Marketing with Wharton's Hip Hop Prof

Tiffany Tsu is currently the advertising and marketing reporter for The New York Times. She holds an MBA and journalism master's degree from Columbia University. She was previously an award-winning California economy reporter at the Los Angeles Times, covering wages, jobs, investment, incentives, trade and more in the Golden State.In this episode, Tiffany sits down with Americus and Barbara, to discuss how in the past the vast majority of brands stayed neutral on political, racial, and other relevant issues as to not detour any existing and potential customers. However, with the recent Black Lives Matter movement we have seen a huge shift as brands position themselves to clearly support and advocate themselves to align with the movement.Talking about what your customers are talking about has prompted brands to take a strong stance on these issues and consumers are paying attention. Americus talks about this pivotal time, and amplified watershed moment where we don't know how consumerism and buying behaviors may change once the Coronavirus pandemic is over. And brands now have this deeper sense of urgency to truly connect with their customers in terms of what they stand for and what is truly important to them.

Kelly Goldsmith is a behavioral scientist who examines consumers’ responses to uncertainty and scarcity, uncovering and explaining seemingly paradoxical effects. She works to demonstrate that resource scarcity can increase consumers’ interest in sustainable products, because scarcity presents a constraint to goal achievement, which can trigger abstract thinking. Kelly is an Associate Professor of Marketing at Vanderbilt University.In this episode she discusses with Americus and Barbara the notion of depletion as we try to sustain major lifestyle changes throughout this pandemic. The idea that when you take consumers and give them any reason or justification to not exert self control and do the hard thing, boom! they latch onto it. The Coronavirus has disrupted our lives in just about every way possible and when so much is uprooted and no longer in our control, we seek to regain that control in any way possible. The panic buying that has resulted from the strong perception of scarcity, the impulse buying to compensate for that scarcity, and the compensatory behaviors we're all experiencing as we try to navigate this new normal.

Mark Gainey is the Chairman and co-founder of Strava which came into conception 13 years ago when he and his business partner Michael Horvath were on a collage rowing team. However, when they graduated, the team aspect, the speed of core, the camaraderie, and the competition were poof! gone. As early as 1995 Mark and Michael had a business plan to create that team atmosphere and experience, but on a global scale.Strava is a passionate and committed team unified by their mission to build the most engaged community of athletes around the world. Their balanced approach of consistently searching for new ways to inspire athletes and make fitness fun, as well as the inclusivity of a team environment that elevates each and every member has allowed them to revolutionize the industry. And they're only getting started. As the Coronavirus continues to change the landscape of the fitness industry more and more people are working out from home or in the great outdoors.What sets Strava apart from the other fitness apps in the industry, is that instead of downloading a piece of technology, you are joining a community and a network of like-minded folks that help hold you accountable and build long term goals. In addition, Strava is able to integrate just about every other app and device that a person might utilize as a part of their fitness journey. The impactful level of interaction is limitless and as more folks share their experience with friends and family the community continues to cultivate and grow.

Fear and intimidation are two synonymous reasons why a lot of people won't join a gym. Not knowing where to start, being unfamiliar with the equipment or proper exercise techniques, and even the "lunks" that throw around weights and grunt loudly, making for a distracting or irksome environment.Planet Fitness provides a unique experience in which anyone can be comfortable. A diverse, judgement free zone where a lasting and active lifestyle can be achieved. With clean spacious facilities, 24-hour access, free fitness training, and all the equipment you need, starting at just $10 a month, it's an incredible deal.Jeremy Tucker, Chief Marketing Officer, explains that because of their judgement free zone and welcoming community, Planet Fitness has become one of the largest and fastest growing franchisors and operators of fitness in the US. And they continue to stay ahead of the game. As the Coronavirus continues to impact the fitness industry, Planet Fitness has introduced United We Move where anyone can tune into Facebook or YouTube for free 20-minute or less workouts you can do in-club or at home. In addition, Teddy's Mask Guide gives you all the tricks and tips for a successful workout while staying safe and wearing your mask.Planet Fitness believes in providing the best, high-quality fitness experience at an affordable cost.

Pam Geist is the Senior Brand Manager at Procter & Gamble, where she has worked across established brands such as Charmin and Bounty, as well as launched new product brands, such as, This is L. Pam pursued a coterminous bachelor's and master's degree program in English at Stanford, and graduated Phi Beta Kappa in Spring of 2009. She then went on to pursue an MBA from Wharton University in 2015, graduating as Palmer Scholar. In her current role as Brand Manager, Pam is charged with leading the growth, business/innovation planning, and brand building across several product brands.In this episode she discusses the stigma's attached to menopause and how it's too often ignored and not prioritized. Kindra, is a thoughtful line of products that aims to bring awareness to the multitude of physical and emotional symptoms that can occur. All of the products are available directly to the consumer without the need for a prescription. The brand has also built a tremendous collaborative and resource community as women nowadays spend nearly a third of their life in menopause.

Americus and Barbara welcome Professor Daniel Korschun to discuss the brandless case study and other brand purpose issues of the day.What Brandless' downfall says about brand building in the digital eraInside the fall of SoftBank-backed startup BrandlessWhy Amazon Wins Where Brandless FailedThe Impostor Syndrome from Luxury ConsumptionBuying expensive stuff doesn’t make us happy. Harvard researchers explain whyAmazon is helping brands build custom text-to-speech voices for their Alexa skillsBuild a unique Brand Voice with Amazon Polly

What began in October 2014 with reading an article about a Columbia University study that linked chocolate consumption with enhanced memory led to a three-year quest to develop delicious, naturally sourced, high-flavanol chocolate that promotes wellness, performance, and achievement.The result is two breakthrough chocolate products, FlavaBars and FlavaMix, which deliver 5X to 9X the plant based cocoa flavanol anti-oxidants of a typical dark chocolate bar.Alan Frost Founder of the company flavanaturals and Beth Lorge VP of Marketing discuss the intricacies of marketing (Segmentation Targeting Positioning and Messaging) healthy chocolate in two product forms: Powder and Bars. There's lots of science behind the clinically testing of cocoa flavanols and the question becomes who is the target? [1] High performance athletes seeking performance benefits or [2] Chocolate Loving consumers who want to not feel guilty? What to focus on? How to do it? And how to do it as a start-up.Listen to this fascinating conversation with Professor Americus Reed!

Americus and Barbara welcome to the program Pauline Brown to discuss her book Aesthetic Intelligence, which focuses on teaching executives and business owners how to use their personalities, preferences and tastes to create a sustainable advantage over their competitors.Pauline graduated with an MBA from the Wharton School in 1995 and has worked for some of the world's most influential brands, including LVMH, Avon and Estee Lauder. She now uses her knowledge to help other types of businesses achieve the same type of success as those brands.

Deloitte has published their Inaugural 2020 Global Marketing Trends Report. The US Head of Deloitte Digital, Anthony Stephan, discusses the rule of 3 and how it affects his thoughts regarding trends in brand purpose with Americus and Barbara.Anthony Stephan has worked with Deloitte since 2005 and uses his passion for the human experience to assist companies with transformations, making them more valuable to employees and consumers. Anthony graduated from Albright College in 1996 with a B.S. in Marketing and Business Administration. Since then, he has continued to assist businesses with strategic initiatives that create value and stronger connections with people and markets, ultimately increasing their earnings.