The Drum Podcast

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  How breaking a record became a marketing strategy 13.08.2026 37Min.

  Guinness World Records has quietly become a marketing machine, running roughly 1,300 brand activations a year for companies chasing attention through record-breaking stunts. We're joined by Marco Frigatti, Senior Vice President of Guinness World Records for Business, who started out as an adjudicator - measuring, counting and witnessing everything from the largest yoga class to a rather unfortunate fish-gutting attempt. We talk about how the record book became a brand-marketing engine, why record-breaking works so well for launches, destination marketing and employee engagement, and how Guinness World Records has 'democratised' record-breaking so anyone can have a go. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Is a 'golden age of branded entertainment' really coming? 06.08.2026 41Min.

  We're joined by Simon Baker, a branded content pioneer and now managing director of publisher-agency TCO. As brands loudly tout a 'golden age of branded entertainment', Baker helps us figure out what that might mean - and who it would be good for.Guest: Simon Baker, MD, TCO Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  How AI is reshaping agency models 03.08.2026 31Min.

  For years, marketers have debated whether brands are better served by full-service agencies or specialist expertise. But as AI reshapes how agencies work, perhaps that's no longer the right question.In this bonus episode of The Drum Podcast, Richard Draycott is joined by Nick Beck (Founder & CEO, Tug), Heather Connearn (Managing Director, Space & Time) and Jennifer Maclennan (Group Managing Director, Fifth Ring) to explore how AI is changing agency models from the inside out. They discuss why strategy and judgement matter more than ever, how client expectations are evolving, whether independent agencies have an agility advantage, and why brand, PR and trusted expertise may become even more valuable in an AI-driven world. If you're rethinking what clients really need from agency partners today, this is a conversation worth hearing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  How marketing became obsessed with comedians 30.07.2026 56Min.

  The Edinburgh festivals and their fringes add up to the biggest arts festival in the world - a yearly event that's only outsold by the World Cup and Olympics. As it launches, we talk to Jonathan Grant, an ad creative, comic, talent manager and now author. We talk about Grant's book, Reading the Room: The Inside Story of Stand-Up in the 21st Century; comedy's role in the media ecosystem; and what's been gained and lost in comedy's commercialization. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Can a publisher still be 'just' a publisher? 23.07.2026 26Min.

  Live from the floor of SXSW London, we're joined by Ramin Beheshti, the co-founder and CEO of Caliber, the 'new media' publisher behind social-first news brands like The News Movement. Like so many modern publishers, Caliber's commercial core contains more than news - including a marketing agency. But as publishers turn to all sorts of alternative revenue sources, is it still possible to make money from news alone? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Cowards Don't Go to Heaven: Eugene Cheong's message to young creatives 16.07.2026 45Min.

  Legendary copywriter and creative director - Ogilvy APAC's long-serving chief creative officer - has entered his experienced-statesman era as an adman. His new book, Cowards Don't Go to Heaven, distills a life of creative understanding into a coffee-table book of handwritten (and illustrated) aphorisms and invective. He tells The Drum Podcast why a little anger is necessary for creative growth, how being "openly Christian" has shaped his creative practice, and how he went from failing his O-Level in English to being one of the most-awarded copywriters in the world. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  What are the marketing industries real responsibilities around AI? 09.07.2026 50Min.

  Wesley ter Haar is the co-founder of global agency Monks, and now its chief AI officer. In a candid conversation filmed at this year's SXSW London about AI, he talks about the honest responsibilities, hopes and fears of an industry grappling with its future Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Commerce media: the death of the traditional funnel? 23.06.2026 33Min.

  Consumers don't follow funnels, and perhaps they never did. In this episode, Nick Handley (Connective3), Victoria Peopall (Epsilon) and Hannah McNally (Jaywing) unpack how commerce media is challenging long-held marketing assumptions. They discuss the rise of social commerce, the limits of attribution, why incrementality matters more than ever and what AI could mean for the future of shopping.If you're trying to understand how measurement, media planning and consumer behaviour are changing in the commerce era, this conversation is essential listening. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  SXSW London: How the Texan behemoth is adapting to the UK 18.06.2026 42Min.

  Live from SXSW London 2026, the event's second annual outing, we sit down with Cecilia Morelli to chart how the event's adapting to the UK while maintaining its Texan core. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  AI & automation: from hype to workflow 17.06.2026 38Min.

  Everyone is talking about AI, but how do you turn the hype into real business impact? In this episode, Dora Moldovan (Tomorrow Group), Greg Roekens (Prose on Pixels) and Adam Hay (Croud) share their experiences of implementing AI inside agencies today. You'll learn why simply layering AI onto existing workflows isn't enough, how leadership and culture shape successful adoption, and what it takes to bring teams along on the journey. Packed with practical advice and honest perspectives, this is essential listening for anyone navigating AI transformation. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Why do we know so little about the creative industry's 'long tail'? 11.06.2026 45Min.

  A recent report mapped the growth rates and revenues of some 25,000 agencies across the UK - as well as flows of both private and public funding into those agencies. With its authors at Agency by Agency, we dig into what the report found and why it exists - a crucial knowledge gap regarding agencyland's smaller players. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  As sports sponsorship scrutiny grows, is it still worth it? 04.06.2026 38Min.

  As the Fifa World Cup looms, we're joined by experts in sponshorship and talent partnership - Gartner's Nicole Greene and Outreach's Joe Hockley, respectively - to map the upcoming 'most commercial World Cup ever'. As creators' stars continue to rise and budget scrutiny reaches sponsorships, what makes the big-ticket activations still worth it? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Are you cool enough to work for 90s Vogue? 01.06.2026 57Min.

  In his recent book, Empire of the Elite author Michael Grynbaum unearthed a a list of 178 artists, quotes and media properties that had been passed around the halls of Conde Nast in the 90s. It was William Norwich and Charles Gandee's list: As two editors of Vogue, they'd prepared it as an "unofficial test" of applicants to the austere magazine's halls of cultural power. Recently, cultural strategist Olivia Wedderburn took a stab at updating the list for 2026 - and in the processran up against some of the shift in taste, trendsetting and power that have manifested in the last 30 years. You can read the piece on her Substack, Sim City.https://simcity.substack.com/p/the-2026-cultural-literacy-test Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  What's powering the 'experience economy'? 14.05.2026 40Min.

  Move over 'attention economy' - strategist Tom Gray says that the modern media world can be understood through the lens of the 'experience economy'. From immersive theater to the new Tottenham Hotspur stadium, Gray says, anyone trying to stand out in the world of real experiences needs to be paying attentoon to the best work being done throughout the world. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Tradwives, branded TV, and the year's weirdest ad 07.05.2026 46Min.

  What connects the tradwife movement, brands making their own entertainment properties, and the marketing world's fervor for 'unhinged' ads? We're joined by GUT's Natalia Davila to pick our way through some of 2026's most fascinating trends. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  The Drum's DMA Awards: The view from the president's chair 30.04.2026 27Min.

  Live from the judging day at London's Big Sky Studios for The Drum Marketing Awards EMEA, we're joined by the president (HSBC's Nicole German) and vice-president (Arla Foods' Patrik Hansson) of the jury for a peak behind the curtain at what judges really want and how top marketers are adapting to a world of certain uncertainty. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  As social marketing tactics for music become headline news, is the band Geese a 'psy-op'? 24.04.2026 53Min.

  We're joined by music journalist, manager and promoter Sean Adams to discuss one of the month's nosiest marketing spats: The argument whether social tactics to build a "narrative" around a musical artist through 'user generated content' generated by a paid-for agency amount to tricking both algorithms and real people into becoming a fan. As popular social media accounts across the globe declare recent indie rock heroes Geese of being a 'psy-op', Adams and host Sam Anderson discuss what that means and what music marketing really consists in in 2026. Stay tuned for some expert music recommendations. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  Inside Reddit's sales pitch to advertisers 16.04.2026 41Min.

  On The Drum Podcast, we hear a lot from the brands who buy ad space and the agencies they work with, but we rarely hear from the people doing the selling - especially at the social platforms that take a greater share of the ad pie every day. And no platform is growing faster than Reddit, which has built a multi-billion dollar ad platform in just a few years since its post-pandemic IPO. So: What's the pitch to advertisers, and what's working? Hannah Walker talks us through it all. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  How are marketers warming up for the 2026 summer of sport? 09.04.2026 29Min.

  We dive into how sport is being rapidly reshaped in the attention economy, from fast-format football and entertainment-led fight nights to reinvented tournaments that blur the lines between sport and show business. You'll hear from guest host Richard Draycott and a panel of sports marketing experts: Lucy Bairner of Collaborate Global, Alistair Gammell of Threepipe Reply, and Christian Harrall-Baker of Two Circles. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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  What does a chief science officer do at a creative agency? 02.04.2026 33Min.

  Tom Knapman is a PhD-qualified biochemist. Last year, he was working for Sciex, whose campaign on proteomics (don't worry, we'll explain that in the episode) was a perhaps unlikely winner of a Grand Prix gong at The Drum Awards last year. This year he's jumped ship into a perhaps almost-unique role: chief science officer at a creative agency. He tells The Drum why he thinks boom times are coming for science comms. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.