Content Disrupted: Bold Takes on Brand Marketing

Creating more content won’t help your business, if it doesn’t resonate with your target audience.In this episode, public speaking and messaging consultant Jay Acunzo, joins @dbaptiste to unpack a major challenge in the AI-driven marketing world: Shifting from chasing search clicks to becoming a brand people actively seek out and choose.Jay reveals why the “reach for reach’s sake” strategy doesn’t work: No amount of exposure will make your audience care. The real solution? Focus on resonance. He dives into the dangers of mistaking awareness for affinity, how generic expertise has become a commodity, and how to deliver high-conviction messaging that only your brand can own.

Rand Fishkin, co-founder of SparkToro and Moz, dives into the upheavals in marketing caused by AI and the shift to a zero-click world. He argues that traffic is just a vanity metric and stresses the importance of brand influence instead. As platforms morph and discovery happens in fragmented spaces, Fishkin emphasizes showing up where audiences already engage—like Instagram and Reddit. He also critiques outdated attribution models, advocating for a focus on genuine audience relationships for effective modern branding.

Brendan Hufford, Founder of Growth Sprints, is shaking up the content marketing landscape with his no-nonsense strategies. He discusses the pitfalls of traditional SEO tactics and the importance of naming problems to connect with audiences authentically. Brendan encourages brands to escape checkbox marketing and create genuine relationships instead. He also dives into how storytelling can drive engagement and why addressing real consumer emotions beats mere optimization. Prepare for some bold insights that could revolutionize your marketing approach!

How do you build a culture-led brand that stands out in an oversaturated market? Skullcandy CEO Brian Garofalow shares how brands like Igloo and Skullcandy thrive by merging counterculture with commerce, balancing operational discipline with creativity, and leaning into brand identity to punch above their weight in crowded market categories.

Does your brand marketing pass the "who cares?" test?In an age where attention is scarce and content is endless, the real challenge isn’t just telling a story—it’s telling one people actually care about.In this episode, Jessica Gioglio, author of The Laws of Brand Storytelling—unpacks the laws of story-first brand marketing, revealing what separates brands that blend in from those that lead.

When the world’s moving at warp speed, how do you stay relevant—especially with an audience that hates being marketed to?Just ask Adam Walden, VP of Brand & Corporate Marketing at GitHub. As AI rewrites the rules of software development, Walden shares how his team earns trust from skeptical developers by embedding marketing within product teams, embracing a “Possibility Mindset,” and crafting platform-native content that fits closed ecosystems.He also dives into how AI is reshaping both the developer experience and marketing execution—with AI agents poised to transform how teams build and run campaigns.

What if your brand was rated the worst company in America to work for? That's the challenge Kevin Miller faced when he became CMO of The Fresh Market grocery chain in 2020. In this episode, Kevin reveals the audacious vision and customer-centric strategy he used to transform the distressed brand into a beloved market leader in just two years.Discover how Kevin's team immersed themselves in customer insights, revamped the in-store experience to spark joy and anticipation, and leveraged AI and a new content engine to engage distinct buyer personas across touchpoints. You'll hear the creative ways they measured brand love, empowered employees as brand ambassadors, and achieved record ecommerce growth—ultimately taking the brand from worst to first.Whether you're in B2C or B2B, Kevin's fresh take on building brand love will challenge your assumptions and inspire you to reimagine what's possible when you put the customer at the center of your marketing.

Marketers are betting big on AI—but are they playing a losing hand? 75% of leaders say AI is a key differentiator for their business, yet only 15% are confident they're investing in the right areas. In this episode of Content Disrupted, Skyword’s Dan Baptiste sits down with HumanX Co-founder and CEO Stefan Weitz to uncover the massive gap between AI hype and real-world execution. They dive into the illusion of AI proficiency, the dangers of treating AI as a content machine rather than a strategic tool, and the key steps and mindset shift leaders must embrace to take meaningful advantage of AI. If you think you’re leveraging AI correctly, this episode might make you think again. And don’t miss: The next HumanX conference is coming up! Check out the details https://www.humanx.co/.

Everyone’s talking about AI—why aren’t more teams actually using it to grow?In this episode, Conor Grennan, Chief AI Architect at NYU Stern School of Business and founder of AI Mindset, reveals how leaders can overcome the real barriers to AI adoption: mindset and behavior. Learn how to reimagine workflows, navigate resistance, and unlock growth opportunities by fostering an AI mindset in your organization.If you’re serious about leading your team into the next generation of content marketing, this episode is your starting point.

What does it take to shape marketing for a tech giant like Salesforce? Amber Armstrong, CMO of Salesforce’s Sales Cloud division, shares insights into the company’s unique culture of speed and innovation. Learn how her team is driving sales and educating customers on the brand’s recent Agentforce technology, while building dynamic content and community platforms like the award-winning Salesblazer program. You’ll get inspired by Amber’s approach to empowering her team, educating the market, partnering with sales, and measuring success in new territory.