The strongest marketing leaders are not the ones with perfect plans. They are the ones who know how to lead through real life.

And few people understand that better than Niki Hall and Dayle Hall.

Niki, former CMO of Five9, and Dayle, CMO of SnapLogic, join Marketing Trends to share how they balance two big careers, raise a family, and approach marketing from completely different angles.

They break down how they support each other through major job shifts, navigate brand versus demand debates, and build teams that can adapt to rapid change. They also explain how AI is reshaping customer experience, what metrics actually matter, and why modern leaders need both operational rigor and creative courage.

Key Moments:

00:00 Meeting the CMO Couple

02:23 How They Met at Cisco

05:08 Early Career Moments That Shaped Them

08:16 When Their Marketing Paths Split

10:11 Growing Up as Marketers Inside Cisco

12:00 Balancing Two Big Careers and a Family

13:40 The Realities of Career Timing and Tradeoffs

15:56 Parenting, Travel, and Real-Life Leadership

18:15 Why Community Matters for Working Parents

20:38 Helping the Next Generation of Leaders

23:20 Marketing in 2026 and the Impact of AI

24:43 Brand vs Demand and How They Debate It

31:17 What They Learned From Each Other’s Strengths

32:00 Org Design and Building a Modern Marketing Team

51:03 Career Pivots, Pressure, and Personal Growth

1:12:54 Lightning Round and Final Takeaways

This episode is brought to you by Lightricks. 

LTX is the all-in-one creative suite for AI-driven video production; built by Lightricks to take you from idea to final 4K render in one streamlined workspace.

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Mission.org is a media studio producing content alongside world-class clients. Learn more at mission.org.

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The brands everyone talks about are not the safest ones. They are the bold ones.

And few people understand that better than Nick Tran.

The former TikTok Global Head of Marketing and current Diageo President and CMO joins Marketing Trends to break down how he built momentum inside fast moving environments, rebuilt brands under pressure, and helped TikTok become a cultural engine instead of just another app.

Nick explains why the traditional marketing playbook is obsolete, how to create ideas that move culture instead of reacting to it, and what today’s fastest moving teams get wrong about attention, creativity, and risk.

CHAPTERS / KEY MOMENTS

00:00 Engineering a Viral Influencer

02:20 What Bold Marketing Looks Like in 2026

04:20 Crisis Marketing at Taco Bell

07:05 Lessons From Stance and Samsung

09:30 Reinventing Hulu With Culture Marketing

11:00 Why the Old Marketing Playbook Is Dead

13:40 Inside TikTok’s Project Cheetah

16:45 Making Creators Culturally Famous on Purpose

19:35 Five Marketing Behaviors Leaders Must Unlearn

22:20 The ROI Trap and Bad Marketing Metrics

25:00 Why Modern CMOs Should Become CEOs

26:00 The Ocean Spray x DogFace420 Breakout Moment

29:10 The Rise of AI Influencers and Virtual Icons

30:00 Worldbuilding: The Future of Brand Marketing

33:00 Reinventing Ciroc Through Lifestyle Experiences

37:00 Pickleball, Pop-Ups, and The New Experiential Playbook

43:00 Out-of-Home Creative, Simplicity, and Cultural Signals

This episode is brought to you by Lightricks. 

LTX is the all-in-one creative suite for AI-driven video production; built by Lightricks to take you from idea to final 4K render in one streamlined workspace.

Powered by LTX-2, our next-generation creative engine, LTX lets you move faster, collaborate seamlessly, and deliver studio-quality results without compromise. 

Try it today at ltx.studio
 

Mission.org is a media studio producing content alongside world-class clients. Learn more at mission.org.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

When everyone has access to the same AI tools, what separates the great from the forgettable is the human behind the screen.

Fiverr’s VP of Global Brand Communications, Shiri Hellmann, joins Marketing Trends to break down how her team turns chaos into creativity. From producing the viral “Gary” campaign with real freelancers to writing a rom-com about avocados, Shiri reveals how Fiverr spots cultural moments early, takes smart risks, and proves that talent still beats the algorithm.

CHAPTERS / KEY MOMENTS

00:00 - The Weirdest Fiverr Requests Ever

02:58 - How Fiverr Grew from Weird to Global Brand

04:00 - Inside Fiverr’s Wildest Marketing Campaigns

06:11 - Freelancers Behind Fiverr’s AI Ad "Gary"

08:40 - How Fiverr Selects Top Creators

10:00 - The Data-Driven Matchmaking Engine

12:10 - Strategy Behind Creative Campaigns

14:05 - From Vibe Coding to Avocado Apps

16:20 - AI, Humans, and the Future of Creative Work

18:55 - Taking Risks and Learning from Failures

21:00 - The "F***-Up Night" and Courage Culture

23:25 - Biggest Marketing Lesson: Marketers vs. Consumers

26:30 - How Fiverr Stays Grounded and Human

29:40 - Emerging Trends and The Future of Work

33:10 - How Fiverr’s Culture Fuels Innovation

37:25 - What’s Next for Fiverr and Freelancers

41:00 - Shiri’s Advice for Marketers and Founders

44:45 - Closing Reflections and Takeaways

This episode is brought to you by Lightricks. 

LTX is the all-in-one creative suite for AI-driven video production; built by Lightricks to take you from idea to final 4K render in one streamlined workspace.

Powered by LTX-2, our next-generation creative engine, LTX lets you move faster, collaborate seamlessly, and deliver studio-quality results without compromise. 

Try it today at ltx.studio
 

Mission.org is a media studio producing content alongside world-class clients. Learn more at mission.org.

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Brands don’t live in campaigns… they live in memory.

In this episode of Marketing Trends, Ulli Appelbaum, Founder & CSO of First The Trousers Then The Shoes, joins Stephanie Postles to unpack how brand associations and mental availability determine what people choose long after the ad ends.

From Geico’s 15%, Snickers’ hunger fix, and Nike’s evolution of “Just Do It,” to Salesforce’s AI rebrand and Harley-Davidson’s Jumpstart, Ulli reveals why the brands that last are the ones that refresh old memories instead of chasing new fads.

Key Moments:  

0:00 The Hidden Power of Brand Associations

2:03 Ulli Appelbaum Explains the Science of Memorable Brands

4:20 The Problem With Trendy Marketing Playbooks

6:00 How Geico and Snickers Built Brand Memories

8:10 Changing Brand Perception Is Hard

11:00 How Nike Avoided a Rebranding Fail

14:00 Three Elements Every Effective Campaign Needs

18:00 Evidence-Based Marketing and Brand Association

24:00 US Marketers Have Lost Their Edge

30:20 Most Customer Journey Maps Waste Time

33:00 The Touchpoint That Changes Customer Behavior

37:00 Creative Problem Solving and Destructive Thinking

47:30 The 95 Percent Rule for Balancing Brand With Sales

This episode is brought to you by Lightricks. 

LTX is the all-in-one creative suite for AI-driven video production; built by Lightricks to take you from idea to final 4K render in one streamlined workspace.

Powered by LTX-2, our next-generation creative engine, LTX lets you move faster, collaborate seamlessly, and deliver studio-quality results without compromise. 

Try it today at ltx.studio
 

Mission.org is a media studio producing content alongside world-class clients. Learn more at mission.org.

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How do you market the experience of walking through rooms of illusion that flip reality on its head?

In this episode, Stephanie Postles chats with Andy Levey, the mastermind CMO behind the Museum of Illusions, to discover how to craft unforgettable moments that captivate audiences. Learn how to apply these strategies to market brands that sell experiences - from local business, SaaS, B2B, and more.

Key Moments:

00:00 Andy Levey Turns Wonder Into Marketing Strategy

02:00 Inside the World’s Most Photographed Museum

04:00 From Wall Street to Vegas Viral Experiences

07:30 Building the Biggest Brand No One’s Heard Of

09:30 Cracking the Local Playbook for Global Growth

14:14 Data and Science Behind Going Viral

16:44 Marketing FOMO With Radio and Influencers

19:00 Winning Local Search and the AI-Discoverability Game

24:00 Bringing Emotion Back to B2B Marketing

27:23 How to Make Customers Feel Your Product

33:43 Lessons from Failed Launches

38:10 Using AI to Scale Creative, Not Replace It

45:00 The Best Marketing Campaigns

51:00 Marketing Trends Outro

This episode is brought to you by Lightricks. 

LTX is the all-in-one creative suite for AI-driven video production; built by Lightricks to take you from idea to final 4K render in one streamlined workspace.

Powered by LTX-2, our next-generation creative engine, LTX lets you move faster, collaborate seamlessly, and deliver studio-quality results without compromise. 

Try it today at ltx.studio
 

Mission.org is a media studio producing content alongside world-class clients. Learn more at mission.org.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

He became CMO of GoodRx in just five years, then started taking big swings: reviving nostalgic jingles, building an audio-first brand strategy, and proving that sound can punch through today’s visual overload.

Ryan Sullivan joins Marketing Trends to share how he moved from performance marketer to CMO at record speed, why he’s betting on radio and podcasts, and how a singing prairie dog and memorable earworms can do serious brand-building work.

Ryan and Stephanie dig into balancing art and science in measurement, evolving a beloved brand without throwing away equity, launching the “Savings Wrangler” platform largely in-house, and the PR and discoverability strategies built for an AI-driven search world. If you care about growth that lasts longer than a dashboard refresh, this conversation is for you.

Listen for: how to rise to CMO in five years, making audio an advantage, crafting jingles that stick, designing a multi-horizon measurement system, and scaling brand salience without a costly rebrand.

Key Moments:

00:00 Introduction to GoodRx’s Marketing Strategy

01:37 How Ryan Sullivan Became a CMO in Five Years

05:34 Measurement and Marketing Efficacy

10:57 The Savings Wrangler Campaign

29:50 Balancing B2C and B2B Marketing

32:40 The Importance of Brand Consistency

36:38 Contrarian Marketing Bets

37:21 The Power of Audio in Marketing

41:32 Leveraging Third Party Content for AI Brand Discovery

45:15 Balancing Data and Intuition in Marketing

51:26 Building a Robust Measurement System

01:00:55 Lightning Round: Quickfire Questions For GoodRx’s CMO

This episode is brought to you by Lightricks. 

LTX is the all-in-one creative suite for AI-driven video production; built by Lightricks to take you from idea to final 4K render in one streamlined workspace.

Powered by LTX-2, our next-generation creative engine, LTX lets you move faster, collaborate seamlessly, and deliver studio-quality results without compromise. 

Try it today at ltx.studio
 

Mission.org is a media studio producing content alongside world-class clients. Learn more at mission.org.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Monster trucks, skeletons, and a CMO who doesn’t think about cost analysis very often.

In this in-studio conversation, Torq CMO Don Jeter breaks down how brand-led world-building beats feature dumps, why entertainment now matters more than information on the trade show floor, and how a Monster Jam partnership and an episodic LinkedIn “junior intern” series created real pipeline by earning mental real estate long before buyers are in-market. We get into the 60-day rebrand sprints, showing up at Black Hat, aligning sales and product so bold creative actually converts, measuring what matters when attribution gets fuzzy, and using AI for brainstorming without shipping “AI slop.”

Stick around to the lightning round where Don reveals his $10M marketing moonshot and the sacred marketing belief he thinks won’t age well. If you care about brand, demand, and breaking B2B sameness, watch through to the end and then queue it up on audio for the commute.

Key Moments:

00:00: Brand > Features: Cold Open

02:09: Rebrand to Stand Out (Not Blend In)

03:53: Trade Show Strategy + Monster Jam Booth

07:31: World-Building for B2B Brands

10:02: Episodic LinkedIn: Meet “Intern Trevor”

13:18: Do Bold Stunts Actually Drive Revenue?

20:16: Brand x Product x Sales: Tight Alignment

30:04: Polarizing on Purpose: Handling the Haters

34:30: Collabs, Culture & Consistency (Beyond F1)

38:52: AI for Ideas, Humans for Taste

45:00: Hiring Creatives + Technical PMM Muscle

48:03 Lightning Round (Super Bowl Ads, Hot Takes & More)

This episode is brought to you by Lightricks. 

LTX is the all-in-one creative suite for AI-driven video production; built by Lightricks to take you from idea to final 4K render in one streamlined workspace.

Powered by LTX-2, our next-generation creative engine, LTX lets you move faster, collaborate seamlessly, and deliver studio-quality results without compromise. 

Try it today at ltx.studio
 

Mission.org is a media studio producing content alongside world-class clients. Learn more at mission.org.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

What does it take to rebrand a 40-year-old tech giant — and make it relevant for the AI era?

Stephanie sits down with Ann Minooka, Chief Marketing Officer at Synopsys, to uncover how she’s redefining brand storytelling in one of the most complex spaces in tech. From repositioning a legacy company to pioneering demand generation strategies that deliver real pipeline, Ann shares her full playbook — including how AI is reshaping marketing, storytelling, and the future of customer search behavior.

If you’re a CMO, marketing leader, or just fascinated by the intersection of AI, storytelling, and strategy, this is one conversation you don’t want to miss.

Watch the full episode to hear Ann’s insights on positioning, growth, and preparing for the next era of agentic buying.

Key Moments: 

• 00:00: Who Is Ann Minooka, CMO Of Synopsys? 
• 03:00: The Era of Pervasive Intelligence
• 06:30: Shifting the Brand Narrative
• 10:00: Storytelling & Positioning Playbook
• 14:00: Measuring Marketing Impact
• 22:00: Preparing for the AI & LLM Agentic Future
• 25:00: Content & Storytelling in a Technical Space
• 32:00: Advice for New Marketing Leaders
• 36:00: Rapid-Fire Marketing Questions

This episode is brought to you by Lightricks. 

LTX is the all-in-one creative suite for AI-driven video production; built by Lightricks to take you from idea to final 4K render in one streamlined workspace.

Powered by LTX-2, our next-generation creative engine, LTX lets you move faster, collaborate seamlessly, and deliver studio-quality results without compromise. 

Try it today at ltx.studio
 

Mission.org is a media studio producing content alongside world-class clients. Learn more at mission.org.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

If you’re still optimizing for traditional SEO, this one might sting. But if you’re ready to win the AI search wars, welcome to your new bible.

Michael Walrath (CEO of Yext) is not sugarcoating our new AI-dominated environment that has transformed the market. He breaks down exactly how search is being torn apart by AI, why local SEO is being rewritten in real-time, and what it actually means to structure your content for machines — not humans. Stephanie and Mike go head-to-head on search nostalgia (Google geeks, look away) and unpack the playbook for brand visibility in a world that’s splintering fast.

Watch the full episode now and tell your SEO team: it’s time to evolve or get left behind.

• 00:00: Why Google Traffic Is Down and What It Means for Marketers
• 07:07: Yext’s Origin Story: From Call Routing to Search Visibility
• 12:39: Navigating the New Era of Search
• 15:59: The Importance of Structured Data
• 26:02: Challenges in Managing Reputation Across Multiple Locations
• 27:53: Disruption in the B2B Software Market
• 33:58 Big Bets and Innovations at Yext
• 40:14 Fun and Insightful Lightening Round Questions

This episode is brought to you by Lightricks. 

LTX is the all-in-one creative suite for AI-driven video production; built by Lightricks to take you from idea to final 4K render in one streamlined workspace.

Powered by LTX-2, our next-generation creative engine, LTX lets you move faster, collaborate seamlessly, and deliver studio-quality results without compromise. 

Try it today at ltx.studio
 

Mission.org is a media studio producing content alongside world-class clients. Learn more at mission.org.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

How do you future-proof your marketing strategy when LLMs are rewriting the rules in real time? Salesforce Applications CMO Amber Armstrong has answers — and the data to back them up.

Stephanie Postles sits down with Amber to unpack how Salesforce is rethinking SEO, scaling AI agents, and finally cracking the code on account-based marketing. From converting LLM traffic at 40% to building cross-cloud alignment with “guilds,” Amber shares tactical insights and bold bets that every modern marketer needs to hear.

• 00:00 How AI and LLMs Are Reshaping the Marketing Funnel
• 03:54 Amber Armstrong’s Journey from IBM Intern to CMO at Salesforce
• 06:35 The Expanding Role of AI in Modern Marketing Teams
• 08:52 Inside Salesforce’s Guild System: How Amber Aligns Teams Across Four Clouds
• 17:31 Real AI Use Cases from Amber Armstrong’s Marketing Team at Salesforce
• 26:40 Amber Armstrong’s Playbook for Future-Proofing SEO in the Age of LLMs
• 30:55 How Salesforce’s Website Converts 40% of LLM Traffic into Leads
• 35:58 Building AI Agents at Scale: Lessons from Salesforce’s Agent Force Rollout
• 37:53 The Ongoing Role of Third-Party Validation in Buyer Decision-Making
• 39:49 Amber Armstrong on Adapting Marketing Metrics for an AI-First Future
• 40:40 How Salesforce Aligns Content Strategy Across Business Units
• 44:56 Amber Armstrong’s Advice for Getting Teams Comfortable with AI Tools
• 51:24 Salesforce’s Next Big Moves: Account-Based Marketing and Cross-Cloud Growth

This episode is brought to you by Lightricks. 

LTX is the all-in-one creative suite for AI-driven video production; built by Lightricks to take you from idea to final 4K render in one streamlined workspace.

Powered by LTX-2, our next-generation creative engine, LTX lets you move faster, collaborate seamlessly, and deliver studio-quality results without compromise. 

Try it today at ltx.studio
 

Mission.org is a media studio producing content alongside world-class clients. Learn more at mission.org.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.