Do you know what Beyonce, Jesus Christ, and Patagonia have in common?  They all have brands that have shaped the culture that surrounds them.  In today’s branding conversation, I am talking to Dr. Marcus Collins. We talk about what your brand needs to do if you want to fit into a certain cultural framework, and especially if you want to smash it and really forge your own path within the culture.  Today’s guest is Dr. Marcus Collins, he studies cultural contagion and meaning-making to help...

Is there a connection between boudoir photography and branding photography? You bet there is! They both require you to be both vulnerable and confident enough to show up in your own way! Stepping into the spotlight of your own personal brand can be a very empowering activity, and it really does involve empowering yourself with a certain amount of fearlessness to show up as your true self, to bring your personality into it and to just really say here’s who I am, here’s what I stand for and...

Is your brand persuasive? What does that even look like? Do you know what elements your brand needs to have to be persuasive? If you’re not sure then you’re in the right place. Today we’re talking about what persuasion is, what it means, and what branding has to do with your ability to persuade. Today’s guest is Jason Harris, author of the book, the Soulful Art of Persuasion, host of the podcast Soul & Science, and CEO of Mekanism Tune in as we talk about: [00:00] Introductions [02:56]...

Presumably, your brand is supporting an actual business, and that business has offerings, whether it be products or services. But what are those offerings? How do you make sure that they are supporting your brand? And how do you make sure that your brand is supporting them? How do you put together an offer that gets you where you need to go? How do you make sure it is an offer that you can actually sell? Today we're gonna be talking with sales and marketing coach Janine Coombes, who...

On this episode of Chat About Brand, we dive into the world of speaking engagements as a means of building your brand. Our guest, Bri Williams, a speaker coach, shares valuable insights on how to know you are ready to take the stage and take it from something you do occasionally to actually building a sustainable business.  We discuss the importance of having a signature talk, understanding your audience, and picking a topic you're passionate about. We also touch on the symbiotic relationship...

Today we are taking a nice little journey through time as we talk about how brands have leveraged on online presence from Web1 through Web3. I am talking with Benoit Vatere who is the CEO and founder of Mammoth Media, and he is absolutely at the cutting edge of new ways that brands are reaching their people and providing experiences both in the digital world and the physical world, and even somewhere in between. Listen in as we talk about: [2:33] How did brands leverage Web1? What was the...

You can build the best brand in the world, but if nobody hears about it and nobody cares, you don't really have a brand.  So today we're going to talk all about leveraging PR to get your brand out into the market. What does it mean? How can you do it? And we're going to talk about this across the gamut, whether we're talking B2B brands, B2C brands, or even personal brands.  We will talk about different ways to get your brand messaging out there from traditional PR, how PR and marketing can...

This week's topic we are talking about something especially near and dear to my heart, which is how small companies can build strong, amazing brands, just like the big guys while remembering that small can be a superpower. We are specifically focused on how small businesses can gain access to opportunities, tools, skills, and strategies that they may not otherwise be privy to or think of.  I am talking to Erik Huberman CEO of Hawke Media, an agency that brings Fortune 500 company-style...

This week's topic is definitely one that is very relevant to a lot of brands, which is branding a micro-niche. This will be especially relevant if you are  in B2B or tech or something similar. In the case of a micro niche, your audience is hyper-targeted and much smaller in size. This can make designing your branding and marketing more difficult than it would be for larger niches that have thousands or hundreds of thousands in their potential market. Today’s guest is going to show us how she...

Building internal thought leaders is a topic that is frequently overlooked in personal branding. We all know that pretty much every industry has its thought leaders and companies are starting to get wise to realize that they have really smart people who might be the people other people are listening to. Thought leadership is great for the company's reputation, brand loyalty, and recruiting.  Ashley Faus, Director of Integrated Product Marketing at Atlassian discusses why companies need to...

"Brand Sustainability" Here is a term that means different things to different people, different brands, and even different industries. But what is it really and how should your brand respond? Katie Klencheski from SMAKK Studios discusses what brand sustainability is and how brands can make a meaningful impact that resonates with their customers. Listen in to learn: [2:50] How is sustainability defined? [5:21] What is cause-washing and how can companies avoid it? [7:55] What do different...

"Thought Leadership." We've all heard the term. But what exactly does it mean, and who can it benefit? Katie McKiever discusses why thought leadership matters for ALL professionals⏤even those with employers⏤and how we can earn some of it for ourselves. Follow Christine Gritmon on Twitter: @cgritmon and join her each Tuesday for the #ChatAboutBrand Twitter chat Subscribe to the Let's Talk About Brand Newsletter that goes out every Monday to ensure you don't miss a beat! Listen to Let's Talk...

A strong network and a strong personal brand are not the same thing. But they can certainly benefit each other⏤or, if done poorly, damage each other. Beth Granger discusses how crucial the right networking can be to building your personal brand, and how to ensure you're communicating your brand well to new connections, whether in person or online. Follow Christine Gritmon on Twitter: @cgritmon and join her each Tuesday for the #ChatAboutBrand Twitter chat Subscribe to the Let's Talk About...

So much of personal branding involves getting out of our own way. Silencing the doubting voices within us and around us so that we can forge our own path. Surrendering to the greater reality of who we are and what we're meant to do⏤the rest be damned. Transformational coach Kute Blackson has seen the power of surrender to set people free to be their greatest selves. We discuss how surrender is an essential step to bringing greater purpose to our brands⏤and lives. Follow Christine Gritmon on...

No, you don't have to invent something totally brand new and different in order to have an impactful brand...but it certainly doesn't hurt to buck trends and chart your own branding path sometimes! Robin Albin has helped create unique brand positionings and voices in a variety of industries. She discusses how to make sure your brand stands out from the crowd in a memorable way. Follow Christine Gritmon on Twitter: @cgritmon and join her each Tuesday for the #ChatAboutBrand Twitter...

Self-empowerment is, of course, one of the benefits of a strong personal brand⏤but the strongest opt to bring others up along with them. Throughout her varied career, Allison Walsh has always made it a priority to use whatever power she has to empower others in turn. She guides us through some ways to do it and why it matters. Follow Christine Gritmon on Twitter: @cgritmon and join her each Tuesday for the #ChatAboutBrand Twitter chat. Subscribe to the Let's Talk About Brand Newsletter that...

We know how important it is to determine how our brand looks (colors, fonts, even people), speaks (brand "voice"), and feels...but what about how it sounds—literally? What about how it moves? In his work creating multimedia pieces for brands, David O'Hearns has learned the importance of sound and motion in creating and conveying an overall brand impression. We discuss what that means and how to define it. Follow Christine Gritmon on Twitter: @cgritmon and join her each Tuesday for...

What makes your brand worth listening to? It's all about the story your brand is telling—and how. Scott Newman of work x work and On Air Fest discusses the importance of telling your brand story through content, with a focus on podcasting as a uniquely powerful medium. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You don't need a fancy origin story to be "super"—you already are! Dana Bowling tells us how to figure out what makes ordinary ol' you simply MARVEL-ous by figuring out your own superpowers—then wearing them like a badge of honor (or even a cape!). Follow Christine Gritmon on Twitter: @cgritmon and join her each Tuesday for the #ChatAboutBrand Twitter chat. Subscribe to the Let's Talk About Brand Newsletter that goes out every Monday to ensure you don't miss a beat! Listen to Let's Talk About...

"Personal branding" can seem like somewhat murky territory. If only there were some kind of guide you could follow while constructing it... Well, good news! Professor Karen Freberg has boiled down personal branding education down to a clear, easy-to-follow "blueprint." Today, she shares the system she's taught to hundreds of students—and even turned into a personal branding simulation with Stukent! Follow Christine Gritmon on Twitter: @cgritmon and join her each Tuesday for...

Even though we talk about "brand" here every week, it can still seem like a nebulous concept. What is a brand? How do you figure yours out? How do you express it to others? Shelley Röstlund has branding down to a science. Her well-defined system for building brands has helped hundreds—and will hopefully clarify the process for you as well! Follow Christine Gritmon on Twitter: @cgritmon and join her each Tuesday for the #ChatAboutBrand Twitter chat. Subscribe to the Let's Talk About Brand...

We all think we know what a "story" is—but what is a brand story? What elements need to go into it, and what can it do for us? Master "business storyteller" Park Howell gives us his proven structure for coming up with a business story and expressing it in the clearest, most impactful way possible. Follow Christine Gritmon on Twitter: @cgritmon and join her each Tuesday for the #ChatAboutBrand Twitter chat. Subscribe to the Let's Talk About Brand Newsletter that goes out every Monday to ensure...

If you don't have a brand positioning, you won't have a brand for long. But what is brand positioning, and what are some of its most important elements? Todd Irwin of Fazer (not "Frasier," as I erroneously pronounced it at first!) helps brands strategize their brand positioning all the time—as well as how to leverage a tactic he terms "de-positioning." We dive into what all of that means, why it's important, and how to work on it for your own brand. Follow Christine Gritmon on Twitter:...

How can brands build trust—and how has the internet changed that? Chris Brogan has been on the forefront of internet culture, helping brands adjust to building relationships online since the beginning. We discuss managing online reputation, the importance of genuine engagement, the rise of influencer marketing, and the constants of trust-building—both on- and off-line. *** Follow Christine Gritmon on Twitter: @cgritmon and join her each Tuesday for the #ChatAboutBrand Twitter chat Subscribe...

AI art isn't just for bizarro DALL-E experiments—when done deliberately, it can be an incredible tool for creating an endless supply of relevant, on-brand images, to a degree that stock sites cannot even begin to touch. Branding expert Jenna Soard explains why AI art is such a powerful tool for your brand, how to use it strategically, and what further technology is on the horizon. *** Follow Christine Gritmon on Twitter: @cgritmon and join her each Tuesday for the #ChatAboutBrand Twitter...