The $100M Marketing Competition

Summary

Podcast Summary: Brain Driven Brands – Episode: The $100M Marketing Competition

Title: The $100M Marketing Competition
Host: Sarah Levinger
Release Date: February 18, 2025

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Introduction

In this exhilarating episode of Brain Driven Brands, host Sarah Levinger teams up with Nate to engage in a high-stakes marketing competition orchestrated by ChatGPT. The premise? Both marketers are granted an imaginary $100 million ad spend to build and scale their respective Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) brands. As they navigate through strategic decisions, unexpected market twists, and competitive challenges, this episode offers listeners a deep dive into advanced neuromarketing tactics, brand management, and the psychological underpinnings of consumer behavior.

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Setting Up the $100M Marketing Competition

[00:45] Sarah: Kicks off the episode by introducing the unconventional game format designed to pit her marketing prowess against Nate's. The objective is clear: determine who can build a stronger brand using a simulated $100 million marketing budget.

[02:01] ChatGPT: Acts as the game master, assigning each participant a brand category and target audience. Sarah is tasked with launching a Luxury Water Brand targeting wealthy but eco-conscious millennials, while Nate takes on the role of marketing a Protein-Infused Ice Cream aimed at hardcore fitness enthusiasts.

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Choosing Brands and Target Audiences

[03:50] Sarah: Reflects on her assigned role, highlighting the dual focus on luxury and sustainability necessary to appeal to her affluent, environmentally aware audience.

[05:41] Nate: Playfully claims an advantage, perceiving his target market of fitness enthusiasts as "easy money," though underlying tension suggests a competitive spirit.

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Marketing Strategy Draft

[06:07] ChatGPT: Presents a pool of eight potential marketing strategies from which Sarah and Nate must draft their marketing playbooks. Strategies include:

1. Influencer partnerships
2. Subway station takeovers
3. TikTok UGC Blitz
4. AI-driven personalization
5. Psychological pricing tricks
6. Print mail catalogs
7. High-end retail collaborations
8. Referral-based loyalty programs

[08:22] Strategy Selection:

• Sarah: Chooses Psychological Pricing Tricks, TikTok UGC Blitz, and AI-Driven Personalization.
• Nate: Selects Influencer Partnerships, High-End Retail Collaborations, and Referral-Based Loyalty Program.

Notable Quote:

Sarah [08:22]: "I'm going to get that Was a lot. I'm going to copy and paste them... I think I need to go ultra premium."

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Handling Market Twists

As the game progresses, ChatGPT introduces unforeseen challenges that test their adaptability and strategic foresight.

First Twist: Plastic Backlash Against Luxury Water

• [11:50] ChatGPT: Sarah's eco-conscious audience demands a shift from plastic to glass bottles.
• [12:03] Sarah: Opts to go all-in on switching to glass, despite increased costs.

Outcome:

[13:00] ChatGPT: "Your pricing power just went through the roof. Your brand image is intact."

Second Twist: Fitness World Rejects Artificial Sweeteners

• [15:49] ChatGPT: Nate faces backlash against artificial sweeteners in his ice cream.
• [16:27] Nate: Chooses to reformulate his product with clean-label alternatives.

Outcome:

[17:23] ChatGPT: "Your brand cements itself as the serious athlete's choice."

Notable Quote:

Sarah [12:32]: "If you see this happening where customers are like, we just don't like the Influencer that you used... it's something you got to pay attention to."

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Competitive Challenges and Final Decisions

Competing Brands Enter the Scene:

• [17:42] ChatGPT introduces competitors: a new luxury water brand using aluminum bottles and Halo Top releasing a clean-label ice cream that undercuts Nate's pricing.

Final Major Decisions:

• Sarah's Dilemma: A global airline offers to carry her aluminum water bottles exclusively.

  • Decision: Turns down the offer to maintain brand exclusivity and avoid diluting her luxury image.

• Nate's Dilemma: A supplement company offers to acquire his ice cream brand for $50 million.

  • Decision: Rejects the acquisition to retain control and continue growing independently.

Notable Quotes:

Sarah [22:16]: "I have to do what the customers want."
Nate [25:58]: "You don't want that."

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Final Results and Reflections

Revenue Outcomes:

• Sarah's Luxury Water Brand: $85 million in year one.
• Nate's Protein Ice Cream: $72 million in year one.

Judgment:

• Sarah Wins on short-term business success with her higher revenue.
• Nate Wins on long-term potential due to deep customer loyalty and strategic brand positioning.

Conclusion: While Sarah secures a higher immediate revenue, Nate's brand showcases strong potential for sustained growth and market dominance. The episode underscores the delicate balance between short-term gains and long-term brand integrity, highlighting how strategic decisions can shape a brand's trajectory.

Notable Quotes:

Nate [35:09]: "72 million in ice cream is nuts."
Sarah [29:00]: "I am turning down the airline offer."

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Key Insights and Learnings

1. Adaptability is Crucial: Both Sarah and Nate faced unexpected market shifts that required swift and strategic responses to maintain their brand's integrity and customer loyalty.

2. Customer-Centric Decisions: Understanding and prioritizing the evolving preferences of your target audience can make or break a brand. Sarah's switch to glass bottles and Nate's reformulation of his product exemplify this principle.

3. Balancing Brand Prestige and Sustainability: Sarah's decision to decline the airline partnership preserved her brand's luxury image, emphasizing the importance of staying true to brand values even when lucrative opportunities arise.

4. Long-Term Vision vs. Immediate Gains: While Sarah achieved higher short-term revenue, Nate's focus on building a loyal customer base positions his brand for enduring success.

Notable Quote:

Nate [36:05]: "What’s harder about business? Business."

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Conclusion

"The $100M Marketing Competition" episode offers a captivating exploration of brand strategy, consumer psychology, and the intricacies of managing a DTC business in a simulated yet realistic environment. Through engaging dialogue and real-time decision-making, Sarah and Nate provide listeners with actionable insights into effective marketing strategies, the importance of adaptability, and the relentless challenges faced by brand builders. Whether you're an aspiring marketer or a seasoned professional, this episode serves as both an entertaining and educational guide to navigating the complex world of neuromarketing and brand management.

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Follow and Engage:

• Sarah Levinger: Follow on Social Media
• Nate: Technical, Impractical Podcast or Twitter - Nate Legos

For more insights into consumer behavior and advanced marketing strategies, visit Tether Insights.

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Notable Timestamped Quotes:

• [08:22] Sarah: "I'm going to get that Was a lot. I'm going to copy and paste them..."
• [12:32] Sarah: "If you see this happening where customers are like, we just don't like the Influencer that you used..."
• [15:49] ChatGPT: "Nate is reformulating..."
• [22:16] Sarah: "I have to do what the customers want."
• [29:00] Nate: "72 million in ice cream is nuts."
• [36:05] Nate: "What’s harder about business? Business."

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Recommendation:
Listeners are encouraged to reflect on the strategic choices made by Sarah and Nate, consider their own brand's adaptability, and engage with the episode by sharing thoughts and participating in future marketing games.

Transcript

[Sarah]

Foreign.

[Nate]

Welcome to Brain Driven Brands.

[Sarah]

Welcome Celebrity Death Match episode Celeb against celeb. Hey. Hey. This is. This is a safe space, okay? We're all friends here. At the end of the day, there's still love. It's gonna. It's gonna be fine. Or we may never work together again after this. Who knows? Today on Braver Brands, we're gonna jump right in because we're gonna do something that makes no sense at all and that I came up with in the last that because that's how Sarah roll. We are doing a game with Chat today to see who the better marketer is. Is it me or is it Nate? It's probably going to be Nate, and I'm scared a little bit, so find out. You ready for this?

[Nate]

Yeah. You haven't been on the brand side in a while. Like, not.

[Sarah]

I have not. I really haven't. I haven't lived it. I haven't breathed it. I also haven't done growth marketing in quite a while. Like, it's been a minute because I've been focused on consumer insights and, like, also helping brands understand people.

[Nate]

I've only ever had success selling stuff made out of wood, so.

[Sarah]

Oh, yeah. We'll see if that translates in, like, luxury markets. Okay, so how this is going to work? We're going to talk to Chat real quick. Chat is setting up this game for us, and it's going to give us a brand, it's going to give us a customer base, and then it's going to let us pick from some marketing strategies, and then we're going to ask Chat to award a winner here at the end of this game.

[Nate]

All right.

[Sarah]

Is this going to work? I don't know. Is Chat going to actually get us to the end of this game without derailing itself? We don't know.

[Nate]

We'll see. This episode also might sit in a Dropbox folder for a year because we don't, like, totally.

[Sarah]

Might also shout out to producer Scotty. He's amazing. He's probably going to have to cut a lot of this episode, so apologies.

[Nate]

Yeah. Edit Heavy episode.

[Sarah]

Just depends on what Chat brings back. You never know what Chat's going to do. Okay, so first we're going to ask Chat. Here we go. Ready? Okay. Can you explain the game to us and then go ahead and launch it? Give it a take.

[Chat]

All right. Welcome to the $100 million marketing draft. Sarah and Nate, you each have a hundred million dollars in imaginary ad spend to build the next great dtc.

[Sarah]

Oh, it's already freak. It Out.

[Chat]

So the market is ruthless, your audience is unpredictable, and I'll be throwing twists and challenges at you along the way. Here's how it works. First, I'll assign your brand category. This is the business you're launching today. Then we'll determine your target audience, because knowing who you're selling to is just as important as what you're selling. Once you have your brand and audience, you'll draft three core marketing strategies from a pool of options. You'll take turns picking, and once a strategy is taken, it's off the board. But be warned, things will go wrong. I'll be dropping in throughout the game with unexpected market shifts, consumer behavior twists, and competitor sabotage. You'll have to adapt on the fly to survive. Oh, my God. Reveal your first year revenue and let the audience decide who built the stronger brand.

[Sarah]

All right, let's do it.

[Chat]

First, let's find out what kind of brand you're building today. Rolling for brand categories. Sarah, your brand is luxury water brand. All right, Your goal is to convince people to pay 5 to 10x more for water. I can do that by using branding, storytelling, and strategic marketing. Nate, your brand is protein infused ice cream. You're launching a high protein, low calorie ice cream brand, going up against competitors like Halo, Top and Nyx. Round one, audience assignment. You know what you're selling, but now let's see who your core customer base is. Rolling for audience. Sarah, your primary customer base is wealthy but eco conscious millennials. They want premium products but care about sustainability, ethics, and aesthetics. Nate, your primary customer base is hardcore fitness bros. These guys care about macros. Gains come if it helps.

[Sarah]

You got the easier crowd.

[Nate]

Shut up.

[Chat]

Round two, marketing strategy draft. You each now get to pick three core marketing strategies from the list below. You'll take turns picking one at a time. Choose wisely, because once a strategy is picked, the other player can't use it. Strategy pool.

[Sarah]

Okay, we're gonna pause it there. So did everybody get that? Hopefully. All right, this is gonna be fascinating.

[Nate]

I'm taking notes, by the way. I'm taking this seriously.

[Sarah]

Oh, come on. All right, you're gonna freaking. You're gonna freaking do it. Okay, so here's what we got. Chat has now assigned us both a brand for the 100 million dollar marketing draft. Mine is luxury water, which, hey, shout out to me because I freaking love luxury water. If anybody doesn't know, Sarah's like a huge liquid death fan. So luxury water brand. Nate's brand is a protein infused ice cream, which again, I think is not Fair, because you got the easier brand. But whatever, we'll keep going.

[Nate]

I'm sorry, are there any protein ice creams that are doing more than liquid death revenue these days?

[Sarah]

Okay, all right, all right. Again, this is just. You get the roll of dice. This is just what chat it's like. I have no idea if this is going to work. All right, here we go. So audience assignment. My primary customer base is wealthy but eco conscious millennials. They want premium products but care about sustainability, ethics and aesthetics. So that's fascinating. All right, I got to think about, like, what my tactic will be for that. So Sarah gets wealthy but eco conscious millennials. Nate's primary customer base is hardcore fitness bros. They care about macros, gains and low sugar. If it helps them stay shredded, they're in. So Sarah's in. In luxury. In. Not luxury. Luxury water brand Nate is in protein infused ice cream. I'm going after wealthy eco conscious millennials. Nate is going after hardcore fitness grows easy. What do we think so far?

[Nate]

Easy money.

[Sarah]

Is it fun? Yeah, I'm having so much fun.

[Nate]

I'm so excited to get into it. Let's go.

[Sarah]

I'm really scared. Okay, okay, okay.

[Chat]

Here we go.

[Sarah]

So we're gonna ask chat to continue on. The next piece of this is going to be drafting the actual marketing strategy. Chat is going to give us basically a pool of stuff to pick from. You can only pick from things on this list. You cannot make up your own only things on the list. You ready? Okay.

[Nate]

If the number one option on the list is hire Sarah to do a customer insights program for it's so kind.

[Sarah]

That's so nice of you. 100% agree. 100% agree with that. Okay, here we go.

[Chat]

All right. Welcome to round two, the marketing strategy draft. You each have your brand and target audience, but now it's time to build your marketing playbook. How this works. You will take turns picking three core marketing strategies from the list below. Once a strategy is picked, the other player cannot use it. You need to think about what what works best for your audience and what might sabotage your competitor if you take it. First strategy pool 1. Influencer partnerships 2. Subway station takeovers 3. TikTok UGC blitz 4. AI driven personalization 5. Psychological practice tricks 6. Print mail catalogs 7. High end retail collabs 8. Referral based loyalty program. Sarah. Since you're selling luxury water to wealthy but eco conscious millennials, you get first pick. Sarah, what's your first marketing strategy? Nate, get ready to go next.

[Sarah]

All right, I'm going to get that Was a lot. I'm going to copy and paste them. I'm going to copy and paste them in the chat. All right, so here's what we got. So chat wants us to pick from eight different strategies in this pool. One, influencer partnerships. Two, subway station takeovers. Which I think it means the billboards. Is that what that means? Like in the subways? Okay, so subway station takeovers. Number three is TikTok UGC Blitz. Four is AI driven personalization. Five is psychological pricing tricks. Dang it. It knows me too well. Number six is print mail catalog. Seven, high end retail collabs. And eight, referral based loyalty program. So take a minute. Look at this list. You have to pick. What did it say? You can only pick three of these, and once it's picked, you cannot pick anymore. Okay, Are you ready for this?

[Nate]

I'm ready.

[Sarah]

This is the most fun I've ever had. Oh, my God, I'm so scared. Producer Scotty's just, like, dying in the room over there. I. I don't know what's gonna happen, people, because I didn't actually practice before we got into this. I'm literally doing this in real time. Okay, here we go. All right. Okay, I have to pick which one I want. All right. Thinking. Thank you. Thinking.

[Chat]

All right.

[Nate]

You don't have your first pick already.

[Sarah]

I think I know. All right, that's crazy. All right, Chat, So I think my choices for the strategy pool. I would like to do psychological pricing tricks. Oh, my God, this is so hard.

[Nate]

No, no, you just pick one.

[Sarah]

No, you pick three.

[Nate]

It's a draft to go back and forth.

[Sarah]

No. All right, all right, fine.

[Nate]

All of yours.

[Sarah]

And leave me with my first pick. Is psychological pricing tricks. Okay, let's see what it says.

[Chat]

All right, Sarah is locking in psychological pricing tricks as her first pick. That means, Nate, you're up next. You're selling protein infused ice cream to hardcore fitness bros. What's your first marketing strategy?

[Sarah]

All right, Nate, what's your pick?

[Nate]

Influencer partnerships.

[Chat]

Nate has locked in influencer partnerships. That means psychological pricing tricks and influencer partnerships are off the board. Back to you, Sarah. What's your second pick?

[Sarah]

I pick TikTok UGC Blitz.

[Chat]

Sarah locks in TikTok UGC Blitz. That means psychological pricing tricks and TikTok UGC Blitz are off the board for Sarah and.

[Sarah]

All right, Nate, what's your second.

[Chat]

Is off the board for Nate. Nate, it's back to you. What's your second pick?

[Nate]

I'll take high end retail collabs.

[Sarah]

Nate picks high end retail Collabs. Because he's weird.

[Chat]

Nate picks high end retail collabs. Interesting move for a protein ice cream brand.

[Sarah]

Thank you. Even Chat thinks you're weird.

[Chat]

Retail collapse is off the board. Final pick. What's your last strategy?

[Sarah]

I pick AI driven personalization.

[Chat]

Sarah locks in. AI driven personalization. That means Sarah's final marketing playbook is psychological pricing tricks. TikTok, UGC Blitz. AI driven personalization. Nate, it's time for your final pick. What's your last strategy?

[Nate]

Referral based loyalty program.

[Chat]

Nate locks in Referral based loyalty program. That means Nate's final marketing playbook is influencer partnerships. High end retail collabs. Referral based loyalty program. Round two complete. What do you think they mean into premium pricing psychology?

[Sarah]

Okay, we're gonna pause it for a second.

[Nate]

What do you think they mean by high end retail collabs?

[Sarah]

I have no idea. That's why I'm thinking like that one.

[Nate]

I'm thinking like Whole Foods and Trader Joe's. Oh, and like, shit like that.

[Sarah]

No, I think it's probably. Yeah, you're. You're looking for higher end, like, I don't know, grocery stores, basically.

[Nate]

That's what I was hoping for.

[Sarah]

I mean, I think that's right. Okay. Oh, my God. All right, what do we think of this so far, Producer Scotty? This is the most fun I've ever had, and I'm terrified. I don't know what's going on.

[Nate]

I think it's clear that I'm winning. I don't know if there's scoreboard yet.

[Sarah]

We'll see. All right.

[Nate]

I'm poised for a big year.

[Sarah]

Oh, my God. This is gonna be intense. All right.

[Nate]

By the way, why don't we just launch a brand for real?

[Sarah]

We 100% should. I was thinking about it the other day. I was like, Nate and I would crush.

[Nate]

Why don't we just launch a brand?

[Sarah]

Okay.

[Nate]

Can be funded by the podcast.

[Sarah]

Oh, all right. Hey, we'll. We'll build it on the podcast. If you guys want to watch Nate and me build a brand, come. Yeah, come find us and comment on.

[Nate]

Because it'd be way funnier if there's actual money at the end of this game.

[Sarah]

100. Would that be great if we were actually making money off of this game that we're playing? Hey, I am into it. I'm freaking here for it. All right, who's ready for round three? Round one. Round two is done. Round three, we're gonna move on to our first unexpected marketing twist. Our market twist. Sorry. First unexpected Market twist. Here we go.

[Chat]

All right, Sarah, your wealthy eco conscious customers are turning against plastic. They're flooding social media calling for glass only bottles. And they're saying any brand still using plastic is not truly sustainable.

[Sarah]

My cogs are going to skyrocket.

[Chat]

90% of your current production is plastic. What's your price? Do you do damage control? Launch an emergency PR campaign explaining your transition plan while secretly offloading your plastic inventory? Go all in. Immediately halt plastic production and announce a limited edition glass bottle rebrand. But at a hu fight back, argue that plastic is actually more eco friendly in the long run.

[Sarah]

I don't like this game.

[Chat]

Your audience, Sarah, what's your strategy?

[Sarah]

Oh, God, I think I'm gonna go all in. I'm gonna go all in and change it all to glass and just eat the cost.

[Nate]

That's the right call.

[Sarah]

Scotty says no, bad idea is going all in.

[Chat]

She's halting plastic production immediately and switching her luxury water.

[Sarah]

I gotta do what the customers want.

[Chat]

Glass bottles. What's the cost? This move will slash profits in the short term, but it cements your brand as the true premium, eco friendly water on the market.

[Sarah]

Thank you.

[Chat]

Your audience loves the commitment and turns your glass bottles into a status symbol. The payoff? TikTok UGC Creators start flexing their glass bottles in aesthetic morning routine videos. AI driven personalization lets you target high net worth customers with tailored messaging about sustainable luxury. Yep, your pricing power just went through the roof. You can now charge even more. Your brand image is intact. But can your business survive the financial hit? We'll see. Nate, your turn.

[Nate]

Hold on.

[Sarah]

We were a killer. Like, I'm having so much fun.

[Nate]

Budget, right?

[Sarah]

Yeah. $100 million budget.

[Nate]

Yeah. That.

[Sarah]

We can crush it on this. Okay. Okay. To Scotty's point, this game definitely needs a cfo because this would not have flown, like, if I would have come back to the team and been like, hey, we need to go all in on glass bottles, increase our cogs by like 10x and just. Just get in on this. I don't know that the brand would have, like, accepted that. I think the brand would be like, Sarah. No, I don't know.

[Nate]

Depends how early we were and how much inventory we had in plastic.

[Sarah]

Yeah, I suppose I. I chose this particular route mostly because, again, the consumers wanting something is different than a cultural trend that's going to continue to move forward within the actual societal base from now on. So if you see this happening. Exactly. If you see this happening where customers are like, we just don't like the Influencer that you used. Please don't change everything just because they're, like, getting a little crap, like, cranky about stuff. If you see them ask specifically for something and their behavior is following that, meaning you notice the entire market is now starting to all go over to glass. This is something you got to pay attention to. This is, like, incredibly important for any brand who's in these type of markets. Anybody who wants eco friendly stuff. If your consumers want it, check to see that their behavior is aligned with that. Because it could be a trend. It could be an entire cultural shift. Scotty O. Says it happened with Sig water bottles. Yes, yes, yes, yes, 100%.

[Nate]

It's also because we kind of dabble in the eco sustainable world with our give back initiatives. But it's super important to realize, like, is this something people say they care about? Or is this something people actually care about? Because everyone says they care about it, and it's like, cool. Do you want to pay an extra $3 in order to make it carbon neutral? And they're like.

[Sarah]

They're like, no, I don't want to pay $3. My dollars are important.

[Nate]

And we'll keep planting trees, and that's it. That's all we'll do. And it's a lot of trees. 750,000.

[Sarah]

That's a lot of trees. You guys do crush it with the trees.

[Nate]

Almost to a million. All right, Sarah.

[Sarah]

All right.

[Nate]

I think you did great.

[Sarah]

Thank you. I'm so excited. All right, are you ready? Oh, my God. I can't wait to see what the consumers are going to do to you. Because I felt. I felt attacked personally. I was like, consumers, calm down.

[Chat]

All right, all right, Nate, the fitness world has turned against artificial sweeteners. Even though your product is totally safe, influencers are spreading fear, and your sales are dropping. Your move. Launch an aggressive education campaign. Partner with scientists and dietitians to prove your ingredients are safe. Quickly reformulate. Swap out the artificial sweeteners for a clean label alternative. But risk taste and production delays. Lean into controversy. Embrace the bad boy of fitness food label and double down on the idea that real results don't come from fake trends. Nate, what's your play?

[Nate]

Clean alternative? Reformulate.

[Sarah]

You're gonna reformulate?

[Nate]

Yeah.

[Sarah]

What? Okay, sales are down. I have a very different take on this, but. Okay, sales are down. Sales are down. You're. You're dropping fast, like you're about to go out of business. So we gotta. We gotta get something. All right, so yours is to. You're gonna reformulate, is that what you said? Yeah. Okay. All right, let's see what chat says. Here we go.

[Chat]

Nate is reformulating. He's making the bold move to swap out artificial sweeteners for a clean label alternative. The cost reformulating means temporary production delays. You'll be out of stock for at least four weeks. Your high end retail collabs are pissed because their shelves are empty. The payoff. Fitness bros immediately trust your brand again. Influencers start hyping the all natural switch as a W for clean eating. Your referral based loyalty program kicks in hard. Your customers brag about switching to your brand in group chats and gym searches.

[Sarah]

Come on.

[Chat]

But survived. Your new clean formula could make you a category leader. But can you recover from the lost revenue? Heck, mid game status check. Both brands just took big risks to win over their audience. Let's see where you stand, Sarah. Luxury water. Wealthy eco conscious millennials. Glass only pivot. Higher brand prestige, stronger pricing power. TikTok UGC is now boosting virality short term financial hit from switching materials. Nate. Protein ice cream, Hardcore fitness bras. Artificial sweetener swap. Brand trust restored. Referral program is fueling word of mouth. Lost four weeks of production, putting retail partnerships at risk. Competitor attack. All right, just as you're stabilizing your business, a major competitor is coming for you, Sarah. A competing luxury water brand just launched and they're selling it in refillable aluminum bottles. They're positioning themselves as even more sustainable than you. Dang it, Nate. Halo Top just dropped a clean label version of their ice cream and they're undercutting you on price. Time to defend your turf. Sarah, you're up first. How do you respond to the aluminum bottle threat?

[Sarah]

Oh, no, it's just gonna have me respond. It's not gonna give me like options.

[Nate]

There's no option.

[Sarah]

There's no options. It's just like, how do you respond? Okay, all right, so let's go back here. So all of a sudden we have kind of rode the wave of these two consumer changes that came into the market. Yeah. And now all of a sudden we have a competitor that's coming in and trying to attack my business. How dare you. Competitor for. Yeah, for me, they're coming in with refillable aluminum bottles. They're even more sustainable than my glass bottle brand, which is technically true. Glass is incredibly difficult to make. It's not very easy to recycle, and it's also really hard ship. So they're positioning themselves as the real choice for eco conscious customers. Okay, so it's going to Give me options. All right, here we go. This is a stressful game. I see now why brand founders are, like, really stressed out all the time. You poor people. Welcome.

[Nate]

By the way, this is the funnest, most relaxing thing I've done all week.

[Sarah]

Poor Nate's like, this is my life. Why are we playing a game about my life?

[Nate]

Do you know how much I spent on ads yesterday of real money?

[Sarah]

Hey, I'm gonna win this game, okay? Sarah's gonna be a good brand founder. Here we go. This is the most fun I've ever had. Okay, here we go. You know what we need to make? We need to make a board game, like a D2C monopoly.

[Nate]

You should do a bracket of this. Of all the D2C influencers.

[Sarah]

All the. All the. Oh, you mean, like, all the influences will come on to play the game with me? Hell, yeah. All right. I'm gonna reach out to some people. This is the most fun game I've ever played.

[Nate]

Have them play against each other when they come on and you host it.

[Sarah]

I should. I want to see you. And Very hot. Do a showdown. Okay. Onward. We're 24 minutes in. Holy God, we really do. This episode's gonna go out on all of my socials for the next six weeks, so people are gonna get real annoyed with me, but I don't even care because this is the most fun I've ever had. Here we go. Okay. Okay, I'm ready for my options.

[Chat]

All right, Sarah, your competitor is pushing aluminum bottles as the superior sustainable option. You need to fight back before they steal your eco conscious customers. Your options. Flip the narrative. Run an aggressive campaign explaining why glass.

[Sarah]

Is superior for purity Child is a bad time to do this, baby cakes. I'm on a call. I can't help. Sorry. Thanks for telling us for that. You're welcome, sweetheart. I just wanted to say thanks. Oh, you're so nice, baby. Thank you. I'll be off in a little bit. Okay. Thank you. This is why always be nice to your kid. Always be nice.

[Nate]

He was really just gonna come.

[Sarah]

Just wanted to say thank you. My kids are the best. This is why, again, parenting tip 101. Don't ever get mad at your kid for what they're doing because they might just want to come say thank you.

[Nate]

And then kids, ever so.

[Sarah]

So I'm like, okay, don't get mad. He's only four. Don't get mad. He doesn't know you're on a podcast. What do you want? I'm sorry. I can't help you. He's like, I just wanted to say thank you.

[Nate]

That's unbelievable.

[Sarah]

Wow. Hurts my heart. All right, this episode is going to be like eight years long.

[Chat]

All right, Sarah, your competitor is pushing aluminum bottles as the superior sustainable option. You need to fight back before they steal your eco conscious customers. Your options. Flip the narrative.

[Sarah]

Okay.

[Chat]

Run an aggressive campaign explaining why glass is actually superior for purity, taste and recyclability, even if it's more expensive. Join the trend. Introduce a limited edition aluminum bottle to test demand. Even though it might confuse your brand positioning. Go ultra premium. Double down on glass as a luxury experience, marketing it as the champagne of water, making the aluminum competitor look cheap. Sarah, what's your move?

[Sarah]

No. This is so hard.

[Nate]

This is a good game. This is such a fun game.

[Sarah]

I came up with this in five minutes before we did this episode. Tell you, man, people don't use chat the right way. You should be making games with chat is what you should be doing. All right, all right, all right. What do we think here? I have. All right. My gut feeling is I need to go ultra premium. But I honestly, I might introduce. Just introduce a limited edition aluminum bottle and see what happens. I might just throw like a little. I might throw a chat of bone and be like, all right, let's see what happens if we do this. I. My gut, just for the record, is to go ultra premium, but I'm not going to choose that one. Mostly because I think just because of the way this game is going, it's going to take us eight years to get to the end of this thing. And I think I could pivot. I think I can pivot into aluminum. Okay. You won't smile. Like, this is a bad decision and I'm scared now. Damn it. All right, Okay. I choose number two. I'm gonna join the trend and introduce a limited edition aluminum bottle.

[Chat]

Sarah is adapting. She's launching a limited edition aluminum bottle to test steak, even though it might blur her luxury positioning. Oh, no, the cost. Developing aluminum bottles isn't cheap and your glass supply partners aren't happy. Your brand messaging is at risk of confusion. Are you a luxury glass brand or a sustainable aluminum brand? The payoff. Your TikTok UGC blitz goes wild. Creators start making glass versus aluminum content driving engagement. Your AI driven personalization helps segmented targeting.

[Sarah]

Thank you.

[Chat]

You push glass to highs and aluminum to eco conscious millennials. You know, you successfully neutralize the competitor. They don't steal your market share. But you now have two competing brand narratives to manage. You've survived, but now you need to figure out how to balance two product identities. Nate, your turn.

[Nate]

All right.

[Sarah]

I'm so glad I chose that. AI driven stuff like that was a good. It's coming in real handy.

[Nate]

Yeah. Go figure that ChatGPT is biased towards having your AI customization solution work for every possible outcome. Chad's like, yeah, I got it.

[Sarah]

Yeah, I got this. I got this 100%. You definitely should choose that because AI and I'm Chad. Yes. All right, so Sarah's surviving. I'm doing all right. Sounds like this was a really good decision.

[Nate]

I thought it was a big mistake because you made the decision by saying, my gut says this, but I'm gonna do this instead.

[Sarah]

That's not how. The reason I chose to pivot though, and Do2 products is mostly because going ultra premium just increases my cogs and as a business, I got to stay in business and keep my costs low. Especially since the majority of what I'm like pulling in acquisition wise, is organic. If the organic consumers change what they do, I'm screwed. So I have to pivot on product just to be able to future proof the business. All right, are you ready?

[Nate]

I'm ready.

[Sarah]

All right, let's do Nate's.

[Chat]

All right, Nate, Halo Top just launched a clean label protein ice cream and they're undercutting you on price. Your high end retail collabs are now reconsidering your placement. You need to respond before they steal your market. Share your options. Expose them. Run a campaign highlighting that their clean formula is actually missing key nutrients for fitness performance and isn't optimized for serious athletes. Go full lifestyle brand. Position your ice cream as part of a bigger performance food movement emphasizing elite athletes, bodybuilders, and high performance living. Drop your price and compete head on. Sacrifice margins to match or beat Halo Tops pricing and keep your retail partners happy. Nate, what's your move?

[Sarah]

All right, easy, easy. You want to expose them?

[Nate]

Let's go all in. My guys are hardcore.

[Sarah]

You are such a, like a bold marketer and I appreciate that about you because you don't ever like, shy away from. From any sort of challenge. You're like it. We're gonna go at it so hard.

[Nate]

My guys are hardcore. Yeah, a lot of testosterone. They're gonna respect this. My influencers are gonna get behind it. The loyalty program is going to go crazy. Watch retail.

[Sarah]

You're right. I'll be honest. Retail is on the rocks. To Nate's credit, he knows his consumers incredibly well. He also knows emotionally what these people want from their products. So let's see what happens. Here we go.

[Chat]

Nate is going on the offensive. He's launching a campaign to expose Halo Top's clean label formula as nutritionally inferior for serious athletes. The cost. This move escalates the battle. Halo Top might fire back with their own counter marketing. Your brand is now in an open fight. If your claims aren't airtight, this could backfire. Some retailers don't like controversy and might be hesitant to fully back your product. The payoff Fitness influencers rally behind your message, calling out the clean label myth.

[Sarah]

Call it.

[Chat]

Your referral based loyalty program kicks into overdrive. Your hardcore fitness audience starts actively defending your product. Online, your brand cements itself as the serious athlete's choice. Halo Top now looks like a casual fitness ice cream. You survived the price war without dropping your margins, but now you're in a full on marketing battle. Will you come out on top Hash? Final round, last big business decision.

[Sarah]

Okay, final round.

[Chat]

All right. Both of you have fought off major threats, adapted to market shifts, and stayed in the game. Now it's time for your final business decision. Rolling for final scenario. Sarah, an opportunity arises. A global airline wants to carry your water as their premium inflight brand, but they'll only take your aluminum version, not the glass one. Nate, you get an unexpected investor offer. A major supplement company wants to acquire your brand for $50 million, but you'd.

[Sarah]

Have to give up.

[Chat]

This is your last major call, Sarah. Do you take the airline deal and risk shifting too far from luxury? Or do you decline and double down on exclusivity?

[Sarah]

Okay, all right. So final round here. Two things are coming up in the market. For myself, it sounds like a global airline wants to carry my water as like a premium inflight, but they only want the aluminum version. So. Hey, shout out to former Sarah, who decided to go aluminum.

[Nate]

Well, we'll see if it pays off. We'll see.

[Sarah]

You're so confident. Okay, and then, Nate, you have an unexpected investor offer. So it sounds like a supplement company wants to acquire a brand for 50 million, but you'd have to give up control entirely.

[Nate]

Yeah, I don't love the sound of that.

[Sarah]

I knew you would. Last major call of the game. Who's gonna win? Is it gonna be me or is it gonna be Nate? This game is so fun. Okay, here we go.

[Nate]

Hold on. Explain your decision before you make it.

[Sarah]

All right.

[Nate]

Probably shouldn't be doing this the whole time.

[Sarah]

I know. I have decided. I have decided to turn down this offer. I'm not going to go with this global airline, mostly because they Only want my aluminum version, which means they're only going to buy one specific product from me. And right now, the majority of my revenue is coming in through the influencers and through just cultural trends that are happening on social. If I partner with an airline, it kind of sticks me into a very specific hole. Like, it pushes me into a different type of brand. And psychologically, I don't know that this will hit well with a much larger market group, which is like the consumer. So, I mean, to Scotty, on this point, like, it's a marketing opportunity, There's a lot of product, and like, I could probably go pretty far with this, but my gut feeling is to turn it down. They're gonna be.

[Nate]

They're gonna be such a hassle to work with. They're gonna nickel and dime you every step of the way. And they're trying to position your non premium product as the premium.

[Sarah]

Yes.

[Nate]

You don't want that.

[Sarah]

I agree with you on this one. Oddly enough, the last time I was like, oh, I shouldn't go with my gut. I should go. Which is weird. This time I'm like, I should definitely go with my gut, man. It's an interesting experience. I mean, to. Okay. To my defense, I would never choose a water like based product to, like, build a brand around. I'm not competing with liquid death. Like, ain't nobody going to go into that market. But in this particular case, I think I'm making the right decision here. Let's see what Chat says.

[Nate]

Let's do it.

[Sarah]

Okay. I'm going to choose to turn down the airline offer.

[Chat]

Sarah is turning down the airline deal. The cost. You're walking away from a massive distribution opportunity and guaranteed revenue. The competitor with aluminum bottles might take the deal instead, boosting their visibility. The payoff. Your brand stays exclusive and premium. You don't dilute your luxury image by becoming an airplane water. High end customers continue to see your brand as aspirational.

[Sarah]

Thank you.

[Chat]

You're the Louis Vuitton of water, not just another drink option. You keep control over your narrative and avoid brand confusion between glass and aluminum. You made the long term brand play instead of chasing quick volume. Will that decision pay off in the long run?

[Sarah]

Thank you.

[Chat]

We'll find out in the final results. Nate, your final decision.

[Sarah]

All right. Hey, thank you, Chat. That's some incredibly validating.

[Nate]

Pretty much what we thought was gonna happen.

[Sarah]

Yeah, it was like you did. Good job, Sarah. All right, Nate, you're trying to decide. Major supplement company is trying to acquire you for 50 million. But you got to Give up all control of your business.

[Nate]

Yeah, I'm turning it down.

[Sarah]

You're gonna turn it down too?

[Nate]

Yeah. Oh, I'm turn it down. All of my success so far has been like, staying true to us and like getting the influencer community to rally around me.

[Sarah]

Yeah.

[Nate]

And to refer people through the loyalty program. Selling out is gonna tank the brand.

[Sarah]

Oh. All right, all right. Let's see what Chat says.

[Chat]

Nate is rejecting the fifty mummy dollar buyout. The cost. You're walking away from a life changing payday. If your brand struggles to scale further, you might regret not selling at its peak. The supplement company could invest in a rival brand instead, making competition even tougher. The payoff, you keep control. Your vision, your brand, your direction. You get the chance to scale beyond 50 Mamma dollars and build something truly dominant in the fitness space. Your audience and retail partners see your commitment. They trust you're here for the long run, not a quick exit. You're betting on yourself. If you can push the brand past its current ceiling, this could be the best decision of your career. Final results. Who won the $100 million?

[Sarah]

All right, all right. Before we get the results, I want to know who you think won.

[Nate]

Well, here. All right. Let me point out one flaw in the game.

[Sarah]

Nowhere, there's no flaws in this game.

[Nate]

Nowhere in this game did it let me choose to spend 50, $50,000 a day on Facebook ads, which is what I would have done and it would.

[Sarah]

Have gone so true. There's no option for like paid advertising, which I found interesting. I kind of like that though, because it takes out the ability for you to control like that piece of it. All right.

[Nate]

I think it's gonna say you won.

[Sarah]

Really? Oh, interesting. Why?

[Nate]

Even though I think. Because I think it's biased. No, because I think we did run.

[Sarah]

It through Sarah's chat, you know.

[Nate]

Yeah, because I think it's rigged. No, because I think like, you're coming off, I think a better story and like a better perceived momentum swing. Whereas, like. Well, I'm gonna have to be the one to do the press of like, we just turned down an offer.

[Sarah]

Yeah, yeah.

[Nate]

I think, like, that's not as relatable to people. Yeah, I don't know.

[Sarah]

Could be. It could be. I, I have a hard time with this one because I honestly think you have the better brand. You have the better brand.

[Nate]

The problem is I also have a more functional product matters.

[Sarah]

Yeah. Yeah. Yours also goes to a, a little bit of a niche, like customer base, which sometimes can cause like. Yeah. Who really like the Decisions you've made in the past. Your audience is also highly loyal to what you have. My audience seems like they get pissed no matter what I do.

[Nate]

Yeah, that's kind of true.

[Sarah]

It doesn't matter, like, whether I choose the correct option or not. They're gonna get pissed. So I still think I'm gonna win. And there's only one reason why. It's not because Sarah's a better marketer. This is like, this game is so funny. It's mostly because my market is bigger. My market is just bigger than yours. You're in a niche, niche market. And I think just. Just by way of like accidentally stumbling to the better market with Chat, I personally think I'm probably going to win.

[Nate]

What are we betting Ready on the win here?

[Sarah]

I will bet you a box of Snickers deal or. Or paydays, because that's what I for you.

[Nate]

That's a good deal. Like a 24 pack?

[Sarah]

Yeah. Like the big box. Yeah, big box.

[Nate]

Okay, Good deal.

[Sarah]

Okay. All right, who's ready to see who won the challenge of $100 million marketing draft? Is it me? Is it Nate? Let's see who won. Wouldn't it be funny if Chat came back and was like, you both lost, you went bankrupt. That's the end of the game.

[Nate]

Nate actually took a full time job with a up and coming watch company.

[Sarah]

He exited nicely. Oh, my God. Okay, what if it was like, all right, we're ready.

[Nate]

Nate got canceled for selling, for sending drunk tweets that he shouldn't have sent. The brand shuts down.

[Sarah]

100. Sarah decides to go back to being a stay at home mom and quits her job. That's the end of that. She just decided marketing was not for her. The end. This is an interesting, like a very interesting segue into like, business is hard. Everybody, like, stuff happens that are is not in your control literally at all, and you have no idea.

[Nate]

You know what's harder about business? Business.

[Sarah]

What?

[Nate]

There's no one that narrates it for you. So, like, this stuff could be happening for 90 days before you realize it's happening to your business. And then you don't have a clear enough view of actually what's going on. Like, that's what's hard.

[Sarah]

I know with Chad, at least it can be like, hey, I foresee all these things happening.

[Nate]

Also potential things.

[Sarah]

Yeah, here's potential things you could do to fix it. And meanwhile, the brand founders listening to this podcast are like, I wish to God someone would have told me that.

[Nate]

If you're A cmo. This is how you should be talking.

[Sarah]

To, by the way.

[Nate]

Okay, here's what's going on. Here's what we can do about it. What do you want to do?

[Sarah]

Here's the options. Which way do you pick? A, B, C or D? Okay, here we go. Final results. I'm thinking it's gonna be me, but here we go. Okay, we're ready for final results. Who won?

[Chat]

All right, after a wild game of pivots, market chaos and big decisions, it's time to declare a winner of the 100 marketing draft. Final year one revenue results. Sarah year one revenue $85 million. Biggest strength, exclusive high margin luxury positioning. Biggest risk. Balancing glass versus aluminum branding. Long term. Nate protein ice cream brand. Year one revenue 72mm. Biggest strength, deep loyalty and trust with hardcore fitness customers. Biggest risk. Losing momentum after declining the $50 million buyout. Final verdict. Sarah wins on short term business success. Nate wins on long term potential. But the audience decides the true winner. Who played the better game? Who built the stronger brand? Which company would you invest in? That's a wrap on the 100m dollar marketing draft.

[Nate]

That's a good game.

[Sarah]

I loved it.

[Nate]

Congrats on the win. Expect a box of paydays at your house.

[Sarah]

Yeah, Big box, maybe.

[Nate]

For the record, 72 million in ice cream is nuts.

[Sarah]

I know.

[Nate]

I was like, Like, I know I.

[Sarah]

Lost, but damn, that's insane. Especially considering, like, how many different things that you had to, like, come up against when the consumers were just like, we don't know that we want to partner with you anymore. You. You clean up nice. I mean, good. Good episode. Good.

[Nate]

Sold water. This is a cool game.

[Sarah]

I'm so glad you liked it. I'm gonna do more of this now. We're just gonna do games for the entirety of the rest of the year.

[Nate]

Build a bracket and make people. All right, everybody, that's. That's the rigged marketing game. Please drop some comments if you think I was the real winner here. Please dissect our decisions.

[Sarah]

100.

[Nate]

And if you want to come on and play the game.

[Sarah]

Yes. Go play this game with us. Because now I gotta see, like, is Sarah just lucky on this one? If I start winning a lot, we might change it to a different chat instance and see whether my chat's just bias.

[Nate]

Do you pay for chat?

[Sarah]

It might be. Yeah.

[Nate]

That's how it's like. So Chad is following the. Don't bite the hand that feeds you 100.

[Sarah]

It's like, we gotta make sure Sarah's happy at the end.

[Nate]

Like, what's the name on the credit card you gave to me? Yeah.

[Sarah]

Is it Sarah? Sarah definitely won. She was just. She's just a better marketer. Really? That's what it is.

[Nate]

No, honestly, better industry.

[Sarah]

That's amazing. Better industry. That's what I think, too, in this particular instance. All right. Where can people find you they want to follow you at?

[Nate]

Nate Legos on Twitter. Technical, impractical podcast. That's it.

[Sarah]

I love it. Okay.

[Nate]

Currently a customer of Tether Insights, if anyone's interested.

[Sarah]

Hey, tell them about that. Check us out. Tether Insights. Go check us out. TetherInsights IO. We are currently, as far as I know, the only D2C brand that can help you with consumer insights that are both psychologically and emotionally focused. We are studying not just behavior and demographics, but we're also studying the deeper, more emotional needs that people actually use to purchase products. So if you want to know the real reasons why your customers are purchasing so that you can profit faster, then come check us out at otherinsights IO. Follow me at Sarah Levenger. Anywhere you can see content. Please, dear God, share this episode because this one's so fun and I want to do more. I want to do more of it, and I'm terrified now.

[Nate]

We should become the game show host of dtc.

[Sarah]

We so should.

[Chat]

The Brain Driven Brands podcast is part of the Learn and Laughs series on the Quickfire Podcast network.

[Sarah]

Need a beat me, but these need a laugh bias?

[Chat]

Sit back by a.