Style-ish Podcast: "Why brands are so obsessed with community"

Episode Date: December 11, 2025
Hosts: Mads & Ray (Shameless Media)

Episode Overview

This episode of Style-ish dives into why brands are increasingly obsessed with building and leveraging "community." The hosts examine the evolution of “run clubs” as a brand strategy, dissect the difference between genuine and “synthetic” communities, and use iconic examples (like Nike Run Club, On Running, and Revolve's Coachella activation) to highlight what brands get right—and wrong. The discussion wraps up with insights and practical advice for brands looking to authentically build community in the future.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Rise and Strategy of Run Clubs

• The Boom in Run Clubs

  • Ray notes how there’s a “massive run club boom” but that, despite feeling new, run clubs have existed for decades ([00:08]).
  • Both hosts frame run clubs as a lens to explore how brands activate communities.

• Nike Run Club: The Global, Performance-led Community

  • Nike’s history with run clubs: “I think they were the first to tap into it as a potential community where it had scale.” ([00:25] Ray)
  • Focused on performance and a global community, especially with the launch of Nike Plus GPS in 2010 and the popular Nike Run Club app ([01:11], [01:36]).
  • Mads shares her experience: “They knew when I was like feeling like tired at the 6k mark...they’d be like, you got this. Go girl.” ([01:57]-[02:27])
  • Discussion of Nike’s marketing shift from elite athletes to embracing everyday runners ([03:05]-[03:58]).

• On Running: Local, Story-driven Approach

  • Ray: “On lean more into human winning culture, the storytelling focuses on that everyday runner. They really focused on going that local strategy.” ([04:42])
  • Notable for harnessing and empowering existing local run clubs—"one of the first brands to really embrace local communities and sponsor local run clubs, which we’re now seeing all the time." ([05:07])
  • These run clubs double as cultural and social hubs: music, coffee, mingling post-run ([05:31]).

Genuine vs. Synthetic Communities

• Defining ‘Synthetic Communities’

  • Ray introduces Nick Goodnall’s term: “Synthetic communities...when the purpose isn’t connection, it’s extraction.” ([06:40])
  • Mads illustrates: “It’s when a community event or engagement moment is a content farm...is this about the customer or are you getting a shit ton of content?” ([06:11])
  • The tension between content generation/sales goals (“KPI metric, not a brand metric”) and authentic connection ([06:59]).

• Revolve at Coachella: A Case Study in ‘Synthetic Community’

  • Mads: “Revolve and Coachella is like the epitome of a synthetic community. It was essentially a content carnival.” ([07:44])
  • Describes disappointment among true fans/customers: “A lot of what had been showcased by creators wasn’t actually available there anymore...mistrust and disappointment.” ([08:08])
  • Humorous aside referencing the Fyre Festival doc: “…one of the most iconic Netflix cut downs I’ve ever seen.” ([08:33])

The Commercialization of Culture & Branded Events

• Shift in Festivals & Sponsorship

  • Ray: “Every time I think of Coachella now, I do think it is just a branded event. I don’t even see it as a music festival anymore because all I see are brands popping up around there.” ([09:19])
  • Festivals need sponsors: “Ticket sales alone don’t keep those things afloat...that’s the harsh reality.” ([10:05]-[10:19])

• Positive Example: Tom Organics at Splendour in the Grass

  • Mads: “They weren’t selling anything, they were just there…handing out tampons to the girlies. Maybe just needed one or forgot to pack them. And I loved that. That’s genuine community to me because it’s generosity of spirit.” ([10:32])

The Future of Community for Brands

• Skepticism and Hope

  • Mads predicts: “I fear it will go down before it goes up...The smartest brands will go: this is an offline community event. No phones, no photos. You come, you have genuine connection and moment.” ([11:10]-[11:47])
  • Ray: “Word of mouth is the most powerful form of marketing.” ([11:47])

• Trust, Authenticity, and the Power of Word of Mouth

  • “Word of mouth to me will always be the most trusted source or recommendation.” ([12:11])
  • Anecdote: friends will buy a product based on an authentic personal recommendation, not an influencer or flashy campaign ([12:28]-[12:43]).

• Nick Goodnall’s Three Pillars for Real Community

  • Ray: “He said that there are three things real communities are based on:
    • Collaboration: group comes together, not just consumes
    • Safety: free to share without being mined for data or pressure to buy
    • Generosity: value flows both ways” ([12:53]-[13:42])
  • Advice for brands: “Brands could use Nick’s strategy as a checklist. Like, are we doing this?...What I would like to see is more accountability for brands doing it better.” ([13:35])

• Final Takeaway

  • “If it doesn’t feel authentic to your brand or to your output. Don’t do it.” ([14:03])
  • “Say it with your chest and we’ll leave it there.” ([14:08])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Brand Motivation:

  • “Synthetic communities...when the purpose isn’t connection, it’s extraction.” (Ray, [06:40])
  • “Is this about the customer or are you getting a shit ton of content?” (Mads, [06:11])

• On Community Building:

  • “Word of mouth is the most powerful form of marketing.” (Ray, [11:47])
  • “Word of mouth to me will always be the most trusted source or recommendation.” (Mads, [12:11])
  • “If it doesn't feel authentic to your brand or to your output. Don't do it.” (Ray, [14:03])

• Lighter Moments:

  • “Of course, Roger Federer actually has a share in this and that is what made his net worth clock over a billion dollars… his wife, of course. Fucking yeah, the girls.” (Mads, [04:18])
  • Fyre Festival aside: “...one of the most iconic Netflix cut downs I’ve ever seen.” (Ray, [08:33])

Segment Timestamps

• 00:00-01:38 — Introduction: Personal run club experiences
• 01:38-03:58 — Nike Run Club: Strategy, evolution, and inclusivity
• 04:02-06:02 — On Running & Different Approaches to Community
• 06:03-07:33 — Synthetic vs. Genuine Community explained
• 07:44-09:19 — Revolve at Coachella: A cautionary tale
• 09:19-10:32 — Brand sponsorship and commercialization of culture
• 10:32-11:10 — Positive brand-community examples (Tom Organics)
• 11:10-12:11 — The future: offline, authentic community; word of mouth
• 12:53-14:03 — Nick Goodnall's "community checklist"
• 14:03-end — Final advice for brands, wrap-up

Conclusion

The hosts make a compelling case that while communities are increasingly part of brand strategies, consumers are getting savvier about authenticity. The most effective, trusted brand communities are built on real generosity and collaboration, not just content mining or transactional motives. Brands should focus on genuine value, offline connection, and authenticity—backed by an honest assessment using the checklist of collaboration, safety, and generosity.