Practical Rebels

HatchMark Studio

Welcome to Practical Rebels: A Branding & Marketing Pod. Join the team at HatchMark Studio as we pull back the curtain and talk branding, marketing, entrepreneurship, and more with our friends, our partners, and our favorite industry experts.From actionable tips for businesses to implement with the resources they have at hand to industry insights for seasoned pros, we discuss the latest in this ever-evolving world. We’re here to share, help, and give a peek into the agency world.Through working with hundreds of clients at all phases of business development, we’re always learning, growing, and meeting incredible individuals. We’re excited to pass on that knowledge to you.The goal? To empower you with practical advice that you can run with in a way that’s genuinely you. To encourage you to stand out, be bold, and make your mark on your industry, no matter your space.

  1. Oct 12

    64: How Economic Development Uses Marketing, Relationships, and Trust to Bring Business to Pensacola with Chris Platé

    Send us Fan Mail On this episode of Practical Rebels, Veronique Zayas of HatchMark Studio sits down with Chris Platé, CEO of FloridaWest Economic Development Alliance, to talk about what it takes to sell a city. Chris spent 25 years building the largest aerospace cluster in North Carolina before bringing that experience to Pensacola, and he explains why the port, the airport, two interstates, available land, and a quality of life most markets can't match give the area a real competitive edge. He also shares why protecting the culture of Pensacola matters as much to him as growing it. The conversation breaks down how economic development works a lot like marketing, from discovery and positioning to staying top of mind through a sales cycle that can stretch three to five years. Chris walks through how site selectors look for reasons to cut a community from the list, why trusted local partners make every promise believable, and how genuine relationships and a simple phone call still close more deals than any hard sell. He and Veronique also get into the creative side of his role, including in-house video and podcast production, using AI as a starting point for ideas, and why every leader should learn enough about marketing to communicate what they want. Chris also covers the industries FloridaWest is targeting, including life science, aerospace, maritime, and cyber and defense, along with how CoLab gives startups and international companies a soft landing in the U.S. market. He makes the case for chasing singles and doubles over home runs, and he explains how manufacturing eases the tax burden for everyone who lives here.

  2. Sep 28

    62: Building, Selling, and Reinventing as a Creative with Mike Janda

    Send us Fan Mail A “safe” creative career can flip overnight, and Mike Janda has lived that reality from the inside. We talk through his jump from a creative director role at Fox into freelancing after the dot-com bust and 9/11 fallout, then the gritty path of building Riser from a basement setup into a fast-growing agency. Along the way, Mike breaks down what actually creates momentum in the agency business: relationships that turn into referrals, the scary first hires, and the mindset shifts that help you keep moving when the ground changes. We also get real about downturns. Mike shares what the 2008 recession felt like when you are responsible for payroll, watching budgets tighten, and trying to protect your team while the market keeps sliding. From there, we move into what many creative leaders debate today: office culture versus remote work. We unpack why a great space can be a “home court advantage” for client confidence and team cohesion, while still admitting remote models can unlock talent and scale in ways a single city can’t. Then we step into the AI era with clear eyes. We discuss tools like Claude and Meta’s Muse, why content is getting noisier, and why authenticity matters more when anybody can generate polished “AI slop.” Mike lays out the most important strategic shift for designers and agency owners: you can’t just sell logos and layouts anymore. The future is consulting, business fundamentals, brand strategy, marketing strategy, and positioning yourself between the client and the AI tool so your value keeps rising.

5
out of 5
14 Ratings

About

Welcome to Practical Rebels: A Branding & Marketing Pod. Join the team at HatchMark Studio as we pull back the curtain and talk branding, marketing, entrepreneurship, and more with our friends, our partners, and our favorite industry experts.From actionable tips for businesses to implement with the resources they have at hand to industry insights for seasoned pros, we discuss the latest in this ever-evolving world. We’re here to share, help, and give a peek into the agency world.Through working with hundreds of clients at all phases of business development, we’re always learning, growing, and meeting incredible individuals. We’re excited to pass on that knowledge to you.The goal? To empower you with practical advice that you can run with in a way that’s genuinely you. To encourage you to stand out, be bold, and make your mark on your industry, no matter your space.

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