Behavioral science secrets behind top brands

Send us Fan MailIn this episode, Richard Shotton joins host Jason Mudd to discuss the behavioral science behind some of the world’s most successful brands and how to apply those principles in marketing and PR. Meet our guest:Our guest this episode is Richard Shotton, founder of Astroten. Richard is a behavioral scientist and best-selling author of “The Choice Factory,” “The Illusion of Choice,” and “Hacking the Human Mind.” He specializes in applying behavioral science to marketing and works with global brands to solve real-world challenges.Five things you’ll learn from this episode:1. Why what people say influences them vs. what actually drives behavior2. How “effort storytelling” can increase perceived product value3. Why simplicity in messaging increases perceived intelligence and trust4. How timing and “fresh start” moments influence behavior change5. Why social proof remains one of the strongest drivers of decision-making Quotables“Behavioral science is what people say influences them and what actually influences them. They are wildly different.” — Richard Shotton“If you ever need someone to make a really big change in their life, don't target them randomly.” — Richard Shotton“The more effort that goes into something, the better it is. People have got that as a rule of thumb in their head. And the interesting thing is, the rule of thumb takes on a life of its own.” — Richard Shotton“If you want to convey strong brand values, the argument from Oppenheimer is to speak in a simple, clear way.” — Richard Shotton“The simplest answer is usually the best answer. If it’s focused on one thing, it's clear, easy to digest.” — Jason MuddIf you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to share it with a colleague or friend. You may also support us through Buy Me a Coffee or by leaving us a quick podcast review.More About Richard ShottonRichard Shotton is a behavioral scientist and founder of Astroten. He is a best-selling author of three books, including “The Choice Factory” and “The Illusion of Choice.” His latest book, “Hacking the Human Mind,” explores the behavioral science underpinning the success of 17 leading brands. He specializes in applying behavioral science to marketing, helping brands like Google solve real-world challenges through consultancy, copywriting, and training.Guest’s contact info and resources:@rshotton on XRichard Shotton on LinkedInAstroten’s websiteConsumer Behavior Lab website”Hacking the Human Mind” bookAdditional Resources:Earned authority + emotional resonance = brand winsSupport the showOn Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

Send us Fan MailIn this episode, Carly Roszkowski joins host Jason Mudd to discuss ageism in the workplace, how it affects job seekers over 50, hiring bias, and strategies for multigenerational teams.Tune in to learn more!Meet Our Guest:Our guest on this episode is Carly Roszkowski, vice president of financial resilience at AARP. She leads strategy and outcomes within AARP’s Work and Jobs and Financial Resilience initiatives, helping individuals over 50 strengthen their competitiveness in the labor market and access meaningful employment opportunities. Carly also works to eliminate age discrimination and promote inclusive hiring practices across organizations.Five things you’ll learn from this episode:1. How ageism in the workplace impacts job seekers and employees over 50 years old2. The biggest challenges experienced professionals face when seeking new opportunities3. How department leaders can effectively support and manage multigenerational teams4. Best practices hiring managers can use to better support experienced talent5. Practical ways employees and coworkers can help create a safe, inclusive, and high-performing workplaceQuotables“AARP is fighting every day to end age discrimination in the workplace and educate consumers, knowing their rights, as well as educating employers on the value that older workers bring to an organization.” — Carly Roszkowski“Networking and knowing someone is still a really great way to start your job search.” — Carly Roszkowski“60% of workers 50 and older have said that they would love to learn new skills for their job or on the job.” — Carly Roszkowski“Research shows that there's increased innovation, increased creativity, better problem solving when you have a mix of ages, mix of different backgrounds, or from different points of view.” — Carly Roszkowski“Mirror the language; reflect the terminology that you see in the job description in your application.” — Jason MuddIf you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to share it with a colleague or friend. You may also support us through Buy Me a Coffee or by leaving us a quick podcast review.Guest’s contact info and resources:Carly Roszkowski on LinkedInAARP websiteAARP Works and Jobs Resources AARP Employer Resource CenterOlder Workers are Building Tech Skills ResearchAdditional Resources:How to calculate the true cost of hiring an employeeListen to more episodes of the On Top of PR with Jason Mudd podcast.Find out more about Axia Public RelationSupport the showOn Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

Send us Fan MailIn this episode, Muck Rack CEO Greg Galant joins host Jason Mudd to discuss how embedded AI is transforming PR and communications workflows.Tune in to learn more!Meet Our Guest:Our episode guest is Greg Galant, CEO and cofounder at Muck Rack. A returning guest on On Top of PR, he is a leading voice at the crossroads of PR, technology, and media. Greg is also recognized as an early champion of generative engine optimization, shaping the emerging frontier of brand visibility in an AI-driven world.Five things you’ll learn from this episode:Why embedded AI is more effective than standalone assistants in PR workflowsHow AI preserves messaging consistency and insight accuracy across teamsWays to make PR teams more adaptable in real time using AIHow AI-powered media intelligence predicts trends and shifts in reputationStrategies to integrate AI into every stage of PR: discovery, outreach, monitoring, and reporting Quotables“Being able to take advantage of AI is knowing what everyone's doing right now and figuring out which stages of our workflow can benefit from AI and having the right tooling to do that.” — @Greg Galant“The PR profession's been doing generative engine optimization even before generative AI came to be because when these AI systems were built, they were all trained on news data.” — @Greg Galant“The work we did a year ago or two years ago is even more valuable today than it was then.” — @Greg Galant“There's two big buckets. One is: How does AI influence PR, and how does PR influence AI?” — @Greg Galant“We have to look at this from a macro and a micro level and keep testing and tweaking what we're doing and improving upon it.” — @Jason MuddIf you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to share it with a colleague or friend. You may also support us through Buy Me a Coffee or by leaving us a quick podcast review.Guest’s contact info and resources:@gregory on X@gregory on InstagramGregory Galant on LinkedInMuck Rack websiteMuck Rack DailyGenerative Pulse by Muck RackThe State of Journalism and PR 2022 reports with Greg GalantIf you like this episode, you're going to love this:95% of AI citations come from PR contentHow generative AI uses earned media coverage (fueling PR’s resurgence)Getting more media coverage by making journalists’ lives easierThe PR playbook for getting recommended by AI with UnusuaSupport the showOn Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

Send us Fan MailIn this solocast, On Top of PR host Jason Mudd dives into why most press releases fail and how to craft news releases that capture attention, clicks, and engagement.Five things you’ll learn from this episode:1. Five reasons your news release isn’t getting coverage2. Understanding the move from “press releases” to news releases3. Common mistakes that cause press releases to be ignored4. How to write headlines and content that attract attention and clicks5. Adopting an audience-first mindset to make your news releases effective Quotables“A journalist or reader is asking, ‘Why should I care?’ ‘Why now?’ and ‘Why does this matter now?’ And if you don't answer that in the first few lines of your pitch or your news release, you lose that audience.” — @jasonmudd9“Safe content doesn't get shared; it gets ignored.” — @jasonmudd9“Your content now competes in search, AI, and social feeds. Structure matters. You need clear headlines, direct language, and answer-driven content.” — @jasonmudd9“Shift your mindset from ‘What do we want to announce?’ to ‘What would someone care [about], click, and share?’ Define your audience, validate your angle with data, and write like a journalist.” — @jasonmudd9“Coverage isn't requested; it's earned. It starts with how you think about the story before writing.” — @jasonmudd9If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to share it with a colleague or friend. You may also support us through Buy Me a Coffee or by leaving us a quick podcast review.Guest’s contact info and resources:Jason Mudd on XJason Mudd on LinkedInListen to more episodes of the On Top of PR podcast.Find out more about Axia Public Relations.Axia Public Relations resources1:1 consultations and training with Axia10 2026 press release tips marketers aren’t going to likeAdditional Resources:What's the difference between press releases and public relations?What’s the difference between newswire and press release distribution wire agencies?How press releases are powering generative engine optimization and answer engine optimization3 elements of an effective news releaseSupport the showOn Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

Send us Fan MailIn this episode, Microsoft CCO Frank Shaw joins host Jason Mudd to discuss how AI is reshaping PR workflows, strategy, and corporate communications.Tune in to learn more!Meet Our Guest:Our episode guest is Frank X. Shaw, chief communications officer at Microsoft. Frank leads global communications strategy, product PR, media and analyst relations, executive and employee communications, and global agency partnerships. He shares insights on how communicators can leverage AI to focus on high-value work and improve efficiency.Five things you’ll learn from this episode:1. How to identify high-value PR work and apply AI to repetitive tasks2. Practical AI applications for media monitoring, analyst engagement, and internal communications3. How autonomous AI agents can enhance predictive insights for communications teams4. The mindset needed to embrace AI tools without fear of job loss5. How efficiency gained through AI can drive growth rather than just cost-cuttingQuotables“It's not like you can outsource your judgment, but you can augment it.” — Frank Shaw“I don't look at all this technology as something that is going to cut costs. It's going to allow us to do the things that are in front of us that we want to do that we can't get to right now because we don't have the resources and the time.” — Frank Shaw“The mindset has to be one of experimentation, curiosity, trying new things, being willing to fail, at some, grabbing every tool that comes out there and thinking about how we can apply it to the work that we do. “ — Frank Shaw“I think everybody should be experimenting with stuff at home and at work because it's moving really fast, and the way you stay on top of it is just to play.” — Frank Shaw“People say the corporate communication profession has changed over the years. And my argument is it really hasn't changed. We just have better tools. But those same tools require us to be even better practitioners, more strategically minded.” — Jason MuddIf you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to share it with a colleague or friend. You may also support us through Buy Me a Coffee or by leaving us a quick podcast review.Guest’s contact info and resources:Frank X. Shaw on LinkedInMicrosoft websiteLinkedIn Learning: Communicator’s Guide to AI Tools and Mindsets for Modern PR and Media courseAdditional Resources:Axia’s AI Relations serviceMicrosoft Copilot StudioMicrosoft BingGet to Know Microsoft EdgeSupport the showOn Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Brandon Watts joins host Jason Mudd to discuss how to prioritize audience and authenticity in media-first PR during the AI era.Tune in to learn more! Meet Our Guest:Our episode guest is Brandon Watts, director of PR and communications at Storyblok. With 20-plus years in shaping narratives for startups and enterprise tech, Brandon brings insights from both the media and PR sides. He’s also contributed to Fast Company, Entrepreneur, and Adweek.Five things you’ll learn from this episode:1. How to adopt a media-first approach in PR during the AI era2. Why quality matters more than quantity when pitching stories3. How to put the audience before your PR agenda4. The power of exclusives and timings5. Tips for pitching original, AI-proof storiesQuotables“The biggest challenge here is when we think of what we're trying to tell, the story we're trying to tell, it's usually always framed through our lens. What do we have to say? What benefit do we get from it? That's a lot of we, me — a lot of self-service focus. So we have to reframe this. If it's media first, it means that it's really media first.” — Brandon Watts“Communication with your pitch is so critical because that's really what helps you to sell it, to make it more broad in terms of who's going to want to listen to that and why.” — Brandon Watts“You have to create the stories that AI can't. And all of that is due to your personal experience, what your company's experiencing, what your team is experiencing, and your customers' lived experiences that cannot be hallucinated, that cannot be made up. That's authenticity.” — Brandon Watts“We use AI just in the right way to help you get more power out of your content creation. So you just have to take that extra bit of time to understand that you can't just prompt and run. You've got to give it context and tweak.” — Brandon Watts“Garbage in, garbage out. If you put bad input into a generative AI app, you're going to get bad output from it.” — Jason MuddIf you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to share it with a colleague or friend. You may also support us through Buy Me a Coffee or by leaving us a quick podcast review.Guest’s contact info and resources:Brandon Watts on LinkedInStoryblok websiteHow to stay ahead of AI in communication and marketingListen to more episodes of the On Top of PR with Jason Mudd podcast.Find out more about Axia Public Relations.Additional Resources:Axia’s AI ServiceAI in PR: Transforming communication straSupport the showOn Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

Send us Fan MailIn this episode, Brett Farmiloe joins host Jason Mudd to discuss the comeback of HARO and smarter PR pitching. Tune in to learn more! Meet Our Guest:Our episode guest is Brett Farmiloe, founder and CEO at Help a Reporter Out (HARO). Brett has scaled startups and worked with global brands, and he helps professionals share their expertise online. His mission is to make knowledge more accessible and human.Five things you’ll learn from this episode: 1. Why HARO was revived and what’s changed since its launch2. How journalist profiles and “Open to Write” signals improve pitch success3. Tips for better pitches with fewer blasts to stand out to reporters4. How HARO is expanding to support journalists beyond sourcing experts5. How PR pros can measure expert authority instead of vanity placements in the AI era More About Brett FarmiloeBrett Farmiloe is the CEO of Help a Reporter Out (HARO), a platform connecting journalists with sources to create expert-powered content. An entrepreneur and author, Brett has scaled startups, collaborated with global brands, and helped thousands of professionals share their expertise. His mission is to make knowledge more accessible and human online.Quotables“Our goal at the end of the day is to connect journalists with great sources for stories.” — Brett Farmiloe“When sources come to us and they're like, ‘What do I do here? How do I be helpful?’ It's really in the HARO acronym: It's be Helpful, be Authentic, be Relevant, and be On time.” — Brett Farmiloe“Be authentic; don't just use 100% AI, and add your own human expertise to things.” — Brett Farmiloe“What comes around, goes around, and I really think that just being helpful and friendly and nice to people goes a long way.” — Jason MuddIf you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to share it with a colleague or friend. You may also support us through Buy Me a Coffee or by leaving us a quick podcast review.Guest’s contact info and resources:@BrettFarmiloe on XBrett Farmiloe on LinkedInHelp a Reporter Out websiteFeatured websiteListen to more episodes of the On Top of PR with Jason Mudd podcast.Find out more about Axia Public Relations.Additional Resources:6 tips for using HARO to pitch your storyHARO Shifts to Connectively: What does this mean for PR professionals?ASupport the showOn Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

Send us Fan MailIn this episode, Martin Waxman joins host Jason Mudd to discuss AI’s impact on communications and marketing, why training matters, and how to avoid “AI slop” by pairing AI with real expertise.Meet Our Guest:Our episode guest is Martin Waxman, LinkedIn Learning instructor, adjunct professor at the York Schulich School of Business, and associate director of the Future of Marketing Institute. He writes an AI and digital marketing trends newsletter, delivers hands-on generative AI training workshops, and conducts AI research.Five things you’ll learn from this episode:1. Why using AI only to offload tasks can lower quality and why thinking first matters2. What Martin predicted correctly about AI and what surprised him about its rapid adoption3. How to move beyond basic content generation to strategy and analytics4. Why subject-matter expertise is critical when using AI for insights and data5. How leaders can manage hype, train teams, and stay ethical as AI evolvesQuotables“Use their brains first so they can start to push themselves and then get AI tools to push them even farther.” — Martin Waxman“We have to prompt AI, but we also have to get AI to prompt us to think about things from a different perspective.” — Martin Waxman“You don't have to go at the pace of AI development, which is really fast, but you need to go at a much faster pace than we as communicators have been used to using.” — Martin Waxman“There's a new term called FOMO, fear of becoming obsolete, which is really real. Because we don't know what we need to learn to do our job successfully. So managing The hype is job number one, figuring out what's new, when it's going to start affecting us, and what can we do to prepare along the way.” — Martin Waxman“AI will take your job if you're the master and commander of it.” — Jason MuddIf you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to share it with a colleague or friend. You may also support us through Buy Me a Coffee or by leaving us a quick podcast review.More About Martin WaxmanMartin Waxman writes a popular AI and digital marketing trends newsletter, delivers hands-on generative AI training workshops, and conducts AI research. He’s a LinkedIn Learning instructor, adjunct professor at the York Schulich School of Business, and associate director of the Future of Marketing Institute.Guest’s contact info and resources:@martinwaxman on X@martinwaxman on InstagramMartin Waxman on FacebookMartin Waxman on LinkedInFuture of Marketing InstituteThe Neuron newsletterAxios AI newsletterLinkedIn Learning course: Using Generative AI in Public RelaSupport the showOn Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

Send us Fan MailIn this solocast, On Top of PR host Jason Mudd discusses the ethical and practical differences between exclusives, advances, and embargoes and how to use them correctly in media relations.Tune in to learn more!Five things you’ll learn from this episode:1. The clear differences between exclusives, advances, and embargoes2. The most common PR mistakes that quietly damage credibility3. Why advances don’t restrict publication unless you explicitly say so4. How to structure ethical exclusives without limiting coverage5. Practical scripts you can use for exclusives, advances, and embargoesQuotables“If you promise a national consumer outlet an exclusive and then you pitch another national consumer outlet the same story, you broke your promise.” — @jasonmudd9“Reporters don't forget. They may confront you; they may not. They may complain; they may not. But they will remember, so always be honest and ethical in all of your communication.” — @jasonmudd9“Embargoes work best when your organization has a plan for what happens if the embargo breaks. If you want to use embargoes correctly, you must be precise.” — @jasonmudd9“This is a critical lesson: Don't rely on terminology alone. Don't assume the other party defines the offer the same way you do.” — @jasonmudd9“Media relations is not about getting coverage. Media relations is about earning trust, earning credibility, and building relationships that last.” — @jasonmudd9“If your goal is first-class media relations, the standard is simple. Say what you mean, mean what you say, deliver what you promise.” — @jasonmudd9If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to share it with a colleague or friend. You may also support us through Buy Me a Coffee or by leaving us a quick podcast review.Contact info and resources:Jason Mudd on XJason Mudd on LinkedInAxia Public Relations website Axia Public Relations resources1:1 consultations and training with AxiaIf you like this episode, you're going to love this:What journalists want from your media pitch with Jason Mudd, Axia Public RelationsCommon mistakes publicly traded companies make when working with the news mediaGetting More Media Coverage by Making Journalists’ Lives EasierSupport the showOn Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

Send us Fan MailIn this episode, PRSA CEO Matthew Marcial joins host Jason Mudd to discuss the ethical use of AI in PR and key insights for communicators.Tune in to learn more!Meet our guest:Our episode guest is Matthew Marcial, CEO of the Public Relations Society of America. He leads PRSA’s strategic priorities, focusing on advancing the profession and guiding communicators through emerging challenges, including the ethical use of artificial intelligence.Five things you’ll learn from this episode:1. The biggest ethical risks with generative AI in PR2. The “Promise and Pitfalls” principles every PR team should adopt 3. How smart PR teams are using AI without crossing ethical lines4. PRSA’s role in helping professionals navigate the fast-changing AI landscape5. Tips for rising PR pros who want to lead the profession forwardQuotables“As a leader, you really need to be able to set clear expectations with your team around what the role of AI is and what it is for your organization.” — Matthew Marcial“Being comfortable with that, sharing, and training across your teams is really going to help leverage that (AI) insight and expertise.” — Matthew Marcial“I think that as a communicator, putting out anything that compromises your reputation is going to be a risk.” — Matthew Marcial“We are taking a bolder voice on issues that impact our members, the industry, and the profession.” — Matthew Marcial“The best way to learn is through trial and error.” — Jason MuddIf you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to share it with a colleague or friend. You may also support us through Buy Me a Coffee or by leaving us a quick podcast review.More about Matthew MarcialMatthew Marcial, CAE, CMP, is the CEO of the Public Relations Society of America, the nation’s leading organization for public relations and communications professionals. Appointed in March 2025, he leads PRSA’s strategic priorities, focusing on advancing the profession, supporting member growth, and navigating emerging challenges, such as the ethical use of artificial intelligence. With more than 20 years of association leadership experience, Matthew is a frequent speaker on ethical leadership and professional development and has recently led sessions across PRSA’s regional districts on the organization’s AI Ethics Guide for PR professionals.Guest’s contact info and resources:Matthew Marcial on LinkedInPRSA websitePRSA’s Promise and Pitfalls: Ethical AI GuidePRSA’s DEI ToolkitPRSA’s Membership | Promo Code for Listeners: PRPROD25Axia’s PR ScholarsSupport the showOn Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.