Building a Social-First Brand with David Brickley


“People want to interact with people—not brands.” David Brickley has been helping brands interact with their people through his agency STN Digital and his two podcasts Business of Social and Entrepreneur Wrap. This week he joined me as a guest on my podcast to talk about how to build a social-first brand.

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About David Brickley

After working with his first-ever client, Kobe Bryant, David Brickley used that as motivation to launch STN Digital in 2013, and has since grown an award-winning team of some of the best talent in the industry. STN Digital is an expert at launching brands and building highly-engaged audiences. STN is a social-first marketing agency and provides services ranging from 360 marketing, social media management, paid media, on-site activations and anything in between.

STN Digital works with some of the biggest brands in the world including Amazon, the Olympics, NBC, FOX, and HBO to name a few. David is also the host of two podcasts, Business of Social and Entrepreneur Wrap, which was ranked by Forbes as a Top 10 podcast every business owner should listen to.

Episode Highlights & Takeaways

Using a Platform Mindset isn’t just for big brands. We talked a lot about how mega-brands like Disney can use their various brands and sub-brands’ social channels to amplify their message. However, David was quick to note that smaller brands can embrace this mindset by working through brand ambassadors. “You’d be amazed what people will do for a free hoodie.”

Fun Fact: 95% of podcasts end after episode three. I guess David and I have a lot to be proud of!

What brand has made David smile recently? “Liquid Death Mountain Water. They’ve been such a disrupter in the water space.” Even the name Liquid Death brings a smile to your face! “What they’ve really done is build a lifestyle brand.”

To learn more, check out the STN Digital website and David’s two podcasts—Business of Social and Entrepreneur Wrap.

As We Wrap …

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On Brand is sponsored by my book Brand NowDiscover the seven dynamics to help your brand stand out in our crowded, distracted world. Order now and get special digital extras. Learn more.

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Until next week, I’ll see you on the Internet!