Energy Crue
Welcome to 'Energy Crüe', the podcast that dives deep into the heart of industry innovation, entrepreneurship, and personal growth. I'm your host, JP Warren, and each episode, we embark on a journey to uncover the passions and motivations that fuel industry leaders. We're not just talking business here; we're exploring the personal drives, the triumphs, and the challenges that shape today's pioneers. Alongside these inspiring conversations, I'll be sharing my own story - the battles with imposter syndrome, the pivotal mindset shifts, and the lessons learned throughout my entrepreneurial voyage. As a certified coach, my goal is to empower you, our listeners, to break free from the barriers holding you back. Join me as we navigate both the professional and personal landscapes, learning and growing together with 'Energy Crüe'
Energy Crue
The Future of Storytelling and Branding with Rory Nolan
Have you ever considered the leap of faith it takes to move countries and pursue a dream? Rory, a Manchester native and marketing maestro, did just that, landing with a flourish on the cobblestone streets of Montreal. In this episode, he sits down with me to reflect on his inspiring journey post-university, offering a candid look at the hurdles he's vaulted and the wisdom he's collected along the way. As we dissect his evolution into the Marketing Coordinator at Midnight Marketing, Rory uncovers the critical role of embracing challenges and the unexpected beauty found in missteps.
If the thought of B2B marketing conjures images of dry, corporate strategies and endless product pitches, prepare to have your perspective flipped. Rory and I get to the heart of what truly moves the needle—storytelling with soul. We strip back the layers of misconception and reveal how human connections, powered by poignant narratives, are the secret sauce of successful campaigns. Through the lens of iconic brands like Nike and Red Bull, we illuminate the art of crafting stories that not only resonate but also create communities that customers yearn to be part of.
As the conversation winds down, we don't just look back—we gaze forward to the future of marketing and the evergreen importance of creativity. I share my own three-year tenure's insights, highlighting the nimbleness required to thrive amidst the lightning-fast changes in our field, especially with the advent of AI. Rory and I agree, though, that our best ideas often spark in those quiet moments of rest, away from the fray. So, if you're itching for a burst of inspiration or a fresh take on marketing's timeless dance with narrative, lend us your ears—you won't want to miss this.
And hello everyone. Welcome to a new energy crew podcast. I'm excited to be here this morning. I'm excited to bring the person that we're having on as a guest to the forefront. Rory and I have been friends, coworkers, colleagues, colleagues, whatever you want to call it TV I don't know what you want to call it because you're such a driving force for a crew club and exec crew, the two crews that we have. It's so great. You know, obviously, talking to you throughout the weeks and all this stuff. You know sharing ideas, sharing creative ideas and kind of like using you as a kind of sad war, not just that as a motivation point. But now we're actually going to have you on the podcast we're set about.
Speaker 1:But before we do, this podcast is brought to you by exec crew. Rather than we talk about the mastermind executive development program, that we not just have mastermind groups, we also have corporate development, we're going to play a little video for y'all. See, it's kind of funny. It's like you got everyone probably listening on the spot, a fire apple being like, okay, why not just listen to about 45 seconds of that EDM? But if you watch this on YouTube, you find the energy crew on YouTube. There's actually a little video we put together that showcases what exec crew is, what to expect as a member, and all that fun stuff. So, rory, how are you, buddy you?
Speaker 2:got me hyped up with that video man.
Speaker 1:Dude, I know you got to get hyped up. It gets energy going. So, rory, you're, you're, we're recording this. I'm in Houston or Folshire right now, outside of Houston, and you're up in Canada, correct?
Speaker 2:Absolutely Nice and warm Montreal minus five.
Speaker 1:So, for those that don't know, rory is the marketing coordinator over at Midnight Marketing, probably the latest and greatest, the best marketing company out there, very creative, great at storytelling, great at just kind of what y'all do. And I noticed I guess my introduction to y'all was I've known Tim since pretty much the pandemic and I remember he came on my first podcast and him and I kind of hit it off. He's just, it was in the, it was the start of midnight and it was. He was really kind of just like it was really just great, like just talking to him, kind of about you know business and kind of like the creative space. I love marketing, my background is marketing and you know it's very. It's been awesome to see kind of him build a team and kind of build a vision. You know, because, as you said before we started recording this, execution is always better than planning and to see him execute and see y'all execute has been great.
Speaker 1:And, rory, you came in my life probably I don't know what eight months ago, nine, something like that. It's been a whirlwind. But what you've done and you and the team and Sarah and Bella, everyone over at Midnight Marketing not just what I've seen for what it's done to set fruit crew club, but what you see to other other cats out there too, like other customers you have, that I'm not going to talk about. But you see their stuff if you're out there. But, man, I'm just digging your stuff, so why don't you kind of give us a little? This is your first podcast, so man don't worry about it. It's just you and me talking right now. I'm a little bit. I always get nervous before these things too. But why don't you kick us off, man? Why don't you give us a little background, kind of a little a little, a little a little live tale about Rory and kind of where you, how you find yourself, where you're at today?
Speaker 2:Oh, that's a, that's a big question. I know what you did?
Speaker 1:The high notes like how does he get it?
Speaker 2:So I've. I grew up in Manchester, for if anyone who doesn't know, it's not only the gray sea in the world, but a city in the Northwest of England.
Speaker 1:So yeah, I studied, I studied in Lancaster a little bit.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so we have a family connection that my dad is from, from Lancaster, so okay, okay. So I grew up in England first 21 years of my life. Day after I graduated from university, I got on a one-way ticket to Canada and I've been here for the past five years.
Speaker 1:What was, what was the decision behind that? Why Canada? If you, if you chose the place, would you do it in Canada?
Speaker 2:Yeah, so I honestly it's kind of a random decision. A lot of people ask me, like what the hell are you doing thousands of miles away from home? But I've always wanted, I always wanted to travel and, you know, have different perspectives and just challenge myself to just kind of start from scratch and just take the opportunities of living in the island of Blue Tree and honestly, it's been a huge challenge, you know, tearing your, your, your life away somewhat and just starting again from scratch. But I've had huge, a huge, huge amount of growth over the past five years on taking that jump and taking that challenge. So I'm grateful for for taking that leap, to be be where I am today.
Speaker 1:So when you're taking this leap and you're kind of getting into a culture or a country that you really kind of plucking yourself in into the middle of it all, so what kind of I mean lessons have you learned?
Speaker 2:I guess, when it comes to kind of betting on yourself and challenging yourself or kind of like getting uncomfortable, I mean, cause it's been five years- yeah, I think the main thing is just, you know, constantly being willing to experiment and try new things, and it's kind of these culmination of failures that takes you, brings you forward, and I think that is one of the biggest things that I found has benefited me just having this wealth of experiences that have got me to where I am today, and I don't think I would have had the same wealth of perspectives if I stayed, you know, in my hometown, where the bubble of-.
Speaker 1:Would you call it wealth of perspective? I mean I would kind of say like let's, from what? From what our previous conversation went to? But now it seems like you kind of like yeah, you really kind of like like a better term, blossom, you know what I mean. Like once you get uncomfortable, once you're on your own and trying to figure out shit out, like it's like you kind of blossom, you know what I mean For like a better term.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think growth happens when you go outside of your zone of comfort. Yeah, it's very, it's very easy to stay. Stay in the comfortable stay. Stay in the place where you grew up in your friends, family but oftentimes there's a ceiling to that. You know you can't constantly grow and evolve if you're stuck in the same place. Right, I think that's one of the competitive advantages of you know throwing yourself into the unknown and the uncomfortable, whether that's starting a company or, you know, picking up, packing your bags and moving to a different country. I think, always having an open mind and just knowing that these decisions are going to snowball and benefit you in the future.
Speaker 1:So I completely agree. I remember there was a couple of times you know my career life it's like you kind of pick your head up and be like where the hell am I? How did I get here? But every decision you make and you pick your head up. You're like how the hell did I get here? It's always beneficial, Like look at that. I mean you're always learning something. Whenever it's a tough time or kind of an uncomfortable time, I kind of want to dive into kind of listen. Whenever I talk to you it's always like it's refreshed, like you have such a unique creative mindset. Can you talk to me, I guess, kind of like how you fell into a marketing kind of what, how you started pursuing marketing and kind of what I guess, what aspect of it do you really dig? And then I kind of want to get into kind of the other public perspective of a market. What, what brought you into the marketing world and what do you dig about it?
Speaker 2:I think what's amazing about marketing is it has so many different faces. You have, you know, video websites, like it's just so wide and diverse. And personally I just love the creative side of things. So constantly being able to, you know, create content and just constantly improve on that side of things is something I love about working within marketing. And to answer the second part of your question, how I fell into it, I have a bit of a family background. My dad works in marketing, so as a kid I would always be overhearing his conversations and just like taking notes and listening. And I think also it's the human aspect of it, you know, storytelling, connecting with people, and it all comes down to communication, like marketing is all about storytelling and communication. If you can effectively tell your story and communicate and connect with people, you're going to be successful and that's why it all comes down to.
Speaker 1:So that's a big human portion of it. I mean, you see all this AI technology software coming out that I think it just improves and helps people's creative space. I don't think it like takes the creative space. So when it comes to this, I mean you're talking about the storytelling, the communicating, the connection. When it comes to people, I mean that's a very human aspect of marketing that I think a lot of people don't understand. You want to talk about that a little bit?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think there's a huge misconception with within marketing, especially within B2B marketing, that you know you have to have this corporate. You know face on. But I think there's a lot of things you can learn from B2C and you know, having a human aspect to your marketing is just going to connect with so many more people, even if the life cycles and the sales cycles are much longer. I think even more so, it's more important to connect on an emotional level. And how do you do that? You do that through storytelling and, you know, not just pushing a product in front of a customer, because there's only so much you can sell a product without, you know, completely alienating your whole, entire customer base. So I think, starting from a point of you know what is the problem, that we're solving All the pain points of our audience and our customers. How can we connect to their emotions and desires and then create content around those pillars? You know that's what we're looking at. What do you see?
Speaker 1:a big I guess, a big misstep, you know. I mean I'm thinking about like marketing right now and thinking about there's so many people that fall on this trap of like okay, we got to put something that's better product, we got to put something that's better. We're selling this thing. We got to sell this. We got to put this out. We got to put this out. Where do you see the biggest, I guess, areas of opportunity for people out there that have the traditional mindset of marketing? Where it's like we got to promote a product, like how do you want to? How can we disprove, I guess, these common misconceptions about marketing and storytelling? I mean?
Speaker 2:what's the?
Speaker 1:story. What's the story tell?
Speaker 2:I think that's a great question because if, like the example you just said, you pushed just a product in my face, if Apple just pushed a product, it would not be the company it is today. It all comes down to selling, you know. Going back to your idea of fever, like what is the feeling associated with your brand, you know there's a huge distinction between brand and product and I think where a lot of people go wrong is they try and push a product in their customer space and through that you're not creating a brand, you're creating a product that you know there's a million different competitors out there.
Speaker 1:Talk to me about the difference between that, because I think there's so many people out there that hear brand. They hear branding, they hear personal branding, they hear storytelling. I would love like kind of a brief, like 30,000 of you, and kind of why these are so important. Why is storytelling? What is storytelling about a brand? Why is it so crucial to connect?
Speaker 2:I think a great example that I always like to go back to is companies like Nike or Red Bull. You know everyone has a feeling that they all know that is associated with those brands that you know, like Nike associates inspiration and you see these achievements achieving their goals. Red Bull, you know extreme sports and danger, and I think brand all comes down to like having a feeling that people can connect to, because essentially that's what all marketing and branding comes down to is building community around a product. Strictly on a product side, you know people aren't going to care. People aren't going to care about it, and there's so many other products out there that are exactly the same, so you're not standing out from the product. And that's where the storytelling comes in that can set you apart completely from your competitors.
Speaker 1:Who's some of your like inspiration. You're a very creative individual and I know that you have I feel like you have some inspiration when it comes to like these stores, these brands. You know the fever, the marketing behind it, like who's some, who's some, I guess, some inspirations that you kind of like well.
Speaker 2:Well, for the fever it's got to be JP Warren for for, if anyone can just say that because you're all that.
Speaker 1:you can't just say it because you're on the podcast. Give me some other stuff, come on.
Speaker 2:The fever episode for JP. I highly recommend you going back to that because I said I'm marketing my masterclass that I've. Anybody who's in marketing wants to learn about marketing should know about fever, but I appreciate that. For me, I find a lot of inspiration just from the people I follow on on LinkedIn. I think LinkedIn is an amazing platform to just constantly grow and find new ideas. I find so many new ideas and perspectives on LinkedIn and you always find the people who managed to grow um fervor to the people who tell personal stories, and I think that's something I really I'm inspired by him. I'm very, very much inspired by storytelling.
Speaker 1:Uh, I've I've seen a lot of your stuff too, which is very what I think is. I'm I'm not sure, I'm just thinking about this now, so I want to touch on this. What I love about your stuff, too, is like you bring in other perspectives that are outside the industry, that are outside of the traditional uh things that are in my, that are in my feed. You know what I mean. I mean these other podcasts or these other um, whether it's a tech company or like uh, some entrepreneurial has a great story. You bring in other ideas from other industries, from other personalities. You know other diverse backgrounds. There's such a cool way. It's like holy shit, I didn't even think about uh communicating it this way. I think it's I, I I'm inspired by the fact that you're bringing in other ingredients that are outside kind of the normal uh feed that I'm, that I'm seeing.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I appreciate that. I mean the reason I post content. Personally, like I had, I had a huge kind of imposter syndrome only when I first started, you know, pressing posts and thinking like who the hell cares about what, what I have to say. But the whole kind of purpose of it for me is to kind of distill all of the information and content that I consume, because I don't want to be a consumer, I want to be a creative content. I don't, I don't want to just, you know, we we were kind of bombarded with information these days, like the, not only within our work but, you know, going home and scrolling social media and it can become kind of like a toxic cycle of overconsumption. But for me there's a lot of great value and information out there, but having the ability to distill it down to its like core idea, um, and then create an engaging piece of content out of that that other people can read and gain value from that, that's kind of my whole goal and mission of creating content.
Speaker 1:How do you? Okay, so I feel like, when it comes to like, you all taught me a lot. Um, I feel like there's like, there's, there's color, there's simplicity, there's bold messaging, there's. I mean, so what, how do you? You know, you know, you can. Just, you know you, that seems like such a fun, creative side of things. Like okay. So, like, how do you stay number one on the cutting edge when it comes to, like, all these trends and all that stuff? So how do you follow all these trends and still stay different if there's, if there's trends are becoming popular? Does that make sense? So carousels came out, like and they say I know, I've seen that y'all in motion carousels, not just in your platform, but you're also helping out. You know crew, club and all that stuff and exec crew, and it's like okay, now carousel's big, but then next thing, you know it's gonna be something else. So how are y'all staying on top of like, what's like trending and still staying relevant, if that makes sense?
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's a challenge within marketing. Things are moving such a speed that it's very hard for B to stay on the front edge and you need to constantly be leaning in and experimenting to stay on top of things, and I think that is the key. Experimentation is the key not only to growth, but to staying on top of having the data to compare. You know what does a carousel perform like versus a static image or a video. You know it all comes down to just experimenting with different content formats and not being one dimensional and keep testing, testing, testing and using the data to drive the decisions that you make.
Speaker 1:You know one thing that's interesting I've spent a lot of time creating content, just getting started to do it. I know that you know, been at marketing has been a huge savior. Well, when it comes to you know, branding, storytelling, consistent branding, which to me is obviously it's a big challenge I have. But what's interesting is you're like hey, jp, like start doing some more like just regular, like candid shot pictures, like don't edit them, like don't put any logos on them, like that, like put some genuine stuff out there. And like they say I know I started doing that, and then they started performing so much better than all. So talk to me about that side, like why is that so interesting? Why then, like the genuine, like snapshots work, more impressions of people connected, the more than it would be like a manufactured, I guess, piece of content?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think, when you go back to it, if you think about LinkedIn, primarily it's a social platform and authenticity cells. So when you show that unfiltered, raw image, the authentic, real image behind these brands, it really it's really refreshing and people really engage and love to see that. Especially on platforms like Tin, when it's you see so many companies content out there, it's really refreshing just to see a real, true image that is unfiltered in the mask taken off it. So I think it's incredibly important for companies to not only humanize themselves but to have that balance where, like I said, you're not constantly just pushing a product in front of your audience face Although it's sometimes important to do that when the time is right but also having that personal touch and human aspect, do you?
Speaker 1:feel like okay, so do you feel like there's companies that are very hesitant about showing up at human side of things or telling the story? They want to have this traditional product, right product, content product, this product, that. Do you see kind of those conversations changing to people being more open to these storytelling personal side of things? Cause I feel like there's I don't know why, but there's like I think this was like you know, y'all's big push. I think this you know back, you know, during COVID, you see the genuine side of things. But there's also this corporate mindset of like, no, we're not pushing people or we're not telling a story, we have to stay in this box, we have to stay in this realm. Like, is that changing? Do you see it?
Speaker 2:I think we're moving in the right direction, but there's always going to be, there's always going to be resistance at the start and it's uncomfortable, you know, I know you feel the exact same way, same as me, like I hate putting my face out there sometimes, and it's uncomfortable. Where it's necessary, you have to show the people behind the organization or you're not going to connect with people if you don't. It's as simple as that.
Speaker 1:So what's that? Okay. So when it comes to like it's storytelling, I was like what's your process? Like if someone comes to you, let's say a new company comes to your way and all that stuff, they kind of want you to hey, look, I need more, I need I tell them to walk me through the process that goes on and Roy and your team's thing. When someone does come to you say hey look, I really need help with and who would come to Roy if he needs help?
Speaker 2:Yeah. So I think the most important first step that we have is just listening, listening to what are the pain points of a new customer that we're talking to, what are the problems of their audience? And I think once you have that understanding of who's the audience they're speaking to, what are their problems, what ways can we connect with them, and then you can build the stories of your products and your companies around those pain points, because essentially we want to grow and take our clients' marketing to the next level, but we don't want to exhaust our audience by constantly pushing our products in front of them.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's how I feel like I do sometimes, but shit, I mean, sometimes I feel like I have to. So, when it comes to, I guess, people coming to you and all that stuff and they're sitting around the table, how much control I mean? I would assume that there's a lot there's. People have to trust their marketing group, they have to trust a third party quote, a third party marketing team, and all that stuff. What makes the magic recipe for you when it comes to, I guess, the company's control of the marketing story and all that stuff? I mean, what's the magic secret sauce?
Speaker 2:I think it all comes down to communication, you know, having open communication between whether it's myself, the marketing coordinator and the client point of contact, and then being able to translate what their goals and ambitions are with their marketing from a storytelling first principle and then translating that with our creative team, and then we can execute on the idea and bring their story to life.
Speaker 1:Essentially, what's a big hurdle that people have, what's something that you can commonly hear you're like, oh my gosh, if only they would understand this. What's a big hurdle that people have when it comes to, I guess, pursuing this relinquish and the control of the creative space?
Speaker 2:I think it's the barrier of authenticity. It's something that is always going to be incredibly successful but it's, at the same time, it's incredibly uncomfortable to start off with. But I think just trying to Just to kind of like come outside of the shell and be willing to be more authentic and share more you know, podcasts, for example, is a growing content format Clients appearing on a podcast and you can break down that piece of content. Oh yeah, okay, you can form piece of content into a short form clip. A carousel Just being open, I think is essential and it's really the key to keep growing your story.
Speaker 1:So we talked about the whole process of storytelling. When I'm hearing let's say, I'm in my car listening to this and I've either started up or something like that Talk me through what is like. If I'm hearing this, what the hell is storytelling? What story do I have to tell, Like, what story do I have to tell? What story does anyone have to tell out there when it comes to their company?
Speaker 2:Well, going back to storytelling, I think there's a huge amount of data out there about the impact of storytelling versus. You know, if I'm just pushing a product and data in someone's face, like the power of storytelling is that it connects on an emotional level, but also because of that scientifically it's proven to enhance memory as well it's going to make your message and your company, at the end of the day, more memorable. So just having that in mind and understanding that your story is not all about you, it's about your audience, I think is incredibly important to have.
Speaker 1:Ooh, what do you mean? Diamond apple nugget right there. That was some juicy knowledge right there.
Speaker 2:So what I mean by that is when you tell a story, if you make the story completely about you, which is something completely unreliable and your audience can't relate with it, it's not going to be memorable and it's not going to have a lasting impact. But when you tell a story that your audience can relate to because it appeals to their emotions and desires, it's going to be 100% more memorable, and that's something companies can leverage if they're really listening to their customers and their customers' pain points and delivering content around that that ultimately solves a problem.
Speaker 1:Where do you see the evolution of content when it comes to market, I mean, where do you see it? I mean, how much do the AI software tools really come into play? How much is it going to be targeted, how much is it going to be? So where are some, I guess, some stuff that you're seeing on the forefront? That's kind of making you geek out a little bit.
Speaker 2:I'm very excited. I'm not sure if you've heard about Sora. It's the text to video. It's essentially chat GPT, but for video. So I could write a prompt.
Speaker 1:You know, dinosaur on a cigarette on a ski lift? Exactly.
Speaker 2:And then a few seconds later, the same like mid-journey. You'll have an image like that. But I think one of the problems I see right now is there's so much AI generated content out there that you know it's kind of a turn off when you see, you know you can really tell when content is AI generated versus it's been written by real human. I think having the ability to distinguish yourself and actually write within your own tone of voice is really important. Your voice is going to set you apart. So I think, at the end of the day, these AI tools are a product to help us increase our efficiency but you can't totally rely on them for creativity.
Speaker 1:We were talking about that last night. We had an exact dinner last night. We were talking about you know kind of you know AI, you know writing, you know whether it's emails to whatever and all stuff. It's like it's kind of one of these things these days where it's like you kind of have to like have some shitty grammar in there. It has like poor grammar, bad punctuation, so it's like it's a human that did this. You know what I mean, unless you want to prompt it. So I mean, and that's a thing too.
Speaker 1:I feel like when it comes to I mean, there's so many different AI tools out there, not just to help create it and also but I feel like it's like, unless you know how to use them properly, like when it comes to the props, when it comes to like the new storytelling video thing, like it's something huge, it's, I don't know. It seems like a big landscape where it's kind of intimidating to kind of get involved. But you're right, I think you can break it down to it. Bring it back to the person. Let me use AI to kind of streamline things a little bit, but it's not going to take away the creative side of the person, side of your brand or something.
Speaker 2:I'm not worried about that just yet. But at the same time, you do have to think that this is only about a year or two into the technology, so who knows where we're going to be at in five to 10 years time. But personally, I'm very excited about the opportunities because so far, since the introduction of these AI tools is enhanced. You know my ability to do creative work tenfold, so I'm excited for now, but at the same time I have a wary eye for the future.
Speaker 1:Would you rather have? I mean, they always got a wary eye in the future. I mean, I think I would be more important to you. Would you rather have ultimate freedom on a project or ultimate budget on a project project? Oh right, can I have a question? No, you can't have both. I mean, what would be more important to you? I mean, would it be kind of like having the resources to, like you know, or would it be having the freedom to kind of try to do stuff out? What kind of gets you going?
Speaker 2:I think freedom, at the end of the day, is is always going to win because you're going to have all the budget in the world, but if you don't have the the freedom to completely explore the creative pathways, you know you see a lot of big corporate companies with huge advertising spend creating content that is just complete garbage. So I think, if you're, if you don't have the ability to be agile and, you know, explore, I don't think, you know, I would much have the ability of freedom rather than budget.
Speaker 1:So how much of your I guess I mean so you've been doing, how long you do market?
Speaker 2:Oh, I would probably say just over three years.
Speaker 1:Okay, so you know, three years, a lot of problems in three years. So let me ask you a question Is this one of those things where you could just kind of like study trends, that the shit that works, or is this something that we actually kind of dive into books or podcasts? Where do you get your, I guess your, your your academic knowledge when it comes to, I guess, marketing?
Speaker 2:It's funny, I studied an arts degree. I'm actually a history graduate, so okay. So everything I've done has kind of led me towards the path of marketing. You know the skill of writing, the skill of communication. I spent a couple of years as a teacher as well, working within hospitality. But I think, going back to your question, it all comes down to sorry, can you cut that I forgot? I forgot the question.
Speaker 1:I don't know, we're not getting in. I'm not an editor. Hold on the question. Was this like? Where do you get like, for example, like I graduated marketing? Okay, I used marketing until like 20 years after I graduated, you know, but it wasn't because like, oh shit, I remember this, this was in my class. No, it was more like, hey, this is kind of cool, I'm going to try to emulate this. So I see this, this is a good idea. So where do you get your? I guess, whenever you are kind of putting your cringe space in it or your the science behind kind of telling the story, is this just kind of like your, your student of the world, where it's kind of like your, whether there's, you know, social media, whether it's kind of podcasts you consume to get ideas or inspiration, or is it kind of like a professor Daniel's marketing 101 book?
Speaker 2:I think you know the whole academic side of things is so outdated. You know you see a, you see a marketing curriculum that is probably still being taught in universities, and you know these whole concepts are kind of like yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they're, they're absolutely. At this point, I think it's way more important to be on on top of, like what, what is actually working in the here and now. So, but the amazing thing about it is, you know, it's almost very toxic in a way, because it's hard to switch off. But luckily, I'm very passionate about creating creative work. But see, you see inspiration in in all kinds of places, whether you're just watching a movie, watching a TV series, and you find or like a movie trailer, you find like an interesting hook in there and trying to apply that to another principle that you're doing in your own work. Or whether it's listening to a podcast, consuming content on LinkedIn, Twitter, like there's so many sources of information out there to take inspiration from. But I think, having having that kind of analytical eye where you're constantly breaking things down and thinking like how to do this, how can I try and emulate this and create a new formula out of this to to apply to my own work?
Speaker 1:And I think that's what you you showed me one time and I thought it was very interesting. Or hey, watch this. I think it was like an Apple, like how Apple advertised or something like that. It was like watch this. It was very like three words on a slot, very simple, very like minimum colors, like it was. It was like, but like wait, this is like the largest company in the world that has like the most like technology. I'm surprised, like there's stuff is that? Oh, you get this in this, in this? It's very simple, it's very feeling story, kind of expectations on what to have when you do per snap phone. It wasn't a lot of detail, like there's cameras 16.8 megapixel, whatever, or runtime, this micro speed processor. It was very simple, it was very like this. Is it Like it was? I thought it was. I thought just showing me that and kind of change how I kind of pursue things as well my idea about communicating with Crew Club or Exec Crew.
Speaker 2:Honestly, man, I love just a very clear, simplistic, you know, sticky headline or piece of copy on a very simplistic graphic. As long as the design is clear, it's in. You know, your brand guidelines, I think. Sometimes I think people overcomplicate it. You know, yes, the main, the main part is, you know, having having a message that people are going to remember, and that all that, of course, goes back to storytelling, but, you know, being really clear on what are your values, what are the benefits and what, what is the value, what is the value that you're bringing to the table?
Speaker 1:Dude, I think that I think honestly, like that is such an under focus or under discussed side of things. So people talk about cost. They talk about that. I think, talking about communicating value and just like injecting whatever you're doing with so much value, that's going to be how you create that experience with the customer, you know. So I was going to be about cost, I was going to be about the. I think I think folks on that value like, and also I think a cool exercise out there to do is reframe. You know how, how, how often are we reframing our, our value? You know like, hey, you're doing this this way. I think the power of reframing, kind of what you're there to do, is a great way to tell your story in a different light, you know just like.
Speaker 1:Bill in California. Yeah, it gives you.
Speaker 2:It gives you an outside perspective, like you know, sometimes showing, showing a piece of content to fresh eyes to someone who's not seen it before, and getting that opinion, and I'm like what? What does this make you feel? Yeah, you know, constantly evolving, because there's nothing worse than, you know, content that doesn't evolve. But I think, having a clear idea of what is your message and how can I break this down and keep telling it in new and novel ways and constantly repurpose to make sure that my message is going to stick.
Speaker 1:I've got a very interesting. I mean I guess we're talking about you know the data, you know like, oh, if you post this, the data is there to back it up, back it up. But you're also saying how does this make you feel? I mean, that's a tough thing to navigate the data behind something, but also the products or the brand's feeling about something. Right, like, how do you measure? I mean, how do you compare or fill those buckets of data versus feeling, which is an intangible soft emotion.
Speaker 2:So devotion can't really Sometimes the most like absurd aspects of what your brand is is the thing that people are going to remember. So like you said it's very hard. It's very hard, you know, like a company avatar. You know sometimes it's completely ridiculous, but it's what people?
Speaker 2:you know the McDonald's and you see that, a mile away, you know, is kind of these absurdities that make you more memorable. They're very hard to quantify with numbers or data, but it goes back to feelings and emotions. But still, you know, you have to have a balance and still be backed by data to some extent, as well as appealing to emotions and storytelling. And I think, with data, it all comes back to experimentation and just constantly testing and trying new forms of content, new ideas, and just measuring them against each other see what performs and why. Breaking down. Why did this pose perform well? What were the principles that we can apply in a new way to get an even bigger impact?
Speaker 1:All right. So let me ask you a question. We're coming up on about 40 minutes for now we had some good conversation. What is in store for Rory? You know you've been doing this, you know you've had, you know, been a candle for five years, been the marketer world for three and all of a sudden blown ago and then that marketing crush was up. What's in your future Like? What's in your vision board for Rory? The next, you know five, ten years, what does that look like?
Speaker 1:And listen. Let's pretend it's at midnight market, let's pretend it's not midnight market. Like I'm just kind of curious. Is it creating more content? Is it? Is it a? Obviously there's. There's some projects going on that we don't have to discuss with you, t's on. But you're, this is your first podcast, wink Wink, which I'm excited about. Other podcasts, wink Wink but what does the future look like for you? A little bit Like what do you? What's driving? Kind of getting you excited. Like who? Who are you in five years?
Speaker 2:That is a great question, man. I sometimes, every day, I look at myself in the mirror and ask myself who am I today? But I'm, I'm, very excited. You know just the journey I'm on. I'm very much still a work in progress, but I'm just grateful to be. You know, learning and keep trying to improve every single day. I'm surrounded by an amazing team of incredibly creative individuals at midnight Right, and you know we're constantly on a mission to evolve as well, and not only that same with myself. You know, constantly learning and trying to apply this to the stuff that I'm doing every day. So, honestly, man, I'm very excited on where the future lies for for Rory.
Speaker 1:What would Rory teach a masterclass on? Listen, I deal with the possible syndrome. You deal with it. What would Rory teach a masterclass on in three years?
Speaker 2:I mean, there's so many different facets to marketing, but honestly, my love is for for storytelling, so okay, okay. So, like I said, I'm on a mission to keep to keep elevating my knowledge on storytelling and hopefully I can provide some value and help other people's learn from that, from my experience as well.
Speaker 1:Can you do me a favor? I guess you know if I'm sitting here and I'm here listening to my car. I'll storytelling. Storytelling, if you don't mind. Talk to me about whether it's true, clear or exact true. When you came in and we had that first conversation about storytelling and what was actually done, so pretty much keep this a real world example on how you came in, how midnight marketing Rory came in and the team came in Bella, sarah and Anson and how you applied storytelling to exact true. Yeah, let's use exact true, for example.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think exact true is a great example, because what you guys are doing are you know you're solving a problem. So we started off. What was the problem with exact true? What is the whole purpose of exact true is to connect leaders and founders.
Speaker 2:So, okay, we have the problem we're solving. How can we tell that story in 10 different ways that can appeal to our target audience? So, from that point, you know what is the value in a connection. Why is it important in this digital age where a lot of connections are kind of superficial, linked in you know, these huge conferences and industry events that aren't targeted and focused. How can we appeal to that pain point and tell a story that shows how important genuine connections are, whether that's in the energy industry or whatever, like the whole value of having these tight knit connections within your industry and a diverse perspective of leaders to help you navigate your career and your choices and your decisions. But I think you know what really helped is me and you, jp, having that open discourse on like, what is the real problem that exact crew is solving and how can we tell that story in 10 different ways and keep evolving the narrative through different formats, whether that's a video carousel website, you know what that is.
Speaker 1:So I love that because literally, you just kind of summed up everything we just talked about. Number one you talked about being authentic. You know, like, what is the real issue here? You talked about solving problems. I don't know why it thumbs up like this. See, ai, like thumb me up right now, I don't know why. Yeah, I guess. So Thanks, ai. But I mean you're talking about, you know listening, solving problems. You know what is the problem, but also what's the solution.
Speaker 1:How do we tell that story? You know, five, 10 different times, through different media, through different content. You're talking about reframing things, how to reframe our story for the audience. Because if I'm up here saying, oh, it's an executive development program, or it's an executive development program, or students, like okay, well, who gets a shit? Like why is it important for people to engage with this? Oh, it's connections. What can improve with connection? So it really is, as you said, communicating, providing the solution. Talk about the problem, having a vision, communicating your value and reframing things. So you just kind of summed up everything, kind of our entire conversation, with that.
Speaker 1:But again, I mean, coming from my perspective, the fact that when you all came in, you all started telling me like hey, listen, we have to tell the story and it's like that, just completely like. I just like was missing the forest trees. I was like that's the great way to frame. I love how you all did that. So, yeah, that's just a real world example on the power of storytelling and what it's done for for executive. So what else you got for us? How you know, how you know what are you? What are you focused on? What are you digging? You're digging your time off away from the office, like what do you get into me? We're a gaming family, so I'm kicking ass in VR world taking people out. What are you doing?
Speaker 2:Honestly, do you know what I think as a creative person? Sometimes it's so important to just completely switch off. You know, go on a walk. A lot of my best creative ideas come to me in the strangest places. Yeah, when in the shower. Like it's true, there's so many studies out there that having that time to just completely reset, relax, take it easy when you're off the daily grind of creating content and work is so important. That's something that I've really tried to do when I'm outside of the rising grind of the daily. I love that man.
Speaker 1:I mean, I completely love that because you're right, it's such a hustle and go cultured. Let's say, I get off this, I hop on my phone, get more dope in me. I love the concept of just like detach a little bit, detach a little bit and have your brain kind of get bored so it gets creative.
Speaker 2:Yeah, even going to the gym no headphones and having to deal with headphones.
Speaker 1:That's sad.
Speaker 2:Having to deal with your own dark thoughts for a while is very important just to reframe and reset. Creativity and boredom interconnected, so it's incredibly important to switch off sometimes and just reset and then go again.
Speaker 1:Well, man, I always dig talking man. I appreciate your time coming on Energy Crew podcast and you crushed it for your first. I'm actually shocked, as your first podcast you crushed it. But anyway, this is Rory Nolan out there, the marketing coordinator. I've been that marketing up. Who's been such a fight.
Speaker 1:I'm not just saying that because we're sitting here with each other, but you and your team have been such a crucial part on kind of like, just like helping my sanity, helping with the message, helping with, again, the story behind what's going on. It's just so easy because you know, my heads are as a business owner, my heads are in the weeds, like, oh, I got to communicate this, this, this, this, this, but that's not the story, that's not the brand. Those are little things that are important but not crucial. So I want to thank you for your time, rory. I want to thank I hope you have a great weekend and all that stuff. I appreciate what you and the team at Menoparkin does, but I mean, let's get it for us. You can find Rory on LinkedIn. How's the people contact you? That's probably the best, safest way is.
Speaker 2:LinkedIn or you can check out Midnight Marketing's website. Check out Midnight Marketing on LinkedIn. You might see a funny TikTok meme that Bella has made of me against my will.
Speaker 1:Okay, I'm sure it is Dude, that's also kind of exciting for you too. It's like I mean working at first off, I think, working at a creative marketing company, like that dude when I got out of college, like I went to like 17 different creative marketing companies to like apply there. So the fact that you're actually working at a creative market, but also it's like it's such a young, fun creative company too, that seems like it's like just a cool little situation to get yourself in.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's a great place to be around and it's an incredibly creative environment, like especially when everyone's here in office and we're all together brainstorming, just bouncing ideas off each other. And, yeah, I'm excited to see where this team is headed.
Speaker 1:I dig that man. That's so awesome. It's going to be cool too. All of us see it like in like 10, 15 years and ever, like you know, naturally people go. I just kind of see and just like what the team that started it in that market and kind of where it's going to go. I love it so.
Speaker 2:I dig it. I'm excited man.
Speaker 1:Well, everyone want to thank you too. Wait, what you got. Were you going to try to get it? You're going to close this out. What you got.
Speaker 2:I was just going to say thanks for popping me on. It's a pleasure to be on the energy crew podcast.
Speaker 1:I'm sure it is Well, thanks. Thanks out there for tuning in and we'll talk to you soon. Roar, you've been good man. You have good Great. Yeah, thanks again. Thanks, rick, 뼈, 뼈, 뼈, 뼈, 뼈, 뼈.