Omar Al-Omran, the public face of Thmanyah and co-host of Alfajr Podcast, dives into the evolving media landscape in Saudi Arabia. He discusses the ambitious Vision 2030 initiative, highlighting economic diversification and profound cultural changes, especially regarding women's rights. Omar shares insights on the Middle Beast festival, which celebrates a changing social dynamic, and explores the impact of sleep on mental health amid shifting marriage norms. He emphasizes the importance of travel for cultural exchange, advocating for understanding rather than imposing perspectives.

Felipe Tomaz, an Associate Professor of Marketing at the University of Oxford, discusses his extensive research analyzing 1,000 campaigns to prove that not all reach in advertising is equal. He emphasizes the crucial differences between brand distinction and differentiation. Tom Roach from Jellyfish UK joins in to explore the evolving landscape of marketing strategies and the pitfalls of traditional reach metrics. They highlight the importance of audience engagement and the need for a cohesive media strategy to drive campaign effectiveness.

Ipsita Das often reaches millions of people every month. While she was studying media and psychology at he New School, her Instagram account started to pop. Now, she works with tens of people every week. She tries to help them with the thoughts in their minds that are holding them back. In this episode, we discuss the five issues Ipsita hears about more. Ipsita will be teaching at our 2024 Sweathead Do-Together. Find tickets at http://www.sweathead.com. Links: Ipsita: https://www.instagram.com/helloipsita/ Mark: http://www.instagram.com/markpollard

Steve Walls, CSO of Moon Rabbit, shares his extensive background in strategy from agencies like TBWA and Ogilvy. He delves into the common pitfalls agencies encounter during client pitches, stressing the need for clear communication and genuine connections. Walls emphasizes the power of storytelling and tailored presentations, revealing how personalized approaches can resonate with clients. He also discusses the psychological aspects influencing pitches and offers strategies for making impactful, memorable presentations that go beyond generic proposals.

Mike Jacobson has worked in strategy for years. But he's been a magician for decades. Not long ago, he appeared on America's Got Talent. That's how good he is. In this episode, Mike breaks down the business of magic as well as how what he's learned from being a magician and strategist has helped both of his crafts, something he'll be teaching at our upcoming strategy conference The Sweathead Do-Together. Links: Mike: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacobsonmike/ Mark: http://www.instagram.com/markpollard The Sweathead Do-Together: https://sweathead.com/the-sweathead-do-together-2024/

I recently spoke with Joe about strategy frameworks and whether they're dumb. In this episode, we discuss strategic territories, which is one of those tools that is either useful or offensive, depending on how people use it. Joe will teach us how to use territories at our upcoming strategy conference The Sweathead Do-Together. Links: Joe: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joe-burns-bb73a31b/ Mark: http://www.instagram.com/markpollard The Sweathead Do-Together: https://sweathead.com/the-sweathead-do-together-2024/

Lucien Etori is the Chief Strategy Officer of McCann New York. He grew up moving around a lot as well as a fan of several music subcultures. This has led him to question the way a lot of advertising people use the word "culture". What do people mean by "culture" and "the culture" and "be part of the culture" and "to do work at the speed of culture"? And this is what we get into. Links: Lucien: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucien-etori Mark: http://www.instagram.com/markpollard The Sweathead Do-Together: https://sweathead.com/the-sweathead-do-together-2024/

The last time I spoke with Jenny Chang was four years ago. Since then, she's worked in agencies and for Lego and has now launched her own company, Constellation Theory. In this episode of Sweathead, we discuss this journey as well as what it's like to build a business around yourself. Jenny is hosting our upcoming strategy conference The Sweathead Do-Together. Links: Jenny aka jennifer m chang: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jayemsey Mark: http://www.instagram.com/markpollard The Sweathead Do-Together: https://sweathead.com/the-sweathead-do-together-2024/

Kevin Chesters has CSO’d it all - Ogilvy, Wieden + Kennedy, Dentsu and more. He’s started a business. He’s sold a business.  He’s also started writing a book and finished writing a book, which is the hardest part of starting to write a book. It’s called The Creative Nudge. Kevin is speaking at our fourth Sweathead Do-Together about how to say your ideas in a few words. In this chat, we touch on this topic but we spend a lot more time on being diagnosed with being on the autism spectrum as an adult.  Links: Kevin: http://www.kevinchesters.com Mark: http://www.instagram.com/markpollard The Sweathead Do-Together: http://www.sweathead.com

James Hurman, the former world's top planner and director of the innovation studio Previously Unavailable, shares his insights from 18 months spent in the creative department. He discusses the toxic elements of marketing that can hinder collaboration between strategists and creatives. The conversation shifts to the importance of brand tracking, including innovative methodologies for gathering actionable data. James emphasizes the transformative power of creative collaboration and the significance of measuring brand metrics for effective marketing.