Tag Archives: The Continuum

Ringing out the Old with News from E.B. for 2022



For the past 44 episodes of Insider Interviews I’ve put a lot of well-known media and marketing folks in the hot seat …And today’s guest is … E.B. Moss. Me. Because as we ring out the old and ring in the new I’ve got some news for you.

This nice round number, episode 45, will be temporarily one of the last for Insider Interviews for a while, as I embrace something really new. A fractional (year long) assignment as Senior Vice President of Content and Community at Brand Innovators. They create a community for marketers and and media folks through an incredible number of events and panel discussions, fireside chats, activations, tent poles, content articles, you name it.

In looking back to look forward, as I wrote in The Continuum recently, I had some wonderful conversations. After launching with programming pro, Gary Krantz, talking about audio and the evolution of radio and podcasting my very next episode was in March of 2020 was Shelly Palmer, the pundit, who accurately predicted that we all better have our tech set up well to work from home. Check.

In episode 7, Claude Silver, the Chief Heart Officer of Vayner Media, emphasized the need in our increasingly isolated environment to build relationships. And then Arra Yerganian educated us in episode 22, about the social determinants of health as we’re so impacted by our surroundings. (I hope you’re creating a safe space for yourself and finding ways to bring joy into your world, even as we have to isolate a little bit longer now.)
On the DEI front Robyn Streisand, founder of The Mixx, is doing a terrific job at educating brands on how to embrace diverse communities and market authentically. And then, hats off to KoAnn Skrzyniarz, for building Sustainable Brands and emphasizing brand purpose and the business value of embracing sustainability and purpose-driven messaging.
Talk about influencers.
That’s what Danielle Wiley of Sway did and really informed us about how to manage what’s been influential and what hasn’t. And it all kind comes together with Joe Jackman in episode 37, talking about reinvention. Because that’s what we’re all doing these days. Marc Kidd and Anna Bager each talked about the out of home ad industry and their headaches during a time when nobody was traveling. Captivate, where Marc is CEO, specialized in elevator advertising, and no one was going into office buildings! So they figured out how to pivot — or reinvent — by expanding their signage to places where people play and live like golf courses and apartment buildings. Anna Bager talked about how out of home signage really helped move public service messaging forward, especially with the healthcare messaging that is so important these days.
There were also some really impactful conversations with women in marketing. I want to thank, for example, Melissa Grady, the CMO of Cadillac, as well as Heidi Zak, the co-founder and CEO of third love, as just two examples.
And I was able to do articles on both of them for The Continuum. That’s the publication where I was editor in chief for the past year. We published some excellent articles about the need for both brand and demand marketing. That publication will continue to embrace the future. And it’s a very worthy read.
But I think as I look forward, and look back, some of Ruth Steven’s words were exactly right and underscores why my move to Brand Innovators will be so timely. Ruth is one of the foremost experts in B2B marketing.

And she said in our interview,

“Today, the ability of the salesperson to guide a purchase in the buyer’s direction and really understand the needs of that buyer has been eroded. So the marketer needs to step in and provide the educational content.”

So my friends, I’m going to keep finding lots of ways to help marketers get their message out and to help connect the seller, the buyer, the media organization and the marketer, and I look forward to being able to continue delivering you that insider scoop. Just from a different venue.
With that, I wish you all the very, very best and a happy and especially a healthy 2022, and hope to maintain my relationship with all of you through various forms of content, as well as hopefully at in-person event sooner rather than later.
I thank you so much for listening.
Post Script: If you haven’t heard it yet, I will pick up my “passion podcast” soon – about my “friends in high places” so please subscribe to It’s Quite a Living now to not miss a forthcoming moment when that relaunches in early 2022.
PPS: You can STILL follow me at @mossappeal on social media!


Using Original Podcasts to Build Brand Relationships



Podcast pro Steve Pratt, VP and Co-Founder of the multi-award winning Pacific Content, told me his company no longer makes branded podcasts. They haven’t for a few years. They make “original podcasts with brands.” And win awards doing it for brands like Ford Motor Company, Rocket Mortgage, Morgan Stanley, Slack, and Red Hat.

The difference? These are no “thinly veiled infomercials. Instead, Pacific Content works together with their partners to “make a show that’s designed as something that only that brand can make; you give a gift — or create a significant amount of value — for the people that the brand wants to have relationships with.” And that, says Pratt, is how and why a brand makes a show that solves for their specific business problem, AND makes them into “media companies,” too.

But don’t forget about the marketing. Good content that isn’t salesy has to go hand in hand with good marketing that doesn’t just try to “interrupt.” So, excuse me (!), but marketers should listen to this informative conversation all about connecting the dots between business objectives and audience preferences via podcasting. Steve should know: his company of “50 passionate podcast nerds” is focused exclusively on original podcasts that promote brands with authenticity and without compromising quality.

Steve and I also discuss:
  • How Dell Technologies’ podcast, Trailblazers with Walter Isaacson, became a “masterclass” on disruption and innovation, and sold listeners on Dell without selling products (and you can hear Dell Global Marketer, Rachael Henke, talk about this in Epi 6 from 5/20!) 
  • Creating a branded podcast strategy like a Venn Diagram between business goals and listener interests
  • How podcasts drive loyalty
  • Opportunities for “brands as media companies”
  • Branded podcasts vs. Advertising in another podcast: What’s the litmus test? (And when Steve suggests brands call Bart Roselli at VeritoneOne, per episode 41 on effective ad campaigns!)
  • Establishing marketing effectiveness in podcasting
  • Success measurement tactics and KPIs
And, since Pacific Content gives good content themselves, don’t miss Steve’s own musings on the future of podcasting, how he did on his 2021 predictions made in our friend James Cridland’s show…and what he’s projecting for 2022!

Please share the podcast, and if you liked this episode, feel free to show support in my virtual tip jar at https://buymeacoffe.com/mossappeal — and please follow and engage with Insider Interviews on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

Find/Follow Steve and Pacific Content at:

Reach out to be considered for an episode — or suggest questions or a guest — or to have your own bespoke podcast series produced and/or hosted by E.B. Moss.

Email us at podcasts@mossappeal.com.  We’re “hear” for you!


Innovations in Leveraging Audio



Bart Roselli of Veritone One has seen the audio space grow exponentially in his over 15 years of media, marketing strategy, and account management experience. Now, as SVP Growth, he leverages his breadth of knowledge to enhance agency-media vendor relationships and help ensure client goals are set smartly for the space, and fulfilled across multiple channels of audio opportunities…including having an eye towards integrating Veritone AI technology to enhance performance.

After comparing notes on our common ground of NJ to CA lives, in Episode 41 Bart explains the evolution of audio ad tech to how audio is also bought, sold and marketed differently these days.

“It’s not a one size fits all media world anymore. It used to be radio, print, and tv. Then digital started to evolve and now you have different tracking elements as we’re moving towards a cookieless space. So marketing has evolved.”

Hear how to keep up with all the changes as Bart and I also discuss:
  • How audio marketing has completely evolved in via multi-touchpoints
  • Following the dollars via advances in digital tracking
  • From compliance to engineering, how the backend of Veritone’s digital infrastructure “takes a village”
  • The changes in how people consume media – including the impact of the pandemic on podcasts – and how brands need to fit into lives and attention spans differently
  • Embracing change (a la 37 with Joe Jackman) but why Bart says, “If you’re reading about it in the trades you’re behind”
  • Utilizing artificial intelligence and synthetic voice to super-serve clients (while avoiding “deep fakes!”)

  • Bart’s stance on the brand and demand continuum
  • Tapping data as the modern version of a crystal ball to navigate millions of shows to pick up and coming winners and properly message in the right podcasts
  • The difference between embedded and digital ad insertion – and use cases for each (You can take a deeper dive into ad sales from Bart on the Podcast Advertising Playbook episode with Heather Osgood.)
  • The reality of CPM pricing and measurement
And overall remembering:

“If you’re not thinking of channels – plural, you’re thinking of audio and your marketing incorrectly and you’re missing a big chunk of audience.”

And big news! You can watch the unedited version of this episode now as video on YouTube!
(Don’t judge my kitchen.)

From video version of Epi 41 Insider Interviews, available on YouTube

Resources Mentioned:

Social Media Links:

Please share the podcast, and if you liked this episode, feel free to show support at https://buymeacoffe.com/mossappeal and please follow and engage with Insider Interviews on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
You can also reach out to be considered for an episode — or suggest questions or a guest — or to have your own bespoke podcast series produced and/or hosted by E.B. Moss. Email us at podcasts@mossappeal.com.

We’re “hear” for you!

 


Cadillac CMO Melissa Grady Dias on Marketing a Maverick (with heart)



A milestone! It’s Episode 40 of Insider Interviews! And for that, who better to interview than Cadillac’s Global Chief Marketing Officer, Melissa Grady Dias, who is, herself, marketing a milestone: the launch of what will be the first all electric line of luxury brand vehicles (EVs), starting with the Lyriq!

This episode was recorded in September, and since then the new Lyriq has sold out of pre-sale reservations. So how did it get so popular? Why is Cadillac “the maverick” of the GM brands, and how does its marketing deliver on its corporate parent’s promise to be the most inclusive company in the world?

For the past two years, Melissa Grady Dias has held the key. She is a marketer’s marketer, a master of math and of insight-driven creative. With a heart. That “brand and demand” combo (as I’ll write more about in The Continuum) is what’s helped infuse those corporate cause-oriented values into everything from gaming tie-ins to 6-second ads, to experiential marketing with Michelin-rated chefs. To hear Melissa be moved by the definition of equity and inclusion is to understand what “drives” (sorry) much of the brand messaging, but messaging that is always backed by data.
As she explains:

“I try to understand how and where my audience is consuming media, and how they’re entertaining themselves. Then I try to be in those places, but to do it in a different way, so that it really breaks through.”

While always in pursuit of an advertising career, (“I used to watch Who’s the Boss and I loved Angela and I wanted to be like her,” she confesses) Melissa almost took a wrong turn. But discovering Database, Direct, and e-Commerce studies in a Masters program led her to expertise in performance marketing and technology. Her passion for good creative added the rest of the fuel.
After discussing how she “followed her career north star to OnStar” we took some deep dives into how she is marketing the 125-year old brand, including:
  • What it means to “show up differently” and how the Cadillac marketing team approaches the funnel differently, too (hint: upside down!)
  • With GM looking to go all EV and towards a 0, 0, 0 world (zero emissions, zero crashes, and zero congestion) how Cadillac, historically an innovator brand, is at the forefront of that effort:
  • Just why Cadillac overall — from the Escalade to the XT6 — is like the maverick of GM brands, while still infused with corporate cause-oriented values.

“Cadillac is also a bit of a maverick and we’ve always stood for those people who really have big dreams and bold ambitions, but really they’re the change-makers.”

  • Melissa’s reaction to CEO Mary Barra’s statement on making GM one of the most inclusive companies in the world, and how they’re doing that — on social, in a campaign or in how they’re spending money;

“Equity is treating everyone the same and fairly. So if there’s a dance everyone’s invited to the dance. Inclusion is being asked to dance.”

  • Campaign development:

“When Regina King heard the brand manifesto, she could relate it to her story. And …it inspires me to be a better person, too. That’s how the “Never Stop Arriving” campaign was born: it’s about hitting a moment, celebrating yourself and then thinking ‘Now, how do I keep making the world better? How am I going to keep moving forward?’”

  • How they identify prospects and find them, starting with addressable and digital then filling in as they go up the funnel, right to tentpole events like their Oscars™ or PGA sponsorships;
  • Melissa’s perspective on audience demographics “I’m never saying, ‘where are the 25-54 year olds with a certain income’” and feelings about linear TV to podcasts…even their innovative use of gaming and AR and VR as part of the sales process;

(Note – Take a look at Cadillac Live for a unique view of how vehicles can be experienced in our showroom and supply-chain challenged times! And fun fact: More test drives happen on YouTube than in a car dealership! So hear how Cadillac Live deployed a takeover with a “first” on the video site!)

  • Hear how data is handled and respected and leveraged;
  • How experiential comes to life in unexpected ways, like finding inspiration in the Lyriq grill for food recipes!;
  • How future CMOs can follow a similar path to success? Melissa shares a three-point plan of action which, of course, starts with follow your passion.

Finally, hear why my heart was pounding – as with most people who experience Super Cruise for the first time – but in my case just from watching their effective long-form celebrity videos about the hands-free driving option! Melissa has described this as the “let go” moment.

As voiced by Tiffany Haddish in the video, “Sometimes you gotta grab the wheel and sometimes you just have to let it go.” It’s trust that you’ll get where you need to be. Melissa, who makes it a point to meditate daily, thinks her personal mantra – ‘I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be’ – “ties into that idea pretty well.”

Easter Egg Moment: Insider Interviews aims to give you the “insider scoop” on media, marketing and advertising, along with the personal side of execs. And you’ll catch a very human moment around 20 minutes in…. But do enjoy all 40 minutes of this informative and jam packed conversation!
If you found this helpful, feel free to help support ANOTHER 40 episodes of Insider Interviews and add to my virtual tip jar to buy me a coffee“: https://buymeacoffee.com/mossappeal
And please support us with a review wherever you listen, share this episode. Or allow me to help you get started with a podcast or content marketing strategy: podcasts@mossappeal.com.

Follow Cadillac:

  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cadillac
  • Twitter: https://twitter.com/Cadillac

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THANK YOU for listening!

E.B.

 


Pearl Servat’s Visible Marketing Wisdom



When I met Pearl Servat three years ago, Visible was brand new in the world of wireless carriers, and Servat was generating content about it. Now she is fairly new in an elevated role as Head of Brand Marketing and Demand Gen for the disrupter division of Verizon Wireless, and gives good content herself in our conversation about driving customer connections.
Servat honed her PR chops in the entertainment and brand world under the mentorship of marketing heavy hitters like Pat Kingsley (PMK-BNC), but made the switch, as they say in the world of carriers, to helm “brand and demand” marketing. In Epi 39, she discusses both her own evolution, and that of Visible. Hear how she leverages partnerships with like-minded brand ambassadors and ensures the first all-digital wireless carrier in the US doesn’t forget its mission of kindness and transparency:

“I essentially sit at the intersection of where I’ve always loved to be.  Between brand building and conversion and acquisition, driving and growth.”

Mission First, Marketing Next.

  • Servat explains that Visible’s mission drove her to lead efforts to connect people during some of the scariest days of the pandemic.
  • Hear how a simple email campaign that Visible sent asking how customers were holding up during the pandemic had unexpected impact.
  • Staying true to its DNA, the brand launched the #VisibleActsofKindness campaign and garnered over 2 million organic interactions.
  • Hear her perspective on the importance of both brand and demand marketing, as her title implies, AND experiential marketing — such as when they turned Los Angeles bus stops into mock living rooms, and even ski lifts settings giving customers a tactical connection with the all digital brand in lieu of physical retail locations.

“It’s beyond just retaining the consumer for us…We truly try to be as intentional as we can at every touch point with the brand. So, it doesn’t just start and stop with marketing.”

Partnerships that Matter

  • Partnerships and brand ambassadorships help extend the reach of the brand.
  • Servat emphasizes the importance of partnering with people who live by the same mission as the company.
  • Potential partners have seen the work Visible is doing and reached out to the company, interested in collaboration—the mission drives these kinds of partnerships.
  • Staying on trend? Servat credits her team, modestly saying she’s not “nearly as hip and cool as they are.”
  • And on working with marquee names like Kevin Bacon and Dan Levy? Well…

“When it comes to talent partnerships, we do a significant amount of research…And we only work with talent who walk the walk when it comes to social impact, what they stand for on an ongoing basis, [and] how they connect with their own communities.”

To hear more on the early stage Visible marketing efforts, listen to Insider Interviews Epi 10 with then CMO Minjae Ormes.

Connect with Servat and Visible

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If you found this helpful, or liked other Insider Interviews episodes, please support us with a review wherever you listen, share this episode, and even add to my digital tip jar to “buy me a coffee!”

If I can help you connect your podcast/tv/content dots—or, just want help getting started with a podcast or content marketing strategy, please reach out to me at podcasts@mossappeal.com.

 


Talking Business…and Podcasting…and Content! With Ken Kraetzer



For this quick but special episode of Insider Interviews I was in the guest seat! In highlights from my appearance on Ken Kraetzer’s show, “Talking Business” for CBSI, Ken interviewed ME to get my recommendations about how businesses can get in to the world of podcasting, best ways to leverage social media — and social audio — and why it’s key to create content across all platforms.

You’ll understand in just a few minutes how it all comes together for the show I’m producing for trade association, NATPE — their first-ever conference on the intersection of TV and Podcasting! (I’m very proud of this project and working hard to create a chock-full of takeaways agenda for content creators, marketers and producers across both screens.)

Ken also got a little bit of my life story — at least my career path, as well as a story about the good-news/bad-news of tech, when I recently confused a “Zoom friend” with an “IRL” friend!

You can catch the FULL VIDEO of my interview with Ken on YouTube where we also discuss social audio and social media best practices! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6PU_IDU9iA&t=27s

Here are some links to topics discussed:

NATPE’s July 14th “ContentCast” Conference 

David Berkowitz’s Serial Marketers (Start with the newsletter. You’ll thank me.)

Erica Keswin on Rituals (Of course I’m going to point you to my podcast episode with her!)

Susan McPherson’s book, The Lost Art of Connecting

And check out PodcastMovement (I’ll be doing a virtual preso at the August event on B2B podcasting, but read their daily newsletter for great scoop.
If you found this helpful, or liked any of my Insider Interviews episodes, feel free to “buy me a coffee!”: https://buymeacoffee.com/mossappeal
If I can help you connect YOUR podcast/tv/content dots, or just get started, please reach out to me at podcasts@mossappeal.com

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