Author Archives: Nick Westergaard

jim heininger on brand

“Rebranding itself signals change.” Change is something that Jim Heininger focuses on extensively in his work as the leader of not one but two agencies. Dixon|James focuses on communication and change management while Rebranding Experts focuses on the comprehensive art and strategic science of rebranding. We discussed all of this and more on this week’s episode of the On Brand podcast. Read More


faith mckinney on brand

“As African Americans, we’ve given up our narrative. It takes away our humanity. We have human stories just like everyone else—it’s just that our brand isn’t being written by us.” Faith McKinney is an author, media strategist, and longtime listener of the On Brand podcast. This week she joined me as a guest for a discussion on building your personal brand, taking control of the African American narrative, and the need for authenticity. Enjoy! Read More


katie kern on brand podcast

“Enough is enough. It’s the responsibility of companies to stand up.” Following the murder of George Floyd, the nation has seen a critical shift in the growth and power of the Black Lives Matter movement through protest and action. But what should leaders and companies do? This week on the On Brand podcast, Media Frenzy Global Partner and COO Katie Kern returns to discuss how brands can start having tough conversations about race. Read More


laura bull on brand

“The person is a product themselves—regardless of what they’re selling.” As one of the youngest executives in the history of Sony Music Entertainment, Laura Bull worked to transform people into powerful platforms. Now she consults and teaches these lessons, which are also featured in her new book From Individual to Empire. We discussed all of this and more, this week on the On Brand podcast. Read More


rytis lauris on brand

“Marketing is becoming more mathematical. You have to start reading the signals of what your customers are telling you.” Ominsend Co-Founder and CEO Rytis Lauris is on a mission to help small- and medium-sized eCommerce businesses understand just that. We discussed this mission and the state of omnichannel marketing this week on the On Brand podcast. Read More


Two years ago I was fortunate enough to interview one of my business heroes—management legend and author Tom Peters. This was a once-in-a-lifetime podcast event. Or so I thought. A couple of weeks ago, Tom reached out again wanting to talk about the unique challenges of leadership and work in these troubling times. I couldn’t wait to catch up with Tom and to share our conversation with you. Enjoy! Read More


andrea fryrear on brand

“Agile marketing is about focus, quality, and planning. We have an ultimate destination. We’re just more flexible about the path we take to get there.” A certified agile leader and practitioner, the focus of Andrea Fryrear’s work is helping marketers find greater focus in their work. We discussed process, planning, and why agile marketing is more important than ever on this week’s episode of the On Brand podcast. Read More


When it comes to content marketing, we live in extraordinary times. With cutting-edge tools like live video, VR, and AI at our fingertips, we can give our community behind-the-scenes access to our company, people, and products. We can showcase our … Read More


lee tone on brand

“People are smart about how they can avoid advertising at all costs. You have to present them with a story they want to hear and use the brand in support of that story.” Lee Tone of Alkemy X has spent his career navigating the blurred lines of advertising and entertainment, finding ways to talk about brands without directly talking about brands. This has never been easy but it’s even harder today. We discussed all of this on this week’s episode of the On Brand podcast. Read More


“In digital, you can constantly keep going—if you had a good play celebrate it and see how you can evolve it from there.” In a career that started with athletics and continued to professional journalism to being a marketing thought leader and author, Christoph Trappe has executed several good plays. Because of this experience, he knows how to build a high-performance content marketing culture. We discussed all of this on this week’s episode of the On Brand podcast. Read More


Subscribe to Nick

SUBSCRIBE TO NICK’S STORY STRATEGIES NEWSLETTER

A monthly email to help you lead with story in your work.

Nick has a knack for making complex topics simple.
Jacey Wilkins
National Institute of Metalworking Skills