The Marketing Factor, by Cobble Hill

Thomas Berolzheimer has been operating behind one of the internet's most enduring creator brands since the beginning, long before "creator economy" was a category. As the business architect behind Julia Berolzheimer's brand, he's navigated every platform shift, cultural moment, and monetization model the space has thrown at them. In this episode, we get into what it actually...

Xavier Armand is the founder of The Vaan Group, a Shopify platinum agency and home of what they call brand conversion design -- the idea that great design and conversion aren't in tension, they're the same thing. In this episode we get into the practical stuff: why code generation tools keep breaking down on bespoke DTC builds, how Vaan is restructuring the Figma-to-dev handoff to actually...

Andrew Foxwell has been running Meta ads ever since they existed 16 years. He co-founded Foxwell Digital, built Foxwell Founders into a 550-member paid community spending half a billion dollars a month on Meta collectively, and recently stopped pulling levers entirely to focus on audits, coaching, and what's actually working in 2026. In this episode, we get into the structural shift happening...

Amanda Greeley has been thinking about Spence since 2017. She didn't rush it. Before launching the racket sports brand, she built Tink & Tiger out of Brooklyn's garment district during Instagram's pre-ad era, founded Thelma footwear (picked up by J. Crew before her Italian manufacturer collapsed during the pandemic), and led creative direction at Serena & Lily. She's someon...

After 15 years of building brands across every category, John Scheer and his partner made a bet that focus would beat breadth and it paid off. In just three years, Herman Scheer doubled their business by going all-in on healthcare, self-care, and wellness branding. In this episode, John breaks down: On Positioning & Niching: Why specialization turned prospects from comparing agencies to making...

In this episode of The Marketing Factor, Austin Dandridge sits down with Julian Modiano founder of Acuto and Weavely to unpack the future of data, automation, and AI inside modern marketing agencies. Julian’s rare background blends deep PPC experience from Merkle and Brainlabs with true engineering chops as a Google Cloud developer — giving him a uniquely technical and marketer-centric view of wha...

In this episode, Austin Dandridge talks with Jon Howard , founder of JoHo & Co. and longtime outdoor industry marketer, about what it takes to build enduring brands in today’s crowded DTC landscape. From shifting outdoor storytelling beyond product specs to developing data-driven customer personas, Jon shares how to align teams, leverage community marketing, and balance wholesale with DTC grow...

In this episode of The Marketing Factor, Austin Dandridge interviews Curry Hagerty, the marketing mastermind behind HART Jewelry's explosive growth. Discover how this contemporary jewelry brand scales without heavy discounting and dominates Black Friday with innovative strategies. KEY TAKEAWAYS: Black Friday pre-sale strategy for existing customers Why creative testing beats optimization for M...

In this episode of The Marketing Factor, host Austin Dandridge speaks with Wil Reynolds, founder of Seer Interactive, about the evolving landscape of digital marketing. They discuss the importance of embracing a testing mindset, fostering a culture of innovation, and navigating uncertainty in the industry. Wil emphasizes the need for operational transparency over content volume and the significanc...

In this episode of The Marketing Factor , host Austin Dandridge sits down with Suze Dowling, co-founder, operator, and one of the sharpest minds in DTC. From her unexpected path to Gin Lane to her role shaping the brand collective at Pattern, Suze unpacks what it really takes to build emotionally resonant brands in today’s landscape. They get into the weeds on why email still outperforms, how to h...

Justin Watt, co-founder of Switchboard and expert in systems design, joins Austin Dandridge to break down how high-performing teams use AI and automation to scale without adding complexity. In this episode of The Marketing Factor, they cover low-lift, high-impact workflows, how to prep your business for AI, the real bottlenecks behind AGI, and why tools like Notion and Airtable are still top picks...

In this episode of The Marketing Factor , Austin Dandridge sits down with Molly Fienning, the serial entrepreneur behind Babyators, Red Clay Hot Sauce, and now SipLand—a platform redefining non-alcoholic beverage culture through community, content, and curation. Molly shares what it means to build from the second mountain —a phase of entrepreneurship driven not by scale or speed, but by alignment,...

In this episode of The Marketing Factor, Austin Dandridge interviews Lucas Ballasy, CEO and partner at Barrel, a specialized CPG commerce agency. Lucas shares insights from his journey from freelance designer to agency leadership, while discussing his popular weekly newsletter and approach to creative work. TIMESTAMPS: 00:41 - Lucas's journey with writing and creative expression 03:46 - The pr...

In this episode of The Marketing Factor, Austin Dandridge sits down with acclaimed photographer William Hereford to explore what truly makes brand photography authentic, the critical elements of a great creative brief, and how the rise of AI is reshaping the creative industry. William shares his unique insights from years of working with iconic brands like L.L. Bean, Untuckit, Tumi, and Bonobos, e...

In this episode of The Marketing Factor, host Austin Dandridge sits down with Shae Fascenda, Senior Email Strategist at Cobble Hill, to uncover the advanced tactics driving ecommerce growth through strategic email marketing. Shae shares her battle-tested expertise on planning holiday campaigns months in advance, why SMS has become non-negotiable with its 98% open rate, and how strategic segmentati...

Running a creative business is never straightforward, but partnering with someone who complements your strengths can truly transform your trajectory. In this episode of The Marketing Factor, Hart Hagerty and Curry Uflacker, the dynamic sister duo behind HART Jewelry, provide fresh insights into the value of strategic partnerships, the realities of scaling a brand, and the delicate balance of authe...

In this episode of The Marketing Factor, I catch up with Ellison and Bryant Thomas at Ellison's waterfront studio. The Thomas Brothers are Charleston surf scene legends and the creative force behind both a thriving video production company and east coast surf community platform, Ninety-Six Wave. We dive into their journey building a surf lifestyle brand, talk marketing strategies that actually wor...

In this episode of The Marketing Factor, I sit down with my colleague, Jackie Thomson, founder of Of Counsel, to explore the transformative world of PR. With more than 13 years of experience, Jackie shares insights into how PR has evolved from traditional media relations to a multifaceted practice encompassing storytelling, influencer partnerships, and purpose-driven events.

In the latest episode of The Marketing Factor, I sat down with Peter Kang, co-founder and chairman of Barrel Holdings, who has built a portfolio of agencies that has redefined what strategic growth looks like. In this conversation, Peter revealed how intentional positioning and systematic thinking have shaped his approach to building and scaling multiple successful agencies. As someone who's follo...

At 19, while most of her UNLV classmates were figuring out their next move, Whitney Bansin launched a styling company that would end up working on TV shows to movies. That evolved into running all the creative direction at Zappos, where she got an inside look at how fashion and commerce intersect. Instead of heading to fashion school like she originally planned, Whitney kept building businesses. H...

The world of healthcare design was stuck in a time warp - stock photos, clinical messaging, and designs that spoke more to insurance companies than humans. That started changing when Dan Kenger saw an opportunity to bring consumer-first design to an industry that had forgotten about the consumer. During his Gin Lane days, Dan's content-first approach and selective client philosophy helped create t...

Starting her career on stage, Sarah Kleist developed a knack for telling stories, a skill she’s since translated into building brands and digital experiences with a business of her own. Her approach centers around engaging her clients’ audiences through clever content strategies on TikTok, insanely fast web design processes, tailored SEO tactics, and more. In this episode of The Marketing Factor,...

Influencer marketing has come a long way since the days of trading free products for social shoutouts. Today it’s big budgets, matching expectations, and a new set of challenges to work through. I recently sat down to have a chat with Robyn Nissim , Fractional VP of Social Media + Influencer Marketing at Social Proof Agency . She is a social media expert with 14 years of experience and she broke d...

Wes Carter is the President of Atlantic Packaging and Founder of A New Earth Project . But business success is only part of Wes’ story. In this episode, he also shares his personal journey of self-discovery through yoga and plant medicine, and how these experiences led him to revolutionize Atlantic Packaging's approach to sustainability with A New Earth Project. From collaborating with pro sur...

Max Berry and his team have taken Allegiance Flag Supply from a garage-based side hustle to a rapidly growing American manufacturing success story. With a background in hotel finance, Max brought a fresh set of eyes to the world of e-commerce, and it's clearly paid off. In just six years, Allegiance has expanded five times and now has over 60 employees in a brand new facility in North Charlest...