simone
Rob Simone is Partner and President of Summer Friday, a boutique agency sitting at the intersection of ideas and execution.
29 min
6
B2B Podcasting Best Practices with Prarthana Sibal
Prarthana Sibal is Head of Client Services at Pikkal & Co, a B2B podcast agency.
26 min
7
Apolo Ohno on Pivoting and Purpose
Reinvention is at the core of Apolo Anton Ohno. He acquired and honed this skill over a decade of Olympic speed skating competition, during which he became the most decorated US Winter Olympian of all time.
28 min
8
Buying Out of the Ad Industry Boys' Club (Teaser)
Enjoy this shortened excerpt from the first episode of Own It—a new podcast from Christy Hiler of Cornett
13 min
9
400th Episode + Eric Yaverbaum on Authenticity
This week's interview marks 400 episodes of the On Brand podcast! First up, a special announcement from me. Then I'm joined by Eric Yaverbaum who literally wrote the book on public relations with Public Relations for Dummies.
32 min
10
Passion Brands vs. Rational Brands with Mathew ...
As Chairman and Co-Founder of EVINS Communication, Mathew Evins has built his career in service of iconic brands
27 min
11
Keeping Your Brand Relevant with Jac Phillips
Jac Phillips has worked across a variety of industries including technology, banking, payments, and retail. Her most recent gig was leading partnerships at Visa.
26 min
12
Brand Naming Best Practices with Rob Meyerson
Rob Meyerson is a brand naming expert and author of the new book Brand Naming.
31 min
13
Building a Values-Based Brand with Aidan Fitzpa...
As founder of both Camo and Reincubate, Aidan Fitzpatrick has a history of building values-based brands.
25 min
14
Sponsorship Strategy with Ken Ungar
Ken Ungar is the president of CHARGE, a national sponsorship consulting firm.
26 min
15
Creating World-Changing Brands with Radhika Dutt
A startup marketing veteran, Radhika Dutt is the author of the new book Radical Product Thinking.
31 min
16
What Customer Loyalty Looks Like in 2022
As President of Brand Keys, Robert Passikoff has pioneered work in loyalty inlcuding creating the Customer Loyalty Engagement Index,
31 min
17
The Soulful Art of Persuasion with Jason Harris
As Co-Founder & CEO of creative agency Mekanism, Jason Harris knows a thing or two about building brands.
29 min
18
Brand Empathy & Experience with Jesse Purewal
As Global Head of Brand at Qualtrics, Jesse Purewal is a leader in brand experience.
30 min
19
Telling Magnetic Brand Stories with Gabrielle D...
Gabrielle Dolan’s work spans from personal leadership communication to organizational communication.
29 min
20
Building Your Personal Brand in the New Year wi...
Coach and consultant Lydia Pierre joins us for an exploration of personal branding to kick off the new year.
27 min
21
The Naughty and Nice Brands of 2021 with Matt W...
This week we have a special holiday episode of the On Brand podcast with the “Naughty and Nice Brands of 2021.”
29 min
22
Unplugging for the Holidays with Ginni Saraswati
Ginni Saraswati is the owner and founder of Ginni Media and the Podcast Accelerator.
26 min
23
How Marketers Should Plan for AI with Raj Venka...
Raj Venkatesan is co-author of the new book The AI Marketing Canvas and a professor of marketing at the University of Virginia.
28 min
24
The Metaverse for Brands (Plus, On Brand Joins ...
Jason Falls of the Marketing Podcast Network joins Nick for a conversation on everything from influence marketing to the metaverse.
31 min
25
What to Do If Your Brand Sucks with Ernie Harker
“If you start off on the wrong foot and your brand isn't in line with the attitudes or personality of the brand, there's confusion.” Or, to put it bluntly, your brand sucks. That's the title of strategist Ernie Harker's new book. We discuss how to...
26 min
26
Measuring Brand Dominance with Jonathan Tuttle
“Good things take time to build.” In his work as Founding Director of the digital marketing agency Revenue Ascend, Jonathan Tuttle helps brands of all shapes and sizes build good things. How do you know if something in marketing is good?...
23 min
27
Building a Social-First Brand with David Brickley
“People want to interact with people—not brands.” David Brickley has been helping brands interact with their people through his agency STN Digital and his two podcasts Business of Social and Entrepreneur Wrap. This week he joined me as a guest...
25 min
28
The Art of Visual Storytelling with Dan Roam
“We are profoundly visual creatures. We respond to what we see more than anything else.” Dan Roam has spent his career helping people master the art of visual communication and storytelling. His books from Back of the Napkin to his latest, The...
32 min
29
Choosing Your Customer with Jonathan Byrnes
“In the old days, branding was a very broad thing. Today it's picking your spot.” Jonathan Byrnes knows a thing or two about building a profitable brand for the long haul. He's a Senior Lecturer at MIT, founding partner of Profit Isle, and the...
29 min
30
Qualitative Research in Branding with Duane Varan
“A lot of the assumptions we make are bad assumptions.” When it comes to making assumptions, sometimes we marketers can't help ourselves. To avoid this, we need to ensure that we have a good mix of both quantitive and qualitative research. Dr....
24 min
31
How Native Ads Build Better Brands with Dan Gre...
“If you can design triggers into the thing someone’s already doing, you make advertising even more impactful.” Expanding the definition of advertising to include more human-centric and respectful ideas has been at the heart of Dan Greenberg’s...
32 min
32
What the Pandemic Means for Brands with Emmanue...
“The pandemic has forced brands to change the way they communicate and the way they operate.” As a research professor, author, and VP at Ipsos, Emmanuel Probst spends a lot of time studying, teaching, and writing about consumer behavior. His...
28 min
33
Why Conflict Is Critical in Storytelling with N...
“Storytelling is in the air for business but why is that? Why is it so important?” These questions and more were at the very heart of my interview with Norman Bell, author of The Story Powered Speaker, this week on the On Brand podcast! About...
28 min
34
Branding Through Science and Story with Jenna A...
“Consumers seek authenticity and they’re getting better at weeding out the greenwashing the brands that don’t have the people, story, and heritage behind them.” As the Vice President of Innovation at green cleaning brand ECOS, Jenna Arkin’s...
25 min
35
Building an Influential Brand with Kyle Hjelmeseth
“Influencers take the power out of the hands of those who used to tell us what we should like and not like. You've divested power to those bold enough to go online and share their stories.” From the College of Influence to his Normalize Equality...
28 min
36
Measuring Experiential Marketing with Jonathan ...
“I’ve been completely obsessed with this—not only how do we prove the ROI of these specific experiential programs but how do we do it at scale.” Jonathan Yaffe was one of the first marketing hires at Red Bull following the brand’s entry into...
27 min
37
How Brands Can Overcome Chaos with Michael Zipu...
“There was a big group of people who were able to fare very well during this time and it was those who took action.” As CEO of Consulting Success, Michael Zipursky has worked with hundreds of clients across industries on overcoming the chaos and...
29 min
38
Sonic Branding with Mastercard's Raja Rajamannar
“If you look at designing a brand logo in a visual form, there’s an infinite amount of material. With sonic branding, you have no choice but to create your own playbook. You need to understand the impact that sound has on people’s emotions.”...
35 min
39
Future-Proof Your Marketing with Engelina Jaspers
“Marketing's most fundamental role is understanding markets and consumers better than anyone else around. This past year has allowed us to pause and realign.” Engelina Jaspers has built her career around inflection points in periods of change. The...
28 min
40
Using Smart Data to Fill Brand Gaps with Aimee ...
“When you used to think about branding, you’d be thinking about advertising. Now it’s about building trust.” This week on the On Brand podcast, I welcomed back Aimee Irwin from Experian Marketing Services. Since we last spoke way back in 2019,...
24 min
41
Agile Marketing in Changing Times with Brian Gioia
“Agile marketing is all about speed, transparency, and iteration.” In the face of a global pandemic, brand builders and marketers have relied increasingly on eCommerce partners like Amazon. This can make it challenging to build seamless...
25 min
42
How to Build a Purpose-Driven Brand with Katie ...
“As branders, the word soup is absolutely unbelievable.” Words matter. And if you like words as much as Katie Burkhart and I both do, you’ll love this week’s episode. We discuss defining, refining, and developing your brand’s purpose,...
32 min
43
Tom Peters on Practicing Extreme Humanism
“Every day we spend with our fellow human beings, we can contribute to making their life a little bit better—making them a little bit smarter, a little bit more thoughtful, and so on—or not.” It’s rare that a single guest has appeared three...
42 min
44
Optimizing Your Marketing Mix with Bonnie Crater
“There’s been a big change in how businesses went to market.” Through a storied career that has taken her from Netscape to Salesforce to Oracle, Bonnie Crater gave use some important context in how brand building for B2B tech brands has evolved...
27 min
45
Customer-Focused Branding with FreshBooks’s Pau...
“I’m constantly coaching my team on how we market the marketing.” As CMO of FreshBooks, Paul Cowan has a lot on his plate—even marketing the marketing! However, this is important as it helps everyone internally find the brand’s “true...
32 min
46
Influencer Marketing vs. Influence Marketing wi...
"I've always considered public relations to be influencer marketing—you're trying to find a third party to borrow some trust from." When it comes to trust, there's no one I trust more on the subject of digital marketing strategy than Jason Falls. As...
30 min
47
Neuromarketing with Matt Johnson & Prince Ghuman
“I think you could have gotten away with mediocre branding before platforms like Amazon and Facebook came along.” However, today, the bar is set incredibly high. The modern consumer is savvy and expects exceptional branding from any company...
32 min
48
Winning Hearts Through Branding with Evan Dash
“When we stumbled into this, we didn’t know anything about branding. We just knew it was important.” ‘Stumbled into it’ is putting it mildly. As the CEO of StoreBound and creator of the Dash brand of kitchen tools, Evan Dash has built a big...
32 min
49
Focus Your Content Marketing with Steve Pockross
“First, amplify what you’re doing really well and consider new channels. Second, if things aren’t going well you’ll need new channels!” This was Steve Pockross’s answer to my question about how marketers can know when new channels make...
27 min
50
Transformation-Focused Branding with Allie Martin
“I start with the transformation and work backward. What happens when the customer experiences your brand?” Allie Martin has a holistic approach to brand building that she’s refined over the last decade. Through her work, she helps brands find...
31 min
51
Positioning and Planning for Growth with Benjam...
“Planning is the most important part of everything we do.” And Benjamin Shapiro does a lot of things. He’s producer and host of the top-rated MarTech Podcast as well as the Voices of Search Podcast. Managing two daily shows and running a...
34 min
52
Brand Strategy Is Defined by Choices with Peter...
“The best marketers never lose sight of their customers.” As a brand builder with years of agency leadership experience, Peter Wilken has seen it all. From global brands to bootstrap basics, we discussed it all on this week’s episode of the On...
30 min
53
Brand Reinvention During a Pandemic with Joseph...
“There’s the story and there’s the story behind the story …” And Joseph Jaffe certainly has both to share as he has managed to rebrand himself during a global pandemic through his innovative web series CoronaTV. And he’s quick to...
37 min
54
How Leaders Create Culture Virtually with David...
After a brief holiday hiatus, the On Brand podcast is back for 2021! And we're kicking things off with an exciting new topic and guest. As we've discussed in various episodes through the years, leadership is critical in the development of standout...
31 min
55
Social Impact in Small Bites with Angel Mason B...
“What we're finding in nonprofit marketing today is that it's really about helping people see the impact they're having.” As co-owner of Puzzle Pieces Marketing, Angel Mason Broadus has built her career at the intersection of social impact and...
28 min
56
How to Build an Unignorable Brand with Peter Le...
“The people that can parse out what to do—that can figure out the best media mix are going to win in this game because there’s just too much.” Peter Levitan has spent his career leading advertising, marketing, and PR agencies worldwide. A...
28 min
57
Using AI to Simplify Logo Design with Richard Lau
Using AI to simplify logo design? How would that even work? Richard Lau is a serial entrepreneur who's launched several helpful businesses that he's eventually exited. His latest venture, Logo.com, answers this very question. We discussed logo design,...
30 min
58
Marketing with Empathy and Gratitude with Rob V...
“Empathy is something that every human has but our empathy muscle has atrophied.” This week on the On Brand podcast, we talked about a timely, relevant topic—empathy. Now more than ever, people want empathy from brands. Yet, collectively,...
31 min
59
The On Brand Thanksgiving Special with Joseph J...
My guest this week is … me, Nick Westergaard! Specifically, I’m sharing a recent interview I did with Joseph Jaffe for his innovative web series CoronaTV. I’m calling this our Thanksgiving Special because to me this was a...
59 min
60
Why Licensing Is Invisible Marketing with Jeff ...
“People put a lot of value in brands. When you are at home or are limited (because of the pandemic) you tend to go with the first one you think of. But there are brands that have to think differently, especially brands in retail.” Jeff Lotman has...
27 min
61
Unlocking the Power of Video Storytelling with ...
“I don’t think enough thought goes into how to translate brand style guides into visual videos.” As the founder and CEO of Tectonic Video with a background in brand strategy, Doug Scott helps nonprofit brands worldwide unlock the power of video...
29 min
62
Turning CPG Branding Upside Down with Michael K...
“The marketplace has changed so much—there are so many brands on the retail shelf—the packaging is all there is. We turn the traditional brand development world upside down.” As a partner and leader of the research team at brand strategy firm...
27 min
63
Developing a Strong Brand Name with Brad Flowers
“We have to put aside our personal preference and put in the time to figure out what really works for what the client needs.” This is a challenge for marketers on a variety of topics but is especially critical to the vital task of naming. Luckily,...
29 min
64
Building Brands That Create Social Impact with ...
“All companies and all brands should be working toward being the best version of themselves that they can be across all lenses of their impact on the world.” Eric Ressler knows a thing or two about brands making at impact. That’s the focus of...
32 min
65
Designing a Meaningful Brand Experience with Da...
“You always have to look inside to really understand. Because all design at the end of the day falls flat if it doesn’t connect with customers—if it doesn’t understand the market that you’re in, if it doesn’t understand the problem that...
36 min
66
Hunting for Killer Branding with Ryan Hogan
“When you talk about brand you immediately go to marketing. But brand is how something from a company makes you feel. That transcends marketing.” Ryan Hogan would know. As a serial entrepreneur who’s built several brands, he now helps...
29 min
67
Adapting to Industry Shifts with David Bates
“We can shake our fist at it or we can ride the wave. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a scenario where someone’s shaken their fist at what’s developing and won. It doesn’t solve anything.” David Bates has built a career doing creative work...
26 min
68
Finding Your Brand Personality with Margie Agin
“You can start with a catchy tagline but you can’t stop there.” Margie Agin helps B2B technology companies discover what makes them unique and find the words to say it. She is the founder and chief strategist of Centerboard Marketing, a DC-based...
31 min
69
Content Creation vs. Content Production with Br...
“The key is not to create unique content for all of these different places. The key is to create one really good, deep piece of content that’s going to work for your brand.” Brad Smith is the founder and CEO of Codeless, a content production...
29 min
70
Embracing Brand Vulnerability with Margaret Rogers
“This is the moment that people will remember for a much longer time—the brands and how they react and how they help to create a mutually beneficial relationship is something that people will remember for the long term.” As a strategist,...
27 min
71
Ramping Your Brand with James Richardson
“Until you have decent consumer intelligence and some competitive market information from the cash register, you don’t have the basis for what I would call a tight strategic plan.” With extensive experience in the consumer packaged goods...
29 min
72
The Golden Rule of Branding with Emily Soccorsy...
“The old world of branding is falling away and it’s being replaced by intrinsic branding—this idea that if you get your inner world right, then how you show up in the outer world will be sincere, authentic, and interesting.” Emily Soccorsy and...
27 min
73
Why Context Is the Future of Marketing with Mat...
“When new technology comes out, we use it in the old ways that we know. With the internet, it was free publication. So we made websites. We didn’t see this as a way of connecting better.” Better connections—meeting someone at their moment of...
28 min
74
Creating Superfans Internally and Externally wi...
“The most important part of any brand is the team.” Matt Barnett would know. A serial entrepreneur, Matt’s latest venture is Bonjoro, a B2B asynchronous video platform helping organizations connect with their customers. We discussed all of this...
30 min
75
How to Be a Forever Brand with Robbie Kellman B...
“Any subscription brand needs to know—what problem am I solving for my customers? What’s our forever promise?” With a career building subscriptions for brands like Netflix and Electronic Arts, Robbie Kellman Baxter knows what it takes to build...
28 min
76
Evidence-Based Brand Building with Marc Guldimann
“Duration is the perfect proxy for attention.” Marc Guldimann has spent his career at the intersection of two scientific fields—human decision making and technology. He’s the founder of several startups including his latest, Adelaide, which...
27 min
77
Mastering One Voice with Toby Murdock & Zoë Ran...
“It’s about getting people to create less content but also more meaningful content.” Amen. This week’s guests aren’t just content marketing professionals. As leaders at Upland Software and co-authors of Mastering One Voice, Toby Murdock and...
28 min
78
The Importance of Imperfect Action with Ashley ...
“There’s a shift that’s taking place that’s requiring a response. Now people are saying—action.” Ashley Shuler is a business strategist who helps busy solopreneurs operate their businesses efficiently and effectively. Recently, she replied...
31 min
79
Building the HBO Brand with Jason Mulderig
“When it comes to HBO it’s really about quality, distinction, and uniqueness. And looking for stories that haven’t been told before.” As Senior Vice President at Warner Media, Jason Mulderig is responsible for everything related to the HBO...
26 min
80
Rebranding Best Practices with Jim Heininger
“Rebranding itself signals change.” Change is something that Jim Heininger focuses on extensively in his work as the leader of not one but two agencies. Dixon|James focuses on communication and change management while Rebranding Experts focuses on...
29 min
81
Reclaiming the African American Narrative with ...
“As African Americans, we’ve given up our narrative. It takes away our humanity. We have human stories just like everyone else—it’s just that our brand isn’t being written by us.” Faith McKinney is an author, media strategist, and longtime...
29 min
82
Brands Have to Do Better on Race with Katie Kern
“Enough is enough. It’s the responsibility of companies to stand up.” Following the murder of George Floyd, the nation has seen a critical shift in the growth and power of the Black Lives Matter movement through protest and action. But what...
34 min
83
Creating a Powerful Personal Brand Empire with ...
“The person is a product themselves—regardless of what they’re selling.” As one of the youngest executives in the history of Sony Music Entertainment, Laura Bull worked to transform people into powerful platforms. Now she consults and teaches...
30 min
84
Mastering Omnichannel Marketing with Rytis Lauris
“Marketing is becoming more mathematical. You have to start reading the signals of what your customers are telling you.” Ominsend Co-Founder and CEO Rytis Lauris is on a mission to help small- and medium-sized eCommerce businesses understand just...
26 min
85
Tom Peters on Leadership in Troubling Times
Two years ago I was fortunate enough to interview one of my business heroes—management legend and author Tom Peters. This was a once-in-a-lifetime podcast event. Or so I thought. A couple of weeks ago, Tom reached out again wanting to talk about the...
39 min
86
Mastering Agile Marketing with Andrea Fryrear
“Agile marketing is about focus, quality, and planning. We have an ultimate destination. We’re just more flexible about the path we take to get there.” A certified agile leader and practitioner, the focus of Andrea Fryrear’s work is helping...
25 min
87
Blurring the Lines of Branding & Storytelling w...
“People are smart about how they can avoid advertising at all costs. You have to present them with a story they want to hear and use the brand in support of that story.” Lee Tone of Alkemy X has spent his career navigating the blurred lines of...
30 min
88
Creating a Content Performance Culture with Chr...
“In digital you can constantly keep going—if you had a good play celebrate it and see how you can evolve it from there.” In a career that started with athletics and continued to professional journalism to being a marketing thought leader and...
31 min
89
Building Brand Loyalty Through Customer Listeni...
“In times of crisis, as leaders, we often want to clamp down—command and control. We go into bunker mode.” However, customer loyalty is best built by closing the distance between a brand's leadership and the front lines of employees and...
27 min
90
Radical Relevance in Turbulent Times with Bill ...
“It’s a time to double down on your value—your why.” During Bill Cates's storied career as an entrepreneur and relationship marketing expert, he’s helped countless businesses achieve exponential growth. Now he’s back with a new book on...
31 min
91
Why Marketers Need to Help More with David Newman
“It is absolutely a time to help more and to serve more but it is not a time to sell or market any less.” David Newman is all about getting things done. Whether it’s marketing or speaking, his approach helps people organize their work to...
30 min
92
Rethinking B2B Branding in Turbulent Times with...
It’s a different time for marketers and brand builders across the board. But what about B2B marketers? What’s different for them in the face of COVID-19? I couldn’t wait to ask our guest this week just that. Ana Raynes is the CEO and founder of...
27 min
93
Sharpen Your Message into a Velvet Machete with...
“People are going to have a favorable impression of your brand or a negative impression of your brand. Then, when you add social media reach on top of that, it can get really great or really crazy.” That’s why you have to brand—with...
34 min
94
Game-Changing Brand Strategy with David Aaker
“Branding people have not formally gotten into the strategy world.” And vice versa. And that’s a problem according to branding and marketing legend David Aaker, author of several books including his latest Owning Game-Changing...
25 min
95
Immersive 3D Branding with VR Expert Ashley Cro...
This week’s podcast interview was originally scheduled to take place live on stage at SXSW. Unfortunately, a nasty pandemic got in the way of this. However, I still wanted to talk with VR expert Ashley Crowder about her work as CEO and Co-Founder of...
30 min
96
The Economics of Attention with Jamie Mustard a...
“Attention is the defining business challenge of our time.” This prolific idea was noted by not one but two guests this week. Jamie Mustard is a strategic multimedia consultant who helps create brands, ideas, and messages that stand out. His new...
31 min
97
Why All Startups Need a Brand Book with Mona Bi...
“Vision and strategy require a lot of thinking about brand.” Mona Bijoor would know. She spends a lot of her time thinking about and helping early-stage founders startup, scale, and grow their businesses, which, as she notes, involves more...
26 min
98
Branding for Growth and Scale with Kristin Luck
“Marketers today have to be data junkies.” Kristin Luck would know. She’s founded two marketing analytics companies that were so successful both ended up being acquired. Today she helps founders and executive teams scale and monetize their...
30 min
99
Generating Unlimited Brand Story Ideas with Mel...
“The biggest disservice we've done with content marketing is giving such high expectations without the tools to fulfill them.” When it comes to upping your content marketing game, most struggle with obstacles related to time, talent, and...
29 min
100
Flipping the Script on Flip Flops with Jeremy S...
“Your feet take you on these adventures. You should have quality flip flops that you keep for a long time. That really became our core story.” That spark of an idea led Jeremy Stewart and his wife to found premium flip-flop brand Hari-Mari. In...
28 min