Forget rolling hills and apple-picking clichés, Crumpton Oaks is redefining the cider game! From the bold 2022 Straight Outta Crumpton campaign, a clever twist on N.W.A.'s iconic track, to the vibrant Happy Applecore campaign featuring an original track by DJ Hixxy, Crumpton Oaks puts nostalgia and entertainment front and centre.

In this episode of The Brief, host Ellis Bird sits down with Grace Anthony, Head of Marketing at Aston Manor Cider, and Adam Bodfish, Executive Creative Director at McCann, to explore how Crumpton Oaks is shaking up the cider industry. They discuss breaking free from traditional category norms, the power of entertainment, and the critical role of strong client-agency relationships in tackling creative challenges.

From psychedelic projections to rap-inspired TV ads, this episode dives deep into how Crumpton Oaks is leaving countryside conventions behind and making cider bold, fresh, and unforgettable.

What’s in the episode:

• The reason behind Crumpton Oaks’ mission to disrupt
• The role of entertainment and nostalgia
• Creating ‘artvertising’
• How Straight Outta Crumpton came to be
• Testing VOD for the first time
• Tapping into the 90s with Happy Applecore
• Why and how the team worked with DJ Hixxy to create an original track
• Using innovative media
• The importance of strong client/agency relationships
• Building on the success of the past three years

Watch the ads

Straight Outta Crumpton

Happy Applecore

We’ve all felt FOMU (the Fear of Messing Up) – but the emotions that drive B2B purchases are often overlooked and misunderstood. The result? $80billion of B2B deals in legal arbitration and missed opportunities.

In this episode, we’re joined by Asli Yilmaz, Managing Counsel, at the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), Mimi Turner, Head of Marketplace Innovation at LinkedIn, and Gideon Wilkins, EVP Commercial Intelligence at Truth Central, to discuss the uncomfortable truth about emotion in B2B relationships and the key opportunities and challenges for marketers.

We’ll dive into the eye-opening research by ICC, JusConnect and McCann, as well as LinkedIn’s findings on buyability.

What we cover in the episode

• Why emotion is so important in B2B
• Why B2B decisions are 2X more emotional than consumer decisions
• Burger vs steak – the scale of risk
• The emotional rollercoaster of B2B
• Is fear really the key emotion in B2B buying? Orare we more worried about the fear of messing up?
• The rise of AI in B2B decision making
• The role of ‘defensibility’ and trust
• Preparing your ‘prenup’ and facing awkward conversations
• Connecting with the right emotion at the right time

The research

Learn more about the ICC and McCann's research here.

Learn more about LinkedIn's research here.

About the speakers

Asli Yilmaz is Managing Counsel at the ICC InternationalCourt of Arbitration, where she oversees the work of 13 case management teams, including five overseas offices. In this role, she is part of the leadership team leading strategic operations, resolves high-level procedural and institutional issues, and helps shape the ICC’s global approach to arbitration.

Before taking on this leadership position, Asli served asCounsel for the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East team at the ICC Secretariat, managing hundreds of arbitration cases and reviewing arbitral awards across a wide range of industries and jurisdictions.

Her legal career prior to the ICC spans international law firms in Istanbul, Paris, and New York in the disputes sector. She holds a law degree from the University of Warwick and an LL.M. from the London School of Economics. Asli is admitted to practice in both Istanbul and New York, and works in English, Turkish, German, and French.

Mimi Turner is a brand-builder and strategist with a track record of delivering transformational outcomes in media, marketing and politics. She joined LinkedIn as Head of EMEA and Lat Am of LinkedIn’s marketing strategy think-tank, The B2B Institute, in August 2021 and in 2024became head of Marketplace Innovation for LinkedIn. She has led IP creation on marketing and advertising including on the Harvard Business Review featured research The Right Way To Build Your Brand.  Previously, she was Director of Strategy, Messaging and Research at the Liberal Democrats, the first Marketing Director of The LAD Bible Group, and Marketing Director of The Health Lottery. Mimi was special advisor to The Cairncross Review, the government inquiry into the future of high-quality journalism. She began her career as a science journalist with the Sunday Times and the Times newspapers. 

Gideon Wilkins is EVP of Commercial Intelligence at McCann Truth Central, McCann Worldgroup’s global intelligence unit. He leads research on B2B audiences, brands and thought leadership that help businesses connect insight to impact. Gideon has worked across global B2B and B2C projects with a focus on the emotional and cultural forces that shape decision-making.
His recent work, The Truth About B2B Relationships, produced with the International Chamber of Commerce and Jus Connect, challenges the assumption that B2B is purely rational and has been presented at international conferences and published as a series of white papers shaping global best practice.

An estimated 14,000 tons of sunscreen end up in the world’s oceans every year, and as many as 80% of ordinary sunscreens contain chemicals that contribute to coral bleaching and dying reefs. But what if there was a sunscreen and a certification that would help coral instead of harming it?

In this episode, we unpack the story behind an incredibly ambitious project to not only create the world’s first coral-nourishing sunscreen but launch a new sunscreen certification that encourages other manufacturers to protect coral from toxic chemicals.

What started with an idea four years ago has now turned into a Cannes Lions winning project with over 30 partners around the world. Join the team behind the project and discover the story behind Coral Care.

What we cover in the episode

• The shocking stats that triggered the idea
• From concept to formula: the journey to product development
• The reality of going beyond the creative comfort zone
• The importance of partners in achieving success
• Working with Stream2Sea and the University of Derby
• The road to Cannes and the impact of winning a Lion
• Entering phase two with the world’s first Reef Protection Certification
• How the team took the project global
• What’s next for Coral Care and RPF

Learn more about Coral Care here and RPF here.

About the speakers

Jon Elsom is Group Executive Creative Director at McCann. Jon has spent nearly 30 years in the communications business, creating effective and award-winning campaigns for clients in all sectors such as Qatar Airways, Mastercard and Vauxhall. For Jon it's all about creating outstanding work that cuts through and transforms clients' brands.

Alex Smith is Senior Copywriter at McCann, and one half of the ‘Britzilian’ creative duo with Fred Corazza. Alex and Fred are the team behind Coral Care and are always looking to push boundaries with their work. The duo try to tell real stories that connect with people around the world.

Sophie Churchill is Business Director at McCann. She is experienced in delivering impactful, multi-channel campaigns across diverse industries - including FMCG, tourism & travel, healthcare & beauty, domestic appliances and consumer electronics. She is passionate about long term brand building, delivering work that has meaning, built on insights and human truths. Coral Care is a passion project that sits perfectly within Sophie's values.

Whether it’s small moments throughout the day, or a big adventure, the need for escape is a fundamental human behaviour which has resulted in a $9.7 trillion economy. One that brands, both in traditional ‘escape’ industries such as travel and gaming and non-tradition industries like banking, can tap into and foster brand loyalty.

In this episode, we dive into ‘The Truth About Escapism’, a fascinating study from McCann Truth Central. Guests Jess Francis, Research Director at Truth Central, and Joe Stevens, Managing Partner of Strategy at McCann, discuss the what, why, and the opportunities of escapism with Ellis Bird.

What we cover in the episode

• The $9.7 trillion escape economy opportunity
• What escape means today
• How and why are people seeking escape?
• Keeping it meaningful – how brands can connect with audiences in moments of escape
• Using the research to understand your audience
• The rise of ‘stacking’ escapes
• What the future of escapism might look like

Learn more about The Truth About Escapism study here.

About the speakers

Jess Francis is a Research Director at McCann Truth Central, where she develops global interdisciplinary research studies, such as the Truth About Escapism and the Truth About Work. She is an expert in mixed research methods, data visualisation and storytelling, with deep categorical expertise in youth culture, sustainability, and emerging technologies. Prior to a career in advertising, she worked in the social impact and non-profit sector, from democratizing access to tech-education in Iraq and Turkey to helping raise over $3 million USD for Choose Love. A Brit-Filipina raised on a boat in Hong Kong, she’s a conduit for multi-cultural thinking and outside of work, is a hobbyist potter and sourdough baker.

Joe Stevens is Managing Partner, Strategy, at McCann. As an experienced planner with a track record of integrated, digital, social and creative strategies, Joe has worked on leading brands across a range of industries. He's particularly interested in developing strategies that help to anchor brands in cultural, consumer and channel truths across markets and categories.

As the saying goes, ‘the only constant in life is change’, but research from System1 and the IPA shows that consistency is key when it comes to effective advertising. As we enter a new age of effectiveness, it’s never been more important to understand the impact and benefits of compound creativity, and the risks and costs of inconsistent creative and short-term agency relationships.

In this episode, Ellis Bird is joined by Andrew Tindall, SVP Global Partnerships at System1, and Jamie Peate, Global Head of Effectiveness and Retail at McCann Worldgroup, to uncover the real impact of consistency and the risks (and cost) of inconsistent creative and short ad lifespans. They will explore the latest research and share real examples of some of the most impactful and consistent work.

What we cover in the episode

Read more about System1’s research on Compound Creativity with the IPA here.

About the speakers

Andrew Tindall is SVP Global Partnerships at System1. He champions modern marketing effectiveness in a no-bullshit, practical way. Responsible for System1’s thought leadership and global agency partnerships, he combines data with System1’s ad database to create publications exploring emotion and creativity’s role in effectiveness across the media mix. Ex-Diageo and Bacardi, he loves an IRL chat at the bar but also frequently stirs debate on LinkedIn and is a columnist for The Drum.

Jamie Peate, Global Head of Effectiveness and Retail at McCann, has helped to drive a culture at local, regional and global levels that holds creativity and effectiveness central to all of the agency’s output. His strategic approach to the Aldi account exemplifies his approach – long running campaigns such as Like Brands and Kevin the Carrot have reaped benefits for the client and helped redefine the grocery sector.

In this special year-end episode of The Brief, host Ellis Bird looks back on some of her favourite moments from the podcast in 2024. Reflecting on the most impactful discussions and interviews, Ellis revisits key topics that shaped the world of marketing and advertising this year. From groundbreaking campaigns to emerging trends and industry insights, this episode offers a comprehensive recap of the highlights that defined the series. 

We’ll be back in 2025 for more insightful conversations on the biggest challenges and opportunities facing marketers.

‘Effectiveness’ feels like the word of the moment in the world of marketing, but it’s so much more than a buzzword. It can bring value and reward to clients, agencies, and the people working in them. But it isn’t something that just lives on a slide in a deck, it needs to be baked into culture to be truly impactful. So, how do you do it and what are the risks of prioritising efficiency over effectiveness?

For this episode, we’re joined by Nick Milne, Chief Effectiveness Officer at The Ignition Room, and Ringo Moss, Chief Strategy Officer at McCann, to discuss the what, why and how, of building a culture of true effectiveness.

What we cover in the episode

• What do we mean when we talk about ‘effectiveness’
• Creating value for clients, agencies and people
• Why measurement shouldn’t just be at the end of the process
• Why everyone in a business should undergo effectiveness training – even HR and finance
• How long does it take to build a culture of effectiveness?
• Do agencies or clients own effectiveness culture?
• Why you can’t just 'turn on' effectiveness
• The biggest skill client-side effectiveness practitioners need to have
• Why McCann introduced an effectiveness ‘contract’
• Balancing short term performance with long term effectiveness
• Why the industry has to get back to value and outcomes
• What marketers need to know about effectiveness

About the speakers

Nick Milne is Founder of and Chief Effectiveness Officerat The Ignition Room and Go Ignite. Before founding The Ignition Room and Go Ignite, Nick gained his effectiveness experience at Samsung, where he had responsibility for customer and marketing analytics across Europe, and at O2, where he set up the Marketing Effectiveness function. Nick has also been a member of the IPA Effectiveness Leadership Group since 2016.

The Ignition Room is a marketing community designed to help marketers learn how to build a strong effectiveness culture by building a network of like-minded agency and brand side marketers, and by sharing challenges and experience to help overcome particular effectiveness challenges.

Go Ignite is the consulting arm where the team work directly with brands and agencies to design and embed effectiveness approaches, tools and solutions into ways of working.

Ringo Moss is Chief Strategy Officer at McCann. Heis a hugely experienced strategic marketing professional with a proven background in shaping and executing award-winning brand & comms strategies. With diverse experience spanning a wide range of communications roles, categories, and global clients, Ringo focusses on empirical marketing science to deliver effective communications and believes in the power of creativity to create unfair commercial advantage whether in B2B or B2C.

AI is one of the fastest evolving technological advancements, and its impact is being felt across multiple touchpoints, including search. Both frontend and backend, AI is changing the game when it comes to SEO and PPC, but what are the big challenges and opportunities?

In this episode, we’re joined by Tracey Pilon, Commercial Director at Microsoft, and McCann Media’s Katherine Ray, Business Director and Tom Williams, Senior SEO Director, to break through the jargon and uncover the current state of AI in search, what it means for marketers and brands, and what the future of search might look like.

What we cover in the episode

• The evolution of the SEO landscape
• How Microsoft is harnessing the power of AI
• Will fragmentation in search increase?
• The potential rise of zero-click searches (and why this might not be a bad thing)
• Why marketers need to consider the full funnel
• Using Copilot for creativity

About the speakers

Tracey Pilon is Commercial Director at Microsoft. With over 18 years of experience with one of the world leaders in technology, Tracey is an experienced leader in the digital industry.

Katherine Ray is Business Director at McCann Media. Kat has significant experience in Paid Search across a range of industries.

Tom Williams is Senior SEO Director at McCann Media. Tom is a passionate SEO Specialist with more than 13 years of experience, both agency side and in house.

In 2021, washable rug brand Ruggable launched in the UK after steadily growing in the US. With a big focus on filling the social feeds of millennials, the brand is looking to grow its audiences through new channels all whilst building trust.

Expanding your audience can feel like a challenge at the best of times, but as a relatively young brand operating on a global scale, there’s a lot to navigate.

For this episode, Ellis Bird is joined by Charlotte Ford, European Senior Marketing Director at Ruggable, and Sarah Warewinter, Managing Partner, Strategy, at McCann Bristol. During the conversation, they discuss the journey to expanding audiences, the importance of data, finding the right channels, and getting internal buy-in.

What we cover in the episode

• Ruggable’s journey so far
• How do you know when it’s time to start expanding your audience?
• Finding like-minded audiences
• Why you shouldn’t change your brand to suit a new audience
• How challenger brands can find connection
• Finding local relevance on a global scale (without being precious about your brand)
• How testing has shaped Ruggable’s strategy
• Building (and maintaining) trust as a D2C online brand

About the speakers

Charlotte Ford is European Senior Marketing Director atRuggable. With extensive experience across some of the biggest consumer brands including Heycar, Treatwell and Amazon, Charlotte is a specialist in brand and customer engagement. Passionate about brand building and solvingcomplicated strategic challenges, she joined Ruggable in early 2024 and has since led the way on growing audiences and channels.

Sarah Warewinter is Managing Partner, Strategy, at McCann Bristol. With a traditional planning background, Sarah is well versed in customer insight, research, brand management, creative and business strategy; and believes that brands need to be built on strong strategic foundations to develop amazing creative marketing. Her experience is channel agnostic, and she is passionate about making sure that brands use all available resources in the right way to connect with their customers.

In 2022, the Elections Act introduced a huge change for in-person voting – voters would now be required to present eligible photo ID at polling stations or face being turned away. The Electoral Commission had to find a way to clearly communicate the new ID requirements to the nation across a vast array of demographics, without impacting the public’s motivation to vote.  

The solution? Giant sticky notes.

For this episode, we’re joined by Susan Crown, Flick Duncan, and Kayley Almond to uncover the challenges the new law presented, the story behind the campaign, how they shifted behaviours, how they got the first ad out within 24 hours of the General Election being announced, and the incredible results the campaign has generated.

What we cover in this episode

• Where do you begin when trying to change the behaviour of so many demographics?
• Going down wormholes and the importance of segmentation
• Overcoming apathy and understanding barriers
• The importance of research and accessibility
• How the sticky notes stood out amongst 12 options
• Why the team were operating at severe risk early on
• The pressure of overcoming negative public opinions and getting the tonality right
• Finding longevity in the creative
• How the team go the first assets out within 48 hours of the general election being announced  
• Bringing the ‘warm and fuzzy’ to life-admin
• Finding the human touch (including hand written sticky notes)
• Key lessons in accessibility and inclusion
• Why post-campaign analysis is a must
• Connecting with key audiences
• The incredible results generated by the campaigns

Watch the ads

Voter ID: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDU6_ZW-mRw

Voter registration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHb8lrjRPIY 

About the speakers 

Susan Crown is Head of Campaigns and Corporate Identity at The Electoral Commission and is passionate about encouraging participation in democracy. An expert in marketing, press, strategic, internal, and corporate communications, Susan as extensive experience in developing behavioural change campaigns.

Flick Duncan is Managing Partner at McCann, leading on some of the biggest household names. With a belief in building trusted, open and collaborative partnerships, she is dedicated to achieving ambitious, world-first creativity and growing industry-leading client servicing teams.

Kayley Almond is a seasoned Strategy Director at McCann, celebrated for her innovative thinking and passion for igniting creative sparks that help businesses meet their growth potential. With over a decade of experience shaping impactful campaigns for esteemed brands like Hargreaves Lansdown, Lancome, and the Electoral Commission, Kayley approaches her work with humility and a desire to connect with real people.