Join James Kuczynski, Duolingo's Creative Director, and Dan Salkey, founding partner at Small World, as they dive into building entertaining brands. They discuss the rise and surprising 'death' of Duolingo's beloved mascot, Duo, and the creative autonomy that fuels their success. Discover how AI is revolutionizing language learning and why engaging content is crucial for brand loyalty. With insights from their recent SXSW panel, learn the traits of the most entertaining brands and how to apply them to your own marketing strategy!
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insights INSIGHT
Duo's Mascot Evolution
Duo, the green owl mascot, evolved from a wise motivator to a digital character with personality and passive-aggressive reminders.
This mascot became iconic, motivating learners and generating viral social media engagement.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Killing Duo Mascot Sparks Buzz
Duolingo decided to 'kill' Duo, the mascot, with just three days planning to maximize product impact.
The campaign sparked massive organic engagement including via social creators and a whodunit storyline around the cause of death.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Duolingo's Strategic Partnerships
Duolingo partnered with Game of Thrones and Netflix's Squid Game to teach fictional languages and connect with fans.
These partnerships leveraged popular fandoms, boosting language learning interest and brand reach.
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Today, I’m joined by James Kuczynski, Creative Director at Duolingo, and Dan Salkey, Founding Partner at Small World, for a conversation on how to build truly entertaining brands.
Fresh off their SXSW panel titled "Entertain or Die", named after a report by Small World, we explore how Duolingo has built such a standout brand, particularly through the rise (and death...) of their iconic mascot, Duo.
In the first half of the episode, I chat with James about Duolingo’s brand success, why they decided to "kill off" their beloved mascot, and how giving creative autonomy to their team has been key to their growth. In the second half, I speak with Dan about the most entertaining brands in the world today—and the specific traits you can apply to make your own brand more entertaining.
00:00 - Start 00:47 - Part 1: James Kuczynski from Duolingo 01:22 - James’ background in marketing 03:23 - How James joined Duolingo 04:18 - What is Duolingo 06:34 - How Duolingo has used gamification to help people learn languages 09:47 - How is AI enhancing Duolingo? 11:20 - Is AI a threat to Duolingo? 12:13 - Why Duolingo created “Duo”, their mascot 15:47 - How the Duolingo owl evolved 17:56 - Duolingo’s April fools plans 20:00 - Why Duolingo killed off their mascot 23:57 - The results of Duo killing their mascot 25:08 - How partnerships have played a role in the success of Duolingo 28:02 - How Duo is bigger than A-list celebrities 29:26 - How Duolingo built such a huge social media following 32:08 - The importance of being in-house for growing Duolingo 33:17 - How Duolingo hires social media talent 34:34 - The thing that makes Duolingo stand out 36:32 - Part 2: Dan Salkey from Small World 37:15 - Why Small World created the Entertain or Die report 38:57 - How they identified the most entertaining brands on the planet 39:30 - What brands are the most entertaining? 40:41 - Why the most boring categories have most space to innovate 42:35 - The entertainment gap 44:07 - How can brands be more entertaining? 49:54 - Final advice on how brands can be more entertaining
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