Marc Rust – Consequently Creative

What role can creativity and branding play in driving real business growth?

In this episode of the Radical Global Marketing Podcast, Steven Proud is joined by Marc Rust, Managing Director of Consequently Creative, to explore how brand, creativity and storytelling can help businesses navigate transformation, build stronger cultures and ultimately create greater value.

Marc's own relationship with marketing started at an early age. Moving to France at nine without speaking French, he found himself drawn to the advertising he saw on the streets, in subway stations and on television. Advertising became a window into both the language and the culture, and sparked a fascination with what Marc describes as the "magic" marketing can create.

That fascination eventually developed into a career spanning both the creative and financial worlds, including roles within agencies and major financial institutions. Today, Consequently Creative brings those two worlds together, working particularly closely with private equity firms and their portfolio companies.

Branding through business transformation

A major theme of the conversation is what happens to a brand when a business itself is changing.

Marc introduces the idea of "acquisition turbulence", the uncertainty that can spread through an organisation following an acquisition. While the financial case for a deal may be clear, employees can suddenly find themselves questioning what the change means for their roles, their company and its future.

Without effective communication, that uncertainty can quickly affect culture and talent retention.

Marc argues that this is where branding and marketing have a much bigger role to play than simply communicating a new name or visual identity. By explaining why a company was acquired, celebrating what made it valuable in the first place and creating a clear story about where the combined business is heading, marketing can become an important part of the transformation itself.

In this episode...

Steven and Marc discuss:

• Marc's unconventional introduction to marketing and creativity
• Why finance and marketing need to work more closely together
• The role of brand in private equity and portfolio company growth
• How businesses can navigate "acquisition turbulence"
• Why internal audiences are critical during periods of transformation
• How organisations can uncover and amplify what makes them different
• Why creativity can thrive in finance and other highly analytical industries
• How storytelling and shared values can help bring different company cultures together
• Why brands need to be continually nurtured and evolved
• How AI is changing the creative landscape
• Why human ingenuity and taste could become even more valuable in an AI-driven world

Marc also shares a fascinating example of a technology company facing a significant identity and cultural challenge following an acquisition. Through workshops, listening and storytelling, his team helped uncover the disconnect between how employees viewed the organisation and where the business was actually heading, and helped create a story that people could understand, believe in and get behind.

Don't be lazy with AI

The conversation finishes by turning to a subject no marketing podcast can completely avoid: AI.

For Marc, the opportunity isn't simply about using AI to produce more content, more quickly. In fact, he warns against allowing automation to replace thought, creativity and judgement.

As AI makes it easier to create work that is technically competent but increasingly predictable, Marc believes there is a growing opportunity for people who can bring genuine ingenuity, originality and human perspective to their work.

He uses legendary music producer Rick Rubin to make the point. Rubin's greatest strength isn't technical proficiency, it's his ability to recognise what matters and know what to amplify.

In other words, taste matters.

And in a world where everyone has access to increasingly powerful creative tools, it may matter more than ever. 

In this episode of the Radical Global Marketing Podcast, host Steven Proud is joined by Harriet Gaywood, founder of Anoumis Communications, and one of the most experienced PR and communications leaders working in and around China today.

With more than 25 years of international experience, Harriet has held senior communications roles across Asia, including Vice President of Public Relations and International Media at Chinese tech giant Huawei. She now works with leadership teams across the region, advising on strategic communications, reputation management, and media engagement in complex, global environments.

In this wide-ranging conversation, Harriet shares hard-earned insights from decades working at the intersection of communications, geopolitics, technology, and culture, offering a candid perspective on what it really takes to operate effectively as a global communications leader in and around China.

We also explore a very different side of Harriet’s story. She is the founder of Trailing Around Asia and a recently published author of Trailing Around Asia, Mud, Sweat and Beers, a deeply personal account of trail running, climbing, and pushing physical and mental limits across China and Thailand, often at frankly ridiculous distances and altitudes.

Throughout the episode, Harriet discusses:

• What global communications leadership really looks like inside large Chinese organisations
• How international PR has evolved over the last 25 years, and where it’s heading next
• Managing reputation, risk, and credibility across markets, cultures, and political contexts
• The realities of training leaders and spokespeople across Asia
• Why endurance sports, resilience, and communications leadership have more in common than you might think

This episode is part masterclass in international communications, part personal journey, and a powerful reminder that the best global leaders are built through experience, perspective, and stamina.

In this episode of the Radical Global Marketing Podcast, host Steven Proud sits down with Tom Wells, Global Marketing Manager at Life Couriers, one of the world’s leading healthcare and life science logistics groups.

Tom’s career is anything but typical. From studying music and diving deep into audio production and coding, to building a freelance digital career, running HR, and finally landing in global marketing. His journey is a masterclass in adaptability, curiosity, and saying “yes” to opportunities.

Today, Tom helps steer the brand and marketing strategy for a business responsible for some of the most time-critical, life-saving deliveries on the planet, including stem cell transplants, radiopharmaceuticals, lab specimens, and direct-to-patient medical supplies.

We explore how Life Couriers is unifying more than a dozen specialist companies into one global brand, why storytelling and internal alignment matter just as much as external communication, and how Tom approaches marketing in a sector where failure simply isn’t an option.

Tom also shares insights on:

• How an unconventional career path prepared him perfectly for stakeholder-heavy, people-focused marketing
• The unique challenges of building a brand in a highly specialised, deeply regulated industry
• Why healthcare logistics is as human as it is high-tech
• The role of internal culture, communication, and trust when integrating teams across the world
• The future of the Life Couriers group, from advanced tracking systems to drones and global expansion
• How AI fits into modern marketing without losing the human element

This episode is a deep dive into a side of logistics most people never see, and a reminder of how marketing can shape brand trust in life-critical industries.

In this episode of the Radical Global Marketing Podcast, we sit down with Greg Savarese, founder and CEO of Sino Taste, a comprehensive food and beverage investment group shaping the future of coffee in China.

Greg shares his remarkable 20-year journey in China, from co-founding a fast-casual restaurant group to pivoting back to his first passion: coffee. Today, Sino Taste operates across the entire coffee value chain, from sourcing and roasting to retail and wholesale, with bold plans to integrate even further by launching their own coffee farm in Yunnan.

We explore how Greg balances his roles in strategy, business development, and marketing, and why brand storytelling is critical in China’s fast-evolving coffee scene. From premium positioning with Ocean Grounds to expanding into traditional and instant coffee segments, Sino Taste’s portfolio is designed to capture the diversity of Chinese coffee consumers.

Greg also reflects on:

• The opportunities and challenges of building a vertically integrated F&B business in China
• How China’s unique food culture shapes consumer expectations
• Why coffee in China is still in its early growth stage, and why the next few years will be critical
• The role of marketing and storytelling in driving both B2C and B2B growth

Whether you’re a marketer, entrepreneur, or coffee lover, this episode offers fascinating insights into building a modern brand in one of the world’s most dynamic markets.

In this episode of the Radical Global Marketing Podcast, co-host Steven Proud speaks with Shaheen Samavati, CEO and co-founder of Vera Content, a multilingual content agency based in Madrid.

A former journalist turned marketing leader, Shaheen shares her journey from U.S. newspapers to Spain’s startup scene, and how she went on to build a team that helps global brands create authentic, multilingual content that resonates with audiences across cultures.

Key talking points from this episode:

• From journalism to marketing leadership: How Shaheen’s background in business journalism shaped her approach to content creation and quality standards.
• Building Vera Content: The story behind founding her agency, and why “Vera” (Latin for “true”) reflects its values.
• Content at scale: Insights into processes, checks and balances, and why editorial rigor is crucial when creating multilingual content for international markets.
• The AI challenge and opportunity: How Vera Content uses AI to boost efficiency while keeping quality and strategy firmly human-led.
• Future of content marketing: Why brands must move beyond keyword stuffing and focus on unique perspectives, strategy, and authentic storytelling.

Shaheen also shares practical advice for marketers working with content agencies, her perspective on AI adoption from clients, and the importance of maintaining journalistic care in branded content.

In this episode, we sit down with Katja Omlor, a passionate and experienced marketer who thrives on authentic storytelling and leveraging user-generated content to amplify brand messaging. 

At the time of this recording, Katja was the Global Product Marketing Director for Leica Geosystems, part of Hexagon, a world leader in premium measurement and survey equipment. She has since taken on an exciting new challenge as Director of Global & Corporate MarComs at Coltene Group, a global leader in dental equipment and consumables.

With a career spanning B2B industries from industrial equipment to consulting, surveying, and now dental, Katja shares her insights on navigating the challenges of global marketing, aligning regional and corporate strategies, and the power of customer-driven storytelling.

In This Episode, We Cover:

• The Challenges of Marketing a Diverse Product Portfolio – How to create compelling, consistent messaging when working with a vast range of highly technical products.
•  The Role of Product Marketing – From developing a business case to product positioning, launch strategy, and eventual phase-out, Katja explains how product marketing drives commercial success.
•  The Power of User-Generated Content – Why brands should embrace customer voices, even when feedback isn’t always perfect.
•  Memory Generation in Marketing – A future-focused strategy that ensures brands remain top-of-mind, even when customers aren’t ready to buy.
•  Balancing Global & Regional Marketing Needs – How to provide strategic guidance while allowing regional teams the flexibility to localize.

Tune in now! Don’t miss this insightful conversation with Katja as she shares her marketing philosophy, career journey, and lessons learned along the way.

Katie Smith is the Founder and CEO of Wild Path Consulting and a Fractional CMO.

Katie is a dynamic force who masterfully blends adventure with marketing expertise, transforming stagnation and chaos into clear strategic success. She joined us to share her incredible career journey and unique insights that will inspire and challenge how you think about marketing and leadership.

Wild Path Consulting helps businesses that care about the future of our planet and its people to craft compelling strategies, build strong marketing teams, and remain flexible in how they position their products and services. With a focus on social impact marketing, Wild Path empowers companies to scale sustainably while making a positive difference.

In this episode:

Adventurous Beginnings: Learn how Katie’s diverse and adventurous career journey has influenced her ability to think creatively and tackle complex challenges, helping her become an expert at solving problems in innovative ways.

Strategic Alignment for Success: Katie emphasizes the importance of aligning teams, goals, and strategies to achieve clarity, focus, and meaningful outcomes. She shares practical advice on breaking through organizational silos to create more cohesive and effective marketing strategies.

Overcoming Stagnation and Embracing Change: Discover Katie’s approach to turning stagnation into momentum, using adaptability and bold decision-making to navigate through uncertainty and drive business growth.

The Role of a Fractional CMO: Katie explains how fractional CMOs can bring high-level expertise to businesses on a flexible basis, offering the strategic direction needed to scale effectively without the commitment of a full-time hire.

Finding Opportunity Amidst Chaos: Katie shares her philosophy on embracing chaos and uncertainty as opportunities for transformation, providing tips on how to reframe challenges into strategic advantages that lead to long-term success.

In the latest episode of The Radical Global Marketing Podcast, we sit down with Saul Hudson, Co-founder and Managing Partner of Angle 42.

With decades of experience as a communications leader—most notably as General Manager, Americas at Reuters News—Saul specializes in helping cutting-edge technology companies craft compelling narratives that resonate with mainstream media, financial industries, and global audiences.

Angle 42 is a strategic communications consultancy specializing in helping exponential growth technology companies achieve their goals. With deep expertise in bridging the gap between the technology sector, mainstream media, and financial industries, Angle 42 provides tailored advice to craft compelling narratives, educate audiences, and build credibility. Whether it’s blockchain, AI, or other frontier technologies, Angle 42 empowers businesses to transform complex ideas into powerful stories that drive impact and growth.

In this episode:

• Educating the Market: Many blockchain and exponential growth tech companies face the unique challenge of being at the leading edge. Their products and services are often unlike anything seen before, requiring an educational component to their communication strategies to bridge understanding gaps.
• From Genius to Storytelling: While many technologists are bona fide geniuses in their fields, they may not excel at telling their stories. This is where strategic communication support becomes critical in translating complex ideas into compelling narratives.
• Building Bridges Between Worlds: Saul highlights the importance of connecting the tech sector with mainstream media and financial audiences, enabling innovation to be understood and embraced on a broader scale.
• Overcoming Communication Challenges: He shares actionable advice for tech companies navigating the ever-evolving media landscape, including how to stand out in a crowded space.
• Strengthening Media Relationships: Practical tips on how to foster trust and build lasting connections with journalists, helping to amplify brand visibility and credibility.

Daniel Edward Rosen is the founder of DER Strategies, an exciting new content marketing consultancy launched earlier this year. Prior to founding DER Strategies, Daniel spent 9 years as Editorial Director for SJR, a leading content consultancy and part of WPP.

Daniel has led strategy, editorial direction, account management, and content creation for several Fortune 500 companies in the tech and finance spaces. As a hugely experienced writer, editor, and journalist, Daniel's writing has appeared in Esquire, The New York Times, and New York Magazine, among others.

DER Strategies is a content consultancy that works with brands, creative agencies, corporate newsrooms, and C-level executives across a broad range of industries to help them craft messaging and stories that resonate with their audiences.

In this episode:

• The Journalism Foundation: Dan reflects on his time as a journalist covering New York City’s vibrant and complex landscape. He explains how the rigor of hard journalism laid the groundwork for developing high-quality branded content.
• Shifting to Marketing: We explore the challenges Dan faced transitioning from journalism to content marketing, including the evolving relationship between marketing and communications teams.
• Training for Content Strategy: Dan highlights lessons learned from his hard news days and how they informed his approach to branded content and thought leadership. He shares his work with Fannie Mae—explaining how thought leadership helped rebuild trust post-financial crisis.
• The Value of Content Audits: Dan discusses the importance of profiling target audiences and conducting thorough content audits. He shares how working closely with sales teams provides invaluable, unfiltered customer insights.
• Founding DER Strategies: We dive into what inspired Dan to establish his consultancy and get his thoughts on the evolving future of branded content.

Finally, shout-outs to:

Sarah Parada – Fanie Mae

Alex Jutkowitz – Founder of SJR

Matthew Van Dusen, Gabe Gold and Mitch Stoller – Literate AI 

Steve Hirsch and Evan Leatherwood – Hirsch Leatherwood

Marketing academic and serial entrepreneur, Terence Tam is the founder and CEO of Radical Marketing, a specialist marketing agency that helps top-tier coaches and professional expert speakers scale their businesses through webinar, seminar, and lead-gen marketing.

Before moving to the corporate side of marketing, Terence was a lecturer, tutor, and researcher at Griffith University in Australia, where he specialized in internet marketing.

Based in Borneo, Terence shares his experience as a marketer, marketing academic, and business owner. In this episode, he discusses:

1. The Radical Approach to Marketing: Terence Tam shared the innovative strategies Radical Marketing uses to help coaches and speakers scale their businesses, including the unique "blitzvertising" methodology for testing and refining marketing campaigns.
2. Navigating Industry Challenges: Insights on overcoming heightened competition and audience skepticism in the coaching and seminar marketing space, with an emphasis on clear differentiation and credibility.
3. Pivoting During COVID: How Radical Marketing successfully transitioned from seminar-focused strategies to webinars during the pandemic, highlighting adaptability and long-term growth.
4. Personal Branding & Niche Marketing: Terence stressed the importance of distinctive personal branding and targeting niche audiences for greater impact and resonance in a crowded market.
5. Future Plans & Scaling Challenges: The agency's aspirations to explore new industries like dental marketing while maintaining its customized approach to the coaching sector, and the ongoing challenge of reducing reliance on founder-driven strategies.