DesignRush Podcast

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Episodes

190

Latest episode

Aug 2026

Language

EN-US

About the show

DesignRush Podcast brings you the best insights and perspectives from industry leaders and C-suite business influencers. Each episode features successful professionals in the digital world, discussing topics ranging from digital strategy and branding to email marketing and entrepreneurship. Whether you're a young professional, a startup entrepreneur, or a business executive, DesignRush Podcast provides valuable knowledge and advice to help you succeed in your career.

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60 recent

August 26, 2026Episode 15029 min

How to Build a $5M Business in 18 Months (Without a Sales Team)

Discover more marketing insights and top agencies at https://www.designrush.com Aditude reached $5 million in annual subscription revenue in roughly 18 months without a sales team. Founder and CEO Jared Siegal explains the business decisions that made that growth possible. DesignRush Podcast host Kia Johnson speaks with Jared about turning an early service business into scalable software, proving product value before asking customers to pay, and using referrals as a powerful growth engine. He also shares why Aditude built a different business model from the rest of its market, when short-term monetization can hurt long-term customer value, and why scaling sometimes requires difficult decisions about the team that helped build the company. What you’ll learn: How to scale without relying on a traditional sales team Why proving value before charging can accelerate adoption How customer referrals can drive business growth How CEOs can build the right team for each stage of growth About Jared Siegal: Founder and CEO of Aditude Built Aditude from a one-person operation into a scalable SaaS business Reached roughly $5 million in annual subscription revenue in about 18 months without a sales team Related DesignRush resources: B2B SaaS growth strategies: https://www.designrush.com/agency/software-development/trends/b2b-saas-marketing Customer acquisition strategies: https://www.designrush.com/agency/digital-marketing/trends/how-to-get-clients-for-digital-marketing Subscribe to the DesignRush Podcast for more practical lessons from founders, CEOs, and business leaders. #DesignRushPodcast #SaaSGrowth #BusinessGrowth #Leadership

August 19, 2026Episode 14929 min

How to Know When It’s Time to Pivot Your Business

Discover more marketing insights and top agencies at https://www.designrush.com DesignRush Podcast host Kia Johnson speaks with Seventh Bear founder and Content Marketing Institute Chief Strategy Advisor Robert Rose about how to build through disruption, turn expertise into a business advantage, and recognize when the strategy that got you this far needs to change. Rose shares how the dot-com crash led him to CrownPeak, why he built its marketing team around storytellers, and how competing against companies like IBM and Microsoft changed his thinking about differentiation. He also explains how he helped turn content marketing into a practical business discipline and why another major market shift eventually pushed him to reinvent his consultancy as Seventh Bear. What you’ll learn in this episode: Why market disruption can create opportunities to pivot and grow Why building around core talent can be more valuable than hiring for tools How to know whether your competitive differentiator actually matters How to spot an emerging market opportunity before it becomes obvious How to turn expertise and ideas into a repeatable business methodology When to stop protecting an old business model and build something new Related DesignRush resources: Explore growth marketing strategies: https://www.designrush.com/agency/digital-marketing/trends/growth-marketing-strategies Learn how strong brand storytelling creates differentiation: https://www.designrush.com/agency/content-marketing/trends/examples-of-brand-stories #BusinessGrowth #MarketingStrategy #ContentMarketing #BrandStorytelling #DesignRushPodcast

August 14, 2026Episode 41 min

Instagram's "InstaXam" Redesign: The High-Stakes Risk of Rebranding

In this DesignRush news brief, we break down Instagram’s first wordmark refresh in a decade, from Adam Mosseri’s rollout of Instagram Pan and Mono to the internet’s “InstaXam” legibility backlash. More importantly, we unpack the business lessons behind protecting visual equity, the risks of changing familiar brand assets, and why leaving Instagram’s iconic gradient camera untouched may have helped Meta avoid a much bigger rebrand problem. Key Business Takeaways in This Brief: The Rebrand Paradox: Why changing familiar typography can feel like changing a bank’s signature. The Cost of Redesign Disasters: How Jaguar’s backlash affected its creative leadership and Cracker Barrel’s redesign coincided with a 16% stock drop. Visual Equity Protection: Why Instagram can change its wordmark while protecting the camera icon users already recognize. Visit DesignRush.com for deeper agency reports and insights. #DesignRush #Rebranding #Instagram #BrandStrategy #Meta #MarketingNews #GraphicDesign #BusinessInsights

August 12, 2026Episode 14819 min

Brand Messaging Mistakes That Make Customers Tune Out

Discover more marketing insights and top agencies at https://www.designrush.com DesignRush Podcast host Kia Johnson speaks with Updraft Brand Founder and former Just Eat CMO Mat Braddy about why brands lose customers when marketing starts with what the company wants to say instead of what people care about. Braddy also shares how creative freedom influenced Just Eat’s brand voice, why CEOs and boards affect the quality of marketing, and where AI falls short without a strong story behind the work. What you’ll learn in this episode: Why customers ignore inside-out brand messaging How to identify the problem customers actually care about Why creative teams need room to develop a distinctive brand voice How AI can increase marketing output without improving the idea Why marketers should study brands outside their own industry How storytelling keeps marketing relevant to customers Related DesignRush resources: Explore top brand strategy agencies: https://www.designrush.com/agency/logo-branding/brand-strategy Read about AI marketing risks: https://news.designrush.com/ai-marketing-risks-brands-cant-ignore #BrandStrategy #MarketingStrategy #AIMarketing #BrandMessaging #DesignRushPodcast

August 7, 2026Episode 31 min

Domino’s Is Paying Customers to Test Its New App

Domino’s is offering customers a $5 coupon to test its redesigned app and website, turning a product rollout into a customer participation campaign. This DesignRush Brief explores how the brand uses immediate rewards, optional feedback, and a follow-up digital order to build goodwill, improve the user experience, and encourage repeat business.

August 6, 2026Episode 21 min

The Death of Traditional SEO: How AI Is Changing Search

This DesignRush Brief explores how AI-powered search is changing traditional SEO, why declining organic traffic is not always a negative sign, and what businesses need to do to stay visible across search engines and answer platforms. Discover why hybrid search, higher-intent traffic, stronger technical foundations, and revenue-focused metrics are becoming essential for modern search strategy.

August 5, 2026Episode 14719 min

Don't Launch Your Brand Until You Do This First

Discover more marketing insights and top agencies at https://www.designrush.com When Senna Bayasgalan became the first Chief Marketing Officer in b1BANK’s history, she did not begin with a campaign. She spent her first months speaking with bankers, clients, leaders, and local communities across Louisiana and Texas. In this episode of the DesignRush Podcast, host Kia Johnson speaks with Senna, who explains how CMOs can build a brand from customer trust, employee knowledge, and real business experiences. She also reveals how b1BANK introduced Ignite Ambition inside the company and used Drew Brees to bring attention to its Hall of Ambition campaign while keeping client stories at the center. What you’ll learn in this episode: What every new CMO should do before launching a campaign How employee and customer interviews reveal a stronger brand story Why the best brands build on what already exists instead of starting over How to get employees to believe in a campaign before taking it public Why customer stories create more lasting impact than celebrity endorsements How to build a brand customers trust and employees can stand behind Senna’s central lesson is simple: your company may already have the story it needs. Your job is to listen closely, find it, and help the whole business tell it. Related DesignRush resources: Learn how to build a stronger brand identity: https://www.designrush.com/agency/logo-branding/trends/what-is-brand-identity Explore top brand strategy agencies: https://www.designrush.com/agency/logo-branding/brand-strategy #BrandStrategy #MarketingStrategy #BusinessGrowth #BrandMarketing #DesignRushPodcast

July 29, 2026Episode 14620 min

Stop Publishing More Content: Fix This First

Companies keep publishing articles while the pages closest to revenue remain outdated. Andy Crestodina explains why improving sales pages, calls to action, proof, and objection handling can generate demand faster than producing content. Discover how to accelerate your brand’s growth at https://www.designrush.com?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=2026-q3-episode-146-andy-crestodina In this episode of the DesignRush Podcast, host Kia Johnson speaks with Andy Crestodina, Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer of Orbit Media Studios, about B2B marketing, buyer intent, website performance, content authority and AI search. You will learn: - Where to start when website traffic is not generating leads - How brand marketing differs from performance marketing - Why original research and viewpoints build authority - How sales-call insights strengthen messaging - Why AI recommendations matter more than visibility About Andy Crestodina: Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer of Orbit Media Studios Author of Content Chemistry, now in its seventh edition Adviser to 1,000+ businesses across SEO, analytics, content, AI, and conversion. Free DesignRush resources: Learn how conversion rate optimization turns visitors into customers: https://www.designrush.com/agency/digital-marketing/trends/what-is-conversion-rate-optimization Learn how answer engine optimization improves AI search visibility: https://www.designrush.com/agency/search-engine-optimization/trends/what-is-aeo Subscribe for insights from leaders shaping marketing and growth. #DesignRushPodcast #B2BMarketing #ContentMarketing #AISearch

July 22, 2026Episode 14517 min

She's Worked With Amazon & 3M: Your Best Customers Would Leave Tomorrow

Discover more marketing insights and top agencies at https://www.designrush.com A B2B fintech company had a 97 percent customer retention rate and was certain its customers were loyal. When Carla Johnson interviewed those customers, every one said the same thing: if a competitor offered the same thing, they would switch in a heartbeat. Carla Johnson, founder of RE:Think Labs and a 10-time author, explains why strong metrics hide weak loyalty, and how B2B companies can prove they are innovative instead of just claiming it. What you'll learn in this episode: - The logo-swap test: if a competitor could put their name on your innovation claim, the claim is worthless - Why buyers never purchase innovation directly, they purchase outcomes and proof that you change their business - How Emerson rose from #12 to #4 in innovation perception by aligning leadership and defining innovation as specific, measurable employee behaviors - Why a 97 percent retention rate can mask customers who feel trapped, not loyal - The one question every leader should ask: if your company disappeared tomorrow, would customers even care? - Why an innovation definition should be eight words or fewer, so every employee can remember it - How trials and larger buying committees moved the burden of proof from the sales pitch to the customer experience ABOUT CARLA JOHNSON Carla Johnson is the founder of RE:Think Labs, a global keynote speaker, and the 10-time author of the bestselling book RE:Think Innovation. She has worked with leaders at Amazon, Intel, 3M, Hilton, Citi, and Clorox. Her core principle is that innovation is everybody's business, not the job of a specialist few. RESOURCES ►What B2B marketing actually is in 2026: https://www.designrush.com/agency/digital-marketing/trends/what-is-b2b-marketing ► Market penetration strategy explained: https://www.designrush.com/agency/digital-marketing/trends/market-penetration-strategy ► Find a vetted branding agency: https://www.designrush.com/agency/branding SUBSCRIBE for weekly conversations with the operators behind B2B growth, agency scaling, and brand strategy. DesignRush is a human-vetted marketplace that connects brands with verified agencies across web design, digital marketing, and branding. #InnovationStrategy #B2BMarketing #BrandPositioning

July 15, 202623 min

This Is Why Your Cold Emails Are Going to Spam

Most B2B teams test subject lines and CTAs, Woodpecker.co CEO Margaret Sikora says that only moves results 5–10%. Targeting and offer changes move them 50–100x. Margaret Sikora went from Junior Customer Support Specialist in 2017 to CEO of Woodpecker.co in 2024, the cold email platform obsessed with deliverability. In this episode with host Kia Johnson, she gives the full A-to-Z operating system behind outbound that actually creates qualified pipeline in 2026. In this episode: - Why a 3–5% bounce rate is a revenue risk signal, not a marketing metric - The 30% backup domain rule that keeps campaigns alive when infrastructure burns - Why testing 5 bold angles beats 3 months of subject-line tweaks - The exact research loop Woodpecker uses (customer language → AI tagging → campaigns) - "AI will amplify" - where automation helps and where human judgment must stay - Why B2B buyers need 10+ touchpoints before they ever buy 📚 FREE DESIGNRUSH RESOURCES: How to fix email deliverability (authentication, spam filters, list quality): https://www.designrush.com/agency/digital-marketing/trends/how-to-improve-email-deliverability Best AI lead generation tools for outreach and enrichment: https://www.designrush.com/agency/digital-marketing/trends/ai-lead-generation-tools 🚀 DESIGNRUSH - the human-vetted marketplace ranking 30,000+ agencies: Find your agency: https://www.designrush.com Subscribe for weekly conversations with the builders behind successful brands: https://www.youtube.com/@{handle}?sub_confirmation=1 #ColdEmail #B2BSales #LeadGeneration