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

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

Happy New Year from the On Brand podcast! To celebrate this fresh start to an exciting new year, we have one of our favorite guests joining us once again—the one, the only Tom Peters! Tom is the “one and only” of many things when it comes to management thinkers but he’s the only guest who’s appeared four times on the On Brand podcast. Tom shared how to kick off a year of excellence this week on the On Brand podcast. About Tom Peters Called “the Red Bull of management consultants,” Tom Peters is a leading business management guru and founder of the Tom Peters Company. He continues to be in constant demand for lectures and seminars. In 2017, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from Thinkers50 and the Jack Covert Award for Contribution to the Business Book Industry from 800-CEO-READ. Peters is the bestselling author of seventeen books, including In Search of Excellence (with Robert H. Waterman, Jr.), which is often cited as among the best business books ever written. His latest book is Tom Peters’ Compact

Jill Ong is Managing Director of ACE and has spent her career on the global advertising stage–working with iconic brands like Converse and Adidas. We talked about all of this and more—including brand building during a recession—this week on the On Brand podcast. About Jill Ong Jill has spent her whole career of 22 years in advertising working on iconic brands like Converse, Beats by Dre, and Sonos. She has deep expertise on global businesses and the APAC region, with work experience spanning China, New York, Hong Kong, and Singapore. She moved to New York in 2010 during the Big Recession and has been in the Anomaly/ACE family ever since. As Managing Director of ACE, she’s charged with inspiring and nurturing people and optimizing operations across ACE. On a sabbatical in Puerto Escondido 5 years ago, Jill decided to challenge her lack of sporting ability to learn surfing. Despite her poor swimming skills and getting a black eye after getting hit by a surfboard on her first day out, she has persevered and has

This week we have a special holiday episode of the On Brand podcast with the “Naughty and Nice Brands of 2022.” This seasonally appropriate snapshot of brand behavior was developed by the smart folks at Brand Federation. The consultancy’s Chief Growth Officer Matt Williams joined me to discuss which brands have been naughty and nice this year. About Matt Williams Matt Williams is Chief Growth Officer for Brand Federation, a brand strategy consultancy in Richmond, Virginia. Prior to joining Brand Federation in 2019, Williams was CEO of the Martin Agency, one of the world’s most recognized advertising agencies, where he managed strategy development for world-class brands like GEICO, OREO, UPS, Discover Financial, Walmart, and more. Williams also is a Clinical Professor in the marketing department at the Mason School of Business at William & Mary. He teaches in the MBA program and is the developer and Faculty Director of the school’s Online Masters in Marketing. The Naughty List 2022 was the year of billionaire

Tony Gnau is the founder of T60 Productions and author of the new book Light, Camera, Impact. His work is focused on helping brands of all shapes and sizes tell better stories through video. We discussed all of this and more, this week on the On Brand podcast. About Tony Gnau Tony Gnau is the Founder and Chief Storytelling Officer at T60 Productions. He’s a three-time Emmy Award-winning journalist, has led T60 Productions to win 18 Telly Awards for its corporate videos, and is the author of the book Lights, Camera, Impact: Storytelling, Branding, and Production Tips for Engaging Corporate Videos. Finally, he is a former USC Trojan football player, Star Wars geek, and a devoted husband and father. Episode Highlights “There are a bunch of hurdles with video!” Tony laughed as we began. I confessed to being challenged by DIY video. Video is a part of everything. But how do we use it better? “Video is a tactic but it’s a tactic that needs its own strategy.” What brand videos does the video guy like? I couldn’t w

Katie McCleary is a storyteller, professor of leadership, and co-author of the book Bridge the Gap. As founder of the nonprofit 916 Ink, she helps transform underprivileged youth into confident authors. We discussed all of this and more this week on the On Brand podcast. About Katie McCleary Katie McCleary is a storyteller, professor of leadership, and a lover of people. She is co-author of Bridge the Gap, which Inc. Magazine named 1 of 3 business books to read in 2022. Her work has been featured by Forbes, PBS, Shondaland, New York Post, and more. Katie hosts NPR CapRadio’s leadership podcast, “The Drive,” in partnership with The American Leadership Forum. She is also the founder of 916 Ink, a nonprofit that has transformed over 4,500 youth into confident authors who know the power of their voice and story. Mashable named her as a “Real Miss America” for her projects in low-income communities. She teaches leadership in the master’s program at Pacific University and is passionate about amplifying people’s pe

Mark DiCristina is the Vice President of Brand Experience at Mailchimp, where he focuses on ensuring that the brand shows up for customers in authentic and truthful ways. We covered everything from their famous sponsorship of the Serial podcast to their innovative and, again, authentic user experience during our conversation this week on the On Brand podcast. About Mark DiCristina Mark DiCristina is the Vice President of Brand Experience at Mailchimp. He and his team are responsible for ensuring that Mailchimp’s brand shows up in thoughtful and authentic ways. During his time at Mailchimp, Mark spearheaded many of the brand’s largest marketing initiatives such as the launch of Wink, Mailchimp’s in-house agency, and has been fundamental in the creation of Mailchimp’s creative ad campaigns; most recently Guess Less, Sell More. Mark was responsible for the company’s first major ad campaign, “Did You Mean Mailchimp?” which won the Cyber Grand Prix at the 2017 Cannes Lions Festival, and the legendary “MailKimp” a

Tom Suharto leads global strategy at Forsman & Bodenfors where his clients include Volvo, Crocs, Baileys, and H&M. Prior to that, he was at Wieden+Kennedy working on iconic brands like Nike and Disney. We discussed all of this and more, this week on the On Brand podcast. About Tom Suharto Tom Suharto leads global strategy at Forsman & Bodenfors, one of the most creatively awarded agencies of the past decade. His clients at Forsman include Volvo, Polestar, Crocs, Goldman Sachs, Baileys, and H&M, to name a few. Before joining Forsman, Tom spent a decade at Wieden+Kennedy, starting in their Shanghai office where he helped to launch Shanghai Disneyland and led strategy on Nike China. Then in Portland, Oregon, where he worked on Nike Women and Just Do It campaigns, helped launch Samsung flagship phones, and led strategy on Facebook Groups. Episode Highlights The Crocs brand is certainly having a moment … Following a recent trip to New York where my daughter was most excited about visiting the Crocs store (!), I

Lesley Bielby literally wrote the book on agency account planning—Super Strategist. A 30-year veteran of the world of advertising, she’s now Co-CEO of DiMassimo Goldstein, a leader in Positive-Behavior Change marketing. We discussed all of this and more this week on the On Brand podcast. About Lesley Bielby Lesley Bielby is the Co-CEO of DiGo (DiMassimo Goldstein), the industry-leading agency in Positive Behavior Change marketing, and has authored the only modern guide in account planning, Super Strategist: The Art and Science of Modern Account Planning. A 30-year veteran in the world of advertising, she was one of the British account planners to cross the pond in the turn of the century, to bring the discipline to America. In addition to DiGo, Lesley has led and been a part of a number of agencies including Hill Holiday, McKinney and Silver, Digitas, and MMB. Episode Highlights What is Positive Behavior Change marketing? You know me—I love definitions. Turns out, Positive Behavior Change marketing is exact

Dr. Richard Winters is an emergency physician and director of leadership development at the Mayo Clinic. In addition to working with leaders internally at Mayo, Dr. Winters delivers programs that help healthcare leaders worldwide. We discussed all of this and more this week on the On Brand podcast. About Dr. Richard Winters Dr. Richard Winters is an emergency physician at the Mayo Clinic. As director of leadership development for the Mayo Clinic Care Network, Dr. Winters delivers programs that train leaders at all levels of healthcare organizations worldwide. As an executive coach, Dr. Winters provides coaching for Mayo Clinic leaders. Winters graduated from the Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine in 1994 and returned to Mayo Clinic in 2015. Previously, Winters served as managing partner of a democratic physician group, department chair of an emergency department, president of an 800-physician medical staff, and CEO/founder of a startup managed care organization that struggled to survive amidst the complex r