Episode Summary

Podcast: Marketing Beyond with Alan B. Hart

Episode 29: "When a Brand Film Works to Shift Perception: Insights from Lingokids CMO and COO Mikael Journo"
Date: December 10, 2025
Host: Alan B. Hart
Guest: Mikel Giorno, CMO & COO, Lingokids

Main Theme

This episode explores the power of brand storytelling in shifting consumer perceptions, focusing on Lingokids' emotionally charged brand film that tackles parental guilt around screen time. Mikel Journo, the CMO and COO of Lingokids, shares insights on balancing quantifiable marketing with brand-building, the challenges of reaching modern parents, and the risks and rewards of bold brand campaigns.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

Mikel Giorno's Career Journey

• Background: Began in engineering and tech (Sapient) during the dot-com boom.
• Transition to Marketing: Shifted into quantitative marketing in consulting—applying data-driven approaches to customer value management and marketing optimization.
• Notable Experience: Strategy consulting at BCG, marketing analytics at Vistaprint, and a formative role at King (Candy Crush) running quant-heavy marketing in a hyperscale, legacy-free environment. (02:51–08:00)
• Lingokids: Joined as CMO, advanced to COO; responsible for marketing, business model, pricing, and general business performance.

Lingokids: Company & Mission

• Product Overview: The #1 interactive app for kids aged 2-8, reaching over 165 million downloads, with a million kids active each weekend. (08:22–10:00)
• Mission: "Help parents raise amazing children," with learning through play at the core.
• Content Breadth: Covers math, literacy, empathy, practical life skills, and even NASA and BBC collaborations.
• Dual Audience: Focuses on making kids love the app while ensuring parents feel safe and guilt-free about its educational value.

The Duality of Marketing: Quant & Creative

• Brand vs. Performance: Marketing amplifies a great product both through performance optimizations (ads, CRM) and longer-term emotional brand building. (11:21–13:13)

• Measurement Philosophy: Not everything important is strictly measurable—80/20 balance between measurable ROI and belief-based brand building.

  "Not everything is measurable and the most important things might be hidden behind what can be measured. ... You have to have beliefs."
  — Mikel Giorno (13:42)

• Analytics as Decision Tool: Data helps make better decisions, but intuition and belief remain essential, especially in mid-scale companies. (15:04–15:24)

Reaching Modern Parents

• Complexity: Parents' aspirations vs. behaviors often don’t align, especially around screen time.

• Insights: 75% of parents feel guilty; only 10% feel comfortable talking about it; 30% admit to lying about screen use. (16:35–17:22)

• Marketing Challenge: Must address unspoken truths and root needs, not just surface-level “asks.”

  "What parents say and what parents do are not exactly the same thing."
  — Mikel Giorno (16:35)

The Brand Film: Tackling Parental Guilt

Creative Genesis

• Why a Brand Film?: Belief that brand could be even stronger—especially in the US—by forging emotional connections.
• Root Research: Internal survey confirmed "guilt" as a dominant parent emotion regarding screen time; psychological research indicated the guilt itself damages parent-child relationships more than responsible screen use. (18:45–20:00)
• Bold Decision: Chose to confront the guilt topic head-on, aiming for authenticity and emotional resonance.

The Concept and Execution (20:42–21:53)

• Key Idea: Put “parental guilt on trial” using a real courtroom set, unscripted parents, and a surprise witness box for their kids.
• Structure:
  • Parents, unaware of the process, are summoned into a courtroom and questioned by a judge about their feelings regarding screen time.
  • Candid, vulnerable responses are elicited, revealing self-doubt and guilt.
  • Their children are then brought in to testify—universally expressing love and high regard for their parents.
• Production Details: Shot in Los Angeles with top creatives; heavy investment in authenticity to maximize emotional impact.

Emotional and Business Impact

• Authenticity: Ensured the message was about responsible device use and intentionality—did not blanket-endorse unregulated screen use. (25:48–26:13)

• Risk & Reward: Anticipated potential backlash but received "overwhelmingly positive" responses, with thousands moved to tears, especially on social.

• Performance:

  "The film's been seen 25 million times on YouTube ... 30% completion rate on a six-minute film ... close to 8 million people watching until the very last frame. Those stats are a bit unheard of."
  — Mikel Giorno (26:13)

• Unexpected Outcome: The campaign itself became a tool for parental empowerment, not just brand awareness.

Notable Quotes and Moments

• On Brand-Building Risk:

  "Every time we talked about it...half the company was in tears about the end of the presentation. We have something that's going to be very emotional if we can land it."
  — Mikel Giorno (21:21)

• On Emotional Impact:

  "We have like thousands of comments about people like crying, saying, this is what I needed to see today. Thank you for making me cry over my oatmeal."
  — Mikel Giorno (26:13)

• On Production Decision:

  "If we're gonna do it, we're gonna do it as right as we can do...you can't cut corners on that one."
  — Mikel Giorno (29:03)

Reflection & Broader Insights

Quantitative vs. Qualitative Marketing Experience (31:17–33:58)

• Lesson from Career: Initially believed only quantifiable marketing mattered, but learned that overreliance on measurement can lead to losing touch with audience emotion.
  • Success is found in "balancing the two sides"—measurable performance and brand resonance.
• Advice to Younger Self:

  "Don't sweat the small stuff...enjoy the journey." (34:02)

Future of Marketing & Trends

• AI as a Game-Changer: Increases productivity, benchmarking, and creative output, but doesn’t determine emotional direction. (34:57–36:10)

• Understanding Human Decision-Making: Inspired by research in health and neuroscience, Giorno stresses the subconscious and biochemical roots of consumer decisions, reinforcing the critical role of emotion.

  "People don't make decisions purely from a rational perspective. Beyond even thinking about rational, they don't even always realize they're making the decisions or why."
  — Mikel Giorno (37:09)

Biggest Opportunity/Threat for Marketers (39:42)

• Data Paradox:

  "The biggest threat is the amount of data and the illusion of precision that we have in marketing...There's a ton of value, there's a ton of success that's hidden behind what cannot be measured."

• Balance Essential: Despite advances, unmeasurable factors—belief, emotion, connection—may hold the greatest business value.

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• On analytics as a decision tool:
  "Do you think [analytics] is a tool to make decisions or help make better decisions? ... You're still in charge of making the decision, right?"
  — Mikel Giorno (15:04)

• On parental guilt:
  "The more you speak to psychologists ... almost worse is the worst problem...is the guilt."
  — Mikel Giorno (18:58)

• On the brand film’s approach:
  "We put parental guilt on trial...Then you get these raw reactions and emotions from the parents, and the truth comes out."
  — Mikel Giorno (20:50–23:00)

• On campaign performance:
  "The film's been seen 25 million times on YouTube...30% completion rate on a six-minute film."
  — Mikel Giorno (26:13)

• On measurement risk:
  "There's a ton of value, there's a ton of success that's hidden behind what cannot be measured...the more data is available, the more precision is available, it's the thing that's most at risk."
  — Mikel Giorno (40:37)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Career Overview & Start: 02:51–08:00
• Lingokids Mission: 08:22–10:00
• Brand vs. Performance Marketing: 11:21–15:24
• The Challenge of Marketing to Parents: 16:35–18:27
• Genesis and Concept of the Brand Film: 18:45–21:53
• Filming Experience: 21:53–24:56
• Risks, Reaction & Emotional Impact: 25:48–28:41
• Metrics & Results: 29:03–30:56
• Career Philosophy – Quant vs. Brand: 31:17–33:58
• Advice to Younger Self: 34:02–34:47
• AI & Decision-Making: 34:57–36:10
• Human Behavior and Emotion: 36:20–39:32
• Major Marketing Opportunities/Threats: 39:42–40:37

Tone

Conversational yet deeply reflective; Mikel blends analytic precision with evident passion for emotional storytelling and human connection in marketing, revealing a holistic, human-centered philosophy that sits at the heart of Lingokids’ recent campaign.