28 – U.N.N.A.M.E.D.: strategy is a map, not a shortcut

It’s easy to be cynical about the state of branding, but Ragged Edge founder Max Ottignon definitely isn’t. After 20 years running an agency he’s more optimistic than ever about what great branding can achieve, and the need for the kind of emotional connection it sparks.

After selling to Twitter in 2021, Halli Thorleifsson thought his agency days were over. But he’s back, he’s running his studio Ueno again, and he’s powered by a fresh surge of enthusiasm for the digital space. We spoke about why he tells brands not to hire him, what companies actually need from digital agencies, and how being at Twitter changed his perspective.

Branding is about feeling out the terrain, not planting a flag, according to Nikita Walia, who joins us to talk about getting brand strategy out of the PDF and into the real world.

The startup world moves fast, thinks different, and breaks things. But when it comes to creativity, the old agency playbook doesn't always apply, says our latest podcast guest Brian Wakabayashi, Head of Brand at WestCap’s internal creative studio CōLab.

Hard truths about building brand community: it’s difficult, it’s time-consuming, and it requires enormous commitment. But the brands that get it right will flourish. For the latest episode of our podcast, we chatted with Culture Defined founder Viktoria Wyckman about what community actually means, and embracing a slower approach to creative work.

Albert Hill, consultant and co-founder of much-admired estate agency The Modern House, discusses why a more instinctive, experimental kind of branding could be key to beating the algorithm.

Victoire Cogevina Reynal, co-CEO at club ownership group Mercury/13, sets out her mission for the business (no less than the emancipation of women’s football teams around the world), and discusses why branding and creativity are at the absolute core of Mercury/13’s big ambitions.

Jono Holt, founder of creative agency Otherway, discusses whether anyone still loves the 60-second ad format, and how short-form can be a shortcut for brands that want to get to the heart of culture.

Tim Huelskamp, co-founder and CEO of knowledge company 1440, on using a very old format to build a very modern media brand – and how customer stories helped grow the business from 78 subscribers to millions.

Arin Delaney, co-founder of copywriting studio Fonzie, discusses the magical potential of a great name, including its far-reaching power as a marketing tool and the studio’s ‘spiritual’ and ‘ethereal’ approach to naming brands and products.