Brand Rounds

Nick Nanton is An Emmy Award-Winning Director and Producer, Nick Nanton, Esq., produces media and branded content for top thought leaders and media personalities around the world. Recognized as a leading expert on branding and storytelling, Nick has authored more than two dozen Best-Selling books (including The Wall Street Journal Best-Seller, StorySelling™) and produced and directed more than 60 documentaries, earning 16 Emmy Awards and 36 nominations. 

We discuss:

1. In your book, Celebrity Branding YOU, we're introduced to a system for entrepreneurs, professional, certainly doctors, to become the go-to-expert in their field. Can you provide us with an overview in a way that our listening audience : doctors and medical technology leaders may understand. 

2. Fitting vs. Standing Out. How do we explain that "standing out" doesn't have to be flagrant self-promotion. 

3. One of the chapters in Celebrity Branding YOU is entitled, Putting Your Story Behind Your Brand. What's the biggest mistake people make in this important step. 

4. Nick, you teach us the importance of developing a distinct brand platform. I'm particularly interested in your approach of "authorpreneurship" with your clients. Why is publishing a book valuable in this digital and social age? 

5. What was the catalyst for you to go from agency owner to a 16x Emmy Award winning film director and dramatize compelling stories across platforms such as Amazon and other well-know channels? 

6. It's been said that video is the sales rep that never sleeps. How would you explain the importance of video - personalized and professionaly developed video to help differentiate one's personal brand and attract more clients or ideal patients? 

7. In Storytelling, an audio book that I regularly return and learn from, you teach us that Storyselling is the act of selling your product or service through telling a story.  It puts a human angle to the traditionally dry and boring concept of selling.  It connects people to people rather than a faceless corporation to its followers. 

8. You say, "Make your uniqueness a selling point by demonstrating to customers through the power of a story how you’re different—and why it should matter to them." Many sales consultants are focusing on features and how there product is better vs different. What guidance do you have for them today? 

As WireBuzz’s Director of Content Development, Jason Fair helps clients create digital customer journeys to drive business development. 

We discuss: 

• What question does Jason  receive most often from customers?
• Is there “conventional wisdom” in our industry that is just plain wrong?
• Jason created a post 3 days ago that mentioned 40% of B2B reps told Forrester in a recent survey plan to modify their tactics to adapt to remote selling activities. If personalized video works so well in virtual sales, why are so many sales professionals not getting started?
• What is his most profound "Eureka!" moment when he finally "got it"? Video works great to build brand awareness and drive new sales. 
• If I'm a medical device sales consultant listening to us chat, I might think - developing content is a "marketing" function, right? Why do salespeople need to understand how to implement content marketing and what can we say that might make it easier for them to get started?
• Are there any people or companies he admires how they've integrated LinkedIn into their business development?
• What's a question that most sales professionals don't know to ask but would help them drive more sales if they knew to ask?

Chris Do is an Emmy award-winning designer, director, CEO and Chief Strategist of Blind and the founder of The Futur—an online education platform with the mission of teaching 1 billion people how to make a living doing what they love.

He currently serves as the chairman of the board for the SPJA, and as an advisor to Saleshood. He has also served as: advisory board member for AIGA/LA, Emmys Motion & Title Design Peer Group, Otis Board of Governors, Santa Monica College and Woodbury University.

He has taught Sequential design for over 15 years at ArtCenter College of Design as well as Otis College of Art and Design. Additionally, he has lectured all over the world including: AIGA National Design Conference, Birmingham Design Festival, Awwwards New York/San Francisco/Amsterdam, AIGA Miami, The Design Conference Brisbane, Creative South, Digital Design Days Milan/Geneva, Lu Xun Academy Fine Art Dalian, Motion Conference Santa Fe, VMA Design Conference, MIT Boston, Bend Design Conference, Graphika Manila, Create Philippines, Rise Up Summit Cairo, RGD Design Thinkers Toronto, California Institute of the Arts, LA Art Institute, Otis College of Design, UCLA, MGLA, Cal State Los Angeles/ Northridge, Post Production World, Adobe Video World and San Diego University.

His firm’s work has been recognized by national and international organizations such as: the Emmy’s, Clio, Effie Gold, Huffington Post, Lynda.com, Webbie, Communication Arts, London International Awards, One Show, British D&AD, AICP 20, Pictoplasma, How, 72 dpi, L.A. Weekly, Boards, Res 10, Type Director’s Club (20, 22, 23, 26), IDN, Addy Awards, BDA, Create, Stash (2, 12, 22, 24, 35, 43, 65), Creatie Augustus 2010, Motion Design, Asia Image, Brief, 365 AIGA Year In Design 26, Art Director’s Club, Motionographer, New York Festivals, B Brand, PPaper, I.D., and Print.

Mr. Do has given talks and conducted workshops on: Sales, Negotiations, Value Based Pricing, Mindset, Branding, Graphic & Motion Design, Social Media Marketing, Entrepreneurship, Business Management, and Client Relations.

Geoffrey Moore is an American organizational theorist, management consultant and author, known for his work Crossing the Chasm: Marketing and Selling High-Tech Products to Mainstream Customers.

I ask him:

1. Can you tell me about a time when you had no idea what you were doing and what you learned?

2. How do you describe your book, Crossing the Chasm, to someone that has not read the book?

3. In your experience, is technology adoption different in medical vs. other non-healthcare sectors? 

4. You've spent a career focused on the market dynamics surrounding disruptive innovations. Disruption is a term that's thrown around. What does it mean to you?

5. How do we overcome the obstacle of being stuck in one chasm?

6. If you wrote Crossing the Chasm, during Covid-19, would your premise and perspective be that different?

7. What advice would you give sales and marketing leaders launching products in the season of a pandemic? 

8. I remember reading in Harvard Business Review, your article, Darwin and the Demon - Innovating Within Established Enterprises. Can you share what you learned?

9. Crossing the Chasm is just one of your many books - Zone to Win, Inside the Tornado, The Gorilla Game, Escape Velocity, Dealing with Darwin, and Living on the Fault Line. What's the process like for you when you decide to write a new book? 

10. What book are you reading?

11. What local restaurant and why can we say Geoff sent us?

Melanie Deziel is a keynote speaker, author, award-winning branded content creator, and lifelong storyteller, on a mission to share the power of compelling and credible content with others. Melanie is the author of “The Content Fuel Framework: How to Generate Unlimited Story Ideas”. She is the Chief Content Officer of StoryFuel, which teaches marketers, publishers, creators and companies of all sizes how to tell better brand stories.

Prior to founding StoryFuel, Melanie was the first editor of branded content at The New York Times, a founding member of HuffPost’s brand storytelling team, and served as Director of Creative Strategy for Time Inc.

I ask her:

• Can we all learn how to tell better stories? 
• You've been a patient, treated by a doctor. As a journalist and brand storyteller, what are you thinking when you experience the typical healthcare professional? 
• For the doctor that says, I need a dedicated person to share my content and ideas, what can you say that might debunk this notion? 
• Does a big ego help or hurt us when developing content? 
• Why does content focused on people work so well? 
• Surgeons are intelligent. What do they need to know about "Basics-Focused" content that can help them attract more patients? 
  
  

Learn about the book and purchase a copy on Amazon at:

• Book website: http://contentfuelframework.com/
• Amazon + Kindle:  https://amzn.to/32u7Isc

James Carbary is the Author of Content-Based Networking | Co-Host of B2B Growth | Founder of Sweet Fish Media. 

I ask James:

• What made you curious to write your book, Content-Based Networking?
• What are the two key take home messages you want us to receive from your book?
• You've changed my mindset on reaching out to people and asking them if they'd be willing to share their expertise. Why "less is more" in the request.
• What do you say to the person, "podcasting is not new, James."
• Describe your company, Sweet Fish Media, to me as if I'm on a treadmill running at full-speed.
• You're speaking to brain surgeons, spine surgeons, heart surgeons, and innovative medical device leaders, what can we say about podcasting that might make them curious to learn more?
• Should healthcare brand agencies, like ours at FEED, think of ourselves as a media lab?
• Here's a scenario, we have multi-million dollar revenue medical sales distributors listening to us - what marketing media guidance can you provide for them that might make them feel less of a manufacturers sales rep and more of a brand building distributorship?
• What are the ingredients for a great podcast interview?
• You and I have interviewed Gary V. While grateful, why are coworkers, clients, even people from other industries, often, the most impactful interview?
• What's the process for you when you interview these interesting people, return to work on Monday, and want to implement so many ideas for Sweet Fish Media?
  
  

Tyler Menke is a father, medical sales professional, and author.

I ask him:

1. Share how you broke into medical sales in context of how challenging it can be some.

2. How did UPS Supply Chain Solutions prepare you for medical sales success?

3. What frustrates you about the medical technology industry?

4. What do you think most doctors wish for in a sales consultant that they may not be receiving?

5. What's something you hold to be true, but almost no one agrees with you?

6. Give us some practical tips on how empathy, honesty, and brutal transparency helps us to launch our sales and learn how to sustain and grow your business by "burning our boats?"

7. Where have you Zigged where others ZAG in your career mindset?

8. Why should people consider running their own medical sales distributorship vs. remain a direct sales representative?

9. What made you curious to write The Pirate's Guide to Sales?

10. What are two key takeaways you want people to receive from your book, The Pirate's Guide to Sales?

11. How did you handle the naysayers that may have questioned how or why you should write a book about sales?

12. What tip can you give that person who has a book in them -  from concept to seeing it rise in Amazon rankings?

13. What will we learn about ourselves when we take your complimentary self-branding questionnaire found on ThePirateGuides.com?

14. Your father prepared you for challenge and perseverance. What's one principle he shared with you that's just as relevant for our listeners?

15. What do we need to know about Cincinnati that most of us don't know?

16. I come to Cincinnati for business, where do I stay, eat, and drink so I return to my agency and say, "our next office location is in Cincy"

Debbie Millman has been named "one of the most creative people in business by Fast Company" and “one of the most influential designers working today” by Graphic Design USA, Debbie Millman is an author, educator, strategist and host of the podcast Design Matters. Design Matters is the first and longest running podcast about design and Debbie has interviewed 300 design luminaries and cultural commentators. The show has over 5 million downloads per year, a Cooper Hewitt National Design Award and iTunes designated it one of the best podcasts of 2015.


1. Describe what you do for a living to my Scottish Grandparents Vene and Cordia.

2. You've been named “one of the most creative people in business” by Fast Company, and “one of the most influential designers working today” by Graphic Design USA, why do you prefer to wear beautiful black fashion?

3. Design Matters, the podcast you started, I believe 15 years ago, has been listed on over 100 “Best Podcasts” lists, including one of the best podcasts in the world by Business Insider. What are you learning about asking questions that help people share their unique insight?

4. Look Both Ways: Illustrated Essays at the Intersection of Life and Design - what made you curious to write the book?

5. What is your definition of branding and how has it changed over the years?

6. Brand Bible, another of your six books, is a comprehensive resource on brand design fundamentals. It looks at the influences of modern design going back through time, delivering a short anatomical overview and examines brand treatments and movements in design. This description almost sounds clinical and will surely resonate with our surgeon and medical technology listening audience. What can a historical overview of how brands have developed through the 20th century teach us today?

7. You teach visual storytelling on skill share. What do you want doctors to know about storytelling and how they can think about incorporating into their practice and personal brand?

8. Brand Thinking and Other Noble Pursuits, how did the title come to you?

9. You curated a collaboration of top brand change agents. What have you learned from creatively curating a book and engaging some of the top design and brand influencers to join you on your podcast?

10. Who is one of the most amazing people in branding today and why?

11. Where will social networking evolve from today?

12. What activity could you do all day long and never get bored?

13. What is the axiom by which you live your life?

Author of the branding bestseller, Hello, My Name is Awesome... How to Create Brand Names That Stick (an Inc. Magazine Top 10 Marketing Book), I am the founder of Eat My Words, the wildly creative naming firm behind countless love-at-first-sight brand names including Burger King's new Mac 'n Cheetos. (I also named Wendy's Baconator while contracting for another firm.) I am also a frequent guest lecturer at MBA programs and have been invited to present on multiple occasions to Stanford GSB, Haas Business School, Tuck @ Dartmouth, USC, USF, USD and SF State.

Eat My Words'​ clients include Coca-cola, Disney, Google, Frito-Lay, MIT, Wrigley, Fujitsu, Hasbro, Del Monte, and leading branding firms (like Landor) who put their good name on our great names.

1. How would you describe what you do for a living to my Scottish Grandparents, Vene and Cordia?
2. You were a copywriter at the prestigious ad agency, Ogilvy & Mather, any Mad Woman/Men stories you dare to share? 
3. Why does a name matter?
4. What made you curious enough to write the book, Hello My Name Is Awesome, How to Create Brand Names That Stick? Eat My Words, your brand naming firm, how did you come up with this name?
5. The SMILE and SCRATCH is your proven approach for what makes or breaks a name. Tell us more.
6. With clients such as Disney, Microsoft, Adobe and others, what advice do you give innovative medical technology companies that may be reluctant to create catchy and creative product names that make powerful emotional connections and create instant brand affinity?
7. You have 12 Rules for Building Brand Name Consensus. Rule #2 states, The essential question to ask yourself when reviewing names, is not, Do I like it? which is subject to personal bias. The better question to ask is, Is it right? which is much more objective and effective.
8. You share there is a right way to brainstorm names and a wrong way to brainstorm. Give us one example from each.
9. What do you mean by "Curse of Knowledge" and how it can apply to our listening audience of healthcare professionals and medical device leaders.
10. What's the first delightful or delectable thing you will treat yourself to once we receive the ALL-CLEAR post-coved-19? 
11. What book are you reading that we should be reading?
12. What's next for you?

Mathew Sweezey is the Director of Market Strategy at Salesforce. His focus is on the intersection of consumer psychology, media, and modern technology. He's worked with some of the worlds largest and most well-respected brands including AT&T, Dell, Boeing, MIT, UPS, HomeDepot, and NATO illuminating their future path, and inspiring them to a more successful marketing future.

I ask him:

1. Your book, The Context Marketing Revolution: How to Motivate Buyers in the Age of Infinite Media, what made you curious and confident to complete this book?

2. You say, "In the new era Context replaces Attention as the key to marketing" Tell us more.

3. What's something from the book you hold as true, but many people will disagree?

4. What's 3 things you want people to know after reading your book?

5. Your book dives deep into consumer behavior, how do you think this translates to [patient behavior?]

6. You teach us 5 Customer experiences:
• Available: Helping people achieve the value they seek in the moment
• Permission: Giving people what they've asked for, on their terms
• Personal: Going beyond how personal it is to how personally you can deliver it
• Authentic: Combining voice, empathy, and brand congruence simultaneously
• Purposeful: Creating a deeper connection to the brand, beyond the product

7. Salesforce is a primary tool for most medical technology organizations. What do healthcare organizations not understand about using Salesforce that can have the greatest impact on their business?

8. Where will context marketing evolve from today?

9. For what do you want to be remembered professionally?