The Overthinkers

Emotions have been at the heart of successful marketing for decades, and a strategy greatly popularized in the last decade by the work of Binet & Field. This week, we're joined by the brilliant Claire Strickett from adam&eveDDB to bring a grounded view on the importance of emotions. A chance to better define what we mean by emotions, and put to rest some of the many misconceptions peddled in our industry.

With Superbowl about to capture advertisers' attention (and purses), we discussed the current state - and worth of tentpole events for brands. Admittedly, this year is particularly special as the world still struggles with the pandemic, but is it even worth brands' attention to sponsor and participate in those tentpole media moments, or does it distract them from finding more ownable moments?

Over the last 30 years the agency business has seen some intense consolidation with holding company models. As our industry is coping with a second crisis a mere decade after the last one, do independent shops stand a chance or are they facing increasingly difficult odds to survive? Both Rachel and Shann started in independent agencies, and Rachel is even now launching her own, so clearly they both have hopes the independent spirit will prevail. But is it still the opportunity it once represented?

We're delighted to Welcome Nicki Sprinz, MD of Ustwo in London, a design studio famous for also producing mobile best-selling game Monument Valley and led with a very strong sense of purpose and values. Now, we're not talking of brand purpose here, but about what genuinely happens on the inside, and how it shows on the outside! The chance to hear about ways to build teams and cultures, but also to reflect on Ustwo's unique path to success around the world.

Note: apologies for the poor sound quality, we encountered some issues when recording Nicki's track. We tried to fix it but were not able to resolve it during the interview.

We have all some lines we wouldn't want our employer to cross. Sometimes, those lines are very public. If you want to change it, should you join the company that crosses them, or "fight" it from the outside?

To start off the new year, new you, we took a listener question from John Burke, asking ourselves when a strategist can feel their job is done. As we discuss in this episode, we believe there is a lot more to it than just the brief!

It's often hard for strategist to let others run their course. Put two strategists on a project, and you're likely to see two diverging views of how to get there. So how do you find ways to not only delegate, but also inspire others' thinking? And how to handle it when what you get is not what you think is right?

This will be our last episode for the year, as we take a break. Wishing you all happy holidays and see you in the new year!

This year certainly has taken its toll on many of us, often taking some to the point of exhaustion. In this episode, Rachel and Shann share their own experience, sometimes dealing with debilitating burnouts, what has helped them and what to do when the signs are showing.

This week, Rachel and Shann reflect on what has defined the better leaders in their careers, as well as the good, the bad and the not so pretty of their own trajectories as team leaders.

This week we are joined by the awesome Lara O'Reilley, Media and Advertising Editor at Business Insider, and started the discussion with a very loaded question: considering how much the trade press is a representation of our industry, is it acting more as a source of truth that calls out the bullshit, or a source of hype that perpetuates it? A chance to also discuss how to get yourself spotted by editors, and whether there is a space for more opinionated coverage of our industry!