Brand Collective

“Marketing science” may sound intimidating, but according to Blair Roebuck, it has more in common with 8th grade science than you might think. In this episode, Valtech’s VP of marketing science and Forbes 30 Under 30 winner Blair shares how she discovered her passion for applying data insights to enhance digital experiences and ways she helps organizations transform their data into dollars. She reveals that brands that focus less on monetary transactions and more on harnessing data as currency are shaping the future of retail, and explains why 360-degree personalization is the key to customer satisfaction. Whether you’re still learning to trust data or well-versed at experimenting with your company’s KPIs, this episode is a must-listen!

Key Takeaways: 

• We discuss beacon technology and how it’s shaping the store of the future.
• Does your brand offer experiences that are worthy of consumer data? Blair shares how it’s done.
• We learn about the three distinct types of data-driven personalization.
• Blair explains why modesty and humility can (and should!) co-exist with grit and drive.

Guest Bio:

Blair Roebuck is the Vice President of Marketing Science at Valtech. The practice serves as the data & analytics arm of Valtech’s technical & creative offerings across North America with analysts residing in Canada, the United States, Mexico, Brazil & Ecuador.

Through data curation, analysis, and strategic thinking, Blair seeks to drive measurable results. With a specialization in data & ROI, Blair’s areas of expertise include personalization, optimization, analytics & data strategy to unleash the potential of digital for her roster of Fortune 500 clients.

Outside of work, Blair is passionate about supporting the next generation of leaders and empowering women in technology. She is a guest lecturer at George Brown College, as well as a committee member & volunteer at Tech_Girls, a program that teaches girls ages 8-11 the basics of coding and career options in technology. She has also recently been named in the Forbes 30 under 30 Class of 2023.

Sometimes we just have to trust that all the dots in our life will connect. And for English major turned experiential marketer and founder/creative director of Crush Studio, Lacey Hoff, they definitely did. In this episode, Lacey shares how working as a technical editor who got in trouble for talking too much led first to a production assistant job at a museum-design firm and then a magical gig helping Universal Studios bring the Wizarding World of Harry Potter to life. Since then, Lacey has had an exciting and rewarding career crafting moments and creating spaces that allow corporate brands to emotionally connect with consumers and people to open up and enjoy themselves. From finding ways to marry real-life and digital inspiration to moving quickly when the universe gifts you a brilliant idea, Lacey offers insight into creating marketing experiences that surprise, delight and transport audiences. Buckle up for this educational yet highly entertaining episode!

Key Takeaways: 

• Have you ever wondered how brands like Zappos or Mike’s Hard Lemonade create “Instagrammable” moments? Lacy tells us how! 
• Lacey shares why simply asking team members “what’s new?” can lead to big and bold creative ideas.
• We discuss why the best things in life are messy.
• Lacey reveals her predictions for the future of experiential design, including the roles that she expects AI and the metaverse to play.

Guest Bio:

Lacey Hoff is the Owner and Creative Director of Crush Studio, a design and production company that creates unique events and hospitality experiences for world-class brands. Crush brings brands to life by combining immersive spaces with engaging programming —all while making sure that content captured by guests or photographers is camera worthy. 

Lacey fell in love with the idea of transporting guests into other worlds during her first job as a production assistant with a museum-design firm. After gaining international marketing and branding experience through stints with both Universal Studios’ Creative and Warner Bros., Lacey combined her skillsets in Experiential Design. She went on to spend six years as the Design Director for an event agency in LA and NYC, executing events for brands such as Harry Potter, Zappos and DC Comics. With an intense desire to be more hands-on and “in the studio,” Lacey founded Crush Studio in 2016 so that she could build a team focused on the design & production process.   

After a major setback with the rest of the world in 2020, Crush has now rebuilt itself to a team of 12. Their brand client list includes Netflix, Disney, Chase Sapphire, Dropbox and Shutterstock. 

When Lacey isn’t on an event site using coded walkie-talkie speak or working on a home remodeling project, you can find her practicing Spanish south of the border, preferably somewhere with salty air and big waves.  

This week, we’re joined by President & CMO at Cactus, Jeff Graham. With extensive agency experience, Jeff brings an incredible perspective of the true role of the account service department and how their work can drastically improve the creative quality and output of any agency. Jeff shares stories from his previous life at Crispin Porter + Bogusky, as well as insights into the incredibly meaningful work he’s leading at denver-based Cactus. We dive into how mission driven marketing comes to life in the agency world, fabulous advice that Jeff has for others in the industry and so much more! 

Key Takeaways:

• Did you know that men are 4x more likely than women to die by suicide? Jeff shares the work him and his team are doing to help solve this difficult problem. 
• Jeff shares how deep his passion is for one of the agencies he previously worked for – which may or may not have resulted in a tattoo!
• We discuss how account reps can best support their creative counterparts in the agency world.
• Jeff speaks to the importance of work that focuses on behavior change. 

Guest Bio:

Jeff Graham is President & CMO of Cactus, a strategically-led creative agency specializing in consumer behavior change. Prior to Cactus, Jeff was SVP, Managing Director at Barkley, and co-founder, Managing Director of Boulder creative boutique Grenadier. Jeff brings 30 years of agency experience leading account teams in some of the country’s most creatively-driven agencies including Crispin Porter Bogusky, Arnold Worldwide, TBWA\Chiat\Day, and CORE. Jeff's account experience spans some of the world’s most iconic brands—Microsoft, Volkswagen, Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey, Best Buy, NFL, Gibson Guitar, Virgin Mobile, Bass Pro Shops, Indian Motorcycle, Under Armour, and Old Navy (as interim CMO). 

For decades, Jeff has taught university students and mentored young account services professionals on the art of 'Creative Account Leadership'. By creating the conditions on every project and every account where bold, culture-changing creative ideas can thrive, the account function can play a crucial role in improving creative output and driving brand growth. He's been an adjunct professor at both the University of Colorado-Boulder and the University of Missouri-Columbia; and he's a frequent guest speaker for ad clubs nationwide. 

A native of St. Louis, Jeff is a graduate of the Missouri School of Journalism (BJ) and St. Louis University’s Chaifetz School of Business (MBA). He's a classic car enthusiast, cancer survivor, lucky husband who outkicked his coverage, proud dad to 4 amazing girls, volunteer/board member for several non-profit and charitable organizations, a board member for the One Club-Denver, and past president of AdClub Colorado (AAF).

We started this podcast with the idea of sharing stories behind the brands that we all know and love, and this episode does just that. Karrie Sanderson, former CMO of Typeform, has a wealth of experience working for some of the world’s most well known brands such as Coca-Cola & Starbucks. In this episode, Karrie gives us an inside look into just how essential foundations are for building a successful brand. She shares tactical ways to go about building foundations as well as real world stories to bring it all to life. Karrie shares invaluable advice from her many years of experience across a variety of industries. Marketers and creatives alike will undoubtedly learn something from this episode!

Key Takeaways: 

• Have you ever wanted to hear some of the stories behind Coca-Cola & Starbucks? Karrie shares some incredible insight! 
• Karries dives into the necessity for brands to build an emotional connection with their customers – and discusses what this looks like in the B2B world. 
• We discuss how important it is to be a life-long learner and to never stop being curious.
• Karrie shares how brand guidelines should be seen as guardrails and some experimentation is healthy.

Guest Bio:

Karrie Sanderson is a marketing executive with deep experience across a variety of industries in research, strategy, brand building, integrated marketing, communications, creative studio management, and building high performance marketing teams.

Most recently, Karrie was the CMO at Typeform, a Barcelona-based SaaS company known for changing the game on how to interact with customers online. Prior to Typeform, Karrie worked at Smartsheet for four years as Vice President of Insights and Brand.

An engineer by education, Karrie moved into marketing and gained formative experience at high- profile B2C brands such as Coca-Cola and Starbucks as well as healthcare powerhouse Pfizer. She also co-founded and led a strategic business consulting agency for over seven years.

Karrie is a member of Chief, a mentor at Techstars, Seattle, and advisor to tech startups Gated and ChangeEngine.Karrie lives in Seattle, WA, with her husband and son, and has a daughter in college at Cal Poly SLO. She is an avid sailor who traveled for two years with her family on a sailboat to see the world!

Corporate event planner turned candle business founder, our latest guest, Erika, manifested her dreams during the pandemic. After the nature of corporate events changed entirely, Erika decided to lean into an experience-based concept by creating a candle studio. The Weathered Wick is all about creating genuine, catered experiences for their guests. In this episode, we dive into how Erika started a business from the ground up and discuss some of the challenges she faced along the way. We unpack the importance of remaining true to yourself and how social media helped her have a successful first year. This episode is jam-packed with helpful advice for anyone dreaming of starting their own business! 

Guest Bio:

An entrepreneur and type-a creative - Erika is the Founder & Owner of The Weathered Wick Candle Studio. She founded The Weathered Wick with a mission to bring joy to people through the experience of creating something beautiful. The word “weathered” means to withstand, a nod to her resilience & journey. She spent the past 8+ years as a professional event planner and working her way up through corporate America, only to realize she wanted to pave her own way. And that’s when WWCS transitioned from a dream to a sleek, timeless reality.

Key Takeaways:

• We discuss how you can effectively gather business inspiration from your own experiences. 
• Do you have the itch to start your own business? Erika shares how she got the courage to take the leap of faith. 
• We learn the importance of remaining authentic to yourself while crafting a brand from scratch.
• Erika shares why in-person experiences are more important today than ever before.

In the age of multitasking, podcasts seem to be more popular than ever. Lucky for us, our next guest, Elaine Appleton Grant, is somewhat of a storytelling and podcast expert. After years of working in public radio, Elaine shifted her focus to help nonprofit and social impact organizations share their mission through podcasting. In this episode, we dive into the root of why podcasts are so popular today and how they can be incredibly beneficial for mission-driven organizations. We discuss how audio is the “most visual of mediums” as well as the beauty of intimacy that storytelling brings. In a world with never ending distractions, podcasting has become a tool for many organizations to share meaningful stories. Check out this episode to learn new insights on how to be a better storyteller and more!

Guest Bio:

Elaine Appleton Grant is the CEO of Podcast Allies, a training, development and production company serving large nonprofits and social impact organizations. She is the host and executive producer of the podcast Sound Judgment. A lifelong journalist, she worked for Boston’s WBUR, NH Public Radio and Colorado Public Radio. She wrote and produced Wondery’s hit show Business Wars Daily and wrote the Tulsa Race Massacre series for American History Tellers. Her TEDx talk about the Tulsa Race Massacre has been viewed close to a quarter of a million times.

Key Takeaways:

• We learn what questions you should ask yourself when considering starting a podcast
• Elaine, Nick and Mac share some of their favorite podcast recommendations!
• We discuss examples of how podcasting can be a useful tool to invite listeners into the nuances of a charitable or social impact organization.
• Curious why people prefer podcasts over other mediums? Elaine shares helpful insights from focus groups.

This week, we’re incredibly fortunate to be joined by Judy Sheriff, General Manager at Refine Labs, an experimental demand generation agency. In this episode, we dive into Refine Lab’s scientific approach to demand gen, which they refer to as “Revenue R&D”. We unpack how marketing has completely changed since the rise of tracking in 2010 and discuss the increasing need to create ‘thumb-stopping’ experiences for your audience. Judy shares a wealth of knowledge on the demand generation space as well as her passion to continue learning through experimentation. This episode is perfect for anyone interested in the ever changing marketing landscape (including you Chris Walker fans!).

Guest Bio:

Judy Sheriff is a marketing executive, people leader, and process enthusiast with 13 years of experience in digital marketing. Her background is in multi-channel demand generation, marketing operations, and digital strategy with an emphasis on B2B SaaS. She is currently General Manager at Refine Labs, the world's first Revenue R&D Laboratory. Judy lives in Bellingham WA with her husband, son and two dogs.

Key Takeaways:

• Judy shares her insights on what the typical buyer’s journey looks like today, how it differs from years ago and what that means for marketers.
• We discuss the importance of testing and iterating over time to improve your marketing ROI.
• Curious to better understand ‘dark social’ and what it means for your audience? Judy shares her insights on how marketers should approach these dark channels.
• Judy shares her thoughts on the one thing you should learn during college to help you with the rest of your career.

Our latest guest, Marcus Piña, wears multiple hats as both the head of creative at Argo Design and the founder/mezcal head at Creador Agave Spirits.

In this episode, Marcus details his journey from starting out as an up-and-coming designer to becoming a creative leader. As a self-taught designer, Marcus went from learning Photoshop to managing global creative teams for Fortune 400 companies thanks to a lot of relationship-building and soft skills development. He has since helped brands such as Under Armour and Microsoft craft digital experiences, client engagements and designs throughout his career. During our chat Marcus shares how artists can use side hustles in other fields and hone the right skills to make more impactful designs. Listen now to level up your creative career!

Guest Bio:

Growing up in England, the current Austin, TX local used to design posters and album covers for his own band as a kid but has since graduated to the role of creative leader for large corporate teams here in the US. When he’s not managing designers, Marcus can be found running art galleries and selling his very own brand of mezcal, Creador Agave Spirits. 

Key Takeaways:

• We talk about how to make the transition from creative to creative leader.
• Piña shares how relationship-building helped prepare him for agency life. 
• We discuss why understanding the problem space, unspoken client needs and your unique team is key. 
• Piña explains how brands’ perceptions of the value design provides has changed over time. 
• We explore the difference between working versus leading at top brands.

This episode’s featured guest is Folayo Lasaki, principal and founder of Striped Elephant, a marketing and communications firm. 

From working in TV/film entertainment to becoming the head of marketing at Rainn Wilson’s SoulPancake to owning her own full-service marketing and communications agency, Folayo has done it all. Her keen eye for marketing trends allows her to observe what dominated B2C marketing in the past and what it’s shaping up to be in the near future. Today, Folayo parlays her background and hard-won wisdom into creating campaigns for a wide range of clients, all of whom have one question on their mind: How do we break through? In this episode, Folayo shares her views on what makes B2C marketing truly stand out, which platforms B2C marketers should use, the unique plight B2C brands face today and more. Dive into this treasure trove episode to hear more!

Guest Bio:

Growing up, Folayo Lasaki wanted to be a creative writer. But as any first generation American will tell you, that kind of thing doesn’t really feel like an option. Still, she went on to study the closest possible major: advertising and marketing. After school she took on a wide variety of roles in the entertainment industry including agent’s assistant, script reader and creative executive. She soon realized that her natural ability to use both her right brain and her left brain needed to take center stage in her life and career. So when a marketing job came along (with benefits, yahoo!) she made the leap. When she’s not helping her clients break through the B2C noise, she enjoys staycations and is actively learning to be a tourist in her own city.

Key Takeaways:

• We talk about why being disruptive shouldn’t always be the goal. 
• Folayo shares which brands are absolutely acing the B2C marketing game. 
• We discuss what actually works on TikTok and why it’s not the right fit for every brand. 
• Want to break through the B2C marketing noise? Folyao shares why revisiting what makes you ‘you’ is a solid start. 
• We explore what B2C marketing used to be like and how it has drastically changed over the past few years.

Episode Summary:

This week’s featured guest is Tatiana Alexandra, freelance creative producer and photographer. 

Since graduating as an exercise science major, Tatiana has had an interesting and inspiring journey to her current role. She spent most of her immediate post grad years trying to find her calling. But it wasn’t until a friend asked her to speak on the topic of feeling lost that she reflected on her true desire: creativity. Armed with this north star and a newfound sense of play within her work, Tatiana took on a variety of roles—ranging from modeling to sales—that all allowed her creativity to flourish. Today she enjoys the many different projects she gets to do as a creative producer and draws on all of her skills and past experiences to succeed. In this episode, Tatiana explains why being perpetually curious is key. Take a listen to unlock your own curiosity!

Guest Bio:

Tatiana is a freelance creative producer and photographer who manages creatives using the skills and lessons she picked up after feeling “lost” in her 20s. Tatiana had no clue what she wanted her career to look like post grad. And thank goodness for that! After taking the time to explore all the possibilities and follow her curiosity, Tatiana has been able to create the blossoming freelance career she has today. When she’s not balancing budgets and orchestrating shoots, she enjoys traveling. Recently she had the opportunity to visit Europe by herself where she enjoyed the full experience of becoming a “lightning rod magnet of amazingness”!

Key Takeaways:

• We discuss why curiosity is the secret sauce behind creative success. 
• Tatiana shares how brands can be proactive rather than reactive on creative projects. 
• We chat about how to get into the production space. 
• Want to know how to navigate a male dominated space?? Tatiana shares how being yourself is your best bet. 
• We explore why being lost can be one of the best ways to find yourself.