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Insider Interviews: Media and Marketing Pros

Insider Interviews: Media and Marketing Pros

By: E.B. Moss
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Media, Marketing, Advertising and Entertainment executives give an insider’s view of the business of the industry. Compelling conversations on creating TV, advertising, audio, research and more, with host, E.B. Moss.© 2019-2024 E.B. Moss and Moss Appeal Biographies & Memoirs Economics Marketing Marketing & Sales Social Sciences
Episodes
  • Women Building the Future of Media: She-Cam Sessions from SXSW

    Women Building the Future of Media: She-Cam Sessions from SXSW
    Mar 25 2026
    Podcasting got a seat at the grown-up’s table at South by SouthWest for the first time, smack in middle of Women’s History Month. So Insider Interviews captured content from three women also making strides in media, during Podcast Movement Evolutions. I spoke with these media powerhouses at The Podcast Academy / Sounds Profitable co-sponsored booth to talk about building: businesses, communities, the future of media itself…and building up women everywhere. Learn from: the co-founder of a startup modernizing how print and out-of-home are bought and sold,a global communications CEO who has built her career on making messaging move people,and one of the new forces behind podcasting’s growing presence itself. Mach on Modernizing “Premium” Media for a New Era Beth Mach, Co-Founder & COO of Spacely Media, introduces the first transactional marketplace for premium media — giving print, out-of-home, and venue advertising the digital infrastructure it’s never had. “Buying in those channels today still looks like it did 20 years ago — lots of PDFs, lots of phone calls. Spacely closes that gap.” Their platform replaces friction with functionality, and dashboards instead of PDFs. Like Neil Vogel, in my recent episode with the People, Inc. CEO, Mach is bullish on magazines and makes the case for why brands are coming back to these channels. She also explains why credibility wins the room when you’re raising money. It shouldn’t be different as a female founder. But… “Every founder meets skepticism. When you are female, it adds another layer — especially when the room has historically looked a little different.” — Beth Mach Lund on Messaging to and for Humans Wendy Lund, Global CEO of Allison Worldwide and returning Insider Interviews guest (exactly one year later!), reflects on her path from women’s health advocacy to leading a global agency — and what she’s building now. Her path ran from a master’s in women’s history to nonprofit marketing, to running a global agency. With her move to Global CEO of Allison Worldwide and Vice Chair of health at parent company Stagwell, Wendy described her enthusiasm for Allison’s strengths, across campaigns, media/influencer, and experiential. She reinforces the importance of listening, purpose-driven work, and addressing ongoing inequities in women’s health and mental health. “My favorite value has always been belonging. Do your customers feel like they’re part of something? To me, that is so sticky.” Her advice for building brand love in a fragmented media world is deceptively simple: be real, and build belonging. She’s also clear-eyed about the disconnect between how much we talk about innovation — and how much attention women’s health actually gets: “AI is on the tip of everybody’s tongue — but at the end of the day, it’s also steeped in emotion. And we’re 51% of the population. That means we should get 51% of the attention.” — Wendy Lund DeMellier Sounds Like an Inspiration Molly DeMellier, Head of Communications at Sounds Profitable, gives an insider’s scoop on the organization helping shape podcasting’s growing presence at SXSW and beyond. She points to the combined strengths of the co-founders: Bryan Barletta’s (“terrifying”) encyclopedic industry brain and Tom Webster’s research engine, along with her own expanding role shaping panel strategy, supporting retainer clients, and helping partners amplify their stories. Molly describes Sounds Profitable place in podcasting as building community and connection through events, networking, research, and partner support, emphasizing that “Podcasting is really taking off and it’s the people that power it.” But, noting the industry’s representation gap, takes her role seriously when working on events like Podcast Movement, pondering “who do I put on stage that’s going to inspire that next person” to know they can see themselves podcasting. And she closes with something that sticks: her belief that women shouldn’t have to choose between a career and a family — and why she’s determined to make sure the next generation sees women in power. “A big fear I have is that women will leave professions not by choice, but by force. And my biggest fear is what about the children who see their mom who didn’t have a choice?” — Molly DeMellier This is Episode 50 in Season 2. I think it sounds like a milestone worth celebrating. Key Moments & Time Codes 00:00 — How Podcast Movement Evolutions made its first-ever appearance at SXSW 00:53 — Beth Mach explains why Spacely calls it premium media — and why that reframe matters for the industry 04:50 — Beth explains how buying a print ad in 2025 still works the way it did 20 years ago — and how Spacely is finally changing that 09:40 — Why print titles that shut down years ago are quietly relaunching — and what that signals for brands 14:55 — On ...
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    19 mins
  • Nir Eyal: How Beliefs Drive Behavior and What Marketers Get Wrong

    Nir Eyal: How Beliefs Drive Behavior and What Marketers Get Wrong
    Mar 19 2026
    I found a smiling Buddha medallion on the sidewalk on my way to the Uber, and I believed it was a sign it would be a good trip. Then I got in the car and discovered my fellow passenger was Nir Eyal — behavioral designer, Stanford lecturer, and bestselling author with a new book to promote at SXSW: “Beyond Belief.” We were both headed for the same flight. I, of course, invited him to record a podcast episode and he invited me into the United Club lounge record there! I believed in my good fortune, and belief systems turned out to be the focus of Nir’s work. “We like to say that you’ll believe it when you see it — but in fact, that’s not true. The opposite is true: you see it when you believe it.” — Nir Eyal What I captured in 20 minutes was a masterclass in consumer psychology from one of the most cited thinkers in behavioral design. And a lot of fun. Nir’s first book, “Hooked”, gave marketers and product builders a framework for engineering repeat engagement. Yup, he explains his four-step model that of why users keep returning to things like Facebook, Duolingo, Slack, and even my beloved Starbucks. His follow-up, “Indistractable,” tackled the flip side: how to protect your own focus in a world engineered to steal it. And his new third book makes the case that advertising’s most powerful function isn’t awareness or recall. It’s actually shaping what using a product feels like. Or tastes like. Nir backs this up citing a Stanford fMRI study where participants tasted the exact same wine twice — once labeled cheap, once labeled expensive. Of course they rated the “expensive” pour as tastier, and brain scans confirmed they were genuinely experiencing more pleasure. The implication for marketers is significant: brand belief doesn’t just influence what consumers say about a product — it rewires how they perceive it in real time. As Nir puts it, “we are creating the experience, just as we’re creating the coffee and the cup.” We also get into distraction and focus ( — territory that’s directly relevant to anyone managing teams, creative output, or their own attention. Nir draws a clean line between traction (any action that moves you toward what you planned to do) and distraction (anything that doesn’t) — and gave me a HUGE a-ha understanding about the common assumption that multitasking is counterproductive. You’re going to want to learn about the distinction between single-channel and multi-channel multitasking. It’s how high performers and even distracted performers like me, can structure their time. (Nir shares his personal system for consuming long-form reading; it’s a practical tactic worth stealing.) This conversation was unplanned, unscripted, and recorded forty minutes before boarding a flight. That it delivered this much useful thinking on marketing, behavioral design, consumer psychology, and focus is a testament to how deeply Nir has thought about all of it — and, okay, maybe to the Buddha medallion. Key Moments: 00:00 How a serendipitous ride to the airport turns into an impromptu bonus episode with author Nir Eyal01:34 Nir’s background: behavioral designer, Stanford lecturer, and author of three books on habits, distraction, and belief02:16 The Hooked framework: the four-step model behind every habit-forming product — and how to apply it03:45 Beyond Belief: why advertising’s real job is shaping experience, not just building awareness06:07 The Stanford fMRI wine study: proof that brand belief changes consumer perception at a neurological level07:50 What marketers consistently underestimate: the experience loop of belief, anticipation, and confirmation08:15 Facts vs. beliefs: a distinction with major implications for messaging and brand strategy09:08 The one condition a product must meet before habit formation is even possible12:45 Traction vs. distraction: a framework for reclaiming focus — and why the difference isn’t the behavior14:11 Why planned downtime isn’t distraction — and how to stop moralizing screen time15:37 The multitasking reframe: single-channel vs. multi-channel, and when doing two things at once actually works17:04 Nir’s read-at-the-gym system: a practical productivity hack for high-volume information consumers18:38 How beliefs shape attitudes and perception — what we’re able to see19:33 Persuasion vs. coercion: the ethical and commercial case for “good” behavioral design Connect with Nir Eyal LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nireyal/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nireyal Get his book Beyond Belief: geni.us/beyondbelief Connect with E.B. Moss and Insider Interviews: With Media & Marketing Experts LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mossappeal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/insiderinterviews Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InsiderInterviewsPodcast/ Threads: https://www.threads.net/@insiderinterviews If you enjoyed this episode, ...
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    11 mins
  • Changing Perceptions in CTV Advertising: Insights from Premion’s Blake Hebert

    Changing Perceptions in CTV Advertising: Insights from Premion’s Blake Hebert
    Mar 9 2026
    CTV advertising may come with its share of acronyms and moving parts, but about 70% of advertisers say they plan to increase their investment in it, according to the latest industry survey from Premion. Blake Hebert, Premion’s Sr Dir. of Publisher Operations, isn’t surprised by that momentum. But he also knows marketers still face challenges like complexity. In Ep. 49, he talks about where the medium stands today—and how Premion is helping simplify the path for local and mid-market advertisers. Blake, who just welcomed baby #2, returned to work to help introduce Premion’s baby #4 — that latest CTV survey done with Advertiser Perceptions. And no one’s crying about this one: only 1% of respondents said they expect to decrease their CTV budgets. With a rare perspective from being hands on across the buy side and sell side, from agency life at RPA to roles at Hulu and SpotX/Magnite, Blake now has a front-row seat to what’s coming from publishers and platforms. He shares those insights back with internal teams and advertisers to make the CTV landscape easier to navigate. And with us in this conversation. What advertisers are learning, and what Blake explains particularly well, is that success in CTV isn’t just about shifting dollars into streaming. It’s about understanding how consumers actually watch content today. He was spot on: “Consumers don’t decide to watch linear or stream; they just watch…. And they’re not just in one place. I’ll watch Amazon Prime and then flip back over to my Hulu app.” So, advertisers have to be spot on everywhere, too, which is exactly why marketers are increasingly planning around “total TV” or converged video strategies instead of separating traditional television and streaming into different buckets. Of course, this new world can feel like a maze. Fragmentation, walled gardens, and measurement challenges are still very real issues. Blake walks us through how platforms like Premion try to simplify that complexity by aggregating inventory across multiple streaming partners and layering in data that helps advertisers reach audiences efficiently. They’re especially focused on supporting local and mid-market advertisers who can now enjoy similar strategies and tactics as the big holding company agencies. Another takeaway is about targeting. In digital advertising, the instinct is often to target audiences down to the smallest possible segment. But Blake makes the case that hyper-targeting can sometimes backfire, or just lose some efficiency, especially in smaller geographic markets. His advice? Balance precision with scale. If you pile on too many audience filters, you may end up shrinking your available audience more than you intended. We also spend time talking about a topic that seems unavoidable in every media conversation right now: AI. Blake’s view is pragmatic and optimistic, particularly for local advertisers who may not have access to large creative or analytics teams. So, he says: “The sooner you can embrace it and understand how to use it as a tool, the better you’ll be in the long run.” In fact, he sees #AI helping smaller businesses build creative, optimize campaigns, and generate insights in ways that used to require a lot more resources. But, like taking on CTV, the world has changed! We also touch on a few trends that may shape the next phase of CTV advertising, like the growing importance of live sports in streaming environments to new opportunities emerging around gaming and smart TV engagement. The good news for me? Blake called in from his hometown of Austin, which is the home of SXSW. Pair that with his work as president of the local Austin chapter of the American Advertising Federation and I may be very well connected for the GSD&M party and more! I know people who know people. And now we all know a little more about CTV. To keep up with the fast-changing world of TV advertising, get the insider scoop in 30 minutes flat on what’s working in CTV right now and how Premion’s putting it to work. Key Moments 0:00 Changing Perceptions in CTV Advertising: Episode overview 0:41 Buy side to sell side: why Blake’s perspective on CTV is different 2:00 Premion’s edge: simplifying CTV for local advertisers 3:44 The headline stat: 70% growing CTV budgets — only 1% cutting 5:23 Why “linear vs. streaming” is the wrong question 7:26 Curation explained: smarter than the old ad-network model 12:02 Walled gardens don’t contain consumers — and that matters 15:00 AI as an equalizer for under-resourced local advertisers 18:00 The targeting trap: how over-targeting shrinks your audience 21:02 Live sports and more new opportunities 26:09 AAF Austin Shoutout Connect with Blake Hebert and Premion Download the Advertiser Perceptions 2026 Survey Connect with E.B. Moss and Insider Interviews: With Media & Marketing Experts LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mossappeal Instagram: https://...
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    14 mins
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