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If you want to make a big impact in a 15-second ad, there’s one trick of the trade that instantly gets an emotional response: place your ad in a relatable setting.
It could be the DMV, an airport, or a drive through —what matters is that it’s a place your audience has been to. They know what it’s like getting a bad driver’s license photo, or struggling to find an outlet to charge your phone while you wait for a connecting flight. By putting your story in a familiar setting, you don’t need to do very much explaining – and you can capitalize on those precious seconds to highlight your message.
This week, we’re talking about Mean Girls. Mean Girls is a perfect example of what it means to have a relevant, reminiscent setting. In this episode of REMARKABLE, we talk about how to do the same in your B2B marketing.
Why Mean Girls?
Mean Girls is a modern classic that introduced the word "fetch" into our vocabulary. But we picked it for this week's episode because it's an excellent example of a film taking a common setting and building off it. You know what setting we're talking about: high school. The movie's production design evokes the all-too-familiar feel of the American high school. But it's not just that; it's also the scenes in the movie as well. We’re talking about high school — the physical place as well as the experience. Mean Girls perfectly captures both, so you watch the movie and go, “I’ve been there. I know what that’s like.” The high school feels familiar because it’s pretty generic. Everything from the hallways and lockers to the cafeteria and classrooms in the movie look like ones in real high schools across the U.S. But it’s more than that — it’s the experience of going to a new school, trying to make friends, having crushes, getting bullied…there’s something for everyone.
Did you know that Mean Girls is based on a self-help book? That’s right, Tina Fey wrote the screenplay after reading Queen Bees & Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends & Other Realities of Adolescence by Rosalind Wiseman. The book was written for parents who wanted to help their teen daughters better navigate the social complexities at school. Fey took key components of the high school experience from the book, along with unforgettable characters and a juicy plot, and Mean Girls was born.
Mean Girls became a state-of-the-art classic because of how Tina Fey elevated the high school genre. With her cutting sense of humor and subversive voice, she made Mean Girls one of the most quotable and enduring of its kind.
A Quick Mean Girls Refresher
Mean Girls tells the story of Cady Heron, who gets her first taste of public high school after her scientist parents move from Africa to the Chicago suburbs. Outcasts Janis and Damien show Cady the ropes, but Cady winds up going her own way. Despite her friends’ warnings, she is drawn into the cool girl clique, “The Plastics,” led by Regina George. Cady finds out how cutthroat The Plastics truly are after making the mistake of falling for Regina’s ex. So Cady, Janis and Damien plot to bring on Regina’s downfall.
What B2B Companies Can Learn From Mean Girls:
Key Quotes
*”If you only have 15 or 30 seconds in the age of TikTok to grab somebody, if you're leaning into something that people know, to establish a setting, a time, a place, then you free up your runway to talk about the things that you really want to get across because those things are already built in.” - Dane Eckerle
*”When it comes to setting, it's about being really relatable but also super relevant to your audience. When B2B marketers split up their target audience into personas, for example, know that they're people first, and more than just personas. They’re professionals who want to make better impressions and build stronger relationships. You have to be relatable to sell to them as a marketer, but also show your true self and be authentic. And I think that comes with knowing exactly the groups that they’re in and what they care about.“ - Anagha Das
Time Stamps
[1:13] What’s Mean Girls about?
[3:41] What does it mean to be relatable?
[7:10] Mean Girls’ box office success
[8:54] Why is the high school setting important in Mean Girls?
[12:05] Is there a psychological reason consumers gravitate towards relatable content?
[14:25] What are our marketing takeaways from Mean Girls?
[18:48] How do you apply the takeaways to B2B Marketing?
Links
Watch Mean Girls
Check out #LifeinsideDropBox
Take a look at how HubSpot highlights employees
And then there’s Corporate Bro
Vidyard is doing cool stuff with videos too
About the Show
Remarkable! is created by the team at Caspian Studios, the premier B2B Podcast-as-a-Service company. Caspian creates both non-fiction and fiction series for B2B companies. If you want a fiction series check out our new offering - The Business Thriller - Hollywood style storytelling for B2B. Learn more at CaspianStudios.com.
In today’s episode, you heard from Ian Faison (CEO of Caspian Studios), Dane Eckerle (Head of Development), Colin Stamps (Podcast Launch Manager), Anagha Das (B2B Content Marketing Manager), and Meredith O’Neil (Senior Producer). Remarkable was produced this week by Meredith O’Neil, mixed by Scott Goodrich, and our theme song is “Solomon” by FALAK.
Create something remarkable. Rise above the noise.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
In the B2B world, we think about growing our customer base. But one thing B2B marketers often overlook is how to transform your customer base into a community.
You may be wondering, isn’t a customer base and a community the same thing? Not exactly. A community is your customer base taken to the next level, with a lot more engagement. It’s a network of relationships based on passion, instead of transactions. And it’s this passion that brings like-minded people together to form a dedicated community that outlasts and outperforms any regular customer base.
In 2017, the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team failed to qualify for the World Cup for the first time since 1986. It was this devastating low point that birthed a community that was so determined to see the underdog make a big comeback. Enter the Scuffed podcast.
Scuffed was started by Adam Belz and Greg Velasquez out of pure love for American soccer. And in the last five years, they’ve created, grown, and nutured a robust community of listeners who are engaged across a variety of platforms.
In this episode of REMARKABLE, we explore the nuances of community-building, and how you can use it in your B2B marketing.
Why the Scuffed Podcast?
You’re probably wondering why we picked the Scuffed podcast for this episode. Welp, for one, our CEO, Ian Faison, is a member of the community himself. He doesn’t just listen to their podcast; he also subscribes to their Patreon and hangs out on their Discord!. Ian was drawn to The Scuffed podcast team’s genuine love for American soccer. These guys are INTO IT. And that authentic passion is like a community-building magnet.
Scuffed brings together a community of American soccer lovers and lets them choose their own adventure when it comes to accessing content.. They have their weekly podcast episodes, with over 300 episodes that are currently publicly available. Then, they have an additional layer of content for those who want to support the show by paying a little every month. Patrons gain access to exclusive episodes along with Scuffed’s exclusive Discord channels where subscribers chat about recent games, favorite players, stats, share memes, etc.
The members of the Scuffed podcast team (Adam, Greg, Vince, Jordan, and Watke) are all actively engaged on Scuffed’s Patreon and Twitter accounts. They frequently interact with followers, chat with them about the show, and even arrange in-person meetups.
That right there is a hat trick when it comes to building a powerful community.
About Scuffed
The Scuffed Podcast is a weekly show about American soccer with a focus on the U.S. Men’s National Team. On the podcast, hosts Adam Belz and Greg Velasquez recap games, talk strategy, chat about their favorite soccer personalities, and do occasional interviews with players and coaches. Adam and Greg founded Scuffed in 2017 after the USMNT failed to qualify for the World Cup. Since then, they added a Monday Review with Chris Russell and Vince Irvin, a Discord, and a newsletter.
What B2B Companies Can Learn From the Scuffed Podcast:
Key Quotes
*”When I think of community outside of the context of making a podcast, I think of old kinds of communities. Like rural farming communities or urban communities where people are living together and suffering together, and sacrificing for each other. And so I don't know how to relate that to a Discord server. Like, I don't know what the connection is between those two things, because they're both technically a community. But when you're living online with people, how do you suffer with them or sacrifice for them? Do we even know how to do that yet as humans?” - Adam Belz
*“Repeatability is so crucial because you can have a good idea and maybe even execute it once. But if it's not something you can just go back to and be able to do over and over again, it's not something you can offer as a promise to the listener.” - Adam Belz
*”We're not very calculated when it comes to building a community or maximizing our reach. We're just kind of doing our thing. We're just some guys making a podcast because they love soccer and they love the national team. And I think the chillness of it was appealing to people.” - Adam Belz
Time Stamps
[0:55] How to build a community
[2:00] Introducing Adam Belz of Scuffed
[3:47] What are our takeaways?
[8:00] How did Adam start the Scuffed podcast?
[13:40] What’s the difference between building a virtual vs. in-person community?
[16:48] What assets does the Scuffed podcast have?
[19:48] How did Adam grow the Scuffed community?
[24:58] How is Scuffed offering different levels of engagement for listeners?
[30:20] How do you differentiate yourself from competitors?
[33:49] How do you manage negative interactions within the community?
[43:37] Why does being authentic attract community engagement?
[48:54] What does Scuffed do with user-generated content?
Links
Listen to the Scuffed Podcast
Check out the Scuffed website
Connect with Adam on LinkedIn
Follow Adam on Twitter
Follow the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team
About the Show
Remarkable! is created by the team at Caspian Studios, the premier B2B Podcast-as-a-Service company. Caspian creates both non-fiction and fiction series for B2B companies. If you want a fiction series check out our new offering - The Business Thriller - Hollywood style storytelling for B2B. Learn more at CaspianStudios.com.
In today’s episode, you heard from Ian Faison (CEO of Caspian Studios), and Adam Belz (Co-Founder and Host of Scuffed). Remarkable was produced this week by Meredith O’Neil, mixed by Scott Goodrich, and our theme song is “Solomon” by FALAK.
Create something remarkable. Rise above the noise.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
The word “ensemble” might make you think of a group of performers all working in tandem. But what happens when we apply it to B2B marketing?
In 2001, an ensemble of all-star actors outdid any other cast…maybe ever.
George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Don Cheadle, Bernie Mac, Casey Affleck – actors at the top of their game.
Each one could draw their own crowd. But together? They’re unstoppable.
Add in the sparkling backdrop of the Vegas strip and the tension of a high-stakes heist, and you have yourself a blockbuster.
That blockbuster is Ocean’s 11, and it upped the ante for what a star-studded ensemble could be.
In this episode of REMARKABLE, we take a look at the power of the ensemble in Ocean’s 11 and how you can use it in your B2B marketing.
The house always wins. Unless you bring together a powerful ensemble. And today we’re taking the house with some B2B tips on bringing together an ensemble of high rolling sharks.
Why Ocean’s 11?
Alright, so we all love Ocean’s 11. But why’d we pick it for this week’s Remarkable episode?
Because of the insanely hot cast – and we aren’t just talking about their cheekbones. Ocean’s 11 is packed with the best of the best, including George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Julia Roberts, Bernie Mac, Eddie Jemison, Casey Affleck, Don Cheadle, Carl Reiner, Elliot Gould, and Andy Garcia. Even Viola Davis makes a cameo – well, sort of. Remember Danny Ocean’s exit interview from the prison scene? Viola Davis voices the officer. Any of those actors featured in a film would sell out opening night at the movie theater. But all of them billed together is unprecedented!
Aside from the star-studded cast, the characters they play have huge personalities of their own. The eleven-character ensemble of criminals boasts a myriad of talents, from pick-pocketing to con-artistry to speed racing. In other words, they have all the important skills needed to pull off a heist.
A Quick Ocean’s 11 Refresher
In case you’ve been living under a rock for the past few decades…
Ocean’s 11 is a heist movie about a string of Las Vegas casino robberies. The OG movie was filmed in 1960 and starred Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis, Jr.
It was remade in 2001, with a cast just as star-studded as the original. The film was one of the biggest hits of the year, bringing in over $450 million in box office. But it wasn’t just the cast that made the movie such a success. Behind the scenes, the craftsmanship was just as impressive. Ocean’s 11 was directed by Steven Soderbergh, who had just become one of only three directors to be nominated twice for Best Director in the same year (he won the Oscar for directing Traffic and “lost” for directing Erin Brockovich). It’s a classic movie formula: an amazing cast + a director at the top of his game = instant classic.
Who’s Who?
Danny Ocean: The Mastermind (George Clooney)
Rusty Ryan: The Right-Hand Man (Brad Pitt)
Tess Ocean: The Love Interest (Julia Roberts)
The Malloy Brothers: The Drivers (Casey Affleck & Scott Caan)
Livingston Dell: Electronics (Eddie Jemiston)
Basher Tarr: Munitions (Don Cheadle)
The Amazing Yen: The Grease Man (Shaobo Qin)
Linus Caldwell: The Pickpocket (Matt Damon)
Frank Catton: The Casino Employee (Bernie Mac)
Reuben Tishkoff: The Bankroll (Elliott Gould)
Saul Bloom: The Con Artist (Carl Reiner)
Pick Your Teams Carefully
Why do we connect so much with the characters in Ocean’s 11?
Their backstories and skillsets are both distinct and relatable, a combination that helps us empathize with them. But Danny Ocean has also picked a team that compliments each other perfectly. Each character brings a unique set of skills to the table that no other character can do – imagine if Linus tried to pull off one of The Amazing Yen’s stunts! The characters each have their special talents, and they work well together. That’s what makes them a great team, and it’s why people who’ve watched this movie across the globe root for them.
The cast also has amazing chemistry. While watching Ocean’s 11, we wonder – who in our own friends and family is our Danny Ocean, the smooth-talking romantic? We all know rambunctious brothers like the Malloys – and we all wish we knew Don Cheadle!
But we relate to characters in movies all the time. Heck, that’s what makes a great movie! But creating chemistry on screen takes intention, effort, and talent. It’s not just the actors working together – it’s the writing, the directing, the costume design, the editing…all of it comes together to create what we in B2B would call a high-value touch point. And the strength of the connections onscreen is what makes this film Remarkable.
What B2B Companies Can Learn From Ocean’s 11
Key Quotes
*”There's a lot of different ways there that B2B companies can pull from A-list talent or just creating an ensemble, by having these different characters tell the story of your brand” - Anagha Das
*“There's a cool opportunity [for] a business to make an ad where they have their own characters and there's like a story that they build with each one. B2B companies can do the same concept with their personas and create a character based on each persona. Similar to Ocean’s 11, they can even incorporate some of those cinematic storytelling aspects and play that out among the characters.” - Colin Stamps
Time Stamps
[1:17] What's Ocean's 11 about?
[1:55] What's an ensemble?
[3:10] How successful was Ocean's 11?
[4:31] Technique of the week: The Ensemble
[5:59] Why does the technique work when it comes to B2B marketing?
[9:17] Why is the ensemble an effective storytelling mechanism?
[11:04] Who's who in Ocean's 11?
[14:15] How do you use the ensemble in your marketing?
[18:45] More examples of using an ensemble in B2B marketing
Links
Watch Ocean’s 11
Check out the Salesforce characters
Take a look at Duolingo on TikTok
Meet Dr. Rick, Flo, and more at Progressive.com
And here’s the Old Spice guy
Look at how State Farm is partnering with athletes
About the Show
Remarkable! is created by the team at Caspian Studios, the premier B2B Podcast-as-a-Service company. Caspian creates both non-fiction and fiction series for B2B companies. If you want a fiction series check out our new offering - The Business Thriller - Hollywood style storytelling for B2B. Learn more at CaspianStudios.com.
In today’s episode, you heard from Ian Faison (CEO of Caspian Studios), Dane Eckerle (Head of Development), Colin Stamps (Podcast Launch Manager), Anagha Das (B2B Content Marketing Manager), and Meredith O’Neil (Senior Producer). Remarkable was produced this week by Meredith O’Neil, mixed by Scott Goodrich, and our theme song is “Solomon” by FALAK.
Create something remarkable. Rise above the noise.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
What is puffery? How can you use it in your B2B content?
In the mid-2000s there was a King of Puffery.
He soared into our lives as the SHAM-WOW guy.
But his tour-de-force was the SLAP-CHOP.
His name was Vince Offer, and he changed infomercials (and quite literally our lives) forever.
In the first episode of REMARKABLE, we examine his use of puffery in the SLAP-CHOP commercials and how you can use it in your B2B marketing.
Stop having a boring tuna, stop having a boring life!
Let's slap those marketing troubles away and chop up some B2B marketing and content morsels for all to enjoy.
Key Quote
"There’s an opportunity to do this (for B2B companies). It’d be super interesting if I went on LinkedIn and there was a video from a technology company I follow and it was a fun, infomercial style video instead of a boring product demo…Just to engage with the audience in a different way. I think there’s an opportunity for that.” - Colin Stamps
Time Stamps
*[1:38] What’s the Slap Chop?
*[3:33] Who is Vince Offer?
*[3:50] The magic of infomercials
*[4:55] Why Vince Offer’s marketing technique works
*[6:23] The use of exaggeration or “puffery” in marketing
*[7:07] Remarkable Technique of the Week: Puffery. Why does puffery in marketing work?
*[8:37] How to frame the Before / After in your marketing
*[10:08] Other marketing examples of puffery in B2B and B2C
Links
Watch the Slap Chop Infomercial
Read the Fair Trade Commission Act
About the Show
Remarkable! is created by the team at Caspian Studios, the premier B2B Podcast-as-a-Service company. Caspian creates both non-fiction and fiction series for B2B companies. If you want a fiction series check out our new offering - The Business Thriller - Hollywood style storytelling for B2B. Learn more at CaspianStudios.com.
In today’s episode, you heard from Ian Faison (CEO of Caspian Studios), Dane Eckerle (Head of Development), Colin Stamps (Podcast Launch Manager), Anagha Das (B2B Content Marketing Manager), and Meredith O’Neil (Senior Producer). Remarkable was produced this week by Meredith O’Neil, mixed by Scott Goodrich, and our theme song is “Solomon” by FALAK.
Create something remarkable. Rise above the noise.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
B2B marketers are always looking for inspiration and ideas. On Remarkable, the Caspian Studios team is bringing you B2B content ideas from Hollywood, B2C and beyond. In each episode we will explore elements of storytelling, design, and production, from studios like Pixar, Marvel, Lucas Films and many more. Then we will apply those lessons learned to how you can improve your B2B content. Welcome to Remarkable!
Key Quotes
“This is a great podcast that you should definitely listen to!” - Ian Faison, CEO, Caspian Studios
“You should tell all of your marketing friends to listen to every episode” - Fian Flason, Anonymous
“I like all the different speakers, they are so fun and funny. Especially Meredith.” - Meredith O’Neil
“Ian, why do we need quotes for this section?” - Meredith O’Neil
“Are you making up quotes and recording our conversation?” - Meredith O’Neil
Key Takeaways
Well, since the trailer is only one minute and 18 seconds long, the takeaway is LISTEN IN.
Don’t swim on a full stomach.
Beer before liquor, never been sicker.
Podcasts are good for the soul.
Episode Highlights
Again, it's only one minute and 18 seconds so there aren’t a lot of highlights. We had to make up quotes already. Our first episode is Slap-Chop! Remember that? Choppy chopper thing? Crazy guy chopping stuff? Okay just head over and listen to it.
About the Show
Remarkable! is created by the team at Caspian Studios, the premier B2B Podcast-as-a-Service company. Caspian creates both non-fiction and fiction series for B2B companies. If you want a fiction series check out our new offering - The Business Thriller - Hollywood style storytelling for B2B. Learn more at CaspianStudios.com.
In today’s episode, you heard from Ian Faison (CEO of Caspian Studios), Dane Eckerle (Head of Development), Colin Stamps (Podcast Launch Manager), Anagha Das (B2B Content Marketing Manager), and Meredith O’Neil (Senior Producer). Remarkable was produced this week by Meredith O’Neil, mixed by Scott Goodrich, and our theme song is “Solomon” by FALAK.
Create something remarkable. Rise above the noise.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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