By Lydia Picotte, Creative Writing Intern – Flint Group

It did not occur to me that my greatest challenge would be me.  

It’s not that “who I am” is such a mystery. I’m not Emily Dickinson or J.D. Salinger, desperate to live a shrouded life of isolation or anonymity. Actually, I would say the opposite. 

I write this from my desk at Flint’s downtown office, where I’m the Creative Writing Intern. My books are stacked in one corner, and three tiny NBA action figures (Shaq, Jamal Murray and Damian Lillard as a Milwaukee Buck) sit in the other. The cubicle wall is pinned with my multicolored doodles, and my tiny trash can has nothing in it but chocolate wrappers. Most of my spaces look like this – coated with an eclectic layer of personal odds and ends that easily reveal who I am.  

But when I was told I’d also have to include something about myself in this series of intern profiles, it made me pause. Despite my expressiveness, and despite my ironic affinity for reading personal essays and memoirs, I’ve never entered the genre myself. I’ve always been more interested in everyone else.  This is my best first effort to change that – a reflection of how I got here, where I’m going next and the communicator I hope to become.  

Official or not, my earliest title was “Reader.” I was the child with a perpetually tall stack of library books and a flashlight stashed under my pillow. I like to think that if I was living in Disney’s Inside Out, my brain would have a “Book Island,” a place forged when I was very young, where Dr. Suess and Dr. Watson inquisitively read the Margaret Atwood poems nailed to trees.  

When I started inventing my own tales, writing was the obvious first vehicle. Retrospectively, I think the brief period of time in elementary school when I dreamed of being an NFL broadcaster (because “Dad, why doesn’t everyone want to get paid to just sit around and watch football?”), was an early sign that I’d pick up any medium, as long as I could keep telling stories.  

This hyperfocus has followed me into adulthood. I’m a rising junior at the University of Wisconsin-Madison earning my BA in Journalism. I’ve written news articles, magazine spreads, essays and poems; created advertisements; scripted podcast episodes; conducted interviews and even briefly fulfilled my early dreams of broadcasting.  

I’ve explored storytelling through every channel I could find, and this summer, Flint introduced me to a new one: copywriting.  

I’ve spent the last few months writing advertisements, proofreading captions, and contributing strategic insight to various projects. I’ve learned how to share the messages of not just individuals, but entire companies. It has altered the way I understand brand voice and given me deeper technical understanding of what brands, media groups and marketers are looking for. 

Looking ahead, I hope to keep telling passionate, people-centered stories. Right now, my favorite of these are centered around sports, entertainment and the arts. Performing under the lights, running the final play, while the music plays and when the crowd roars – those are the moments I’ve felt the strongest and heaviest bonds between crafts, people and passions. 

This hunt for the kernel of passion is the common denominator of all my stories, no matter the theme.  

I’ve spent my entire life being told about my standout enthusiasm. People are often surprised by the energy and curiosity with which I will approach just about any project. Above all else, I am passionate about passion. 

I have found it buried in scientific papers after speaking with researchers who dedicated years to their question. I have found it layered into advertisements for products I’d never previously heard of. 

For me, there is magic in learning why someone gets out of bed in the morning and in understanding just how much strength, grit and joy is layered into every part of our world. 

I am dedicated to telling the stories of what makes people run, toward greatness, toward progress, toward each other. It’s part of the reason I started this series in the first place – so that I might learn a little more about the coworkers I’d now consider friends. And it’s the reason I continue to run myself, into my curiosities, my career and my future.  

The post And then there was one: a reflection by Creative Writing Intern Lydia Picotte appeared first on Flint Group.

By Lydia Picotte, Creative Writing Intern – Flint Group

Things Nicole Shoutz loves about animation:  

1. The beginning of a project when she gets to storyboard, design characters, and build worlds.  

2. The end of a project when she can be proud of the work she’s done and gets to see the final product. 

Things Nicole Shoutz does not love about animation:  

1. The technical work between the beginning and the end.  

As she puts it, “I’m an animator who doesn’t like to animate.” 

It was hard not to raise my eyebrows when Flint’s Client Success Intern first told me her background wasn’t in marketing. Equipped with a calm demeanor and collaborative energy, she fits in easily with the other account managers who have mostly business experience. But the ease with which she’s settled into her new role is less shocking when you realize that it’s not random. Rather, Shoutz’s job at Flint is part of a strategically timed career pivot that has expanded her idea of what creative work can look like. 

Originally from Waconia, Minnesota, Shoutz first came to Fargo-Moorhead four years ago to attend Minnesota State University Moorhead She graduated this May with uncertainty about her future as an animator. As much as she loves the industry, she didn’t want to limit herself. She set out to see how else she could create. 

“It sounds corny but I’m truly interested in everything,” says Shoutz.  Consequently, finding opportunities wasn’t hard – choosing one was another story.  

To anyone who knows Shoutz, it’s not a surprising situation. Her incredible curiosity is instantly notable. At Flint, she pays close attention to project details and is always the first to ask a question.  

Her love for learning is even more evident when she talks about her hobbies – her favorite activity is language learning. She’s fluent in English, French, Spanish and Italian; knows pieces of German and Russian and is currently teaching herself Japanese.  

Additionally, her “lessons” are untraditional and just as all-encompassing as multilanguage learning itself. Shoutz learns by consuming media. She listens to music, watches shows and plays video games as part of her process.  

“There was a point where I could explain the whole plot of Zelda in Japanese but didn’t know how to introduce myself,” says Shoutz. “I don’t want to sit and read a textbook. I won’t learn if it’s not through activities that I’d be doing anyways.”   

So yes, “interested in everything” is a good way to put it. 

While her job hunt was fueled by curiosity, she also continued to circle back to her favorite aspects of animation – ideation and big picture coordination. Together, the two pieces made account management seem like a perfect fit.  

“As project managers, we connect with everyone,” Shoutz says. “It’s not uncommon for us to send a message to every team and ask different things. Since we need to know exactly what we’re asking of people, we get to have a better understanding of what everyone does.” 

Her day-to-day includes talking to clients, assigning tasks, outlining budgets and timelines and preparing for potential crises. In keeping with her background in entertainment, her favorite work at Flint has been coordinating entertainment schedules for Shooting Star and Four Bears Casinos.  

She’s still interested in the entertainment industry and loves the idea of ultimately exploring other positions at a studio or agency.  For now, her Flinternship has allowed her to continue with her favorite parts of animation.  She coordinates creative projects and watches them come to life every day. In the same vein, it’s given her the space to learn more about a new industry and every position within Flint. Through her new role, Shoutz has undeniably been able to achieve what she set out to – a little bit of everything.  

The post Hello, Bonjour, Ciao and the lessons in between: A conversation with Client Services Intern Nicole Shoutz appeared first on Flint Group.

By Lydia Picotte, Creative Writing Intern – Flint Group

Living in North Dakota is not something Bridget Packer ever had planned. The Ohio native’s move to Fargo this May was a complete leap of faith, prompted by her accepting a role as a Flint photo and video intern. But Packer has taken the transition in stride and her easygoing demeanor has allowed her to slide seamlessly into her new role.  

Prior to moving, Packer had lived her entire life in Ohio. In the spring, she graduated from Ohio University with a degree in commercial photography. From there, her job hunt led her to Flint.  

“Someone reached out to me and asked, ‘Would you be willing to relocate?’ I had just graduated so my schedule was very flexible; I was open to anything,” she says. “I had the ability and availability to move here, so I just took the opportunity.” 

Her eagerness to do anything is part of what makes Flint so appealing to her. It’s a place where no one stays in one box and there’s a little bit of everything. She says every new thing she’s experienced has had its own lesson, from being on a commercial set for the first time to learning about the prep work that goes into a shoot. She recalls running to workwear stores the week before one shoot to get work gloves for models to wear the next week. The work is unlike anything she’s ever done before.  

“Where I went to school was very photography -focused, and I liked that, but I had always wished that they would have included some sort of videography,” she says. 

Flint has provided that space. 

“I’ve gotten exactly the experiences that I was hoping. We get to work on a set, work with  directors and see what behind the scenes is like,” Packer says. “I feel like the expectations that I had for this job were met within the first few weeks and now I’m continuing to have them exceeded. I just want to learn things I wasn’t exposed to in the past and continue to grow.”  

Packer’s flexibility plays into her strengths – she says some of her favorite work happens when she’s not planning it.  

“I like to be spontaneous with shooting,” she says. “If I come up with something super quickly that’s not the way that I was originally thinking about it, I go with it. I also always try to go with what the model is thinking about and what they’re comfortable with. But if I’m able to include different fun props or play into what’s around me, I feel like that really helps even if it’s not necessarily what I had in mind. It’s like a creative vision that just appears.” 

She recalls a particular shoot in college where an unplanned shift turned into a perfect success. 

“I had planned on taking photos of this girl for an assignment and at the very last minute, she had something else come up,” says Packer. “So less than an hour before the shoot I was calling people to see if anybody would be available to do this. Less than five minutes before the time I had the studio booked, somebody called me and said, ‘We can come!’ It was three of them in matching outfits and so I was able to use that for my project.” 

The story is a broader reflection of Packer’s mindset: Things will work out how they’re meant to. By following the wind where it may blow, she plans to keep exploring what her new skills, industry and home have to offer her.   

“I just like to learn about different things,” she says. “I like to see new things, travel to new places, and I like to be on set. Because of that, I feel like what I’m doing right now is what I’ve always wanted to do.” 

The post Into the Unknown: Photo/Video Intern Bridget Packer is forging a new path appeared first on Flint Group.

By Lydia Picotte, Creative Writing Intern – Flint Group

As it turns out, telling your family of farmers that you’re getting into photography is a sure–fire way to get put to work. Scrolling through Lucy Halverson’s portfolio, I’m immediately pulled to her cinematic couples’ shoots and dreamy green senior portraits. But a deeper dive brings viewers to another tab; this one is dedicated entirely to the summer she spent traveling around the country, taking promotional photos of her family’s potato fields. For Flint’s PR and social media intern, “potato photoshoot” is just one of many career moments created at an intersection of personal interests. And while the photos may not look as glamourous, the experience was just as memorable as many of her more typical shoots – though she’ll admit not necessarily for the same reasons. 

“You can only pose a potato in so many ways,” she shrugs, with the assuredness of someone with experience doing just that.  

“I always liked pictures growing up,” she recalls. “My family makes photo albums, and I just liked to look at them. I wouldn’t play with toys; I’d look at photo albums. Then, in high school when COVID started, I took my dad’s old camera and started taking pictures of my friends and sisters. It just grew from there.” 

“It grew” into what is now a full-fledged business: Halverson’s summer schedule is entirely booked with photo sessions.  

Her fall season is just as busy. In August, the Grand Forks native will start her senior soccer season at Concordia College. Off the field, she’s a marketing major who also holds social media positions in the school’s student government and marketing club.  

All these experiences have given Halverson a visible sense of organization and discipline as she’s pieced together what her future might look like. Raised by her family business, Halverson has always known she had a career waiting for her in agriculture. The question has only been what exactly. Now, her long list of activities, and some pointed influence, have combined to help her find her path. 

“My aunt had a big impact on my decision to go into marketing because she used to work at an agency,” she explains. “Once I started marketing at school, she told me I should intern at Flint.”   

Despite her extensive experience in social media, she says that her position at Flint has opened new doors.  

“I think PR is a lot more behind the scenes work than I realized,” Halverson reflects. “It’s about finding the right people to talk to, which I think is cool, but also tricky. I think [this position] has changed the way I see the future. Now I know there’s a lot more avenues within marketing to go down.” 

It’s also given a more professional structure to her work.  

“When I worked in [agriculture marketing] in the past, it’s just been for my family, so I had my own freedom a little bit – except when my dad is being the hardest boss ever,” she jokes. “But here, I’m seeing the different approach to it where you have more specific guidelines about what the client actually wants.” 

Speaking with Halverson, it’s obvious that she deeply values her relationships, so it’s not a surprise that her family ties have manifested in her career. Even as she talks about herself, her stories come back to the impact of others: the reasons her cousin is the best travel partner; the nostalgic friendships that encourage her creativity; the love she has for an old nanny who first taught her about photography.  

Flint took notice right away.  

“They told me when they hired me,” Halverson says, “We think you belong somewhere client focused.” 

It’s easy to see why. 

For Halverson, human connection is everything, and that feeling is reflected in her work.  

“More than taking pictures, I like telling the story of farms,” she explains. “And [with photography], I like capturing people in real moments, not just poses. I like to say that I capture the emotion of people.”   

The post Farmer, athlete, artist, professional: The many lives of Social/PR Intern Lucy Halverson appeared first on Flint Group.

By Lydia Picotte, Creative Writing Intern – Flint Group

A 3D rendering of a pink pill bottle sits open on a computer monitor. With one click, Tyler Halstenson spins the creation around, trying to determine his next move. A rising junior at NDSU, Flint Group’s design intern is never without a new skill to be mastered, and this position has presented him with his latest creative challenge – digital advertising.  

For Halstenson, an internship is an opportunity to learn about the professional applications of his art. 

“I really like NDSU for the art program, but agency life is different,” he argues. “Advertising is something I don’t touch in class. So, coming to Flint, I knew that I would learn things. I wanted real world experience school isn’t giving me.” 

In the age of AI, this experience is more important than ever. 

As AI image generators have become increasingly accessible in recent years, the novelty of machine-generated art has taken over creative spaces around the world. This month, the world’s first AI art museum opened in Los Angeles.  

This reality weighs on the mind of Halstenson, who hopes to remain original in the evolving creative world.  

“Now I’m thinking ‘everything has been done,’” he remarks.  “How do I make something of my own? AI can make anything now. How do I be more important than that?” 

What he humbly omits is that he’s already an award-winning advertiser. This spring at NDSU, Halstenson and fellow Flintern Emma Rehder contributed to a poster campaign that won them national recognition from the American Advertising Awards. 

Still, Flint’s professional training is exciting for the designer. Until now, he’s been largely self-taught. 

“With graphic design, I watch YouTube videos on my own about it,” says Halstenson. “Or else I sit and experiment by myself.” 

This inherent drive, the urge to learn for the sake of learning, is a key part of Halstenson’s identity as an artist. He describes how easily he can lose hours in the studio, mastering the details of a certain medium.  

“I’m just so technical – like a perfectionist of everything,” he explains. 

Eavesdropping from another corner of the office, Rehder rolls her eyes and removes her headphones to interject that even “perfectionist” is a healthy understatement. 

Halstenson recalls making 30 iterations of a print for an art show until he had one he deemed good enough for display.  

While his entrance into the world of advertising is relatively recent, creating is nothing new for him. Art has always been his primary guiding force.  

“I try to remember what else I was going to go into my senior year of high school, but I just knew I liked art,” says Halstenson. “I knew I would figure it out.”  

He’s now earning his BFA and an art education degree, and minoring in strategic communications. In an ironic juxtaposition to the digital graphic designs that he works with at Flint, Halstenson’s preferred mediums are more tangible.  

Dubbed an “object maker” by one professor, Halstenson’s favorite pieces are the ones that he can feel. Some of his past concentrations include printmaking, creating cyanotypes (a method of printmaking that uses UV exposure to reveal images) and bookmaking. 

His favorite object – a piece of concrete printed with a cyanotype of the hospital where his dog died – illustrates the power of his material pieces. The physical weight of the rock mirrors the emotional weight that Halstenson carries from the memory.  

The ability to find meaning in his art is a large part of his current focus as an artist.  

He credits one of his art professors for pushing him to not only create things that look pretty but reflect on how they connect to his emotions – to identify what they mean beyond how they look.  

He’s found that the best way to humanize his work is to observe the humanity in the world around him. Take it. Use it. For this reason, Halstenson is never without inspiration. In his eyes, art is everywhere. 

“I have a folder on my phone of pictures I take for inspiration and it’s just the most random things,” he admits. He also cites history and the local art scene as easy places to draw creative energy from. 

He hopes the insertion of his lived experience will not only enhance the quality of his work but also make it more difficult for a machine to replicate.  

Ultimately, his relationship with the community isn’t one-sided. It’s cyclical. The same spaces that inspire him are the ones he hopes to give back to in the future. 

“The art community inspires me a lot,” he asserts. “Really more than any certain industry I just want to be creating for the community.” 

The post Creating art and community (and why they might be the same thing): A conversation with Creative Design Intern Tyler Halstenson appeared first on Flint Group.

By Lydia Picotte, Creative Writing Intern – Flint Group

Emma Rehder likes weird stuff. Her current obsession – photographer Nadia Cohen’s latest shoot with Madonna, which features the star splayed across a living room from another decade, surrounded by bodies – certainly qualifies. And this only scratches the surface of her eclectic and ever-growing list of media favorites. But the funky inspirations of Flint’s photo and video intern (in her words, “weird and off-putting”), are more than an interesting conversation starter. They’re a creative compass, and a clear look into the mind of a forward-thinking artist brimming with big visions for her future. 

Rehder’s creative pursuits first turned serious when she picked up photography in high school, organizing shoots with her friends and local customers. Beyond taking photos, she also began experimenting with collages and photo weaving.  

Now, she’s a rising senior at North Dakota State University, earning her BFA in studio art and photography.  

She describes her favorite work as nostalgic, vintage and hyperfeminine. She’s inspired by art history movements like surrealism and loves the bright colors of the 80s. Magazines and movies are another constant source of influence.  

In February, she attended the district level of the American Advertising  Awards in Fargo where a poster campaign she’d worked on alongside Tyler Halstenson, Flint’s Creative Design intern, took home first place.  At the event, she ran into a Flint art director, who recommended she apply at the agency.  

She has no regrets. Flint has placed her into the heart of the professional world, an environment that can’t be replicated in school.  

“When I started photography, I just was having fun doing it,” Rehder says. “There was no pressure to be correct. Now, learning video in studio; it feels like a test. There’s more of a right answer. So the stakes are different.” 

Despite her extensive photo experience, video was a relative novelty for her at the beginning of the summer. That didn’t last long. Rehder and fellow video intern Bridget Packer were immediately put to work on set. Surrounded by Flint’s production team and state-of-the-art equipment, catching on fast was inevitable.  

“It’s made me even more open to learning,” she says. “Not that I’m not open to learning, but when I come here, it feels like I’m at school. I’m just here to learn a bunch. That’s the best thing that I’ve gained while being in studio.” 

It has also reshaped how she sees her own career unfolding, by showing her just how many options she has.  

“For a while, I said I wanted to be an art director,” she says. “Art directors work more with set design. Now being on set, I kind of just want to be a director.  I want to do what they do.” 

As she’s reevaluated her future, what hasn’t changed about Rehder is her search for more. She’s never without a creative vision waiting to be realized and always searching for a team to help her execute. 

Most recently, this meant working as a creative director for NDSU’s spring student fashion show. Her concepting and photography guided the aesthetics of the floral exhibition that showcased clothes from local businesses and student designers.  

“We created a whole world around it and did a photo shoot in the flower section of Hobby Lobby,” Rehder says. “We also created this flower display for the back of the show using the big paper flowers from West Acres, which was so cool. I think that was one of the biggest, best things I’ve ever done.” 

By combining her newfound technical skills with her unique personal style, she hopes to further expand her creative reach. She dreams of one day directing large editorial shoots and working with the artists and brands that inspire her work. For better and weirder, she’s positioned herself on a launchpad, ready to blast towards her future as a photographer, advertiser, director and artist.  

The post Floral fashion photos: Building a brand with Photo/Video Intern Emma Rehder appeared first on Flint Group.

By Lydia Picotte, Creative Writing Intern – Flint Group

When our conversation is over, Zoe Zweber looks at me with a joking smile and says, “Well, if you have any more questions, I always have time to talk.” It’s a fitting final comment from Flint’s Client Services intern, whose warm professionalism makes her feel equal parts coworker and confidante. It’s an intentionally struck balance, grown out of a commitment to collaboration that far predates her latest position.  

Her character has been largely shaped by her jam-packed time at the University of Minnesota, where she’s going to be a senior in the fall. Her rotating list of commitments currently includes completing her BS in marketing, serving at a local bar, acting as the Director of Philanthropy for her sorority and judging high school dance, which she previously competed in.  

“It’s a joke with my friends that I’m always picking up additional jobs,” Zweber says. “I don’t like to have downtime so I’m always keeping myself busy.” 

Just before arriving at Flint, she returned from a semester abroad in Italy, where “being busy” took on a whole new meaning. She recalls long weekends of learning and exploring, dotted with trips around Europe. Her favorite memories include a once-in-a-lifetime journey through Morocco and spending St. Patrick’s Day in Dublin, Ireland.  

It was transformative. Zweber says lessons from the semester will stay with her forever, and through her work at Flint, she’s already seen their impact.  

“I learned a lot about dealing with hard things and problem-solving by myself,” she says.   

Skills like conflict resolution and learning foreign systems have translated directly into the office. 

Her affinity for the fast -paced made an agency an obvious choice for Zweber when she began exploring work opportunities. Her particular interest in account management stemmed from a two-pronged interest in analytics and leadership.  

Zweber is earning a minor in data analytics and is interested in market research careers alongside account management. But this summer, she’s found that her analytical way of thinking gives her more than just a knack for reading data. It gives her a coordinated focus – something that has proven invaluable for her current role. 

“It helps me stay organized and manage tasks and deadlines better,” Zweber says. 

More generally, leadership has always come naturally. First, it was through high school dance, then her sorority, then her job. Where she serves, she’s one of the most senior employees and is used to directing new hires while also managing her own tables. She attributes the gravitation to leadership to being an oldest child – before anything else, she was a guide for her two younger siblings. 

While those pieces are what drew Zweber to client services, it’s her optimistic extroversion that defines her management style. 

She laughs easily as she talks about her friends in Minnesota and shares her most absurd anecdotes from work. Even as she balances lists of responsibilities, she maintains an easygoing energy. She doesn’t seem to take any of it too seriously – and she says that’s on purpose. 

“It’s more fun to work with people who are also fun to hang out with,” she says. “I try to be a good leader by being personable.” 

It’s one of the first lessons Flint teaches its interns. At the end of the day, marketing is not life or death. It’s supposed to be fun. Zweber already seems to understand that. 

Simultaneously, she pours her optimism back into those around her. In meetings, her client presentations and diligent notetaking don’t stop her from telling relevant stories and chatting with everyone in the room. Whether it’s a client or a group of agency creatives, Zweber wants to be a part of a team. Above all, collaboration is the source of her energy and the reason she’s passionate about project management. The attitude is infectious. Where she goes, comfortable conversation and productive partnerships follow. 

By acting this way, Zweber is taking inspiration from the other leaders in her life as she hopes to follow in their footsteps. 

“I don’t enjoy working with leaders who are controlling,” she says. “I’ve always reacted better to positive leadership and encouragement. I want to respond to coaches and leaders who give helpful feedback and also focus on what’s being done well. So I want to be that way too.” 

The post From zen leadership to collaborative zeal: A conversation with Client Services Intern Zoe Zweber appeared first on Flint Group.

A human question in a machine moment 

It’s a sunny morning, coffee in hand, and I’m thinking about stories.  

Not just headlines or campaigns, but the kind of stories that make someone click “read more” or stop scrolling. The kind that feel true. 

Lately, it feels different from when I was a reporter.  

As a former journalist turned marketer, storytelling has always been the work. Now, there’s a new thought sitting at the agency desk with me: If AI can generate content in seconds, what’s left for us?  

It’s not a hypothetical anymore. Depending on the source, the numbers vary, but the direction is clear: most marketers (70%+) say AI will significantly change their work, and nearly everyone is already using it in some capacity. Companies using AI in marketing report up to 30% higher ROI. 

AI is here. And it’s powerful. 

Love it, hate it, or try to ignore it – it’s shaping how we work, even influencing the content we once thought lived only inside our journalistic and creative minds.  

The uncomfortable truth is: AI isn’t the problem. 

How we use it and what we build around it is. 

But we can fix that.

A quick reset: The PESO model still matters

Before we get too deep into AI, it’s worth grounding ourselves in something foundational. 

The PESO Model (Paid, Earned, Shared, Owned) isn’t new, but it’s more relevant than ever. It also happens to be the framework our agency operates within. These channels aren’t siloed. Content can (and should) move fluidly between Paid, Earned, Shared and Owned.

• Paid: Amplifies your reach.
  Think: Ads, advertorials, lead gen, etc.

• Earned Media: Builds credibility through third-party validation. 
  Think: PR, podcasts, creators, newsletters, media tours, media kits, partnerships, communities, influencers, etc. 

• Shared: Where conversations (and reputations) are shaped. 
  Think: Social media, partnerships, co-branding, influencers, etc.  

• Owned: Your home base, where your story lives. 
  Think: Your website, blogs, native advertising, reviews, email, videos, brand journalism, case studies, UGC, etc. 
  
  AI can accelerate each of these. But it can’t fix a broken strategy underneath them.

So… What’s actually holding your content back?

Most of the time, it’s not one big issue. It’s a handful of small, fixable gaps that quietly hold your content back. Starting with…

1. You don’t have a real strategy. 

A lot of content today is busy. Not intentional. Not connected. Just constant. 

Just 29% of marketers with a documented content strategy consider it highly effective. Most (58%) say it delivers moderate results, while 12% feel it’s only slightly effective and 1% say it doesn’t work at all. 

It’s a reminder that having a strategy isn’t the same as having a strong one. Without clear direction, it’s like setting out on a road trip without knowing where you’re going: You might move fast, but you won’t get anywhere meaningful. 

Fix it: Slow down before you speed up. 

• Who are you actually trying to reach? 
• What do they care about? 
• What action do you want them to take?
  
  Start there and then use the PESO Model to map how your content supports that journey.

2. Your messaging isn’t consistent. 

If your brand sounds different on LinkedIn than it does on your website, people notice. And they don’t trust it. 

Trust is built through familiarity. Consistency isn’t about being robotic; it’s about being recognizable every time someone interacts with you. In fact, research shows that consistent brand presentation can increase revenue by up to 30%.

That’s not a creative preference. It’s a business outcome driven by trust. 

Fix it: Create a clear, usable brand voice guide. 

• What do you sound like? 
• What do you not sound like? 
• What do you believe? 
  
  Define it clearly, and then actually use it across teams, channels and campaigns. 

3. You’re either overusing AI … or avoiding it completely 

This is where things get interesting. Some teams are handing everything to AI and wondering why their content feels hollow. Others are avoiding it altogether. 

Both approaches miss the point. 

AI is already reshaping marketing. It can reduce content production time by up to 50%, and 90% of marketers say it’s improved productivity. But faster doesn’t automatically mean better. 

The real opportunity is balance – using AI to enhance the work, not replace the thinking behind it. 

Fix it: Use AI where it’s strongest. 

• Research 
• Ideation 
• Optimization 
• Data analysis 

But keep humans where it matters most: 

• Perspective 
• Emotion 
• Storytelling 
• Judgment 

AI can write. But it doesn’t care. Your audience can tell the difference. 

4. You’re ignoring SEO (or treating it like an afterthought) 

You can write the most beautiful piece of content in the world, but if no one finds it, it doesn’t work. 

That’s where SEO comes in. 68% of online experiences begin with a search engine, and organic search drives over 50% of website traffic for most industries. 

SEO isn’t a “nice to have.” It’s how your content gets discovered. It’s distribution. 

Fix it: Treat SEO like distribution, not an afterthought. 

• Build content around real search intent. 
• Use natural, relevant keywords (not keyword stuffing). 
• Write headlines people actually want to click. 
• Structure content for readability (like this). 

Good SEO doesn’t compromise good writing. It ensures it gets seen. 

5. You’re not evolving with the way people consume content 

The way people engage with content is changing, fast. 

• Short-form video continues to dominate. 
• Attention spans are shrinking. 
• Audiences expect authenticity over polish. 

And yet, many brands are still creating content like it’s 2015. It’s overproduced, overthought and disconnected from how people actually show up online today. 

Fix it: Pay attention to behavior, not just trends.  

• What are people actually engaging with? 
• Where are they spending time? 
• What formats feel natural to them? 

Then adapt without losing your core voice. 

So, where does AI actually fit? 

AI is not the enemy of good content. If anything, it’s revealing the gap between content that’s efficient and content that’s truly effective. 

AI can help you move faster, scale your efforts and uncover patterns. But it can’t replicate lived experiences, emotional nuances, or original thinking. 

The best content in this era will come from people who know how to do both.

Use AI to support the work – not replace the reason the work matters. 

Final thought: Good content still feels like something 

At the end of the day, the question isn’t: 

“Is this optimized?” 

“Is this efficient?” 

“Did AI help write this?” 

It’s simpler than that: Does this feel like something? 

Because the content we remember, the content that actually works, still has one thing in common: it makes us feel something. And that’s the part no tool can automate.  

Ready to make your content better? 

If your content isn’t hitting the way you want it to, it’s probably not a tool problem.

It’s a clarity problem. A strategy problem. A voice problem. A “what are we actually trying to say?” problem. 

The good news? Those are all fixable. If you want to figure that out and build a content approach that actually works in this AI era, I’m always up for a conversation. 

Your story is still the most powerful thing you have. 

Let’s make sure it actually gets told.

The post What’s really holding back your content marketing in the age of AI? (It might be you.) appeared first on Flint Group.

Most bank marketers aren’t struggling because they took too many risks. They’re struggling because they didn’t take enough, and their campaigns are invisible as a result.

Customers expect personalized experiences, similar to what they get from Amazon or Netflix. Banks operate in a different world: regulated, cautious, and often slowed down by internal fear that has little to do with actual rules. The result? Broad, generic marketing that connects with no one.

Your customers aren’t comparing you to other banks. They’re comparing you to the best experience they’ve had anywhere. The caution is real, but it’s being misapplied.

Being cautious makes sense. Privacy laws, sensitive data and unclear internal rules are real concerns. But overcorrection creates its own problem. Pulling back from personalization leads to lower engagement, higher costs to acquire customers, missed cross-sell opportunities, and customers who drift toward competitors that feel more relevant.

The fix? Use the data you already have

You don’t need more data. You need to use what customers have already shared with you: first-party data. It’s privacy-friendly, accurate, and most banks are barely tapping it. 

Using data a customer already gave you, to make their experience better, isn’t intrusive. It’s the job. The “creepy” line gets crossed when you use data people didn’t know you had. Stay on the right side of that, where personalization builds trust. 

Where to start

You don’t need a new tech stack. Start with signals or data that is already in your system: 

• What products a customer has (and doesn’t) 
• Where they are in their customer journey 
• How they engage with your emails or app

Then pick one channel, using email or online banking is often the easiest start. Build two or three simple segments and run a basic A/B test. Measure what works and expand from there. 

One more thing: the biggest bottleneck usually isn’t regulation, but internal confusion or ignorance. Create a process for what data your team can use freely, what needs approval, and what’s off-limits. By knowing what data you and your tools (analytics, marketing platforms) are collecting, this creates clear rules that help your teams move faster. 

And, don’t forget to bring compliance in early. Make them a partner in the process, not the person who reviews it at the end. 

This isn’t risk-taking. It’s structured learning, and that’s what good campaign work looks like. Banks that win won’t have the most data. They’ll be the ones who use it in a way that feels helpful and relevant, but not intrusive. That’s not a compliance problem. It’s a strategy problem. And it’s very solvable.

Q&A

Is personalization worth the risk? Yes, when it’s built on data customers already shared and it clearly helps them. Done right, it builds trust. 

Where do we start? Email or online banking. Use segments based on product holdings, lifecycle stage and engagement. No new technology needed. 

How do we avoid feeling “creepy”? Only use data customers expect you to have. Make sure every message is clearly in their interest and intent. 

How do we get compliance on board? Bring them in early and treat them as a collaborator. Start with low-risk tests to build shared confidence. 

The post Why playing it safe is hurting your bank’s marketing appeared first on Flint Group.

Then it hits the dealer network and quietly falls apart.

If you’ve spent any time in marketing for a manufacturing brand, you know exactly what this looks like. The corporate campaign rolls out and somewhere between the regional manager and the local dealer, the message gets diluted, ignored or replaced entirely with whatever the dealer was already doing. By the time it reaches the end buyer, the contractor, the operator, the person actually standing on the jobsite, your brand might as well be a stranger.

This isn’t a dealer problem. It’s a systems problem. And it’s one of the most common and expensive gaps we see in manufacturing marketing today.

Why the handoff breaks

Corporate teams are typically focused on the big picture: brand positioning, product launches, national campaigns, trade shows. That work matters. But it’s often built in a way that assumes dealers will just pick it up and run with it.

They don’t. Not because they don’t want to, but because they’re running businesses. A dealer principal isn’t sitting around waiting for your brand kit to arrive. They’re managing inventory, handling service calls and trying to close the next sale. If your marketing materials require a 12-step implementation process and three follow-up emails from a regional rep, those assets are going in a drawer.

The other side of this is equally true. Dealers who go rogue with their own messaging create a patchwork brand experience that confuses buyers. One dealer is running price-focused ads. Another is still using product photos from four years ago. A third has a decent digital presence but is saying something completely different from what’s on your national website.

Neither extreme works. And the fix isn’t more brand guidelines. It’s infrastructure.

What alignment actually looks like

Real channel alignment isn’t a PDF. It’s a system where corporate strategy flows naturally into local execution without requiring heroic effort from either side.

That starts with messaging built for the dealer from the beginning, not adapted for them as an afterthought. If your campaign language sounds like it was written for a C-suite audience, it’s going to feel foreign when a dealer tries to apply it to a Facebook post or a local radio spot. The strategy needs to work at both altitudes.

From there, dealers need execution support, not just a folder full of assets. The reality is, most dealers will download everything you send them and still struggle to put it into market. The brands that actually move the needle have someone in their corner doing the work alongside them, making sure the right message gets in front of the right buyer at the local level. That’s where the gap either gets closed or gets worse. Flint Direct closes that gap.

The jobsite reality

Here’s something that gets lost in a lot of these conversations: customers don’t buy from the brand. They buy from the dealer. The experience happens locally, the relationship is local and the dealer’s own story matters. The goal of corporate marketing isn’t to override that. It’s to give dealers a strong enough brand foundation that they can tell their own story within it. The national message sets credibility. The dealer closes the deal.

When it does, that’s trust. When it doesn’t, that’s a competitor’s opening.

The brands that win in this space aren’t necessarily the ones with the biggest budgets. They’re the ones who’ve built a system that holds up under pressure, where national strategy and local execution actually talk to each other.

Where to start

If you’re recognizing this problem in your own organization, the good news is that you don’t have to solve everything at once. Start with an honest look at what dealers are actually putting out in the market right now. Not what you sent them. What they’re actually using. That gap is your roadmap. And if you’re not sure where to begin, our free Dealer Channel Visibility Audit is a good place to start.

From there, the priorities usually become clear on their own. Sharpen the core messaging so it translates across levels. Build dealer-ready assets that remove the friction from execution. Get the right local digital infrastructure in place, so demand is being captured where buyers are actually searching.

It’s not a fast fix. But it’s the kind of fix that holds.

The disconnect between HQ and the jobsite isn’t inevitable. It’s a design flaw. And design flaws can be fixed. 

Frequently asked questions

We already have brand guidelines. Why isn’t that enough? 
Brand guidelines tell people what to do. They don’t make it easy to do it. Most dealers don’t have in-house designers or marketing staff, so even well-intentioned guidelines go unused. What actually moves the needle is support. Having someone who can roll up their sleeves and execute alongside the dealer is worth more than any asset library. That makes on-brand execution the path of least resistance.

How do we get dealer buy-in when they’re used to doing things their own way? 
Show them what’s in it for them. Dealers respond to tools that help them sell, not corporate mandates. When you can demonstrate that strategically aligned campaigns built around both brand and dealer objectives drive more traffic and better leads than what they’re running on their own, the conversation changes pretty quickly. 

How do we know if this disconnect is actually hurting us? 
Look at local search visibility across your dealer markets, conversion rates from dealer-level digital traffic and brand consistency across dealer websites and social accounts. Inconsistency in those areas almost always signals lost demand somewhere in the funnel.

Is this only a problem for large dealer networks? 
No, and smaller networks sometimes have it worse because there’s less infrastructure to begin with. The core challenge of keeping messaging aligned from corporate to local exists at any scale. The difference is just how many places the breakdown can happen. 

About the author 
Carlos Ocampo leads manufacturing client accounts at Flint Group, working with manufacturing brands that sell through dealer networks and jobsite-facing markets. If your marketing is breaking somewhere between strategy and execution, connect with us at flint-group.com/contact. 

The post From HQ to jobsite: Fixing the disconnect between corporate and dealers appeared first on Flint Group.