Adspeak

Women's sports are gaining unprecedented momentum, but how can brands turn that growing attention into meaningful partnerships that deliver lasting cultural and commercial value? It starts with authenticity, collaboration, and a deeper understanding of the communities they serve.

In this episode of Adspeak by ADWEEK, host LaTecia Johnson, Founder and CEO of INGENIUS, brings together three Sports Marketing Leaders: Shayne Odum, Director of Global Partnerships & Media Sales at Phoenix Suns, and former Director of Corporate Partnership and Sales at Atlanta Dream; Naz Hillmon, Forward with the Atlanta Dream in the WNBA; and Connor Thompson, Senior Manager, Energy at Reebok. Recorded live at Brand Week, the conversation explores how athlete partnerships, brand collaborations, and the growing influence of women's sports are reshaping the marketing landscape.

The discussion examines why athletes are increasingly becoming media companies in their own right, how brands can move beyond transactional endorsements to build authentic relationships, and why cultural relevance requires more than simply attaching a logo to a sporting event. The speakers also explore the importance of community pillars in evaluating brand alignment, giving athletes greater control over their storytelling, and creating partnerships that reflect shared values.

What You'll Learn:
How to build brand partnerships rooted in authenticity rather than chasing cultural trends
The "Community Pillars" framework teams can use to vet whether a partnership truly fits their identity
Why athletes must control their own narrative and content to build lasting trust with their audience
How to turn one-off activations into long-term, trust-based collaborations
The shift from awareness-based marketing to measurable "return on influence"
Why intentionality and follow-through, not just big budgets, are what separate real brand investment from empty gestures

About the Host and Guest:

Naz Hillmon is a professional basketball player for the Atlanta Dream in the WNBA, currently in her fourth year with the organization. Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, and a University of Michigan graduate, Hillmon has established herself as a dynamic athlete and emerging brand partner.

Shayne Odum is the former Director of Partnerships and Sales for the Atlanta Dream and currently the Director of Global Partnerships and Media Sales at the Phoenix Suns. Shane brings a background in sports marketing and community-focused brand strategy. With expertise in building meaningful partnerships that align with organizational values, Shane shares strategic approaches to evaluating brand collaborations through the lens of community pillars: growing the game of basketball, empowering girls and women, and equity for all.

Connor Thompson is Senior Manager of Energy at Reebok, overseeing brand campaigns, product collaborations, and cultural partnerships that drive brand perception and equity. With four years at the brand, Thompson articulates Reebok's strategy of creating authentic, long-term relationships with athletes and creators rather than chasing trends.

LaTecia Johnson is CEO and Founder of INGENIUS, a platform building social commerce programs that connect brands, athletes, and creators as the media companies of the future. Her expertise centers on mapping cultural trends and evaluating the relevance and ROI of brand partnerships in the evolving creator economy.

Host and Guest Resources:
Naz Hillmon on Instagram
Shayne Odum on LinkedIn
Connor Thompson on LinkedIn
LaTecia Johnson on LinkedIn
ADWEEK Website
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What if CPG brands could measure the true impact of digital promotions in real time, rather than relying on sales figures that may not tell the whole story? The answer starts with incrementality, not ROAS.

In this episode of Adspeak by ADWEEK, host Bryan Leach, Founder and CEO at Ibotta, sits down with Benoit Vatere, Chief Media & Digital Commerce Officer at Liquid Death, to explore how performance marketing principles are transforming promotional ROI. Recorded live at Brandweek, the conversation examines how brands can bring greater accountability to retail media and in-store promotions through real-time data, matched-audience testing, and more rigorous measurement.
The discussion unpacks why conventional ROAS can overstate promotional effectiveness, how to identify genuinely incremental sales, and why third-party verification matters. Benoit also shares insights into optimizing promotional spend across retail channels, reducing customer churn, growing household penetration, and reallocating budgets based on emerging sales signals rather than quarterly recaps.

What You Will Learn:
Why incrementality provides a clearer picture of promotional performance than ROAS alone
How matched-audience testing identifies genuinely incremental sales
How cost per incremental dollar helps protect margins
Why churn reduction can improve household penetration
How real-time measurement enables smarter budget allocation
Why independent verification builds trust in retail media results

About the Host and Guest:
Bryan Leach is the Founder and CEO of Ibotta (NYSE: IBTA), a leading performance marketing platform delivering digital promotions to over 200 million consumers. Under his leadership, Ibotta’s app has surpassed 50 million downloads and powers digital offer programs for major brands, including Walmart, DoorDash, and Instacart. In 2024, he led Ibotta through the largest tech IPO in Colorado history. A frequent commentator on AI and CPG performance marketing, Bryan previously practiced law at Bartlit Beck LLP and clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter.

Benoit Vatere is the Chief Media & Digital Commerce Officer at Liquid Death and is known for his expertise in performance marketing and digital promotions within the CPG industry. With a background in digital-first brand building, he has pioneered innovative approaches to measuring incremental sales and ROI in retail environments.

Host and Guest Resources:
Benoit Vatere on LinkedIn
Liquid Death Website
Bryan Leach on LinkedIn
Ibotta Website
ADWEEK Website
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What makes a brand stand out in a crowded digital landscape, capture attention, and create campaigns that genuinely resonate? It starts with understanding culture, not chasing virality.

In this episode of Adspeak by ADWEEK, host Lauren Probyn Aouad, VP of Entertainment & Culture Marketing at UTA, sits down with Anthony Po, creator, performance artist, and co-founder of Pufferfish. Recorded live at Brand Week, the conversation explores how creators are redefining brand marketing, why authenticity matters more than strategy alone, and what it takes to turn cultural moments into meaningful audience connections.

The discussion examines why copying viral campaigns rarely works, how brands can recognize the “ick factor” that makes audiences disengage, and why marketers must earn attention before delivering their message. Anthony also shares insights on the growing business opportunities for creators, the importance of involving culturally immersed talent, and how testing content with engaged communities can help refine campaigns before launch.

For marketers looking to connect with digital-native audiences, the conversation offers a valuable reminder: genuine cultural understanding and creativity can accomplish far more than simply chasing the next viral moment.

What You Will Learn:
Why copying a viral campaign's format (not its feeling) guarantees audience rejection and algorithmic punishment
How to identify the "ick factor" that signals to digitally native audiences you're exploiting culture rather than participating in it
The "earn the view first" principle with creating genuine attention
Why hiring people who are actually immersed in culture is non-negotiable for authentic digital content
How to decide whether a campaign should optimize for direct conversion versus long-term brand equity
The value of pre-launching content to small, engaged fan communities for real-time feedback before a public release

About the Guest:
Anthony Po is the co-founder of Pufferfish, a media company specializing in creator-led brand activations and cultural storytelling. With a decade-long background as a content creator across Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok, including a tenure leading short-form creative at MrBeast, Anthony has mastered the art of building authentic connections with digitally native audiences through innovative, culture-first campaigns.

Host and Guest Resources:
Anthony Po on LinkedIn
Anthony Po Website
Pufferfish Website
ADWEEK Website
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What makes a fashion brand feel authentic, build lasting loyalty, and create campaigns that genuinely move culture? It starts with understanding people, not chasing trends.
In this episode of Adspeak by ADWEEK, host Lauren Finney Harden brings together three Global Fashion Marketing Leaders: Anne Cambria of Sephora, Elizabeth Money of BÉIS, and Fabiola Torres of Gap. Recorded live at Brand Week, the conversation explores how democratized style, emotional storytelling, and data-informed creativity are reshaping the way brands connect with consumers.

The discussion examines why brands must give communities a voice in shaping trends, how authentic relationships can turn campaigns into cultural moments, and why human stories often resonate more deeply than polished brand messaging. The guests also share how marketers can balance creative instinct with data, build meaningful customer connections in an AI-driven world, and use real-world experiences to strengthen brand loyalty.

For brands working with limited budgets, the conversation offers a valuable reminder: understanding your audience, delivering quality products, and staying true to your identity can be more powerful than chasing the next viral moment.

What You Will Learn:
Why democratization of style means brands must let communities vote on trends, not dictate them
How to engineer virality through emotional storytelling
The "Data as Guardrails" Framework for blending gut instinct with analytics
How to humanize a brand by putting employees, founders, and real customer stories front and center
Why analog and in-person experiences still build stronger loyalty
How small and challenger brands can compete without big budgets

About the Host and Guest:
Fabiola Torres is the Global CMO at Gap and is known for her expertise in building emotional brand connections through creative campaigns. With a background in bridging generational gaps through music, fashion, and style, she has spearheaded viral campaigns like the Cat's Eye collaboration that drove unprecedented engagement and business growth.

Elizabeth Money is the SVP of Brand & Creative at BEIS, bringing over 20 years of experience in the travel and fashion industries. Known for her human-centered approach to brand building, she has transformed BEIS from a DTC startup into a community-driven lifestyle brand by prioritizing authentic consumer connections over data-driven metrics. She also offers practical advice for challenger brands seeking to build genuine loyalty and market presence.

Anne Cambria is SVP of Brand, Retail, and Creative Marketing at Sephora, and she specializes in empowering self-expression through beauty and retail innovation. With a focus on inclusivity and community amplification, she has helped establish Sephora as a diverse beauty authority by centering client voices and experiences.

Lauren Finney Harden is the moderator and a veteran marketing journalist, bringing editorial expertise to discussions on brand strategy and cultural trends. Her perspective bridges the traditional publishing world with modern marketing practices, offering a unique lens on how brands now function as editors themselves in shaping consumer culture and style.

Host and Guest Resources:
Anne Cambria on LinkedIn
Sephora Website
Elizabeth Money on LinkedIn
BÉIS Website
Fabiola Torres on LinkedIn
GAP Website
Lauren Finney Harden on LinkedIn
ADWEEK Website
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What if reaching more people matters more than creating better ads? In this episode of Adspeak by ADWEEK, Angela Voss, CEO at Marketing Architects, and Dale Harrison, Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer at The Insight Collective, challenge conventional marketing wisdom and explore why broad, consistent reach is essential to driving market share growth.

Recorded live at BrandWeek, the conversation examines why hyper-targeting can cause marketers to overlook future customers, how brands can build recall before buyers enter the market, and why overcoming the constant force of forgetting requires sustained audience reach. Angela and Dale also explore how marketers can balance scale with cost efficiency across linear television and connected TV (CTV), using audience-first media buying and AI to reduce unnecessary costs. They discuss why no single measurement model can fully capture television's impact and how combining marketing mix modeling, attribution, and geographic holdout tests can provide a more complete picture of performance.

From smarter media allocation to long-term brand building, this episode offers practical insights into reaching more potential buyers, strengthening brand memory, and creating the conditions for sustainable growth.

What You Will Learn:
Why 2x better creative can't beat 100x greater reach
The "Surface Area of Effectiveness" framework for understanding how reach amplifies even small creative improvements
Why brand awareness only has commercial value when buyers are in-market
How to fight the constant, ongoing force of forgetting
Why hyper-targeting is "agreeing to pay more to ignore your future customers"
How to use AI-driven and audience-first media buying to cut CTV and linear TV costs
Why no single measurement model can prove TV's value

About the Host and Guest:

Dale Harrison is Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer at The Insight Collective, bringing an unconventional blend of scientific rigor, technical expertise, and marketing experience. A former experimental physicist with research experience at Los Alamos and MIT, he has also worked across technology, biotech, finance, and executive management. Today, Dale combines hands-on campaign execution with a data-driven approach to marketing strategy. Drawing on his background in econometrics, mathematics, and AI, he develops rigorous experiments and sophisticated marketing models to help businesses understand what works, measure impact, and drive sustainable growth.

Angela Voss is CEO at Marketing Architects, an all-inclusive TV advertising agency specializing in linear and connected television. Drawing on her experience as a performance marketer, Angela champions greater accountability in TV advertising, making high-quality campaigns more accessible while challenging conventional approaches to audience targeting. She translates the evidence-based marketing principles of Byron Sharp and the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute into practical strategies that help brands expand their reach, build lasting brand awareness, and drive measurable growth.

Host and Guest Resources:
Dale Harrison on LinkedIn
The Insight Collective Website
Angela Voss LinkedIn
Marketing Architects Website
ADWEEK Website
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