In this episode, we hear from Eric Fulwiler, Co-Founder & CEO of Rival, a growth consultancy that builds challenger brands, strategies, and capabilities to change categories. 

Eric has helped build some of the biggest brands in the world, from billion-dollar start-ups to Fortune 50 enterprises. Before co-founding Rival in 2021 he was the Chief Marketing & Commercial Officer of 11:FS, a challenger fintech consultancy for nearly three years. 

He was also one of the first 15 employees and MD, EMEA of VaynerMedia reporting directly to Gary Vaynerchuk for seven years. If you're in the world of marketing, there's a strong chance you've heard of Gary Vee, the social media sensation known for sharing his marketing and entrepreneurial tips online. 

Eric discusses what is was like to work with Gary Vee and dives into what he learnt during his time at VaynerMedia, as well as sharing his insights into when start-ups should start thinking about their marketing and how to go about developing a strategy.

Eric explains the difference between a challenger brand and an incumbent brand, and how to find and own a point of difference in a crowded market.

Finally, Eric discusses his experience as a Founder and what he's learnt along the journey, as well as debunking some of the LinkedIn myths that you see all too often around entrepreneurship. 

Questions asked: 

1. Tell us a bit about yourself and your career journey to date
2. You’ve previously worked directly with Gary V, what was that like? What did you learn?
3. From your experience, when do you think is the right time for start-ups to start thinking about their marketing and how should they go about developing a strategy? 
4. What is the difference between a challenger brand and an incumbent brand? 
5. You’ve always a bart of an early-stage businesses but haven’t founded one of your own until 2021, what are some of the key differences that you’ve noticed.
6. One thing we are passionate on the show is de-bunking LinkedIn myths about Foundership, what are your thoughts on the matter, is this something you’ve noticed and do you post content yourself?
7. You’re now 14 months into running your own business, what have you learnt so far and what have been some of the significant challenges?
8. What has been the biggest challenge in your career to date?
9. And finally, what one piece of advice would you give to someone looking to start their own business or join a start-up?

Follow The Start-Up Diaries Podcast on LinkedIn, Instagram, or find more free content from the Tech Recruitment Specialists powering The Start-Up Diaries - Burns Sheehan.