Any Insights Yet? with Chris Kocek

• How Comedy and Cultural Sparks Drive Creativity with Tara Lawall at Rethink

  Tara Lawall has worked at some of the biggest agencies in the world, earned a Cannes Titanium Lion, and her work has even landed a spot in MoMA’s permanent collection, but her sharpest insights might trace back to a comedy class she took at Miami Ad School.Today, Tara is Chief Creative Officer and Partner at Rethink’s New York office, and in this interview, Tara shares how her team uncovers powerful truths hidden in everyday behavior — something they call cultural sparks at Rethink — and how those truths have led to some of the industry’s most buzzworthy campaigns.Some of my favorite aha moments from our conversation include:The unique “trauma therapy” process Rethink uses to build client relationships that leads to more effective workSome aha moments around a spicy but not too spicy Doritos campaign with Walton GogginsThe creative challenges of finding the perfect soundtrack for different street corners in LA, London, and New York with Epidemic SoundThe brand love campaign Rethink developed for Mac n’ CheeseThe Philly slang term that works in literally any sentenceImportant life lessons Tara learned growing up in her dad’s delicatessen and pastry shop Show Notes:Below are links to inspiring ideas that came up during our conversation.Books:Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth GilbertA Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick RubinAbundance by Ezra KleinCampaigns:Doritos: A Spicy but Not Too Spicy PlumberEpidemic Sound: A Sound for Every FeelingHeineken Pub Succession

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• Building Social-First Brands with Jason Mitchell, CEO of Movement

  When Jason Mitchell realized his college professors were still teaching TV-first strategies while every student in the room was glued to Facebook, he saw an opportunity. That opportunity was the beginning of Movement, a social-first agency that has done award-winning work for brands like the NBA, Netflix, Amazon Prime, and more.In this episode, Jason shares the early bets and strategic philosophies that have helped Movement grow from a dorm-room idea into one of the most recognized social-first agencies in the industry. We explore what it means to put social at the center of a campaign rather than treat it as an add-on, and why the best ideas often begin with strategic social listening.Some of my favorite aha moments from our conversation include:How Jason found his way into the journalism and advertising program at University of Colorado despite having terrible gradesHow social listening led to a viral campaign (and a real arrest) for Netflix’s Unsolved MysteriesWhy Klarna’s biggest brand barrier in the U.S. wasn’t competition, but disbelief over their core value propJason’s secrets for setting up a great social listening systemHow Jason would rebrand the movie-going experience to help people rekindle their love of cinema in an era of social mediaShow Notes:Below are links to inspiring ideas that came up during our conversation.Books:Turn the Ship Around by L. David Marquet Campaigns & Videos:Klarna: What’s the Catch Campaign with Bretman RockSo Many Dicks Campaign Case Study - e.l.f. BeautyUnsolved Mysteries Shorty Awards Case Study

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• Making Boring Briefs Better with Ashley Rutstein, Copywriter, Influencer, and Creator of Stuff About Advertising

  How do you help strategists transform boring briefs into better briefs so that creatives can do what they do best?That’s just one of many questions I ask Ashley Rutstein during our interview.Ashley is a copywriter-creative director, an Adweek Creative 100, and the founder of Stuff About Advertising - a multiplatform channel with hundreds of thousands of followers, where Ashley covers a wide range of topics, including insights, effective brainstorming techniques, and brilliant movie marketing activations.I first discovered Ashley because of her Weekly Advertising Roundup videos, where she highlights and dissects advertising wins and fails from the week in advertising. She’s been doing these roundups every week (or almost every week) for the past four years, so I thought it would interesting to learn what patterns she’s discovered about great (and bad) advertising, and how it has helped her with her own creative work. Some of my favorite aha moments from our conversation include:The awkward middle school moment that led to Ashley’s fascination with blind spots The insight that led to a refreshingly honest addiction recovery campaignHow Ashley and her team helped Zespri yellow kiwis get more attention in the USThe Discover Card commercial that has made Ashley consider getting a tattooThe methods and questions behind her “unhinged concept” videos for brands like Crocs and PoppiAshley’s advice for brands who are trying to gain more traction on TikTok and YouTubeShow Notes:Below are links to inspiring ideas that came up during our conversation.Books:Fourth Wing by Rebecca YarrosThe Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson Videos:Unhinged Concepts: Ideas for PoppiDr. Barlow: Intro to African American StudiesSinners TrailerCampaigns:Face it Together (Addiction Recovery Center): Day OneDr. Barlow: Netflix Black History MonthDiscover Card: Frog ProtectionSurreal Cereal: Fake Celebrity

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• Seeking Confessions, Not Just Observations with Mark Pollard, Author of Strategy Is Your Words

  What’s the difference between a good observation and a real insight? According to Mark Pollard, one of the most sought-after strategy consultants and trainers in the industry, it often comes down to whether someone’s willing to confess something they’ve never said out loud before.As an Australian strategist, Mark brings a different voice to the podcast - literally and figuratively.  You’ll notice from his very first line, he doesn’t mince words and he’s not afraid to call a spade a spade. Maybe it’s the Aussie accent that allows him to be so bold. Or maybe it’s because he’s been doing strategy for so long that he just knows how to cut through all the bullshit and get to the heart of a situation. Mark has been in the agency world since he was 19 and he’s worked with a wide variety of agencies, including Big Spaceship, Leo Burnett NY, Edelman NY, and Ogilvy, just to name a few. His client roster is equally as impressive, working with brands like Audi, Hilton, Netflix, The Economist, Facebook, Electronic Arts, and more.In this episode, Mark takes a break from his global strategy training tour to talk about the messy, awkward, and deeply human side of strategy.Some of my favorite aha moments from our conversation include:The difference between loud and quiet questions when interviewing peopleHow to highlight problems and challenge assumptions without pissing people offWhy studying a language might actually be better than therapyThe many marketing riddles that are built into US corporate cultureFiguring out which people in the organization are the most useful to talk toSome of Mark’s favorite comedians and what he’s learned from themShow Notes:Below are links to inspiring ideas that came up during our conversation.Books:The Innovators Dilemma by Clayton M. ChristensenCampaigns:Steal Banksy: An Australian Hotel Chain Challenges Guests to Steal ArtComedians:Anthony Jeselnik Comedy Special - CaligulaJim Jeffries - The Jim Jeffries ShowSebastian Maniscalco - Aren’t You Embarrassed?Videos & Shows:Why The Loudest Caribbean City Is Also The Most Creative - Santo Domingo, The Dominican Republic 🇩🇴Weak Hero Trailer (Netflix)Friends & Neighbors Trailer (Apple TV)

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• Feral Intelligence in a Data-Driven World with Kate Rush Sheehy, Chief Strategy Officer at GSD&M

  Where do the best insights come from? For Kate Rush Sheehy, Chief Strategy Officer at GSD&M, it’s not always based on what people say or even what they do. Sometimes, it’s about what they don’t say or what they don’t do in certain situations.Sometimes, it’s about having a sixth sense or some feral intelligence.In this episode, Kate shares her unique approach to uncovering brand-defining insights, from analyzing who shows up to a focus group (and who doesn’t), to asking clients the kinds of questions most agencies shy away from.We explore the social-first strategy that helped Crocs become a Gen Z phenomenon and the cultural nuance behind Corona’s “La Playa Awaits.”Some of my favorite aha moments from our conversation include:How Kate builds bridges between performance and brand marketingThe social-first shift that helped Crocs go from cringe to cultural iconThe difference between Jibbitz, Fibbitz, and “ugly shoe” theoryHow a deep dive into Mexican X (aka Twitter) led to Corona’s new creative directionThe AI technique Kate’s team uses to pressure-test strategic ideas before they present strategic and creative workSome valuable lessons Kate learned about human nature by working in restaurants and retailShow Notes:Below are links to inspiring ideas that came up during our conversation.Books:Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros Who Knew? by Barry DillerCampaigns & Videos:Dept. of Veterans Affairs (work in partnership with the Ad Council: The Question)Southwest Airlines: That’s a Big FlexCorona: La Playa Awaits

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