If you had to choose between playing Battleship with a cheat sheet or Whac-a-Mole blindfolded, which would you pick? Too often, marketing feels like the latter—reactive, scattered, and guesswork-driven. A brand assessment or marketing assessment gives you a cheat sheet: […]
In episode 93 of Brand Story, we sit down with John McNeil, Founder & CEO of John McNeil Studio, for a candid conversation about what it really means to build a brand. From his early days in traditional agencies to pioneering the studio model, John shares how his team helps brands move beyond deliverables and a system where everything from strategy to media to brand experience works together.
Once upon a time, SEO was simple. You wrote something good. It ranked. People clicked. The internet rewarded your effort. That era is over. Welcome to the era of zero-click internet, where people still search, but your content doesn’t get […]
In episode 92 of Brand Story, we welcome back Rand Fishkin, Cofounder & CEO of SparkToro, to talk about brand vs. algorithm, the value of real audience research, and the dangers of chasing attention without purpose. He shares the story behind SparkToro, why so many marketers don’t actually know their audience, and how optimizing for vanity metrics can lead you astray.
In today’s digital landscape, marketers are being asked to do more with less—less clarity, less control, and often, less trust in what’s actually working. To explore this shift, we sat down with Rand Fishkin, Cofounder & CEO of SparkToro, to unpack what’s changing, what’s still true, and what marketers need to relearn to build brands that actually resonate. From zero-click search to the surprising power of so-called “vanity metrics,” this episode challenges the way we think about digital success and makes the case for more thoughtful, audience-first marketing.