Podcasts about rebhorn

Molekule created an e-commerce brand around Air Purifiers that sells online for $499-$1200+. In episode 62, we dive into some of their strategies that can help you sell high-ticketed products for your business.TImestamps:00:50 Molekule's Backstory2:16 How To Sell High-Ticketed Products Like Molekule4:56 Molekule Constantly Co-Promotes w/ Other Brands to Increase Their Email Subscriber List.5:40 ViralSweep App For Creating Giveaways & Sweepstakes6:22 When Your Product Needs To Be Backed by Science / Proof To Build Credibility8:49 Why Influencers Are Better Than Paid Media As A Startup Brand9:50 UGC is performing better than anything else10:11 Consumers Can Write Off Their Molekule Purchase As A Tax Write Off. Understand Why This Is Important & How You Can Leverage It12:52 Creating Educational Content Around The Brands Main ProductABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Follow Matt Skopak's Twitter.ABOUT SEAN AZARI:In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.

PopSocket was started in 2012 by a college professor that initially wanted a way to wrap his headphones around his cell phone without it being an issue. His simple idea led to a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2012, which rocketed the company out of his garage and into the mainstream. Today, the brand generates over a billion dollars in sales through its unique sales & marketing strategies that we will dive into this episode.Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of the marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale. Timestamps:00:45 How The Founder Started The Company & Raised Money w/ a Kickstarter Campaign4:16 How PopSocket Piggy Backed On Another Business To Invent A New Product.6:12 Q&A Tactic w Influencers & Using That As A Series To Tell A Story8:50 Identify Your Proof of Concept39:12 How PopSocket Dominates with their Personalization Features & Why That Is Important In Today's World10:05 Other eCommerce Brands That We Seen Implement Personalization Features11:31 The Power of Word Of Mouth MarketingABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Follow Matt Skopak's Twitter.ABOUT SEAN AZARI:In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.

In Episode 60, We Discuss How Dr.Squatch, a Direct-To-Consumer Men's Soap Brand Built A $100 Million Dollar Brand.Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of the marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale. Timestamps:4:10 Use Quizzes To Personalize Customer Purchases6:00 Identify When Your Customers Have The Highest Open Email Rates By Testing Out Send TImes.7:00 How Dr Squatch Uses Humor In Their Facebook Ads Which Helps Them Stand Out & Increase Reach At A Lower Cost9:22 Setup A Few Different Welcome Flows Depending On Where Someone Signed Up11:11 Optimize Your Subscription Sales By Marketing The Benefits Throughout Your Website13:23 Setup Your TIkTok Commerce Account14:44 Dr Squatch Creates Limited Product Drops To Hype Up ExclusivityABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Follow Matt Skopak's Twitter.ABOUT SEAN AZARI:In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.

In episode 59, we dive into the strategy behind Blissy's eCommerce growth hacks---the taboo stuff that work.Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale. (

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale. (

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale.In Episode 56 we dissect S'well's business & marketing strategy – Founded in 2010 with a $30,000 initial investment, Sarah Kauss has now built a 9 figure business (Where revenues are projected to be at around 200mil). See how she made a “low-cost” product look expensive & created a cult brand through her business & marketing efforts.Timestamps:00:46 Background on S'well & How it started4:44 Does Your Overall Look Meet Your Price Point “Dress For The Job You Want”6:06 Offer A Smooth Checkout Process8:40 Customer's Want Customization10:03 Increase Your Revenue Stream By Providing Corporate Packages & Customization13:45 The Power Of Journaling Your Progress18:27 Hire For What You Believe You Will Need vs What You Currently HaveABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Follow Matt Skopak's Twitter.ABOUT ME (SEAN AZARI):In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale. In Episode 55 we dissect DUDE Wipes business & marketing strategy – Founded in 2011 by 4 guys that started the company in a small apartment in Chicago.  Their main initial product, Flushable Wipes, built up their reputation wasn't something innovative. Essentially it was baby wipes repurposed into a whole new brand. Within a few years of successful growth, they landed on Shark Tank in 2015 where Mark Cuban invested 300k in exchange for 25% equity. In 2022, they are estimated to be worth $50 mil.  Analyzing this company can help you think of ways of recreating an existing product & introducing new customers to an already existing one (Rebranding & Storytelling).Timestamps:00:45 Story behind DUDE Wipes2:47 The 80/20 Rules Applied. Come up with your idea and maximize it.  4:20 Sometimes all you need is 1 product. DUDE Wipes initial product was single (travel-size) flushable wipes.6:28 Fixing the stigma for startup entrepreneurs that you need to go “all-in.” Sean Riley, worked in construction for a year while building up DUDE Wipes.10:46 Create a fun reward program. Dude's Reward program is called the DUDECOIN “The world's first cryptocurrency you can earn with your butt”14:48 Attack the markets where your customers are. DUDE Wipes is everywhere from ESPN, Mens Health, Sport Teams, etc... They have ad placements wherever their audience has a strong presence17:39 Create Hilarious Relatable Ads That Highlights The Product's Value Proposition: A Winning Meme Strategy.ABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Follow Matt Skopak's Twitter.ABOUT ME (SEAN AZARI):In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale.In Episode 54, we dissect CALM's business & marketing strategy – Founded in 2012 by Alex Tew and Michael Acton Smith, these founders leveraged their skillsets to brand an app that made it #1 on the App Store.  As of May 2021, they estimated to be about 2 mil subscribers & 4 mil downloads (Which means they average to about 140mil a year just on Subscriptions!!). Whether you're building an app or eCommerce business, Calm strategies is something that we should all take note of.Timestamps:1:17 The Story behind Calm App5:36 Create a freemium model. CALM put out free sounds — stories on youtube7:40 Offer multiple payments options10:34 Use Hashtags As Your Research Tool Pre-Launch12:19 How Calm Uses Partnerships & Corporate Discounts To Increase Awareness15:40 How CALM leveraged timing & relevancy to create an ad that elicited an emotional response (Example: CNN Sponsored Ad)18:05 Why A Strong Vision Is the Secret Ingredient of a Successful BusinessABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Follow Matt Skopak's Twitter.ABOUT ME (SEAN AZARI):In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.

7+ Ideas on how eCommerce businesses & brands can start incorporating NFTs into their strategy — In episode 54, we discuss everything from crowdfunding to loyalty programs, accessibility, etc.Time Stamps:00:37 What is a NFT (Non-Fungible Token)?2:46 NFTs = Share Of Your Project12:30 Is NFT really about the art or the perks?12:57 How Royalties work with NFTs15:55 How the NFTs become valuable17:22 Building Your Own NFT Community17:52 How You Can Use NFTs For A Loyalty Program20:40 Using NFTs To Give Access To Limited Product Drops21:49 What is the Metaverse30:24 Breaking down some of the lingo used in the NFT Market: Utility, Roadmap, GasABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Matt Skopak's Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/mskopakABOUT ME (SEAN AZARI):In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.REBHORN (My eCommerce/Art Brand) ⤵️Website: https://www.rebhorndesign.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebhorndesignMy Other Social Channels:INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sean_azari/FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/azarimedia/SNAPCHAT: https://www.snapchat.com/add/sean_azariTWITTER: https://www.twitter.com/sean_azari

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale.In Episode 52, we dissect Athletic Greens business & marketing strategy – They are a “green powder” healthy drink that started in 2009 & has prevailed in their industry. We took 6 of their best e-commerce strategies that you can implement to help you mitigate the rise of ad cost & increase your ROI.  Timestamps:00:45 Quick background on Athletic Greens2:35 Cost of Advertising is Skyrocketing — But Athletic Greens Tactics can help you drive those costs down or increase your ROI3:40 Leverage the power of Audio Marketing. Athletic Greens sponsor dozens of Podcasters to talk about their product before or during their show.5:12 Can you offer samples or cheaper alternatives for your customers to try your brand out?8:10 Create A Touchpoint With The Customer To Help Build The Brand9:20 Building a community on Discord13:16 Implement a referral strategy with incentives.16:55 Use UGC in Paid Campaigns17:55 Create Partnerships To Sell Your Products21:00 Strategies on building partnerships with other brands ABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Matt Skopak's Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/mskopakABOUT ME (SEAN AZARI):In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.REBHORN (My eCommerce/Art Brand) ⤵️Website: https://www.rebhorndesign.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebhorndesignMy Other Social Channels:INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sean_azari/FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/azarimedia/SNAPCHAT: https://www.snapchat.com/add/sean_azariTWITTER: https://www.twitter.com/sean_azari

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale. (

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale.  In Episode 50, we dissect SKIM's business & marketing strategy – Skim's is an inclusive shapewear brand designed for all types of women.  The company was founded in 2018 by Kim Kardashian and ever since her launch she has hired top of the line experts to help strengthen her eCommerce brand to where it is now.  The company is now valued over 1.6 billion dollars.  Regardless of her cult following, her approach to building her eCommerce brand is something we can all learn from especially since she has the finances to hire the right team to help grow her business.  Timestamps:4:19 SKIMS works with tons of Micro-influencers to build up their brand and UGC Library. The Influencer platform they use is called GRIN.6:50 Showcase what you're doing behind the scenes as you're building up your brand.9:40 Drive Demand By Being Limited. Both Kardashian (/Jenner) sisters used the power of scarcity to drive demand for their brands.10:54 Include Add-On Products to increase Average Order Value.15:33 Implement MMS into your SMS Strategy (Send Images when you're sending our SMS Campaigns).ABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Matt Skopak's Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/mskopakABOUT ME (SEAN AZARI):In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.REBHORN (My eCommerce/Art Brand) ⤵️Website: https://www.rebhorndesign.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebhorndesignMy Other Social Channels:INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sean_azari/FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/azarimedia/SNAPCHAT: https://www.snapchat.com/add/sean_azariTWITTER: https://www.twitter.com/sean_azari

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale. In Episode 49, we dissect Ikonick's business & marketing strategy – Founded in 2017 by Jeff Cole and Mark Mastrandrea, is an online company that sells canvas prints of artists' images. By landing strong partnerships & leveraging growth tactics on Social Media, they were able to scale their business into well over 8 figures.Timestamps:1:00 Brief Overview On Who Ikonick Is3:43 Customize Your Email Sign Up Forms - Pop Ups To Increase Lead Capturing5:15 Explore Apps like Spin-The-Wheel to see if it helps increase your Email Signups - Lead Capturing6:29 Create A Series That Share Stories About Other Creators Your Brand Works With7:53 Expand Your Footprint With Licensing Deals10:49 Customize Web Experience12:55 Start Thinking NFT's. How Ikonick Took Some Of Their Art & Made Them Into An NFT15:12 Building A Community For Your NFT Project16:53 Show Your Product In Real-Life ScenariosABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Matt Skopak's Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/mskopakABOUT ME (SEAN AZARI):In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.REBHORN (My eCommerce/Art Brand) ⤵️Website: https://www.rebhorndesign.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebhorndesignMy Other Social Channels:INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sean_azari/FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/azarimedia/SNAPCHAT: https://www.snapchat.com/add/sean_azariTWITTER: https://www.twitter.com/sean_azari

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale.In Episode 48, we dissect Poppi's business & marketing strategy – Poppi is a prebiotic healthy soda designed to keep your gut in check. Founded by a married couple in March 2020 (originally 2018 but they rebranded in 2020 into a new name), is now being sold to over 7,500 retail locations within 1 year. They landed their first large investment after Shark Tank and their investor, Rohan Oza, has helped shaped their overall branding strategy. Timestamps:00:55 Poppi's Background6:14 Get Aggressive On TikTok. Poppi averages ~2 posts per day on TikTok. Since Poppi is targeting millennials, TikTok is the perfect platform to get creative and branch out.7:39 Build A Data Collection Strategy Focused on SMS.10:19 Packaging For The Insta & Standing Out From Your Competitors11:42 Leverage Amazon or other distribution channels for hard-to-ship products.16:20 Cross-Promote With Other Brands & Do Giveaways18:18 Start Advertising Outside of Facebook & Google.ABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Matt Skopak's Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/mskopakABOUT ME (SEAN AZARI):In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.REBHORN (My eCommerce/Art Brand) ⤵️Website: https://www.rebhorndesign.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebhorndesignMy Other Social Channels:INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sean_azari/FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/azarimedia/SNAPCHAT: https://www.snapchat.com/add/sean_azariTWITTER: https://www.twitter.com/sean_azari

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale.In Episode 47, we dissect Casely's  business & marketing strategy – Casely was founded in 2017 by Mark & Emily Stalling. They created the 1st phone case subscription box when they launched & it is now ranked the 17th fastest-growing private company in America with over 23 mil in sales for 2020. We took away 6 tactics that helped this company succeed so that you can implement a similar strategy to your business.Timestamps:00:58 Casely's background4:04 Join groups or communities to ask for advice when building your business. Casely's CEO sought advice in an Entrepreneur subreddit group during his initial launch.6:07 Facebook & Reddit Groups that are super helpful for Facebook & Social Media Advertising7:44 Analyze your followers & engagement. We reveal one of Casely's growth hack strategies that works if you don't have a budget for advertising.9:23 Focus on acquiring customers & maximizing your LTV.12:51 Study brands that have a similar CPA15:06 Be Creative in choosing your charity.ABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Matt Skopak's Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/mskopakABOUT ME (SEAN AZARI):In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.REBHORN (My eCommerce/Art Brand) ⤵️Website: https://www.rebhorndesign.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebhorndesignMy Other Social Channels:INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sean_azari/FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/azarimedia/SNAPCHAT: https://www.snapchat.com/add/sean_azariTWITTER: https://www.twitter.com/sean_azari

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale.  ***Sorry that it sounds like we did a podcast under water. The audio totally got f***ked here. But we wanted to publish this still since the content is still good & audio is still bearable.In Episode 46, we dissect Liquid Death's business & marketing strategy – They took a boring ass product, water, and made it freaking awesome all through staying focused on a specific market and going heavy on their branding—completely opposite of aspirational health and wellness brands. With over 145,000 Customers & over $34million dollars raised to date, we dove into some of Liquid Death's best tactics & principles that helped them succeed.Timestamps:4:15 Give boring products or services awesome branding. Liquid Death is basically just water, but their branding is phenomenal. They use images and copy that are very uncommon and make them stand out.7:28 TikTok or Instagram Reel Styled Videos Are Working. Liquid Death creates videos on these platforms and repurposes it for ad delivery.8:55 Focus On Sustainability & Differentiate Yourself.11:00 Using Your Customers Negative Commentary To Your Advantage  12:48 Stir the pot by being controversial.ABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Matt Skopak's Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/mskopakABOUT ME (SEAN AZARI):In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.REBHORN (My eCommerce/Art Brand) ⤵️Website: https://www.rebhorndesign.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebhorndesignMy Other Social Channels:INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sean_azari/FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/azarimedia/SNAPCHAT: https://www.snapchat.com/add/sean_azariTWITTER: https://www.twitter.com/sean_azari

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale. In Episode 43, we dissect Manscaped business & marketing strategy – The company was founded in 2017 by Paul Tran & is a brand dedicated to men's below-the-waist grooming and hygiene. They built a strong brand affinity through their marketing efforts. By implementing humor into their marketing strategy, they made it more conversational for men to discuss topics that they didn't feel comfortable talking about before. With over 2 million men using their products, this company is worth studying & referencing when you're thinking about your next business move.Timestamps:[00:53] Manscaped Background & How It Started[2:40] Exploring Other Ad Placements Outside The Digital World. Learn How Manscaped Diversified Their Ad Placements Outside Social Media[5:40] Use Humor To Market Taboo or Traditionally Boring Products. In the early stages of Manscaped, they were using serious messaging to get their products out there & realized it wasn't hitting the consumer effectively.[6:20] How Manscaped Hilarious Santa Video Changed Their Marketing Mindset[8:13] Other brands that have used a humor approach to their marketing strategy[9:36] Why A Digital Agency Can Be At Your Disadvantage[13:49] Change Up Your Ad Copy That Speaks To Your Customer At The Present Moment. Manscaped speaks to their customer at the very present by understanding current situations that the customer may be facing during the relevant hot Summer season & how their product can help solve it.[15:30] If you're going to raise money, then bring on sweetie pie investors.[16:25] Selecting An Investor: Why It Isn't Just About The Money[18:27] Who Is Your Audience & Where Are They Mostly Active?[20:47] Increase Sales By Adding A Gift With Purchase.ABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Matt Skopak's Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/mskopakABOUT ME (SEAN AZARI):In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.REBHORN (My eCommerce/Art Brand) ⤵️Website: https://www.rebhorndesign.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebhorndesignMy Other Social Channels:INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sean_azari/FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/azarimedia/SNAPCHAT: https://www.snapchat.com/add/sean_azariTWITTER: https://www.twitter.com/sean_azari

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale. (

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale.In Episode 40, we dissect Ghost Nutrition's business & marketing strategy – This Company Proved That You Can Introduce A Product Into A Heavily Saturated Market By Focusing On Building Brand Equity. It was started in 2016 by 2 Entrepreneurs, Ryan Hughes & Daniel Laurenco. & they are projected to generate 50 mil in sales by the end of 2021. Listen in to see what we learned about their marketing & business tactics.Timestamps:00:47 Who is Ghost Nutrition?02:35 Why You Should Seek Out Licensing Deals? Ghost Nutrition licenses with multiple brands such as Sour Patch, Chips Ahoy, Nutter Butter, and many more which are brands that people are already familiar with & bring a nostalgic feeling to new customers by reintroducing brands they are familiar with.4:40 Ghost Created A YouTube & IGTV Series called Building The Brand.5:35 How You Can Hire An Affordable Video Editor & Creating A Show Without Breaking The Bank7:00 Be transparent. Ghost is transparent about all its ingredients.9:30 How Ghost Successfully Builds Hype For Their New Products10:34 Use Powerful Branding Techniques To Stand Out.14:28 The Benefits Of Having An App For Your BusinessABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Matt Skopak's Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/mskopakABOUT ME (SEAN AZARI):In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.REBHORN (My eCommerce/Art Brand) ⤵️Website: https://www.rebhorndesign.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebhorndesignMy Other Social Channels:INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sean_azari/FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/azarimedia/SNAPCHAT: https://www.snapchat.com/add/sean_azariTWITTER: https://www.twitter.com/sean_azari

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale.In Episode 39, we dissect Bite Toothpaste's business & marketing strategy – This company launched in 2018 by Lindsay McCormick with just $6,000 in capital. After developing her product (in her living room), media publications reached out to her to create a video using some of her videos & narrating the product's storyline. This video reached millions of people and dramatically helped increase her sales. We outline some of Bite's marketing strategies that you can take away for your business.Timestamps:1:00 How Bite Toothpaste was created2:59 Build A Product Catalog Around Your Valued Proposition.4:32 Create a strong cart upsell strategy. When you select a product on Bite, the product shows up in a sliding cart with different types of upsells that would go along with the product (With amazing visuals)6:44 Why Brands Are Creating Products That Are Eco-Friendly & Should You?9:32 Making Your Content Viral12:20 Market your mission statement, not just your product.ABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Matt Skopak's Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/mskopakABOUT ME (SEAN AZARI):In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.REBHORN (My eCommerce/Art Brand) ⤵️Website: https://www.rebhorndesign.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebhorndesignMy Other Social Channels:INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sean_azari/FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/azarimedia/SNAPCHAT: https://www.snapchat.com/add/sean_azariTWITTER: https://www.twitter.com/sean_azari

Every week we will take a deep dive into a business and share with you some of their marketing & business strategies that helped these businesses scale. In Episode 38, we dissect SmartSweets business & marketing strategy – Tara Bosch founded this company in 2016 when she was 21 years old & is one of the fastest growing brands in the non-chocolate category across Canada & US. Last year, the company was acquired by TPG Growth for $360 Million. Her marketing & business efforts is quite impressive and something we can all learn from as we dive deeper into her business within this episode.Timestamps:00:50 Who is SmartSweets2:50 Go all in on giveaways. SmartSweets hosts different types of giveaways on Instagram at least 4-5x a month. One of their giveaways5:20 Allow your customers to create their own bundles.7:50 Your best insight is from your customers8:00 Incorporate Large Text Overlays in Your FB Ads9:02 Understand the best packaging and pricing to have success in retail.12:28 Don't confuse your product to your advantage. A lot of SweetSmarts customer's buy because they support the founder, Tara Bosch15:57 Recreate products that people are familiar with.ABOUT MATT SKOPAK:An adventure and fitness addict with a passion for entrepreneurship and numbers. Lead Investor in Sweetberry Bowls and CFO of Sugar & Kush CBD. Rutgers MBA 2020 in Entrepreneurship & Accounting. Matt Skopak's Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/mskopakABOUT ME (SEAN AZARI):In 2015, I started a creative ad agency called Breakthrough Social that has helped over 50+ businesses build their brand & increase sales mainly through content development & distribution, influencer marketing, paid media campaigns, and other developing techniques. Brands that I have worked with: Rebhorn, Safavieh, Rugs USA, SoJo Spa Club, Muscle Maker Grill, Kat Burki, Sweetberry Bowls, & many others.REBHORN (My eCommerce/Art Brand) ⤵️Website: https://www.rebhorndesign.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebhorndesignMy Other Social Channels:INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sean_azari/FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/azarimedia/SNAPCHAT: https://www.snapchat.com/add/sean_azariTWITTER: https://www.twitter.com/sean_azari

There's a strong chance we may have impersonated Al Pacino upwards of 50 times this episode. Luke & Corrye spray dialogue all over the place, as they nitpick Pacino's "pearls," Chris O'Donnell's wholesomeness, Phillip Seymour Hoffman's douchebaggery (and genius!), that car prank, the Yuppie boyfriend of that lady from the tango scene, and the awkwardness of the Thanksgiving dinner sequence (with Bradley Whitford!). Plus: Corrye and Luke's Oscar picks!

Dean Rebhorn with the band Follower shares his heart for music and the Gospel. He also discusses the challenges of a musician especially in these days. Also- Wildman gives him an idea for recording a new single called "Biscuits On My Face"- Wait, What? How did that come up? Listen and find out.......

Will humans give up decision-making to machines by 2036? A utopian, or dystopian vision? Daniel Rebhorn, co-founder and Managing Director of Diconium thinks that it might not be the worst idea. As the complexity of the world increases, technology could help humans make better decisions. Perhaps as a supporting function – unless decision-making ends up being fully handed to technology in a far future. Daniel has been enthusiastic about the digital world since childhood, and programmed his first computer at thirteen. He recently wrote a book which focuses on how digitalisation could change humanity. His company, Diconium, has accelerated the digitalisation of work for 25 years. This tech company is older than Google itself. Diconium handles every stage of the digital transformation – from forming strategies to managing and implementing them. You need more than talent to create such a strong company, in an age of ever-accelerating innovation: you need vision. From designing the car of the future to protecting his employees’ mental health, Daniel Rebhorn is telling us all about it. Tune in to hear more about:

Digitalisierung braucht Künstliche Intelligenz, das bezweifelt niemand mehr. In seinem Buch „Digitalismus“ beschreibt Daniel Rebhorn, Mitgründer des internationalen Beratungsnetworks Diconium, wie KI Gesellschaft, Marketing und Kreation verändert. Die #Volkerfragt-Frage: Macht KI Kreativdirektoren überflüssig?

In dieser Folge geht es um eine ganz große Frage: Was passiert nach der Digitalisierung? Welche Veränderungen werden neue Technologien und globale Vernetzung uns bringen und wie wird unser Zusammenleben dadurch beeinflusst? Es gibt viele gesellschaftliche, politische und kulturelle Fragen, die sich Daniel Rebhorn, Co-Founder und Managing Director der diconium Group, gestellt und in seinem Buch „Digitalismus“ beantwortet hat. Gemeinsam mit Nick spricht er über seine skizzierte Utopie, neue Regeln und Realitäten, die in uns in einer digitalen Zukunft erwarten werden. Daniel stellt sich und seine Agentur diconium vor (2:38) Daniels Buch und die Entstehungsgeschichte (5:55) Die Digitalisierung wird irgendwann abgeschlossen sein – wie können wir das für unsere Gesellschaft und unsere Arbeit nutzen? (12:25) In Zukunft können und müssen wir unsere Freiheit besser managen (16:09) Social Credit System in China – wie man es in westlichen Ländern umsetzen könnte (25:20) Künstliche Intelligenz im Rechtssystem und der Politik (29:50) Wert für künstliche Intelligenzen kodifizieren – Chancen und Herausforderungen (33:48) Ein kurzer Blick ins Jahr 2036 (36:20) Wo wird eine selbstoptimierende, selbstlernende KI entstehen? (42:54) Daniels Schreibprozess (48:50) Die Zielsetzung des Buches (54:00) Das Buch ist eine Vision (58:57) Gibt es Handlungsempfehlungen und Tipps für Innovationsinteressierte (60:25) How to contact Daniel (64:57) See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Speaker – Wayne A. Rebhorn Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night has long been associated with the festive aspects of carnival, especially in its rejection of authority and the exploration of gender confusion in its main, romantic plot. But ‘carnival’ as used by Shakespeare also meant a time of grotesque liberation and indulgence. The carnivalesque can be disturbing as well […]

Happy Independence Day 2018, everybody! We're taking the week off for the holiday, so we decided to re-air one of our favorite episodes that originally dropped July 4, 2017. We hope you have good time re-listening to it, and we'll be back in your ears next week with a brand-new episode.  ******* ORIGINAL SHOW NOTES: If world events are making you feel less than celebratory, you can always take solace in the fact that there aren't currently any giant spaceships filled with genocidal aliens hovering over the world's major cities like in Roland Emmerich's 1996 megablockbuster, "Independence Day.” Be warned that although "Independence Day" contains a large ensemble cast of mostly A-List actors, the unoriginal script and horrid directing produced some of the worst performances of their careers. Jeff Goldblum plays David Levinson, a lowly, unambitious MIT-educated math genius, chess Grandmaster and cable television executive who can read binary and easily destroy an armada of alien ships with his 1995 Apple PowerBook 5300. Will Smith plays Captain Steven Hiller, a gung-ho Marine who's in love with a stripper with a heart of gold and is capable of coldcocking an armor-clad alien with one punch. He can also inexplicably pilot any kind of vehicle, be it a helicopter or alien ship. Bill Pullman plays President Thomas J. Whitmore, a former Desert Storm fighter pilot turned politician. Pullman’s Dirty Harryesque acting delivered the most hackneyed oration in the history of film, until it was overtaken by the 2009 release of James Cameron’s "Avatar." Randy Quaid plays Russell Casse, a drunken Vietnam vet and father of three who reforms his ways just in time to sacrifice himself and save the world. The makers of this movie seem to believe that criminally irresponsible alcoholic parents are the height of comedy. Judd Hirsch plays Julius Levinson, David’s Yiddish-accented father who serves as a chauffeur and hype man to his son throughout the film. Brent Spiner plays Dr. Brackish Okun, an eccentric Area 51 scientist character. In reality, Spiner is just a pawn to get weirdo Trekkies like Jim to like the movie. Gravelly-voiced Robert Loggia plays General William Grey, a tough old Marine who serves as the President's trusted military advisor throughout the film. Famous crooner-turned-actor-turned-daytime talkshow host, Harry Connick Jr., plays Lieutenant Jimmy Wilder, a pilot in Will Smith's squadron who is fond of doing Jesse Jackson impressions and calling Will Smith "Big Daddy." Harvey Fierstein has a brief cameo as Marty Gilbert, a co-worker of Jeff Goldblum who feels compelled to call his mother after learning of the alien arrival. Upon learning of the aliens' hostile intentions, he also decides to warn his brother and bookie, but decides to spitefully forego warning his lawyer. Join us as we discuss our favorite Reddit news source, DonkeySemen69, and learn about Keating's love for watching horses get punched in the face. Tell us what you think by chatting with us (@filmsnuff) on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, or by shooting us an email over at mailbag@filmsnuff.com. Visit our website at https://www.filmsnuff.com.

Happy Independence Day, everybody! If world events are making you feel less than celebratory, you can always take solace in the fact that there aren't currently any giant spaceships filled with genocidal aliens hovering over the world's major cities like in Roland Emmerich's 1996 megablockbuster, "Independence Day.” Be warned that although "Independence Day" contains a large ensemble cast of mostly A-List actors, the unoriginal script and horrid directing produced some of the worst performances of their careers. Jeff Goldblum plays David Levinson, a lowly, unambitious MIT-educated math genius, chess Grandmaster and cable television executive who can read binary and easily destroy an armada of alien ships with his 1995 Apple PowerBook 5300. Will Smith plays Captain Steven Hiller, a gung-ho Marine who's in love with a stripper with a heart of gold and is capable of coldcocking an armor-clad alien with one punch. He can also inexplicably pilot any kind of vehicle, be it a helicopter or alien ship. Bill Pullman plays President Thomas J. Whitmore, a former Desert Storm fighter pilot turned politician. Pullman’s Dirty Harryesque acting delivered the most hackneyed oration in the history of film, until it was overtaken by the 2009 release of James Cameron’s "Avatar." Randy Quaid plays Russell Casse, a drunken Vietnam vet and father of three who reforms his ways just in time to sacrifice himself and save the world. The makers of this movie seem to believe that criminally irresponsible alcoholic parents are the height of comedy. Judd Hirsch plays Julius Levinson, David’s Yiddish-accented father who serves as a chauffeur and hype man to his son throughout the film. Brent Spiner plays Dr. Brackish Okun, an eccentric Area 51 scientist character. In reality, Spiner is just a pawn to get weirdo Trekkies like Jim to like the movie. Gravelly-voiced Robert Loggia plays General William Grey, a tough old Marine who serves as the President's trusted military advisor throughout the film. Famous crooner-turned-actor-turned-daytime talkshow host, Harry Connick Jr., plays Lieutenant Jimmy Wilder, a pilot in Will Smith's squadron who is fond of doing Jesse Jackson impressions and calling Will Smith "Big Daddy." Harvey Fierstein has a brief cameo as Marty Gilbert, a co-worker of Jeff Goldblum who feels compelled to call his mother after learning of the alien arrival. Upon learning of the aliens' hostile intentions, he also decides to warn his brother and bookie, but decides to spitefully forego warning his lawyer. Join us as we discuss our favorite Reddit news source, DonkeySemen69, and learn about Keating's love for watching horses get punched in the face. Tell us what you think by chatting with us (@filmsnuff) on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, or by shooting us an email over at mailbag@filmsnuff.com. This episode is sponsored by the USA SAFETY Act (Uniting and Strengthening America by Stubbornly Affirming Freedom by Eliminating Terrorist Yearnings Act of 2017). Visit our website at https://www.filmsnuff.com.

Welcome to Mere Rhetoric, the podcast for beginners and insiders about the ideas, movements and people who have shaped rhetorical history. I’m Mary Hedengren and today we get to continue on in our theme of the villains of rhetoric. Today though, instead of just focusing on one person like Raymus or Hobbes. We get to talk about three and the reason why we get to talk about three is because a fantastic book that Wayne A. Rebhorn wrote. It's called “Renaissance Debates on Rhetoric.” This is a great volume. It's a compilation of a lot of short pieces by a lot of different authors during the renaissance, starting pretty early and going pretty late. You can see the way that they respond to each other and how they respond to voices that you don't even really see in the book that are just sort of out there. Like, people say this or people say that. But today we're going to be talking about distinct criticisms of rhetoric. The first is from Agrippa. Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa who was German as you might suspect and he was a captain in the army of Maximillian the 1st so that gives you sort of a time frame. This is very early 16th century. He was maybe a magician. He worked in sort of occult philosophy and kabala and all sorts of stuff like that. And he even defended a witch legally. So definitely a free thinker.  Now this criticism he makes against rhetoric is on the uncertainty and vanity of the arts and sciences. This may be sarcastic, we're not entirely sure. But it's definitely bringing up some interesting points against rhetoric.  He says mostly that rhetoric is very sneaky. He says, "The entire discipline of rhetoric from start to finish is nothing other than the art of flattery, adulation, and some might say more audaciously, lying.” Well you don't get any more critical of a criticism of rhetoric than to just say this is straight up lying. But even if it isn't lying, it's pretty terrible. He says, "in short, it appears that rhetoric is nothing other than the art of persuading and moving the emotions." Okay, that sounds like the sort of thing that anybody would be okay with. But then it gets worse -"Seizing the spirits of the thoughtless by subtle eloquence, exquisite deception and cunning appearance of probability, leading them into the prison of error while perverting the sense of the truth." Okay so that sounds like pretty strong criticism against rhetoric. Another voice that Rebhorn highlights in this compilation of the debates in the renaissance comes from John Jewell. John Jewell may not have been an accused witch, in fact he was sort of a spokesperson for the Church of England. A sort of a balance between the extremes of Protestantism in Europe and Catholicism. He publicly spoke against the Porters of Rome during the mid-16th century and sort of had a reputation of being a great preacher, being very eloquent. But just like with Agrippa, Jewell may or may not be sarcastic in his criticisms against rhetoric. We don't really know for sure, especially because he was such an eloquent preacher.  But in the oration against rhetoric, he points out that the entire pursuit of eloquence I say, “which so many Greek and Latin writers enrich, I openly proclaim here there offers neither dignity nor benefit and is entirely idle, empty, futile, and trifling." So instead of saying that it's something that's evil and really big and bad, Jewell here says that rhetoric is just that stupid. It just takes a lot of time and doesn't really do anything.  He says, "If something is clear and distinct, it has enough support in itself and does not need the allurement of polished speech. If it is obscure and unattractive, it will not be discovered despite all the glamour and flood of words. In other words, truth needs no ally and error deserves none." Further on in his oration against rhetoric, he makes the claim that there's something seditious about rhetoric which is a claim that you will hear a lot during this time that rhetoricians are kind of sneaky and evil. An example that he pulls up is the Demosthenes who is definitely sort of a big bad wolf in a lot of the Renaissance views of rhetoric. He says, "who among us has not heard of the lamentable plundering of that greatest and most ancient of cities, Athens which was nevertheless leveled to the ground and almost completely uprooted and destroyed thanks to the eloquent tongue of Demosthenes?" He says, "for when I have shown how states have been overturned by the most eloquent men and great empires converted into wasteland, all the things that you've heard so far which are very serious, will be thought to be nothing. It seems to me that whoever first introduced eloquence into human affairs gave the worst advice possible. Eloquence is really the one responsible for all of these faults he says." So even though at the beginning he says it's just a waste of time and it’s idle and foolishness, he seems to be crediting the fall of the Greek empire to rhetoric and rhetoricians. He goes on to talk about how Demosthenes was such a bad person personally that he has sort of this sear of treason. He says, “why did the greatest orator, Desmothenes lose his mind, his reason, his very self when he stood before Phillip? What is the meaning of all this trepidation, power, hesitation, confusion and shaking? If the case is good, why are they afraid? If it is bad, why do they take it on?” This criticism against rhetoric, that it's something sneaky, he says is actually just endemic to the idea of rhetoric itself. He says that when you are an orator, you're always trying to make people think that you're not really an orator. That you didn't stay up all night working on it. This is something we still have sort of today. The idea that somebody's trying too hard on writing a speech or being persuasive. That somehow everything should just sort come in a flash of light- probably inspiration of something that's going to be naturally good. He points out that tailors, medicine peddlers, and bods seek crowds into light, showing their merchandise openly and freely in public. Only the orator does not dare to parade his skill, but behaves in such a way that just when he was making the maximum use of the art of his tongue, he seems then to be the farthest away from the art and utterly inarticulate as if he had learned nothing.  This is a really interesting point. We kind of have an idea that if somebody is demonstrating that they worked hard to make something persuasive that sort of makes it lose all of its power. Now both of these speakers that we talked about were maybe probably just being sarcastic and not really meaning what they said because they were such great writers. The next two may legitimately have problems with rhetoric as it is. Francesco Patrizi was from Dalmatia -- sort of the area that we now think of as Croatia. And he was an Italian philosopher. He was very platonic and as we talked about in other places, Plato was not super excited about the idea of obedience to these strict rules like Aristotle. Instead, he believed sort of in this divine revelation. So he creates a dialogue between two people where he uses this dialogue to sort of put himself in conversation and speak against rhetoric. He says in this dialogue that the orator always strives for victory but, "he doesn't care about justice or duty." Things that are really important if you're a big plan of Plato. "Further, he says if an orator would never undertake to defend anything other than a just case, and would always prosecute unjust ones, would he always be acting justly in so doing? Just as on the contrary one who always undertook to prosecute a just case and defend an unjust one would be wrong. But if there is fan orator who defended cases that went beyond both justice and injustice and prosecuted similar cases, he'd be sometimes good and sometimes bad. Finally, Patrizi comes to the conclusion that an orator is a man between good and evil. And because of this middle position, he will act equally to defend and to prosecute a just man and an unjust man. Because of this he points out that he is motivated only by the sake of winning. Glory and gain are dear to him says Patrizi, than justice is.  He even goes as far as to say that the orator can't be valued, that he is feared, that he is violent and the descendant of tyrants because he doesn't care about justice -- only about getting his way. It's a pretty damning [?] criticism of rhetoric. The final villain in this team is Michel de Montaigne who is probably best known for writing essays, tons of them. He kind of invented the genre of the essay. He too is critical about rhetoric, mostly because he believes in honesty above all else and being self relavatory. Much like some of these other critics, he believes that rhetoric is a little bit tricky and often immoral. He says that rhetoric is a "tool invented to manipulate and stir up a mob in an unruly populous. A tool that is employed only in six states, like medicine in states such as those of Athens, Rhodes, and Rome where the crowd of the ignorant where all people had power over all things.” That might not sound so bad to us who live in a democracy, but really he saw that rhetoric was something that only existed where people were fighting. In fact he goes as far as to say that eloquence flourished most at Rome when affairs were in the worst condition and were disturbed by the storm of civil wars.  This criticism against rhetoric says that when do we need rhetoric? When do we need a lot of people asking persuasive arguments? Well when there's a lot of unease. Where we don't know what the right answer is and we have sort of a battle. If we were all agreed, if we were unified, there wouldn't need for rhetoric. This is an argument that you can still kind of see today when people talk about politics. If we just all have some unity or patriotism, or we're behind our leaders, then we wouldn’t have all this contentious discussion.  So these critics of rhetoric, Agrippa, Jewell, Montaigne, and Patrizi, all bring up arguments that we still her today against rhetoric. But there are plenty more who are defending rhetoric during this same time. The renaissance was a rich time for rhetoric and even though we don't really talk about it, or we think of renaissance rhetoric as just being classical rhetoric warmed over. It was really dynamic and a lot of the arguments they were making were specific to their particular cultures and respective countries. I highly recommend you check out the book. “Renaissance Debates on Rhetoric” by Wayne A. Redhorn.  It provides a lot of different perspective and a lot of different texts about something that we don't even really think about very often. The renaissance and its relationship to modern rhetoric. But you don't have to take my word for it.  

Matthew Socey reviews NOAH and BAD WORDS. He also chats with Brian G. Hartz and Paige Scott, an actor and creator of BOMB ON A BUS, a musical parody of the film SPEED. The gang also pay tribute to character actor James Rebhorn. Hartz reads Rebhorn's self-penned obit.