Soul & Science: Fast Forward Your Marketing Mind (Mekanism and Jason Harris)

There’s an alchemy to relationships, including the ones between co-founders. David Lester, co-founder at good-for-you-soda company, OLIPOP, first heard about his future business partner, Ben Goodwin, while he was quitting his 10-year job at global beverage giant Diageo. His then boss thought they’d work well together. The first meeting between entrepreneurs was memorable as Ben showed up with a bag of home-made soda. The pair went on to run a kefir beverage startup, followed by OLIPOP. Packed with healthy prebiotics and a tenth the sugar of regular, OLIPOP brilliantly markets taste, health and nostalgia while drawing 50% of revenues through online channels, just a few of Lester’s marketing feats.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• Soda psychology is grounded in our earliest memories.
• Three-quarters of the population is trying to make healthy adjustments.
• When something seems stupid, that’s your cue to figure out a better way.
• That humility will take you from knowing nothing to expertise.
• Data science surrounds us, but your soul processes the insights

Brought to you by Mekanism.

As a former senior executive at Starbucks, Aimee Johnson knows a thing or two about customer experience. While waiting in line was part of the community experience for some, the Starbucks’ app was also a critical timesaver for others. Aimee had to convince leaders at the democratized brand that tech could also have heart. In her most recent role as CMO of the Zillow Group, Aimee juggled how to build an online brand that showcased the dream of real estate with the realities of qualifying for a mortgage. With more than 30 years of high-level marketing experience, including years at Campbell Soup Company, Aimee joins the pod to share insights about product development and digital transformation at Starbucks and brand differentiation at Zillow, when the rest of the industry starts to copy you. Maybe her best advice came from her father: "Don’t listen to anyone’s bullshit."

In this episode you’ll learn:

• That sometimes waiting is part of the community experience
• How to align internal groups by leaning into customers habits
• Why this Brené Brown fan agrees that vulnerability and values are your strengths
• Sustaining a consumer relationship that could take years to actual point of sale
• Why her mantra on digital transformation comes from Einstein: ”The true science of intelligence is not knowledge, but imagination.”

Brought to you by Mekanism.

My guest on the pod this week, Jeff Jenkins, is CMO of Carter’s. He has one of those serendipitous career journeys that started when he was a 16-year-old tennis player coming home from a trip to Europe obsessed with this band, Ace of Base. As a young actor in New York, appearing on “Star Trek '' and in soap operas, he tempted in between at MTV and this sync with popular culture led to a stellar career at Taco Bell, where he learned to love the life of a 16-year-old audience to sell a lot of tacos. Wholly understanding the customer drives what he does at Carter’s, a brand that means everything to new parents, then fades away. Jeff keeps Carter’s present in an era of DTC and influencer brands, walking the tightrope between heritage and current culture.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• It's often the smarter decision to stay in your core demographic lane

• New parents are scrolling through TikTok at 3 a.m.

• Partnerships are a great way to keep a classic brand current

• Every retailer wants to feel special, so build a bespoke line extension

• The formula for career satisfaction: fun + learning + great people.

Brought to you by Mekanism

Everette Taylor, the CMO of the online art-collector’s marketplace, Artsy, is “just a kid from the hood,” which is not the typical profile of a global art dealer. His fast-track career is not based on connections but on something far more valuable–inner drive, creative risk-taking and listening to mom. Taylor grew up in a neighborhood where many were trapped by a cycle of street life, drugs and prison, so his mom nudged him to interview for a marketing job, which he got at the age of 14, despite wanting to work at Chick-fil-A with his friends. A natural marketer was born and Taylor’s career has been ascendant ever since.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• A first job is humbling, you learn you don’t know what you don’t know.
• It’s good business to democratize spaces for everyone.
• A CMO’s job is to build a team that is the shit.
• Stay at the job that gives you the most opportunities to grow.
• Ultimately, there will come a time for CMOs to go for CEO.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

LendingTree Chief Marketing & Customer Experience Officer Shiv Singh joins Jason this week to discuss how he's harnessing the power of trust in our post-trust world.

Shiv joined LendingTree in January 2022 from The Expedia Group, where he served as SVP and General Manager for the world-class travel brand, charged with driving brand loyalty and long-term customer value amid the coronavirus pandemic. Previously, Singh worked as CMO for med-tech startup Eargo, successfully repositioning the brand during a crucial high-growth period for the business. Singh's impressive career also includes senior leadership positions at Visa, PepsiCo and Razorfish. As an entrepreneur Shiv also had his own consultancy as well. Shiv has been inducted into the American Advertising Federation Hall of Achievement. He has been recognized by Forbes as a Forbes Next CMO, Ad Age as a Media Maven, Business Insider as a Payments Industry Game Changer, Adweek as a Top 50 Marketer (twice), and The Internationalist as a Top 100 Influential Leader. He is also the the author of two award-winning social media and marketing books, Savvy - Navigating Fake Companies, Fake Leaders and Fake News and Social Media Marketing for Dummies.

Brought to you by Mekanism

Is Selena Gomez the next beauty billionaire, gliding along a path set by Rihanna, Kim and Kylie? That’s what Skinnygirl mogul turned TikTok beauty influencer, Bethenny Frankel, believes. Katie Welch, CMO at Gomez’s Rare Beauty, is helping build the brand along a purpose-driven platform that welcomes all and supports good mental health. Welch, who has marketed Bliss, Burt’s Bees and Hourglass Cosmetics, discovered beauty could be a career when she met a college classmate’s stepmother, who was an Estee Lauder exec. She moonlights as a TikTok influencer herself, with 80,000 following her marketing/career advice.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• A brand narrative can shift a business forward.
• If you wake up at 5 a.m. to do something, you love it.
• It’s very easy to sell lipstick the same way over and over again, so don’t.
• Create a space where people feel welcome.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Tero Isokauppila grew up in a fairy-tale setting on land his ancestors settled on 13 generations ago in Finland. The family farm forms the roots of his company, Four Sigmatic, a highly functional foods business that helps people focus, gain energy and relax. But this Finnish nomad strayed far from home to build it. Through careers in consulting and online marketing, across continents, Isokauppila has made mushrooms, some native to Finland's deep forests, and other nutrient-packed ingredients, into a functional foods mainstay sold at behemoth retailers like Target and Walmart. He talks about marketing research on PubMed and Amazon reviews, his love for podcast advertising and a career journey befitting a storybook.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• If it’s good enough for a Viking, it’s good enough for a banker
• Read your 3-star reviews on Amazon, they wish you were better
• No one cares about the mushrooms or the coffee, it’s how it makes them feel
• You don’t tattoo Harley Davidson on your arm after your first ride
• Basic nutrition is the white belt, sleep the purple, mind health the black
• The Four Sigmatic name is part of an ethos of nerdy and geeky

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Comic Relief CEO Alison Moore joins Jason this week to discuss how she moved from a profession to a purpose, how she effectively markets a mission, and how Comic Relief is using entertainment to make positive change in the world.

Alison Moore is a media and tech industry veteran who is bridging the worlds of entertainment, social change, storytelling, and fundraising to break the cycles that perpetuate intergenerational poverty. Alison joined Comic Relief US in 2019 to build upon the organization’s ambitious mission to drive positive change through entertainment. Under Alison’s leadership, Comic Relief US is leveraging its unique blend of humor and entertainment to address complex and entrenched social and economic issues. Since 2015, Comic Relief US has partnered closely with Walgreens, NBC, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation on its year-round Red Nose Day campaign to end child poverty. In the past 7 years Red Nose Day has raised over $275 million and positively impacted over 30 million children in the U.S. and around the world.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Shoestring marketing budgets are common at startups and create an environment of innovation. Andy Pearson, VP of Creative at the water brand Liquid Death jokes he was given a $0 initial ad budget to launch. He knew the name, along with the arresting skull-festooned cans, would have to do most of the talking. When the marketing money began to flow, Liquid Death bought Tony Hawk’s blood and his soul (and maybe yours) online. In this episode, Pearson, an ultra-marathoner and ad agency veteran, explains his process, where he takes a favorite playlist, and pen to paper to grasp an idea, which grow more on creativity than money.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• If your 6th grade teacher says advertising is evil, it must be good.
• To trust your own sensibilities to know the right answer.
• The more you do, the more confident you’ll feel.
• A brand is a character, the protagonist of your business.
• Everybody takes everything so seriously, the moment you don't, you stand out.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Water with a hint of flavor but not of sugar was the simple but genius concept behind Hint Water. Founder Kara Goldin joins the pod today to tell us about a 17-year entrepreneur’s journey that has had her staring down category captains at retail, telling DTC brand stories and making the correlation between larger bottle openings and sales. Her acumen has brought accolades from Fortune–she’s both a Most Powerful Entrepreneur and Most Innovative Woman in Food and Drink–and a Huffington Post Disruptor in Business. Kara took a career hiatus from big tech to raise her children. During her three children’s toddler years, she noticed how apple juice jacked them up, but there were no flavorful, healthy alternatives in her grocery store. Hence, Hint Water was born in her garage and a classic business success story ensued.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• Once you find your mission, act decisively
• How to keep scaling mini mountains
• Why you need to embrace competition to grow
• Leaders have their outside, clear brand voice and their inside brand debates
• How complex it is to create and simplify

Brought to you by Mekanism

eos CMO Soyoung Kang joins Jason this week to discuss how taking calculated risks can increase ROI.

Soyoung Kang is the Chief Marketing Officer at eos Products, the iconic beauty brand that has sold nearly a billion lip balms worldwide. Since joining eos as CMO, Soyoung has completed a total reboot of the brand identity, from resetting creative and strategic vision, to dramatically expanding the category footprint and product pipeline, to launching experiential marketing initiatives like the influencer collaboration FlavorLab and #eosmicrobatch DTC fashion drops. Under her leadership, eos has garnered dozens of honors, including product awards from Allure, Cosmopolitan, and SELF, and media recognition from the Shortys, Webbys, and Digiday. Before her time at eos, she had a decade-long career in specialty retail, leading brand development of the successful beauty segment at Bath & Body Works. She was also a strategy consultant to Fortune 100 clients at The Boston Consulting Group.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

OkCupid Global CMO Melissa Hobley joins us for our very first episode to help answer the question: Does moral capital lead to business capital?

As a leading expert on brand-building, Melissa Hobley has a reputation for marrying powerful brand marketing with data-driven digital advertising, in bold and breakthrough ways that jumpstart brands and create measurable value. Melissa is currently the Global Chief Marketing Officer at OkCupid, one of the largest dating apps in the world. As the first CMO at OkCupid, She has made the brand famous for its message of inclusion and progressive advertising. Prior to OkCupid, Melissa was the VP Marketing for Walgreens, and CMO of Buyology. Melissa also happens to be a client of Mekanism, and together we’ve created some amazing, progressive work that has moved the needle for OkCupid’s business.

Brought to you by Mekanism

The creator economy has been valued at $100 billion, so it is easy to forget that a decade ago, it was dismissed by many as people listening to themselves talk on YouTube. Jim Louderback recognized what video technology and expression could become. He helped build VidCon, the professional conference and fan fest, into global preeminence and now chronicles it all through his weekly newsletter, Inside the Creator Economy. Louderback’s vision was evident early on, as he left a consulting career to capture the PC revolution at Ziff Davis, eventually putting “geeks like me” on camera for ZDTV/TechTV. He’s been ahead of the internet ever since.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• To go on and answer the help-wanted ad.
• At start-ups, you spend 90% of your time building outward; big companies mean more managing inward.
• The metaverse is a new canvas for storytelling
• Like silents to talkies, not every creator will translate to the metaverse

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Bonin Bough’s first flare of marketing genius came at the age of 12, when the executive who would later set the pace for big brands entering online and social channels, launched a magazine in the NYC Public Schools. In college, the physics major built websites for brands, and one millennium-era internet party later, he joked, the vodka fountain and shrimp boat steered him into a marketing career. Bonin built internet practices at two global PR firms, then became the client and a prodder of global CPG companies, like PepsiCo, Mondelez and Kraft, to be digital innovators. You might recall him from the CNBC show, Cleveland Hustles, with LeBron James. And, as Founder of Lockstep Ventures he tackles systemic issues by helping Black founders create scalable businesses that also support their communities. Ventures, which tackles systemic issues by helping Black founders create scalable businesses that also support their communities.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• Pack the pipeline, because the ingrained corporate response is to kill what is new, but they can’t kill it all.
• Babe Ruth called his shots, name your next win, because external pressure will help make it happen.
• “Marketers are like roaches”, they’ll infiltrate what you thought was a safe space.
• Jump in early, ride the bull, first runners have a better shot at winning.
• To learn something new, walk the outer trade-show booths on closing day, talk to everyone at the mixer.

Thank you, Bonin, for joining me. Give it a listen, and fast forward your marketing mind in about 20 minutes.Presented by Mekanism

Growing up, Ricky Engelberg loved both computers and playing baseball. While your basic 1990s high schooler would say the two sit on opposite sides of the cafeteria, it was the perfect mix for Nike, where Engelberg worked for almost 20 years after college. There at the dawn of the internet era, Engelberg helped Nike create digital products for athletes and sneakerheads alike, including Nike Plus Running, nurturing passionate communities. Today, as CMO at Vista (formerly VistaPrint), Engelberg is bringing a spirit of community among small business owners, who tackle marketing after regular business hours, helping them conquer pandemic-era digital transformations.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• If you want to build a new line of business, go crack some eggs
• Community is a critical building block of brands today
• Be respectful of your consumers’ communities, realize you are a part of it
• Science plays a part, but ultimately, the future always involves a gut decision

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Is success as seemingly simple as putting one foot in front of the other? Sam Parr, founder of The Hustle, one of the fastest-growing media companies, focusing on millennials, tech and culture, fueled his rise by curiosity, action and googling. Segueing from helping “American Pickers” Mike Wolfe set up a Nashville store to running a hot dog stand to feed the fans, Sam googled how to start an internet business and then did. He moved to Silicon Valley, started and sold a few ventures, then the self-proclaimed nobody started a blog which evolved into The Hustle. Sam’s career proves that hustle manifests success, more than degrees, connections and money.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• Building a business is like writing a hit song
• About the benefits of a PhD in the school of life: Poor, hungry and driven.
• Throwing money at a new business can give an artificial sense of success
• How to hustle to bring your goals to life

Thank you, Sam, for joining me. Give it a listen, and fast forward your marketing mind in about 20 minutes.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

As CMO of Proximo Spirits, Lander Otegui markets a host of spirits, including Bushmills Irish Whiskey and Boodles British Gin. But the most renowned brand under Otegui’s watch, legendarily comes from Mexico. Jose Cuervo is the world’s No. 1 tequila, and the first tequila brand on Earth. Now, it’s also the first tequila distillery in the metaverse. It’s one way Cuervo remains relevant with consumers. Sustainability is another. Agave-plant fibers, once discarded at the distillery, now fashion straws and other items, eagerly snapped up online. A native of Mexico City, Otegui was set for life as an engineer. But when he realized his love of drawing, building and deconstructing things applied to marketing, he never looked back.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• How to be a David, when you are the Goliath
• Why category founders should own and uphold traditions
• There’s a tequila for every consumer and occasion
• Follow your gut, then get others to buy in

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Foot Locker Global CMO Jed Berger joins Jason on the pod to discuss how omni retail is future-proofing Foot Locker.

Jed Berger currently serves as the Chief Marketing Officer for the Foot Locker family of brands in North America. During his nine-year tenure at Foot Locker, Jed also served as Vice President of Marketing for Foot Locker. Prior to joining Foot Locker, Jed’s professional experience has deep roots in youth culture. After co-founding Dime Magazine and building the agency 94x50, he moved on to serve as the Senior Vice President of Marketing for Modell’s Sporting Goods for two years. His marketing acumen has been acknowledged regularly throughout his career, including being named to SBG 40 Under 40 in 2011, and Footwear News 40 Under 40 in 2018.

Brought to you by Mekanism

We’ve had a blast talking to some of the marketing world’s most brilliant minds here on Soul & Science. Instead of a new episode this week, we’ve compiled some of our favorite Soul & Science insights from the last 14 weeks.

Thank you to all of the insightful guests for sharing your knowledge with us. We have a lot more exciting interviews coming up. Listen to Soul & Science, and fast forward your marketing mind in about 20 minutes.

Brought to you by Mekanism

In a special live recording from New York’s Advertising Week, the week’s episode features Shake Shack CMO Jay Livingston. Livingston, who has held top marketing roles at Bank of America and BarkBox, is emulating Shake Shack’s foundational, high-low strategy of elevating basic fare and democratizing fine dining on a national and global scale. It was a pattern set by founder, New York City restaurateur Danny Meyer, whose first Shake Shack was a cart in a park across from his Michelin-starred restaurant. Now, Shake Shack is well on its way to becoming a billion dollar burger brand. Seeding each restaurant in local chef and art cultures, Livingston upholds Shake Shack’s emphasis on quality ingredients and premium experiences. He’s also venturing toward a mass advertising test, morphing Instagram fame to TikTok and putting a virtual Shake Shack in Sims 4.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• It’s tempting to stick with what works, but dabble in what’s new.
• Great companies build marketing and product development side-by-side.
• Listen to what focus groups tell you, but don’t let them run the company.
• Think before you quit, you might be leaving a good network and foundation.
• Shake Shack’s new drive-throughs prove the adage, never say never.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

New Balance is not only “the shoe brand of choice for film stars, athletes and supermodels,” according to Urban Journal, it’s the brand for “the biggest, hype-inducing names on the street right now.” As CMO of the hotly resurgent brand, which was born in 1906, Chris Davis applies a risk/innovation model which puts 50% of the marketing budget into proven, demand-creation tactics, 30% into calculated risks (NFTs, for example) and 20% into purely experimental vehicles that may fail spectacularly or succeed later. Davis, who is also SVP Global Merchandising, says the only unacceptable risk is one that comprimes brand values. He tells us how to transform a 116-year-old product company into a world-class brand.

Thank you, Chris, for joining me. Give it a listen, and fast forward your marketing mind in about 20 minutes.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

World 50 CEO David Wilkie joins the pod this week to share insights on his exclusive company, discuss the power of peer networks, and how alignment of purpose, trust, curiosity, and diversity of thought promote growth.


As CEO of World 50, David is responsible for the strategic direction, growth and development of the company. David joined the company 17 years ago, and has been CEO of World 50 for the last 11 years.


Founded in 2004, World 50 consists of private peer communities that enable board directors, CEOs and C-level executives at globally respected organizations to discover better ideas, share valuable experiences and build relationships that make a lasting impact. The executive network has grown to incorporate G100, a peer learning, development and networking community for the world’s top-performing companies and their leaders. Working with more than 3,000 leaders globally, World 50 serves more than 1,100 companies across more than 30 countries on six continents.


Prior to joining World 50, Wilkie held several roles at Hess Corporation, including president of Hess Microgen and vice president of marketing and business development. He earned his Master in Management from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and his B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Florida.


Brought to you by Mekanism

GE CMO Linda Boff joins the pod this week to tell us about achieving success through reinvention. Through her career, including 18 years at GE, Linda has continually revitalized both career and company through practicing a restart mindset, knowing the difference between being recognized and being relevant and tapping into the innovation and marketing chops of Thomas Edison. Linda has one of the biggest jobs in marketing, overseeing global marketing, brand content, digital and sponsorships. Linda is also GE’s Vice President, Learning and Culture, meaning she manages the company’s legendary GE Crotonville center, and she is President of GE Foundation.

In this episode you'll learn:

• How to climb the corporate career ladder when there’s no ladder in sight
• The re-start mindset
• What reinvention looks like at a global corporation
• The difference between being recognized and being relevant
• How to combine the fresh with the familiar
• A new take on Edison’s classic 1% inspiration, 99% perspiration formula
• How believing in people and living strong values pays off
• Why to always assume “good intent”

Brought to you by Mekanism

My guest on the pod this week, Josh Taekman is the Founder & CEO of the functional wellness brand, EBOOST. Inspired by hip-hop, Josh’s career started in the mailroom at Bad Boy Entertainment where he learned that you “eat what you kill” and hustled to start his own agency. Eventually, he saw a space for a functional wellness product that spoke to the pop culture audience. EBOOST, was born as a wellness supplement that supports immunity, boosts your energy and gives you essential vitamins. By focusing on building small, close communities, Josh has been able to triple distribution of EBOOST to 12,000 locations in the U.S.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• You have to hustle and can’t take no for an answer.
• Building community is key for growth.
• Don’t judge by effort, judge by results.
• Not everyone is an entrepreneur.

Thank you, Josh, for joining me. Give it a listen, and fast forward your marketing mind in about 20 minutes. https://apple.co/3LDwXNu


Brought to you by Mekanism.

Does marketing live in the heart, or in the head? Should you trust your instinct, or your integers? If the answer is both, should you lead with one more than the other? As an independent creative agency, Mekanism has been asking these questions of ourselves and our clients for over 10 years. Join co-founder and CEO of award-winning creative agency Mekanism, Jason Harris, on his quest to answer these questions with the world’s leading marketers from the brands we’ve all come to love. Named CEO of the Year by The Drum Magazine, Jason will draw from his experience during these easily digestible 20-minute episodes to explore the Soul of these famous brands and the Science of staying relevant, exploring how they’ve become culture defining emblems in our modern world.

Brought to you by Mekanism

Indeed CMO Jessica Jensen comes on the pod to discuss the future of work, the importance of change and adaptation, and how Indeed is reframing "The Great Resignation" as "The Great Realization."

As the Chief Marketing Officer at Indeed, Jessica Jensen is responsible for Brand, Communication, Product, Acquisition, and Experience Marketing globally. Jessica has led high-performance teams at the world's leading technology companies like Yahoo!, Apple, and Facebook. She has built high-impact B2B and product-marketing organizations, as well as had full P&L responsibility for internet media businesses. As former Chief Marketing Officer at OpenTable and Head of Products, Platforms & Insights for Business Marketing at Facebook, Jessica has built strong revenue growth for consumer internet brands via her deep experience in strategic planning and business model development. As Chief Marketing Officer at Indeed.com, the #1 job site in the world, she is passionate about coaching and motivating diverse, high-performing global teams and is a champion of women’s advancement.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Shira Feuer is the CMO of Trinny London, the social-media driven beauty brand founded by entrepreneur, CEO, and style icon Trinny Woodall that generated $72m by December 2021. For the last four years, Feuer has helped build the global brand and its passionate following, the Trinny Tribe, overseeing revenue growth, customer acquisition and retention, brand and product marketing and prolific, highly engaging digital content. After a career round 1 in banking, which served to establish the Canadian in London (Feuer could tell during the job interview finance wasn’t for her), she started over as an unpaid agency intern, graduating to social media and digital marketing positions at Burberry and Walt Disney.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• Decisions start in the heart but are rationalized in the brain
• To market to women, understand what they want, then meet those needs
• Sell products that are good and worth it because people will talk
• Cross-platform marketing spots don’t have to be twins, but need to be siblings
• Sustainability is quickly moving from hook to table stakes

Brought to you by Mekanism.

CAULIPOWER, the first to-market, cauliflower-crust frozen pizza is a major player in the growing “good for you” food category. Chief Marketing and Growth Officer Stuart Smith joined the nascent company in 2019, which was founded by his wife, Gail Becker. After baking countless cauliflower pizzas from scratch for their children, Gail noticed the need for a quality frozen cauliflower pizza. The brand was brilliantly launched leveraging the buzz-building skills of the pair - both Stuart and Gail had successful careers at global PR giant Edelman. Stuart uses his PR savvy to shape a broader marketing plan - such as elevating campaign ideas that prove memorable enough to earn their own media. Smith tells us his unique origin story- he is our first Oxford PhD scientist turned marketer - and shares how data brings clarity to decisions.


In this episode you’ll learn:

• Good strategists create clarity out of noise, they recognize patterns in data
• A sales team will get you on the shelf, but you need marketing to get it off
• The next great CPG idea is being shared now on social media in the form of recipes, meal preps and healthy-eating hacks
• To think through something or seize a new idea, spend more time talking to people
• A big idea should be good enough to earn its own media placement
  Brought to you by Mekanism.

Ryan Serhant rose to fame on Million Dollar Listing: New York. Now running his own luxury real-estate company, SERHANT., he is the star of his own billion dollars in listings. From building a personal brand, de facto for CMOs, to creating a global business and writing best-sellers, Serhant is an intuitive marketer. “The greatest businesses of the next generation aren't going to be those that are disrupted purely by technology, they're going to be those that are disrupted by marketing,” he says. Forged by downturns–as a young soap actor, his character was killed off by 2007’s writer’s strike–Serhant became an agent, just as the mortgage crisis tanked the market in 2008. Starting SERHANT. on pandemic’s eve, his hedge-funder’s brain continues to find opportunities where others flee.

In this episode you’ll learn:
• How people are given amazing opportunities, but do jack shit with them
• Be the best when everything (and everyone else) is the worst
• Take care of the work and the work will take care of you
• The 3Fs: Follow up; follow through; follow back
• Expand and brand–focus on that every day

Brought to you by Mekanism.

To this day, investor, founder and dreammaker, Bing Chen fondly recalls his first big-screen experience. It was “Beauty and the Beast” and the movie, along with the Disney brand magic to make dreams come true, have inspired Chen’s own prolific suite of businesses: AU Holdings, a family of companies that incubates and invests in creators; Gold House, a collective of multicultural leaders who bring equity to multicultural communities through strategic investment and promotion; and Aum Group, a premier multicultural film fund. True to this era’s version of dream-making, Chen’s early career at YouTube was to develop and market online creators–and he has gone on to build influential audiences and support global feature films.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• The hardest thing in the world is to be a digital creator
• If you have a platform, you have a responsibility
• Let your managers run their own teams but align around strategy and run air-cover for each other
• The difference between achieving success and being truly successful is relentlessness

Brought to you by Mekanism.

In this special edition episode of The Soul & Science Podcast, Jason shares his discussion with author, zen teacher and monk Koshin Paley Ellison during the launch event for his new book, Untangled. Untangled is a welcoming guidebook to finding expansive ease and joy through the Eightfold Path, one of Buddhism’s foundational teachings. In his book, Koshin, shares anecdotes from his life dealing with abuse and discrimination as well as the path of teachings from Eastern and Western wisdom traditions.

Together, Zen teacher and monk, Jungian psychotherapist, and the co-founder of the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care, Koshin Paley Ellison, and Jason Harris, Co-founder & CEO of creative agency, Mekanism, discuss how to incorporate these teachings of untangling our suffering and the path of freedom in our everyday lives.In this episode you’ll learn:

• When unfortunate circumstances arise, rather than ask yourself, “why me?” ask yourself, “why not me?”
• Slowing your mind and becoming more intentional are key to living a fulfilling life.
• It’s important to confront your fears, not to be enveloped by them.

Seth Matlins, Managing Director at Forbes CMO Network, was only seven years old when marketing claimed his future. He was transfixed by the founder of the Pet Rock, who had brazenly turned construction rubble into a viral sensation, the tulip mania of the disco era. Matlins’ first marketing job was to be part of the team that was turning another earthly resource–water–into the highly valuable, branded asset, Evian. His career spans advising some of the world’s most iconic brands and promoting civic ideals, such as voting and truth in advertising. At Forbes, Matlins markets marketing to marketers, as more than a byproduct of data but a role that is vital to a company's future growth.

In this episode you’ll learn:.

• While data is important, interpreting that data is the real magic.
• Why each and every employee at a company is responsible for driving the business forward.
• To be a great brand, you need to be both differentiated and valuable. Differentiation is easy, but how you express the value of that differentiation is the challenge.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

It can feel impossible to express the human condition, so we look to great artists, writers and even advertising creatives to do the job. Pranav Yadav, Founder and Global CEO of Neuro-Insight, saw how inconsistent people were doing field interviews–one memorable study tried to find out why people gamble in Las Vegas. A more innate truth was to be found in neuromarketing, which measures neural signals by electrodes to track emotional responses. Yadav brilliantly reads the data and helps marketers, including TJ Maxx and Anheuser Busch, make ads that both stir emotions and hit the right pitch.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• What neruomarketing is and how it’s innovating the way brands are built.
• What people say in the first hour of a focus group is different from what they say in the second or fourth hour and it really doesn't correlate to actual in-market purchase behavior.
• Creative is an idea that engages people, but an ad has the additional responsibility of associating the brand at the peak emotional moment.
• The beauty of life is that if you are open enough to learning, it teaches you everything you need to know.

Magnolia Bakery is a popular destination in New York City, and it's common to find residents and tourists lining up to buy perfectly iced cupcakes and other sweet treats. Now, CMO Eddie Revis is helping turn Magnolia Bakery into a global D2C brand. Magnolia’s Breakfast Loaves video, a remake of comedian Liam Kyle Sullivan’s early YouTube hit, Muffins, went viral, immediately landing with millennial targets. Revis does it, in part, by daring his creative teams to pitch their craziest ideas. It’s no surprise that his career spans agencies, starting with a high-school internship, and big brands, such as Chobani.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• If you have an idea that could be unstrategic but it’s wild and awesome, share it anyway
• The great thing about the agency side is you get to focus on impact
• As a client, you think about impact and the repercussions that making that decision is going to have across the business
• If you really want to learn about the company as a new CMO, share an office with the CFO

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Before any consumer product or service comes to market, there is a history of B2B activity that’s already taken place. Supplyframe CMO Richard Barnett serves the full range of engineers, manufacturers, supply-chain experts and B2B brand leaderswith a continuous loop of online resources, such as Hackaday for engineers, business connections across manufacturing and supply chains and predictive trends that go on to imbue new applications. Rooted in a Stanford education in political science and international policy, Barnett chose globalization over academia. Now, at Supplyframe, he’s focused on fulfilling the individual’s need to connect, learn and grow.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• Sometimes, what you choose not to do is as strategic as what you choose to do.
• It’s important to be transparent with your team about the roles they play in the grand mechanism of the business. When everyone knows where they fit into the machine, they will be empowered to succeed.
• Keep it simple. Richard and his team tell each other “Piggy Doggy Bunny” as a reminder not to overcomplicate things.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Jesse Bongiovi’s Hampton Water rosé is as much a lifestyle brand as it is a Wine Spectator darling. Bongiovi started the company with his Notre Dame college roommate, Ali Thomas, and the brand took off through spot-on social marketing that included Happy Half Hour livestreams during lockdown. There’s another co-founder at Hampton Water, Bongiovi’s famous father, Jon Bon Jovi, whose love of the “pink juice” during their Hamptons summers inspired the brand. A famous parent can help, but Bongiovi, who walked onto the Notre Dame football team, is determinedly building a bartender-referral network, innovating rosé cocktails and creating a year-round lifestyle positioning for Hampton Water.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• Success is not owned, it is leased and the rent is due every day

• After the launch year, you can’t ride the PR train so much

• Why marketers should figure out how to destigmatize traditional categories for new consumers

• No one thinks they're 60 , everyone thinks they are 25

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Nate Checketts is the Co-Founder & CEO of Rhone, a premium men's performance lifestyle company founded in 2014, and the entrepreneurial spirit has been with him since childhood. Before the age of 30, Nate had founded four companies, including one of the first iPhone apps Mangia, whose patents were later acquired by the San Francisco 49ers. Nate’s interests have always been broad and ambitious, and over the years he’s learned that there’s more than one way to be an entrepreneur. But when sales and marketing attribution gets tough to decipher, he reminds his team that it’s all about the brand all the time.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• Curiosity and wonder are powerful. Good entrepreneurs, no matter their experience, are always full of questions.
• Use data to find out what crucial subsection is missing in your market, and do your best to fill that gap.
• Product quality is number one for new customers. Gone are the days when you could get away with great branding, great advertising, and a mediocre product.
• When you spend your ad dollars the right way, performance gets much more effective over time.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Ciara Anfield’s Harvard MBA education led her into marketing roles at big companies like JP Morgan Chase and Johnson & Johnson. Now in her 15th year at Sam’s Club, Ciara serves as the Chief Member and Marketing Officer for Sam’s Club where she oversees a broad portfolio of responsibilities that collectively make up Sam’s Club’s end-to-end member strategy.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• It may sound simple, but by putting the customer first, you can accelerate every other part of your business. Connect in new and interesting ways and meet your customers where they are.
• Carve out the time to be strategic and methodical in your thinking. It’s all too easy to let the urgency of a big project move you forward without deeper reflection.
• Have the audacity. Take risks. Be bold. Marketing is one of the few places in a business where risks are welcome. After all, you’d rather have your marketing team take risks than your finance team.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

David Mogensen, VP of Marketing at Uber, oversees a global team of marketers responsible for building the Uber and Uber Eats brands across more than 70 countries. Before Uber, David held leadership positions at Google, YouTube, and BMW, giving him extraordinary insight into marketing, brand positioning, and advertising, which he shared with us.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• In marketing, good communication is key. And internal communication is at least as important as external communication.
• Know the user, know the magic, and connect the two. It’s a Google mantra, but it works across the board.
• Good management is ultimately planned obsolescence. Set your team up to work so well, that they don’t even need you.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Lisane Basquiat is an entrepreneur and growth champion in addition to being the older sister of artist Jean Michel Basquiat. After a successful corporate career in staffing and operations at financial institutions like American Express and Prudential, she decided to pivot her experience into helping shape individuals’ personal growth. She’s now the Founder and CEO of Shaping Freedom, a personal growth company that trains individuals to strengthen and amplify their personal power through internal congruence. With her family, she recently developed the King Pleasure exhibit, a retrospective on her brother’s art, which opened in Los Angeles after a successful run in New York City.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• How maintaining the personal and professional balance is key to personal health
• The importance of organic team-building exercises to rebuild and internally scale an organization
• How to best handle a career pivot and transition to potentially see your personal growth
• How she brought personal reflection, remembrance, and insight to the process of honoring her brother, Jean Michel Basquiat, through the new King Pleasure exhibit

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Julia Perez, CMO at OWYN, is a New York born, Miami-based marketing executive with a deep understanding of high-growth, healthier-for-you food and beverage startups. With more than 10 years of experience working for brands like Red Bull, Hain Celestial, RSP Nutrition, and CORE Water, it’s actually kind of her superpower. Her continued success in the health and wellness space led her to the role of Chief Marketing Officer at OWYN, which stands for Only What You Need, a plant-based nutrition company best known for its ready-to-drink protein shakes. OWYN is currently the #1 best selling plant protein shake in the US.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• How OWYN is cleaning up the sports nutrition industry with transparency, education, and an empowering message
• Where Julia stands on the Ozempic trend and how OWYN fits in
• Why you shouldn’t forget about the big picture when looking at segmented data
• The value of being an early adopter and in love with your industry

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Jeff MacDonald is the Social Strategy Director here at Mekanism. A born teacher, we’ve been learning from him ever since he joined the Mekanism team in 2015 as our first Experience Designer.
Jeff has been named one of the 15 advertising executives leading the charge into generative AI by Business Insider and he’s our in-house AI guru. He currently works alongside strategists and creatives to bring as many innovative social firsts to clients like Adobe, AT&T, Cricket Wireless, Q-tips, and Lenovo. Jeff uses creative prototyping and social listening to inform the creation of experiences that bring people together for shared moments of wonder. Today we’re talking all about AI and what it might mean for the future of creativity, marketing, and much more.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• Adoption of early tech including AI and generative content creation services is key to staying ahead of the curve
  
  
• The long-lasting impression augmented reality, generative AI, and applications of Web3 technologies can have on your audience
  
  
• How AI can work for us and help us bring even more humanity into our creative work

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Jenny Lewis is the Chief Marketing Officer and President at The Knot Worldwide, where she leads all Marketing, Insights, and Editorial initiatives for the company and its 19 global brands across 16 Countries. With expertise in scaling two-sided marketplaces and growing and advancing the visibility and impact of well-known brands, Jenny was the Head of US and Canada Marketing for Uber and UberEats prior to joining The Knot Worldwide. As one of Uber’s earliest marketing hires, she helped transform the start-up into an iconic household name, and was the driving force behind a number of product and brand-defining initiatives, including UberPOOL and the brand’s COVID-19 response campaign.

You’ve likely heard of The Knot as being a hugely popular website for wedding planning. But today you’ll see there’s much more to the brand than that.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• How Jenny has harnessed the power of being a generalist in her marketing career
• Why it’s so important to engage in active conversation with your customer base in order to stay authentic and current in the space
• How they acknowledge FOMO’s meaner cousin FOMU – or Fear of Messing Up in their products, visual language, and brand voice

Brought to you by Mekanism.

In celebration of Pride month, we’re taking some time to focus on brands that both address and uplift the LGBTQ+ community.

Maybe the most inclusive dating app out there is OkCupid. Michael Kaye is the Director of Brand Marketing & Communications at OkCupid and now Archer, which you’ll learn about today, both under the Match Group umbrella. Michael leads communications, influencer marketing and social media. And since being there, he has secured more press for the brand than any other year since it launched in 2004, and got OkCupid data mentioned in a White House press briefing.

Michael is a true dating app success story. And in this episode, you’ll learn:

• When marketing to the LGBTQ+ community, there’s no room for a one-size-fits-all approach
• How effective storytelling is at the heart of OkCupid’s success
• Rather than shying away from taboo or controversial topics, lean in and show your customers that you’re the real deal

Brought to you by Mekanism.

You’ve probably seen Peace Out Skincare at Sephora, it’s hard to miss. And their most well-known product is their pimple patches. Today, I’m talking with Co-founder and CMO Junior Pence and Senior Vice President of Global Marketing Amanda Knapmann about the founding of the brand and their commitment to supporting the LGBTQ+ community.

Over the past 20 years, Junior has worked for or with inspiring companies and people across the fashion, eyewear, entertainment and music space.

Amanda has a passion for puzzles and people, and has worked with brands like COVERGIRL, Max Factor, and Skinfix.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How vision and process can complement each other to create a truly effective brand voice
• You’ll learn how and why you can build a strong community around your brand and leverage customer loyalty to reach new people
• And you’ll get a reminder to listen more. Not only just in business, but in all aspects of your life.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

This week, we’re talking with Ross von Metzke, Director of Communications & Public Relations at It Gets Better.

It all started more than a decade ago in 2010, when more than 70,000 people took to social media to share their stories and provide hope and encouragement to young LGBTQ+ people.

Today, It Gets Better is a non-profit that reaches millions of young people all over the world through inspiring media programming, educational resources, and more.

Ross is a communications and PR specialist with over 12 years experience working in the non-profit and multimedia space. He co-created and ran ITMFA, which raised more than $1 million for Planned Parenthood, ACLU and the International Refugee Assistance Project. We’ll let you look up ITMFA to see what those letters stand for. And Ross has been published in Newsweek, The LA Times, The Advocate, Entertainment Weekly, and even Seventeen magazine.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How a non-profit like It Gets Better measures success, considering some of the recent anti-LGBTQ+ state measures and Pride month backlash
• That if allyship was meant to be easy, it wouldn't be so important. If you want to support the queer community, don’t bail at the first sign of controversy.
• About some of It Gets Better’s most successful campaigns, plus who they reached and why they worked
• Practical advice on how to reach the LGBTQ+ community in an authentic way

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Have you ever wondered how Grammy-winning singers get so good at what they do? Most of them have a great teacher helping them along the way. Today I’m speaking with Wendy Parr, acclaimed holistic artist coach and founder of The Parr Method. Wendy has spent more than 20 years helping artists develop their authentic voice with Grammy and Academy Award Winning results.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• The importance of stepping outside your discipline
• Whether data should be a main influence in your creative process
• Some methods Wendy uses to help artists discover and cultivate their personal brand

Brought to you by Mekanism.

If you live on the East Coast, you may have seen Oishii strawberries for sale at Whole Foods or a smaller specialty food retailer. If not, you’ve definitely seen them online. We did a taste test in the Mekanism office and they were amazing.

Today, I’m speaking with Lesia Dallimore, the VP of Brand Marketing at Oishii. A passionate storyteller with a diverse background and extensive expertise in the field of marketing luxury goods, including lululemon, Lunya, and Erewhon.

What is it that makes Oishii strawberries so special and how do you communicate that story thru marketing?

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• The most important aspect of marketing a luxury brand is the same regardless of the product– whether it’s a strawberry or a pair of expensive leggings– and it happens at the intersection of product and experience
• Storytelling and brand mission are key when it comes to reaching critical mass
• Never underestimate the power of a good partnership. If you want to get your brand on everyone’s minds, you need to create a symbiotic relationship with influencers and other brands.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Creating a tech device specifically designed for older adults might seem like a tough sell. But having the right approach and a great spokesperson makes all the difference.

This week, I’m speaking with Dan Josebachvili. He’s the Founder and CEO of Silvertree, which makes a safety wearable for older adults. Dan was part of the founding team at Urban Escapes, an adventure-travel company which was eventually acquired by LivingSocial. After that, he spent a few years developing strategic partnerships for ad-tech giant, Epsilon, got a graduate degree, and worked with ZX Ventures, the venture capital arm of Anheuser-Busch, where he led the deal on the acquisition of Cutwater Spirits.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• The key to marketing a tech device to an often tech-averse demographic
• The opportunities for growth within the Boomer Plus generation and how disruptive innovation makes it possible
• Don’t settle for what you have. The journey is never over and Dan has a great mantra to help us keep it in mind.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

This week, I’m joined by Jocelyn Johnson. She’s a proud Girl Scout alum and Lifetime Member and she joined Girl Scouts of the USA as CMO in 2021.

Before joining Girl Scouts of the USA, Jocelyn worked at General Electric, where her focus on data-centric marketing strategies helped grow revenue from $50 million to $20 billion.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• The importance of being able to make a quick decision when needed, coupled with an ability to pivot just as quickly
• The powerful filter that values provide to an organization when it comes to balancing data and instinct
• A great mantra to live by courtesy of Jocelyn’s mom and dad: Learn, Earn, Return

Brought to you by Mekanism.

This week, for our 50th episode, we’re doing something a little different. We're joined by the US Special Correspondent for BBC Studios Katty Kay to discuss power and the joy and fulfillment we can all find when we make an impact.

Katty is an award-winning journalist and the co-author of several New York Times bestselling books including The Confidence Code, and most recently, The Power Code.

In today’s episode, you’ll learn:

• Women’s instincts have a special kind of power. Katty argues that women's inherent qualities, such as empathy, collaboration, and emotional intelligence, are assets that can revolutionize the way we approach leadership
• We should rethink power all together. The pandemic changed the way we think about work and flexibility, challenging the traditional definition of power.
• Stay optimistic. A more equitable distribution of power is possible and by fostering a mindset of optimism and possibility, we can create a future where power is a force for good.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Today on the show, I’m talking with Brittany Lo, Founder and CEO of Beia Beauty, a premium skincare brand that brings skincare and sexual wellness together in a new and luxurious way. Before founding Beia, Brittany’s NYC-based bridal beauty experience was featured in People Magazine, The New York Times, The Knot, BRIDES and more.

In today’s episode, you’ll learn:

• There’s a huge value in surrounding yourself with a great support team of like minded individuals.
• Living authentically draws more of the people and opportunities that align with your values and goals.
• You can find power in surprising places. Case in point: naivety.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Today on the show, I’m talking with Ben Mand. He’s the CEO of Harmless Harvest, a pioneer in U.S. refrigerated premium coconut water and plant-based dairy products. And if you’ve had Harmless Harvest’s coconut water, you know it’s the best.

Since joining the company as CEO in 2018, Ben has expanded the brand beyond coconut water, more than doubled its business, and radically streamlined its supply chain.

In today’s episode, you’ll learn:

• How Ben uses solution-based thinking to help his team run efficiently

• How to build up a brand as a multidimensional persona that meets people where they are

• The number one rule when it comes to impact marketing? You’ve got to have a great product

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Today on the show, I’m talking with Heidi Andersen, Chief Revenue and Marketing Officer at Nextdoor.

Heidi is a corporate athlete with two decades of Business Leadership. She is Nextdoor’s CMO and CRO, where she oversees the global revenue team, revenue streams, and marketing.

On today’s episode you’ll learn:

• Service is a powerful business style
• Do the right things for the right reasons
• Observe and then solve

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Today on the show, I’m talking with Andrew Myerson and Julie Anne Kelly, Co-founders of Haymakers for Hope.

In 2009, Andrew and Julie participated in the New York City Golden Gloves. They decided that competing against the city’s best boxers wasn’t enough, and decided to raise money for cancer research. This planted the seeds for Haymakers for Hope. Today, their non-profit gives everyday people the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to compete in their first sanctioned boxing event. The experience is impactful, challenging, and life-changing, and the march towards a cure will continue long after the last match of the night.

Julie is a cancer survivor herself and Andrew is an expert businessman, with an MBA from the Sloan School of Management at MIT and experience working for Goldman Sachs.Through Haymakers for Hope, Andrew & Julie are helping to connect communities, local businesses and boxing fans together against a common cause.

On today’s episode you’ll learn:

• Mental stamina is just as powerful as physical stamina, and this is true in the boxing ring and in the boardroom.
• Make the most of your complementary business styles when running a company in a partnership
• Marketing a non-profit is as complex, if not more so, than any for-profit enterprise

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Today on the show, I’m speaking with Douglas Martin, Chief Brand and Disruptive Growth Officer at General Mills.

As his title suggests, Doug is a disruptive marketer and brand growth champion with over 22 years of experience. In his role at General Mills, he’s worked on marketing initiatives for Cheerios and Yoplait, and his experience spans across household names in addition to General Mills, with roles at Gap and Walt Disney Studios.

On today’s episode you’ll learn:

• How a company that’s not only a household name, but 167 years old – can still disrupt their categories.
• What makes an idea not only great, but scalable as a $50 million business idea.
• The value of good old fashioned pen and paper when framing and solving big picture problems.
• There’s no company so big that it shouldn’t keep finding new opportunities for growth.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Today, I’m speaking with John Sullivan. He’s the Senior Vice President of Marketing at WHOOP, which is a wearable fitness tracker with a devoted fan base and an impressive list of celebrity ambassadors.

John is a proponent of brand durability and he has helped re-center WHOOP from a niche software utilized by sports organizations like the New York Yankees to a wildly popular personal performance coach that you wear on your wrist. He joined me LIVE at Advertising Week New York to talk about how to build a durable brand and today, we’re sharing that conversation with all of you, our podcast listeners.

On today’s episode you’ll learn:

• What two pillars constitute a “durable brand”
• How storytelling can help sell a product that you don’t always see
• How WHOOP is incorporating AI into their user experience

Brought to you by Mekanism.

A few weeks ago the Soul & Science podcast won three Signal Awards. And two of those awards were for this episode featuring Andy Pearson, the VP of Creative at the water brand Liquid Death that we first aired last year.

Shoestring marketing budgets are common at startups and create an environment of innovation. Andy jokes he was given a $0 initial ad budget to launch. He knew the name, along with the arresting skull-festooned cans, would have to do most of the talking. When the marketing money began to flow, Liquid Death bought Tony Hawk’s blood and his soul (and maybe yours) online. In this episode, Pearson, an ultra-marathoner and ad agency veteran, explains his process, where he takes a favorite playlist, and pen to paper to grasp an idea, which grow more on creativity than money.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• If your 6th grade teacher says advertising is evil, it must be good.
• To trust your own sensibilities to know the right answer.
• The more you do, the more confident you’ll feel.
• A brand is a character, the protagonist of your business.
• Everybody takes everything so seriously, the moment you don't, you stand out.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

A few years ago, the Mekanism team worked with David Dancer and the brilliant Spike Jonze to help Medmen create the first ever cannabis commercial. Today on the show, I’m speaking with David, who is the Founder of D2 Marketing Strategies, and also an accomplished CEO and six-time CMO.

Since coming out in his first job, David has been committed to the fight for LGBTQ+ workplace equality. And he recently started a new bi-weekly podcast called Clout for Good, that showcases prominent LGBTQ+ identified executives who are out in the workplace.

On today’s episode you’ll learn:

• How the Medmen campaign helped David learn a valuable lesson about risk-taking and open-mindedness
• Being connected to the people around you is about much more than networking
• The important role that inclusivity plays in business growth and innovation

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Authenticity can drastically transform your life. But what if it means stepping away from what you thought was your dream job?

Shelley Paxton is a thought leader, speaker, and author of the bestselling book Soulbattical. Formerly the CMO at Harley-Davidson, Shelley took a courageous leap to redefine success on her own terms, and has since emerged as a sought-after expert in culture transformation and personal development.

On today’s episode you’ll learn:

• How to live authentically and allow it to be a catalyst for both personal and professional transformation
• How to redefine success beyond societal norms
• What it means to be your own Chief Soul Officer
• The keys to living a “Hell Yes” life

Brought to you by Mekanism.

This week on the podcast, we’re talking about a sensitive subject, but after seeing Ido Aharoni speak at the Harvard Club recently, it felt like the right time to have a difficult conversation.

Ido is a 25-year veteran of Israel’s Foreign service. He is a public diplomacy specialist, founder of the Brand Israel Program and a well-known nation branding practitioner.

Today’s conversation is not a history lesson on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Instead, here’s what you’ll learn in today’s episode:

• How black and white thinking has led to a dramatic increase in anti-semitism around the world
• The simple marketing principles used on social media with ill intent that have helped spread misinformation and hate speech
• How information overload exhausts our brains and makes us more susceptible to that misinformation

Brought to you by Mekanism.

When it comes to marketing a luxury brand, the brand is queen and storytelling is king.

This week, I spoke with Carolyn Dawkins, CMO at David Yurman, where she leads marketing and content strategies with a focus on user experience, brand storytelling, and innovation. Before David Yurman, she spent time in leadership roles at Estée Lauder, L’Oréal and Google.

In today’s episode you’ll learn:

• Why storytelling and understanding a brand’s heritage is so valuable when it comes to marketing luxury
• Agility becomes a superpower during high-growth periods
• How curiosity helps keep the balance between leading with instinct and leading with data

Brought to you by Mekanism.

All companies have a purpose. For most, it’s turning a profit and increasing overall value. However, today’s definition of value is changing. More and more customers are looking for brands that take social responsibility seriously and offer a mission beyond profits.

Today, I’m sitting down with a very special guest – my wife, Lindsay Harris – to talk about what it means to be a purpose-driven company. She is the Chief Purpose Officer at Tombras, an impact-driven creative agency that has created campaigns for FritoLay, ESPN, and Samsung, among many other iconic brands.

Before Tombras, Lindsay was the Editor at Campaign Magazine and a reporter for Ad Age and currently leads the relationship with the agency and the Tombras School of Advertising & PR at the University of Tennessee.

In today’s episode you’ll learn:

• What makes leading with purpose different from virtue signaling
• How the marketing landscape is changing to focus on more purpose-driven work
• A case study into how a simple purpose-driven campaign drew the attention of the NBA

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Ever wondered if a $7M Super Bowl spot is worth the investment? Join me on a special mini-episode of the Soul & Science Podcast as I delve into the power of these ads. From celebrity cameos to humorous storytelling, discover why brands invest millions for just a few seconds of airtime. Plus, get a sneak peek into this year's trends and predictions for the big game. Let's dive in!

Brought to you by Mekanism.

When it comes to marketing wellness products, a lot of brands make a lot of big claims. But how do consumers figure out who to trust and what’s best for them? Today’s episode is all about demystifying the world of wellness marketing with the co-founder of Ned, a wellness brand that offers simple and effective natural remedies.

Adriaan Zimmerman, who co-founded Ned in 2018, is an entrepreneur and brand-builder. Prior to co-founding Ned, he was a founding partner of BroBible.com, a popular men’s lifestyle and entertainment brand that grew to over 15 million readers per month, and was acquired by Uproxx Media.
In today’s episode you’ll learn:

• Where education becomes marketing when it comes to teaching your customers about your product
• How the transformative power of nature, the beauty of simplicity, and the importance of human connection can make us feel alive
• The value of the creative potential that comes with stepping out of your comfort zone

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Is company culture the secret sauce that sets thriving businesses apart? From the inception of Mekanism, culture has been paramount, shaping behaviors and interactions within and beyond the office walls. Explore the significance of values, from entrepreneurial spirit to collaborative mindset, driving success and innovation. Discover the pivotal role of leadership in upholding and evolving cultural norms, alongside the necessity of periodic value reassessment.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

The marketing world is a constantly changing field. From the introduction of different mediums to the evolution of technology like AI, the only constant I can expect in my industry is change.

Today, I’m sitting down with my friend, colleague, and now my boss, Brett Marchand, CEO of Plus Company. Plus Company is a marketing and branding powerhouse, having integrated dozens of agencies, including Cossette, We Are Social, and Mekanism.

Before Brett Marchand was heading one of the world's largest media and marketing firms, Brett was a marketing native. He championed campaigns at P&G, Campbell Soup, and Molson Brewery, among many others.

In today’s episode, you’ll learn:

• Why working for more household brands teaches future marketers the anatomy of a great campaign
• Why working on the inside of the ad agency is so much more than just making campaigns
• The historic role AI has played in marketing
• What the future holds for the advertising agency network model

Brought to you by Mekanism.

What makes a brand partnership align or clash? In this episode, we talk about how collaborations between brands, whether similar or vastly different, can skyrocket brand visibility and reach. From the massive Barbie movie collaboration that turned everything pink to high-profile partnerships like GoPro and Red Bull's space jump and the unexpected yet trendsetting Balenciaga and Crocs duo, this episode explores the strategic brilliance and potential pitfalls of brand alliances.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

This week, in honor of Women’s History Month, we’re re-sharing an amazing conversation from last summer where we spoke with Jocelyn Johnson. Jocelyn is a proud Girl Scout alum and Lifetime Member and she joined Girl Scouts of the USA as CMO in 2021.

Jocelyn is a brilliant marketer and a champion for the future females of the world.

Before joining Girl Scouts of the USA, Jocelyn worked at General Electric, where her focus on data-centric marketing strategies helped grow revenue from $50 million to $20 billion.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• The importance of being able to make a quick decision when needed, coupled with an ability to pivot just as quickly
• The powerful filter that values provide to an organization when it comes to balancing data and instinct
• A great mantra to live by courtesy of Jocelyn’s mom and dad: Learn, Earn, Return

Brought to you by Mekanism.

When you’re presented with a problem, how do you go about solving it? This week, we introduce three powerful laws that can transform the way you tackle challenges in life.

• Kidland's Law: If you can write the problem down clearly, then the matter is half solved.
• Gilbert's Law: The biggest problem with a job is that no one tells you what to do.
• Falkland's Law: If you don't have to make a decision, don't make a decision.

These three laws offer invaluable insights into problem-solving and decision-making. Apply them in your daily life to overcome challenges with clarity and efficiency.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Rise and grind or work yourself into the ground? In the past few years, a sole focus on constant productivity and hustle has spread throughout the world of marketing and business, and frankly, it’s burning people out. This culture of overworking is forcing some people to live on autopilot and burn out. Let’s be honest for a moment: Nothing good is ever created after 10 cups of coffee and only 3 hours of sleep. 

Today, I’m sitting down with the founder of Dream Recovery, Todd Anderson, to reshape the stigma around rest and recovery. Before starting Dream Recovery, Todd was an NFL fullback for the Rams when they were still in St. Louis, a sponsored athlete by TYR, and a health and wellness expert for brands like Vision – an AI health companion app – and Arena – an all-in-one at-home training platform.

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• Why Rest and Recovery have become as important to professionals as it is to athletes
• How sports and wellness science can be applied to a luxury brand
• Why the rise and grind culture is dying out to one of strategic rest

Brought to you by Mekanism.

We all know that AI has reshaped the landscape of marketing and advertising forever. But how familiar are you with generative vs. predictive AI? This week, we’re breaking it down. Predictive AI aids in informed decision-making, targeting audiences, optimizing ad placement, and forecasting campaign results. Generative AI accelerates creative work by assisting in content creation, copywriting, and generating images and videos for marketing materials. Tune in for a concise breakdown of AI's applications in advertising agencies.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

What’s your favorite GIF? Today, we’re sitting down with the Editor-in-Chief at GIPHY, Tyler Menzel. With a passion for creativity, authenticity, and the power of fun, Tyler has been instrumental in driving GIPHY’s success in the world of digital content. 

He provides oversight and mentorship for all aspects of content on GIPHY, including partner content acquisition strategy, original content creation, search and trending algorithm refinement, and moderation guideline creation and enforcement. 

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• Creativity and authenticity are at the core of Giphy's approach to curating engaging content and fostering meaningful connections with users
• How they’ve used campaigns from minor league baseball promotions to digital marketing strategies to understand and trust the intelligence of the audience to drive impactful engagement
• Why you should commit to continuous learning. Tyler reminds us to stay open to experimentation, feedback, and growth in order to remain adaptable  in today's rapidly evolving landscape

Brought to you by Mekanism. 

How crucial to your brand’s success is PR really? Today, we’re talking about the four main reasons you need to invest in your PR strategy. Amplified media coverage for faster brand recognition, improved website traffic and SEO, strategic crisis management, and solidified thought leadership; these aspects are vital for enhancing your brand’s visibility, credibility, and resilience. 

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Modern-day flying has become more of a chore than an adventure. If you’ve read any headlines about the airline industry in recent years, it’s clear that many customers are apathetic about which carrier they fly with. Long delays and cancellations, poor customer service, and fluctuating pricing all leads to a sourness in the industry. 

So how can an airline fly themselves back to customers' good graces? 

This week, we aim to answer that question with Eric Edge, Managing Director of Advertising and Marketing at Alaska Airlines. 

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• How caring about your customer creates lifelong brand champions 
• How to pivot your marketing when the industry takes a turn for the worse 
• How gambling on new technologies can help put your brand ahead of the curve

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Ever wondered about the secrets behind a successful rebrand? Today, we'll unravel three essential rules for transforming your brand identity. From finding your why to executing a seamless rollout, we'll discuss what we can learn from iconic successes like Dunkin' and Airbnb, and how to avoid the pitfalls of missteps like Twitter's puzzling transformation to 'X'. 

Brought to you by Mekanism.

At some point in their career, everyone has had to answer the dreaded interview question: “Where do you see yourself in the next five years?” You might have a well-scripted answer, but do you really know? 

This week on the Soul & Science podcast, we sit down with the founder and CEO of the Handel Life Coaching Group, Lauren Zander, to explore how we can rebrand the mind, body, and soul. 

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• The true power of auditing your life in an honest way
• How our minds, bodies, and souls are far more interconnected than we realize
• What kinds of practical consequences you can give yourself to make your dreams a reality

Brought to you by Mekanism.

What’s the true value of breaking free from conventional marketing mediums? In this week’s mini episode, we delve into some unconventional branding strategies that made impactful results. Oatly's 'Oatmilkers' initiative in Minor League Baseball, Stoked Dispensary's clever ads in neighboring stores, and Adidas' liquid billboard in Dubai showcase innovative approaches to circumvent restrictions and leave a lasting impression. Join us as we explore thinking outside the box in branding and advertising.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

This week on the Soul & Science podcast, we take a look at the power of culture and consumption. Take the rise of social media marketing as an example of consumption as culture. Companies have piggybacked on viral sounds, trends, and cultural moments from TikTok and Instagram as a way to promote their products. On the flip side, a seemingly clever campaign can flop if it jumps on a trend too late or misses the point entirely. So, if culture ultimately drives everything that people do, how do brands keep pace? 

Today, we’re talking with Dr. Marcus Collins about the effects of culture on human behavior and the undeniable connection between marketing and culture. 

Riding the line between industry and academia, his award-winning book For The Culture: The Power Behind What We Buy, What We Do, and Who We Want to Be was a best-seller and he currently serves as a marketing professor at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. In the past, he was the Head of Strategy at Wieden+Kennedy and has worked with brands like Apple, Nike, and even Beyoncé. 

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• How culture and marketing intertwine to create some of the most successful campaigns 
• What defines culture and how people choose to interact with it
• How brands can put themselves in the driver’s seat of cultural relevance

Brought to you by Mekanism.

What do you do with a great idea that your client didn't want? Toss it? Or keep it? In today’s mini episode, we tackle the dilemma of rejected concepts. Discover how to transform these creative casualties into proactive initiatives that not only promote your business but also make a positive impact on the world. 

Brought to you by Mekanism.

It’s easy to get lost in the details of those everyday small inconveniences – what’s for dinner tonight, that looming deadline, whether or not your joke landed in that meeting earlier. It’s also just as easy to switch our brains to autopilot when they get overwhelmed and disappear into social media or TV. And what about that narrator in our heads? The constant critic. The complainer. It really doesn't serve us. 

But the simple practice of mindfulness might offer a solution. And our guest this week believes that everyone can be at least 10% happier if they work mindfulness into their daily life.

Dan Harris spent more than 20 years as a journalist for ABC where he was the co-anchor of Nightline and the weekend editions of Good Morning America. He’s covered wars, natural disasters, and even spent 48 hours in solitary confinement to better understand the criminal justice system. Today, Dan is the best-selling author of the meditation book “10% Happier” and host of the podcast of the same name. 

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• Not only how but also why you should incorporate a meditation practice into your personal and professional life
• To apply the lessons Dan learned during his path towards mindfulness in your own life
• How to better manage your own thought habits in order to be happier and healthier

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Why do some pitches soar while others flop? Today, we talk about the secrets of successful client pitches with the five laws of new business. From strategic selectivity to post-pitch follow-ups, here are some of our best strategies for winning over clients. 

Brought to you by Mekanism. 

In this episode, we look into the Soul & Science of starting a movement. Small actions done consistently can have profound effects on our lives. The real challenge is doing those things every day. Something the majority of us seem to have no issues doing almost everyday is complaining. While complaining about this, that, and whatever comes to mind is easy, the negativity can block your focus, creativity, and productivity. 

This week, we’re talking with Will Bowen, who’s working on unlocking the secrets of positivity with his complaint-free movement. Will started his career as an advertising executive for Yellowpages, but even back then, he felt a passion for speaking and helping people discover a better way to live. In 2006, Will challenged 250 people to break the destructive habit of complaining by going 21 days in a row without speaking a single complaint. Now, almost 20 years later, he’s still traveling the country as a keynote speaker and working to change the lives and minds of thousands of professionals. His International best-selling book “A Complaint Free World” has sold nearly 4 million copies in 40 countries. 

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• The damage a complaining habit can do to your productivity and workflow 
• How to be more aware of your own complaints and negative thinking 
• What can happens when you step into a more positive mindset, and how to redefine your values with that in mind 

Brought to you by Mekanism. 

This week, we're revisiting our amazing conversation with Julia Perez, CMO at OWYN from May 2023.

Julia is a New York born, Miami-based marketing executive with a deep understanding of high-growth, healthier-for-you food and beverage startups. With more than 10 years of experience working for brands like Red Bull, Hain Celestial, RSP Nutrition, and CORE Water, it’s actually kind of her superpower. Her continued success in the health and wellness space led her to the role of Chief Marketing Officer at OWYN, which stands for Only What You Need, a plant-based nutrition company best known for its ready-to-drink protein shakes. OWYN is currently the #1 best selling plant protein shake in the US.  

In this episode you’ll learn: 

• How OWYN is cleaning up the sports nutrition industry with transparency, education, and empowering messaging
• Where Julia stands on the Ozempic trend and how OWYN fits in 
• Why you shouldn’t forget about the big picture when looking at segmented data
• The value of being an early adopter and in love with your industry

Brought to you by Mekanism.  

This week, we're revisiting our inspiring conversation with David Lester, Co-founder at Olipop. 

There’s an alchemy to relationships, including the ones between co-founders. David Lester, co-founder at good-for-you-soda company, OLIPOP, first heard about his future business partner, Ben Goodwin, while he was quitting his 10-year job at global beverage giant Diageo. His then boss thought they’d work well together. The first meeting between entrepreneurs was memorable as Ben showed up with a bag of home-made soda. The pair went on to run a kefir beverage startup, followed by OLIPOP. Packed with healthy prebiotics and a tenth the sugar of regular, OLIPOP brilliantly markets taste, health and nostalgia while drawing 50% of revenues through online channels, just a few of Lester’s marketing feats.  

In this episode you’ll learn:

• Soda psychology is grounded in our earliest memories.
• Three-quarters of the population is trying to make healthy adjustments. 
• When something seems stupid, that’s your cue to figure out a better way.
• That humility will take you from knowing nothing to expertise.
• Data science surrounds us, but your soul processes the insights

Brought to you by Mekanism.  

In this episode of the Soul & Science podcast, we are joined by Carrie Hutchison, the Director of Marketing and Brand at Re:wild. Re:wild is an environmental organization that recently partnered with Mekanism’s brand partner, Culturelle Probiotics to bring awareness to an untraditional cause- the endangerment of the human gut microbiome.

Carrie started her career in sustainability and marketing with National Geographic as their Director of Corporate Communications and has worked with universities such as Georgetown. Now, she campaigns for sustainability in brands and the planet around the world. 

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• The ways that industry could be interacting with the planet to ensure sustainability. 
• Why the protection of our endangered ecosystems- especially the ones within our own bodies- is crucial to a sustainable future for mankind. 
• What we can do on an individual level to promote sustainability in our own lives. 

Brought to you by Mekanism.

In this episode of the Soul & Science podcast, Founder and CEO of ready-to-drink cocktail brand Gay Water Spencer Hoddeson is joining us to teach us why stellar community engagement is the key to success in today’s marketing world. 

Spencer is far more than a founder and beverage aficionado. He started his career in the marketing and brand department at Yahoo and worked his way to leading the entire team. Shortly after, he found himself as a top social media influencer. Now, Spencer is crafting a new beverage for and by the queer community. 

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• How brands can create products that serve an established community rather than trying to build one from scratch 
• Why many younger audiences expect brands to be mission and purpose-driven before they become consumers
• Why connecting and engaging with your audience in organic ways is like rocket fuel for growth

Brought to you by Mekanism.

In this episode of the Soul & Science podcast, Carlos Santiago Co-Founder at The Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing or AIMM is joining us to explore how we as marketers can better celebrate diversity and inclusion with a multicultural audience. 

Carlos has been working and developing this space for over 18 years as a leading researcher and market strategist with a heavy focus on growth roadmaps and econometric models to better address the challenges that come with multicultural marketing. He has experience working with brands such as AT&T, AARP, Target, and so many more. 

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• How we can help our brands actively listen to and engage with various cultures in an authentic way
• Using the same marketing language for everyone doesn’t help and might even harm your marketing efforts
• The majority of people want diverse and inclusive campaigns, and any backlash is coming from a small minority

Brought to you by Mekanism. 

Today on the Soul & Science podcast, we’re sitting down with Jacqueline Welch, Chief Human Resource Officer at the New York Times to get the inside scoop on what you as an employer can do to make a strong and effective team. In her role at the Times, she leads the organization's human resources team and oversees all aspects of talent acquisition, career development, organizational development, equitable compensation practices, performance enablement and diversity, equity and inclusion. 

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• How to build a strong team with a solid mission that moves everyone toward a common goal
• How to operate from a place where both internal and external branding overlap
• The crucial nature of an engaged Human Resources during times of crisis

Brought to you by Mekanism. 

Have you been watching the olympics? We certainly have been here at the Mekanism offices, and it’s inspired us to revisit this amazing conversation with New Balance CMO Chris Davis. 

New Balance is not only “the shoe brand of choice for film stars, athletes and supermodels,” according to Urban Journal, it’s the brand for “the biggest, hype-inducing names on the street right now.” As CMO of the hotly resurgent brand, which was born in 1906, Chris Davis applies a risk/innovation model which puts 50% of the marketing budget into proven, demand-creation tactics, 30% into calculated risks (NFTs, for example) and 20% into purely experimental vehicles that may fail spectacularly or succeed later. Davis, who is also SVP Global Merchandising, says the only unacceptable risk is one that comprimes brand values. He tells us how to transform a 116-year-old product company into a world-class brand.

Brought to you by Mekanism. 

Beyond his role as the over-the-top showman and host of Nathan's Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island, George Shea is a seasoned marketing professional with three decades of experience. Together with his brother, Richard, he has elevated the Nathan's Famous hot dog-eating contest into a major brand promotion recognized around the world. Beyond Nathan's, George and company run Major League Eating and also Shea communications doing work in the commercial real estate industry. 

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• What it takes to create and promote a niche sport like competitive eating
• Why having multiple irons in the fire helps fuel productivity and creativity
• Why controversy is so effective for generating earned media

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Have you ever wondered if Chief Marketing Officers have what it takes to lead as CEOs? In this mini episode, we uncover four powerful reasons why CMOs might be the secret weapon for business growth and customer-centric leadership. Tune in to challenge the traditional executive hierarchy and discover new possibilities!

Brought to you by Mekanism.

In this episode of the Soul & Science Podcast, the founder of JUV Consulting, Ziad Ahmed joins us to teach us how to truly connect with your Gen Z audience. You’re going to learn how to crack the code to speak to this dynamic and elusive audience. 

25-year-old Ziad has been making serious waves in the brand world as the Head of Next Gen at United Talent Agency or UTA. After founding JUV Consulting as a high school student, Ziad has been pushing the boundaries of content, community, and culture and also finding new intersections of the three with his Gen Z-focused conference ZCON.

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• How to not just join cultural conversations, but to lead and shape them
• What it takes to future-proof your brand and foster communities that resonate with Gen Z values
• A few of Ziad's best strategies to help you rethink how you engage with Gen Z and refine the language you use to communicate with them

Brought to you by Mekanism.

In this episode of the Soul & Science Podcast, we explore balancing business results and creative innovation in global brand building with the Global Chief Marketing Officer, GM Direct Commerce at Fortune Brands Innovations, Mark-Hans Richer. With over 30 years of experience, Mark-Hans has built groundbreaking campaigns with companies such as Moen, Masterlock, Harley Davidson, and GMC. 

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• Why embracing a start-up mindset is so important to keep your brand fresh
• How to defend out-of-the-box ideas from pushback
• Why changing your strategy isn’t always the best course of action

Brought to you by Mekanism.

Is it time to update your company values? In today’s mini episode, we dive into why values matter and we’ll share the six new guiding principles at Mekanism. From embracing bold creativity to fostering teamwork and innovation, these values will help us redefine our company’s future.

Brought to you by Mekanism.

In today’s episode of the Soul & Science Podcast, we’re talking to Mark Pollard, brand strategist, CEO of Sweathead, host of the Sweathead Podcast and author of the book Strategy is Your Words. For the past 20 years, Mark has worked with global brands such as The Economist, Meta, and The Wall Street Journal to solve complex marketing challenges and build winning strategies. Throughout his career, he has blended non-traditional ideas, creativity, and analytical data that prove that sometimes it’s best to break the mold. 

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• Why leveraging low-budget content and experimental ideas can be a winning part of your social media approach
• Which types of nontraditional data and insights can better inform your strategy
• How a diverse career path and experience help build a better skill set to solve complex and novel marketing challenges

Brought to you by Mekanism. 

In today’s mini episode, we explore the core business orientations that shape how companies sell and market their products. We break down the four key approaches: sales, market, product, and societal orientation. Discover how brands like Apple, Nike, and Patagonia align their strategies with these orientations, and why knowing your business orientation is essential for crafting effective marketing plans.

In this episode of the Soul & Science Podcast, we’re exploring what it means to find your creative voice with a person who has built a legacy on taking calculated risk. Chase Jarvis is an award-winning artist, entrepreneur, and Emmy-nominated director who has shot global campaigns for Apple, Nike, and more than 100 other brands – as well as contributed to the Pulitzer Prize-winning NYT story Snowfall.

His previous book Creative Calling was a National Best Seller, and his new book Never Play It Safe is out October 8th. 

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• How reconnecting with your true self will lead to both personal and professional fulfillment, even if it means defying societal expectations 
• What lies beyond your comfort zone and how to take intelligent risks that push you forward without jeopardizing your well-being
• Why “fitting in” cuts a clear path to mediocrity in both marketing and life, and how embracing what makes you you is how to make a difference 

Brought to you by Mekanism. 

Building a lasting brand is all about balancing long-term strategy with short-term wins. In this episode of the Soul & Science Podcast, Jason sits down with William White, SVP and CMO at Walmart, to talk about the secret sauce marketers can use to drive both ongoing engagement and immediate business results.

With a career spanning several major brands like Coca-Cola, Target, and KitchenAid, William shares insights on the world of long-term brand building for some of the largest brands in retail. 

In today’s episode, you’ll learn: 

• How to balance long-term brand strategy with the pressure of immediate sales goals.
• Why innovating with your customers in mind is key to driving year-over-year growth.
• Why staying with a brand for the long haul can deepen your insights into both the business and your career.

Brought to you by Mekanism. 

How is influencer marketing evolving in the creator economy? In today's mini episode, we explore the shift from one-off campaigns to building long-term relationships with micro-creators who drive engagement and authenticity. Plus how we here at Mekanism are leading the way by leveraging creator networks to foster genuine connections, fill content gaps, and optimize strategies for lasting brand success.

Brought to you by Mekanism.