On today’s episode of the Healthy Wealthy and Smart Podcast, I welcome Jonathan David Lewis onto the show to discuss brand survival. Jonathan David Lewis is the author of Brand vs Wild, a Forbes contributor and a brand survival expert at McKee Wallwork + Co. Jonathan’s opinions are highly sought by numerous business and marketing publications, including Forbes, Digiday, and Advertising Age, where he explores the factors of stalled growth and the principles proven to help companies traverse the dangers of the brand wilderness.
In this episode, we discuss:
-What survival psychology can teach us about growing a business
-Why maintaining success requires continual curiosity
-Brand differentiation strategies and how to find your niche audience
-Brand vs Wild: how to navigate the increasingly harsh business world
-And so much more!
Business challenges can create fear, but fear is a primary driver of personal and business growth. Jonathan believes, “Fear is one of those emotions that is fundamental to business and career and life.”
Survival psychology describes three different reactions to adversity: being prepared, becoming paralyzed or panicking. Interestingly, Jonathan describes, “There is very little difference psychologically between a group of survivors who have crashed landed on a mountain or became lost in the desert and a group of business people who are just trying to navigate some sort of unexpected business challenge. We go through the same psychological reaction.”
Being an industry leader breeds complacency and arrogance. Jonathan warns, “One of the biggest enemies of continual learning is success.”
The age of mass marketing is coming to an end. New businesses should seek to be hyper-relevant to a very small tribe. Jonathan reminds us, “It’s okay to be small. It’s okay to be niche.”
For more information on Jonathan:
Jonathan David Lewis is the author of Brand vs Wild, a Forbes contributor and a brand survival expert at McKee Wallwork + Co.
As partner and strategy director at MW+C, Jonathan led his firm to be recognized by purveyor Advertising Age as a national leader in branding and marketing, winning the Southwest Small Agency of the Year, national B2B Campaign of the Year, and national Best Places to Work awards.
Jonathan sharpened his skills during the harsh years of the Great Recession, helping brands navigate today’s unforgiving new business paradigms. Jonathan’s opinions are highly sought by numerous business and marketing publications, including Forbes, Digiday, and Advertising Age, where he explores the factors of stalled growth and the principles proven to help companies traverse the dangers of the brand wilderness.
Resources discussed on this show:
Survival Psychology by John Leach
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Have a great week and stay Healthy Wealthy and Smart!
Xo Karen
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