Brands & Campaigns

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Dec 2024

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About the show

How many times have you seen a commercial, billboard, unique piece of packaging, or a surprising brand name and wondered something like: “How did they come up with that?” “How did that get approved?” “Who had the idea to do that?” Join Camden Bernatz and a rotating list of guest hosts from EKR as we pull back the curtain on real-world marketing moves to be entertained and inspired by the stories, people and processes behind the work. Powered by EKR — a strategy-first agency To learn more about EKR, please visit https://ekragency.com/ (https://thedmpn.com/) . If you have an idea for a creative campaign that we should cover or would like to be a guest on the podcast, please email brandspodcast@ekragency.com (mailto:adam@relicagency.com) .

Listen to episodes

27 recent

December 11, 202425 min

27: Behind the Hidden Sailors: Insights on Multi-Agency Partnerships and Content Creation and Jaguar’s Next Move

Andrya Blanco, one EKR's designers, joins Camden to discuss their thoughts about the Hidden Sailors campaign and how multi-agency partnerships can be beneficial for brands. They also dive into their thoughts in Jaguar's new brand and what they think the company's next move might be. Listen to our last episode with Garth Knutson and Ryan Blum! If you have an idea for a creative campaign that we should cover or would like to be a guest on the podcast, please email podcasts@thebrandrevolt.com.

November 27, 202430 min

26: Making Waves: How Water Polo and Big Partnerships Shaped a Navy Campaign

This week on Brands and Campaigns, Camden sat down with CMO Garth Knutson of Aflac and Ryan Blum, Chief Creative Officer at VML to discuss their partnership on a campaign to recruit US Navy Special Forces with Water Polo. The group discusses the background of the campaign as well as the other participating brands. They also dive into how team dynamics play into fast-paced timelines and the importance of picking the right team. If you have an idea for a creative campaign that we should cover or would like to be a guest on the podcast, please email podcasts@thebrandrevolt.com.

November 13, 202432 min

25: Too Pretty for AI? A Look at San Juan County's Clever Campaign

This week, Camden sits down with Art Director Madeline Trenkle to discuss San Juan County's clever use—or lack of use—of AI in a recent campaign. Madeline also shares insights into her creative process and sources of inspiration and give sound advice on how to work with creative teams. If you have an idea for a creative campaign that we should cover or would like to be a guest on the podcast, please email podcasts@thebrandrevolt.com.

October 16, 202431 min

24: How Projects like "Agencyland" Become More Than Just an Idea

Jared Price, EKR's Team Director and Director of Business Development, joins Camden on today’s episode to reflect on our conversation with Maggie Winters and Zach Goodwin about Agencyland. They touch on how Maggie and Zach’s passion for this project and dedication to seeing it through led to Agencyland’s success and the attention it garnered This January. Camden and Jared also give their thoughts on the creative process of Agencyland and how those lessons can apply to other agencies looking to create their own internal content. Listen to our episode with Maggie Winters and Zach Goodwin! If you have an idea for a creative campaign that we should cover or would like to be a guest on the podcast, please email podcasts@thebrandrevolt.com.

October 2, 202430 min

23: Behind “Agencyland”: A Board Game From This January

“Agencyland” is a board game based on running an advertising agency, full of industry in-jokes, creative copy and fun gameplay. Two of the main people behind this game, Maggie Winters and Zach Goodwin from This January, join Camden to break down “Agencyland”. Zach and Maggie describe how The Farming Game inspired them to create Agencyland to unravel the complexities of the advertising industry while also including in-jokes that are relatable to advertising industry veterans. Later in the episode, they dive deep into the creative process of “Agencyland”, from creating and refining the gameplay to writing the copy for the cards. If you have an idea for a creative campaign that we should cover or would like to be a guest on the podcast, please email podcasts@thebrandrevolt.com.

September 18, 202429 min

22: A Conversation with EKR’s Resident Fantasy Football Enthusiast

Adam Castar, the producer of Brands & Campaigns and our agency’s resident fantasy football enthusiast, joins Camden to talk about ESPN’s “Only in Fantasy” campaign. Adam talks about his love of fantasy football, how this campaign resonates with him, and the unique “guillotine” league that he participates in. Later on in the episode, Adam and Camden discuss some overarching themes for the podcast as a whole, such as strong agency-client partnerships and how simple insights can lead to impactful campaigns. Listen to our episode with Sinan Dagli and Jake Bayham! If you have an idea for a creative campaign that we should cover or would like to be a guest on the podcast, please email podcasts@thebrandrevolt.com.

September 4, 202444 min

21: A Look Behind the Scenes of ESPN’s “Only in Fantasy” Campaign

The NFL season is right around the corner, which also means that fantasy football leagues are starting up again too. Since 2019, Butler, Shine, Stern and Partners (BSSP) has created different iterations of its “Only in Fantasy” campaign for ESPN’s Fantasy Football platform. Jake Bayham and Sinan Dagli, the Head of Strategy and Executive Creative Director at BSSP, respectively, join Camden on today’s episode to talk about the campaign’s origins in 2019 and the creative process for this year’s iteration. Listen in to learn why they decided to focus on the social aspect of fantasy football for this campaign and the story of the 49-year-old fantasy league they spoke to that inspired some of this year’s spots. If you have an idea for a creative campaign that we should cover or would like to be a guest on the podcast, please email podcasts@thebrandrevolt.com.

August 21, 202432 min

20: How Knowing The Brand Can Replace The Brief

Corey Ostler, EKR’s Art Director, joins Camden on today’s episode of Brands & Campaigns to discuss A&W’s campaign that offered free root beer to centenarians for life and reflect on the insights Jonathon Spalding from Cornett shared in the previous episode. They touch on all aspects of this campaign’s creative process, such as the role of creative briefs, how A&W was able to use centenarians to appeal to the younger generation and the campaign’s comedic elements. Listen to our episode with Jonathon Spalding! If you have an idea for a creative campaign that we should cover or would like to be a guest on the podcast, please email brandspodcast@ekragency.com.

August 7, 202431 min

19: Celebrating Centenarians with a Fun Campaign from A&W

Known for its root beer, A&W Restaurants is one of the oldest fast-food franchises in the United States and celebrated its 105th anniversary this year. To go along with this milestone, they’re offering free root beer floats for life for people at least 100 years old. Jonathon Spalding, a Creative Director at Cornett, and his team created hilarious and creative social videos and static ads featuring centenarians enjoying root beer floats and not acting their age. Jonathon joins Camden on today’s episode of Brands & Campaigns to talk about the genesis of this idea, the pitch process with A&W, and the production aspect of the campaign. The conversation then shifts to a conversation about the benefits of running earned media campaigns like this one and how this campaign in particular was successful. If you have an idea for a creative campaign that we should cover or would like to be a guest on the podcast, please email podcasts@thebrandrevolt.com.

July 24, 202428 min

18: Flexibility + Partnership = Clever Campaigns

Adam Castar, a Podcast Producer for EKR and one of the producers of Brands and Campaigns, joins Camden on today’s episode to discuss KFC Canada’s campaign for the Edmonton Oilers. Adam and Camden talk about the campaign as a whole and speculate on what the finale of this campaign could have been if the Oilers had won The Stanley Cup. Adam and Camden also discuss agency-client partnerships and how a strong relationship can lead to successful marketing campaigns like this one. Listen to our previous episode with Jesse Wilks and Gerardo Agbuya! If you have an idea for a creative campaign that we should cover or would like to be a guest on the podcast, please email podcasts@thebrandrevolt.com.