On this episode, I speak to Emily Jeffrey-Barrett, founder of Among Equals in the UK, a brand and campaign agency for people who want to make more than *just* money.   Emily shares her journey from working in large advertising agencies to one day realizing that her fear of not starting her own agency became bigger than her fear of actually doing it. That was the day she handed in her notice and jumped head-first into starting Among Equals during a global pandemic, no less. She discusses...

I am thrilled to welcome my friend and former colleague, Creative and Brand Strategist Matt Jones. Matt and I met during his time at Jack Morton where he was Global SVP of Strategy and Creative… and to this day, he is hands down the best, most brilliant, most effective creative strategist I've ever worked with. His career has taken him from the halls of Parliament to the C-Suites of some of the biggest brands in the world, to co-creating a highly successful brand of his own, about which he’s...

On this episode, we’re speaking with Eric Segal, CCO of X&O, which stands for Experts and Officers, a unique creative and strategy company composed of a network of over 100 big thinkers, all formerly associated with top brands and powerhouse agencies. They describe themselves as a CMO’s secret weapon, brought in to solve tough marketing challenges in record time. And the coolest part? They all operate anonymously, known to clients only by their colorful code names. Eric will share...

On the latest episode of the show, we have Christian Lachel, Chief Creative Officer of BRC Imagination Arts, a unique design and production agency that specializes in Brand Homes and Flagships and Cultural Attractions and Museums. If you’ve been to the Johnnie Walker Princes Street Venue in Scotland or the Raiders Stadium Tour in Las Vegas, you’ve likely experienced their work. Christian is here today to talk about how brands can and should use their history to fuel their future. ---...

I’m excited to have Colin Jeffery, CCO of Doner and Co-Founder and CCO of Wolfgang, on the show today for a very interesting and timely discussion. Colin has worked for top agencies all around the world, from his homeland of South Africa to Singapore to the US, so I think it’s fair he’s seen a thing or two. And over the last several years, he’s spotted a distressing trend: advertising professionals falling out of love with advertising and the advertising world and I have to say, I don’t...

On another international episode, Laura Stein, Chief Creative Officer of Bruce Mau Design in Toronto Canada, is here to share 5 things we as creatives can do right now in our work and in our lives to be more sustainable. This cause is near and dear to her heart and something she brings to every project. Spoiler Alert: If you’re a user of Post-It Notes, you might be in for a big surprise. Laura will also explain how her years spent playing in an indie rock outfit led to her career in design....

On today’s show we have Ly Nguyen, Head of Creative at Movement Strategy, the social media agency behind some of the best brand social channels on the inter webs. Ly is here to share how her unique and versatile career path set her up perfectly to deliver on the agency’s social centric approach, as well as some misconceptions about executing effective social media campaigns....

All the way from Thailand, it's Creative Director and Creative Coach Rodd Chant! Rodd and I are kindred spirits who share the same passion for finding the perfect black t -shirt and for helping bring up the next generation of creative directors. I've been following him on LinkedIn for some time and a recent post really caught my eye. Rodd believes that AI will kill all agencies, but it might destroy those that sacrifice senior creative talent in the name of innovation and efficiency. ---...

Gordy Sang and Brian Siedband, Co-Chief Creative Officers and founders of Quality Meats Creative (recently named Ad Age Small Agency of the year!) share the story of their once-fledgling agency that is now exploding by forgoing conventional wisdom, trusting their instincts, maintaining a high standard of work, and fostering a collaborative environment where all disciplines are valued. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/cdconfessions/message Support...

On today’s show we’re talking to the irrepressible Cameron Day, Creative Director and Copywriter extraordinaire and author of Spitting Chiclets, his second book in a trilogy about the triumphs and tragedies of the advertising business. He’ll share his motivation for writing the books and some of the extraordinary lessons he learned from his father, legendary adman Guy Day, the Day in Chiat Day. Cameron has some great stories, including watching dailies for the most famous TV commercial of...

It's the very first edition of Wash-A-Pig Wednesday! Wash-A-Pig is a a unique card game that boosts your creative and advertising skills in a fun, engaging way. On this episode we play the game live with a few unsuspecting victims, er, panelists: Creative Director and creator of Stuff About Advertising Ashley Rutstein, Sell It Great's Pitch Guru Ben Levy and Wash-A-Pig inventor and Creative Director Todd Turner. --- Send in a voice message:...

The brilliant, charming and very funny Sean McBride, Chief Creative Officer of Arnold Worldwide, is here to talk about the resurgence of comedy in advertising, which I’m sure we all witnessed during this year’s Super Bowl. Sean is an expert in this area, overseeing creative for two of the longest running and funniest campaigns in advertising history. I’m talking about his work on Progressive’s iconic Flo and Dr. Rick campaigns, some of my all-time favorite ads! Sean and his team are...

Shlomo Genchin is a kind, generous and supremely talented creative machine! You probably know him from his super popular newsletter and website thecreativemarketer.net where he shares recipes, tools and techniques for writing creative copy, content and ads that help creatives achieve better work more consistently and efficiently. But he also has a day job as Creative Director at Ground Up VC where he helps 45 startups with all their creative and marketing needs. And he believes this...

On today’s podcast, we have chief creative officer of NVE Experience Agency, the talented Shelly Elkins - Adweek Experiential Executive of the Year! And Shelley is here with a big proclamation that brand experience, also known as experiential ,has finally earned a seat at the big kids table and that we’ve entered the era of marketing with experience at the center of mix. As someone who has worked in this world for many years and who has had his heart broken by similar claims I was...

Happy New Year everyone, and welcome to the very first episode of 2024! I'm thrilled to have one of the hottest creative minds in the industry, someone who is breaking all the rules of marketing and advertising, and leading the brand Liquid Death to places few brands ever reach. I'm talking about the creative genius, Andy Pearson, who gives us a peek behind the curtain of how he and his team continue to defy the norms of our business and create work that is truly memorable and ultimately...

Enjoy an in-depth with Mark DePace Chief Creative Officer and Zach Mortensen, the CEO of Ghost Robot. This innovative studio is a one-stop creative powerhouse for top tier clients like Netflix, Google, Peloton, Away, and Airbnb, just to name a few. Ghost Robot stands out as a channel agnostic creative hub, adept at solving complex marketing challenges with a diverse array of solutions from video games and apps to comic books, card games, and even podcasts. Today, we're getting an insider's...

On today’s show, we take a bit of a departure with former copywriter Ben Purkert, author of The Men Can't Be Saved, a wonderful novel set in the world of a branding agency and centered around a narcissistic young copywriter whose world comes crashing down after he gets laid off. While the book is fiction, it’s filled with stories inspired by his time in the industry we can all relate to like ECDs walking around like Golden Gods and overzealous copywriters who live and die over commas. The...

On today's show, creative director Roberto Lastra shares his inspirational origin story as a kid from Mexicali, Mexico, who immigrated to the US during his teens. Pushing through culture shock and language barriers, he went on to work for five of the most famous agencies in the world before founding his own agency, Lovers Not Haters. Along the way, he learned that "The Less You Try To Fit In, The More You Do" and he’s passionate about the idea of bringing your whole self to work....

Lucas Ribeiro and Kazuo Kobo are a dynamic duo of Creative Directors from Brazil, currently residing in New York City, where they work at the legendary McCann NY. They are Cannes Lion-winning creatives who have also taught at the Miami Ad School Brazil and recently published a book in Portuguese, translated as "Principles – 128 Principles for Becoming an Ad Agency Creative." The book is filled with great tools, techniques, and ideas they've developed along their journey. They are here to...

Highdive Advertising has become a go-to shop for top brands looking to make a splash at the Super Bowl. It might have a little to do with the fact that Chade Broude, Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Highdive, sold through his first Super Bowl script one year into his career and has been creating winning spots ever since. Today, he’s opening up his playbook to reveal 4 simple concepts to keep in mind when working on a spot for the big game, including my favorite which is the Two Beer...

Donny Dykowsky is an accomplished musician, composer, songwriter and founder of The Ski Team –  a premiere production, custom music and sonic branding studio out of Jersey City, New Jersey. His work has garnered Lions, Pencils, Clios, Webbys, Sundance Premiers, and is on permanent display at the MOMA. Check out our amazing conversation where he shares some hot tips that Creative Directors can use when working with a composer or custom music producer. --- Send in a voice message:...

Kevin Lynch is an accomplished Copywriter and Creative Director , whose with an incredible career that has taken him across the globe with stops in China and Sweden where he was most recently Creative Director at Oatly. Kevin has always made career decisions by asking: What stories will I be able to tell? and he’s here to share with us his 5 Principles for Finding Success in a non-linear career. --- Send in a voice message:...

Aaron North was recently described as a marketing genius by the master marketing genius Ryan Reynolds for his work as CMO of Mint Mobile. And after our conversation, I would have to second Ryan's assessment. Aaron is here to give us a sneak peek at the multi-agency strategy and workflow that he's perfected to create Mint Mobile's amazing work. Learn more about Aron here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aronnorth/ --- Send in a voice message:...

Brett Essman is a Creative Director extraordinaire Brett Essman from ad agency Preston Spire in Minneapolis Minnesota. Brett’s here to talk about being proactive as a Creative Director and looking for the opportunity to create big ideas in every brief And when you boil all that down, what he’s really describing is this idea of not becoming complacent but pushing yourself to go above and beyond. It’s about the grit and perseverance you need to get to do the work that makes you feel fulfilled....