YouTube has been around for nearly two decades.

So, why are most brands still so bad at it?

For this chat, Paul & Verity sit down with Chloe McCullough (YouTube Lead @ JD Sports & consultant to brands like SheerLuxe) to ask what building a real brand channel looks like.

From scrapping paid media to focusing on organic reach, from creator-first strategies to serialized formats that cut through; Chloe’s taken JD from a confused content mix to a media powerhouse. In this episode, LIVE from the Brand Advocacy Summit: London, she lays out exactly how she did it.

What you'll learn:

• Why YouTube Isn’t A Social Channel – And how brands should treat it instead. Chloe explains how its long-form depth, search behaviours, and retention-led success mean it plays by totally different rules.

• How JD Built Hit Series, Like ‘The Masked Rapper’, That Scaled Reach & Community – Replicating TV-style content can create cost-effective, bingeable formats that grow your channel.

• Why Most YouTube Strategies Fail – Hint: they’re borrowed from TikTok. Hear what marketers get wrong when they treat Shorts like other short-form, and ignore long-form fundamentals.

• What Metrics Actually Matter – Learn how to read them like a strategist, so you can optimise your thumbnails, titles, and audience retention with clarity.

• When Creators Are Worth The Budget – And what to do if yours isn’t huge.

• Why Thumbnails, Titles & SEO Aren’t Afterthoughts – They are the strategy. See how Chloe tests & tweaks to unlock consistent growth, even before you’ve built an audience.
  

This episode isn’t about gaming the algorithm. It’s about building an audience that stays.

Chapters

00:00 – Why Brands Still Don’t Get YouTube

02:50 – What Makes a Brand Channel Actually Work

05:42 – YouTube SEO, Community & Creator Thinking

13:41 – Titles, Thumbnails & the 1% Rule

15:07 – Serialized Content: Why It Cuts Cost & Builds Audience

19:40 – Shorts Strategy & What Drives Real Growth

23:33 – Community Building & Sentiment Shifts at JD

26:40 – The 3 YouTube Metrics That Actually Matter

Rate & review Building Brand Advocacy:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Connect with Chloe:

On LinkedIn

On JD Sports’ YouTube

Subscribe to Chloe’s Newsletter

What do pop-ups, playful giant handbags, and hyperlocal partnerships have in common?

They’re not stunts. They’re strategy.

Recorded LIVE at the Brand Advocacy Summit: London, this is the second of four exclusive episodes – straight from the stage.

Verity & Paul sit down with Pascale Montaner (VP of Global Marketing @ Kurt Geiger) and Louisa O’Connor (Managing Director @ Seen Presents) to dig into why the smartest brands are leaning hard into the experience-driven economy.

From transforming storefronts into storytelling tools, to building activations that speak louder than any ad ever could, this is the recipe for building real connection, loyalty, and long-term Advocacy.

What You’ll Learn:

• Why We Crave IRL Connection & What Brands Must Do to Earn It: Digital fatigue is real. With 80% of Gen Z reporting loneliness, brands that build real-world spaces of belonging – not just spectacle – are winning attention and loyalty.
  

• How Pop-Ups, Sensory Design & Surprise Drive Advocacy: From stained-glass storefronts to surprise bagel drops, today's most successful brand experiences engage all the senses (as per Louisa’s expert experience); and give people stories worth telling.
  

• Why Customers, Not Celebrities, Are the New Influencers: Kurt Geiger's approach is clear – invite your true brand fans in. They're more trusted, more loyal, and often more impactful than the biggest names on your PR list.
  

• How to Build Experiences That Translate Online (and Why That Matters): In a social-first world, IRL can feel like it matters most when it makes it to the feed. Learn how top brands are creating moments that live beyond the moment, without losing authenticity.
  

• The One Mistake Most Brands Make With Experience: Spoiler: it’s trying to please everyone. The result? Experiences that resonate with no one. Find out how to focus your intent and create memory-making moments that actually move people.
  

This isn’t about trend-chasing. It’s about experience as the new foundation of brand strategy.

This episode comes to you in partnership with Seen Presents; a global agency creating culturally resonant brand experiences & experiential campaigns. Designed to deliver impact, innovation, and lasting brand fame.

Learn more about the magic they’re making here: https://www.seenpresents.com/

Chapters

00:00 – Why Brand Experience Is the Strategy Now

02:39 – Loneliness, Digital Overload & the Rise of IRL Belonging

04:59 – From Elitism to Inclusion: Democratising Brand Events

07:17 – Trust, TikTok & the Rise of the Authentic Ambassador

09:12 – Building Sensory-First Experiences That Convert

11:05 – Turning Retail Into Storytelling: Inside Kurt Geiger’s Flagship Strategy

15:04 – Pop-Ups, Scale & Global Adaptation on a Budget

18:45 – Using Social to Amplify (Not Replace) Experience

20:14 – How to Make Your Digital Brand Tangible

22:08 – The Biggest Mistake Brands Make With Experiences

23:43 – Why Local Beats Luxury: Cultural Relevance Over Budget

25:20 – Getting Buy-In: How to Prove the ROI of Experience

28:50 – What Brands Overlook When Designing for Emotion

30:17 – When Experience Goes Wrong (& What to Do About It)

31:46 – The Role of AI in Accessibility & Personalisation

Rate & review Building Brand Advocacy:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Connect with Pascale & Louisa:

On Pascale’s LinkedIn

On Louisa’s LinkedIn

Harsh truth: everything you know about community is outdated.

Let’s get to the heart of a word marketers love to throw around, but rarely define.

This week, join us LIVE from the stage of the Brand Advocacy Summit: London — kicking off a four-part mini series from the day with a heavy hitter.

Verity sits down with Lucy Murray (Brand Director @ Free Soul), Emily Mitchell (Marketing Director @ Tropic Skincare), and Paul Hickey (Group Director @ SAMY Alliance), to unpack what brand love actually looks like in 2025.

Together, they cover:

• The 3 Truths Behind Community: From off-the-grid connections to consumer-run spaces, find out what today’s best brands know.

• Real Talk on Events, Activations & Intimacy: Smaller, meaningful events trump 400-person spectacles. You know this, so hear the real best practice for acting on it. When the time comes, scale doesn’t have to mean soulless, either.

• What Listening Actually Looks Like: Learn how Tropic’s 20k-strong ambassador base & Free Soul’s biggest Advocates guide product and marketing decisions – no red tape needed.

• Why Emotional Connection Still Wins: From Free Soul’s community-built retreats to grassroots wellness events (touching grass, wholly included), discover what keeps customers coming back.

• Social Listening with a Human Lens: Hear how SAMY Alliance challenges traditional sentiment tracking with one goal; to get under the skin of what audiences really think.

This one is for any brand that wants to build community beyond a hashtag & follow back.

No fluff. No filter. Just what works.

This episode is in partnership with SAMY Alliance; a global network of creative and data-driven marketing agencies helping brands grow through cutting-edge insights, human connection, and digital innovation.

You can learn more about these good folk here: https://samy.com/en/

Chapters

00:00 – What Is Community in 2025, Really?

03:48 – Free Soul’s Ground-Up Community Strategy

06:01 – When Wellness Events Build Real Belonging

08:56 – How Tropic Skincare Co-Creates With Its Ambassadors

10:27 – Listening Without Red Tape (And Acting On It)

12:15 – Why Social Listening Needs a Human Lens

14:01 – Tropic’s Infinite Purpose (And How It Drives Loyalty)

16:04 – Building Emotional Connection at Scale

18:35 – The Tangible Impact of Products Like Free Soul’s

21:33 – Personalisation & Segmentation That Actually Resonates

22:50 – Accountability: The Ultimate Signal of Community

24:27 – When Customers Speak To Each Other

27:00 – Copied Community Strategy? Blinkers On.

28:55 – Authentic Customer Stories: The Real Advocacy Engine

Rate & review Building Brand Advocacy:

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Connect with Lucy, Emily & Paul:

On Lucy’s LinkedIn

On Emily’s LinkedIn

On Paul’s LinkedIn