The Charleston Marketing Podcast

How The Drop In Turns Movement Into Belonging w/ Gillian Zettler

How are we doing? Who do you want to learn from next? Text us with notes and ideas. [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2203107/fan_mail/new] Most workouts promise a better body. We’re more interested in what happens when movement gives you your people. We sit down with Gillian Zettler [https://www.linkedin.com/in/gillian-zettler/], co-founder of The Drop In [https://www.thedropin.com/], to talk about building a Charleston wellness studio that treats connection as the mission. Gillian shares how the loneliness epidemic and the “transactional” feel of many gyms pushed her and co-founder Chandler Frisbee to design joyful, movement-based spaces where newcomers feel brave enough to walk in, even if they’ve never touched a spin bike, a yoga mat, or a dance floor. We also unpack the origin of their first big pop-up, why they launched in January, and how a clear purpose can beat fancy branding when you’re starting from scratch. Gillian brings hard-won insight from leading the Charleston Wine and Food Festival and from early career years in scrappy radio promotions. We get practical about brand building, partnerships, and intentional community, plus the tough stuff founders don’t always say out loud: financial insecurity, identity shifts after a big job, and the pressure to “keep climbing.” She also draws a sharp line between real wellness and the snake oil that’s flooding the market, emphasizing trust, expertise, and human-scale hospitality. If you care about wellness marketing, experiential marketing, and building community in Charleston, you’ll leave with ideas you can actually use. Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs a third place, and leave us a review with your biggest takeaway. South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA) is a public, nonprofit organization that fuels South Carolina’s innovation economy by supporting technology-based startups, academic research, and industry partnerships. Through funding, coaching, and its investment arm SC Launch, SCRA helps early-stage companies grow, commercialize ideas, and scale within the state’s key innovation sectors. King & Columbus is a full-service marketing and advertising agency based in South Carolina that helps brands grow through a mix of creative storytelling and data-driven strategy. They offer everything from branding and content creation to media planning, digital advertising, and PR—focused on delivering measurable results across digital, social, and traditional channels. https://kingandcolumbus.com Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2203107/support] Title Sponsor: Charleston American Marketing Association [https://charlestonama.org/] Presenting Sponsor: Charleston Media Solutions [https://charlestonradiogroup.com/] Annual Sponsor: ‪ [https://www.youtube.com/@PollenSocial]SCRA; South Carolina Research Authority [https://scra.org/] Quarterly Sponsor: King and Columbus [https://kingandcolumbus.com/] CAMACast Cohosts: Stephanie Barrow [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephbarrow/], Mike Compton [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikecomptonproducer/], Rachel Backal, [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachelbackal/] Tom Keppeler [https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomkeppeler/], Amanda Bunting Comen [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amandabc/],  Silicon Harbor Hot Take Host: Stanfield Gray [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stanfieldgray/], https://digsouth.com Produced and edited: RMBO Advertising [https://www.rmbo.co] Photographer | Co-host: Kelli Morse [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelli-morse-6312218/] Score by:  The Strawberry Entrée [https://www.youtube.com/@thestrawberryentree9563/playlists]; Jerry Feels Good, CURRYSAUCE, DBLCRWN, DJ DollaMenu Studio Engineer: Brian Cleary [https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-cleary-radio/] and Mathew Chase YouTube... [https://www.youtube.com/@CharlestonMarketingPodcast]

How Charleston Is Quietly Becoming An Innovation Hub

How are we doing? Who do you want to learn from next? Text us with notes and ideas. [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2203107/fan_mail/new] Charleston is easy to love for its charm, food, and coast but that surface story can hide what’s actually being built here. We sit down with Jason Brown and Reagan Falvey from the Charleston Regional Development Alliance (CRDA) to pressure-test a big claim: is Charleston becoming a real innovation hub that can earn the Silicon Harbor name, or are we just repeating a flattering narrative? We get specific about the numbers and the nuance. CRDA’s innovation scorecard shows Charleston punching above its weight, ranking far higher in innovation-driven performance than its population rank would suggest. We talk about what “innovation” really means across Charleston’s economy, from aerospace and advanced manufacturing to life sciences, logistics, defense, and port modernization. You’ll hear why outside capital is paying attention, why anchor institutions and world-class employers matter for startup gravity, and why an ecosystem can feel strong while still needing better coordination. We also dig into the real friction: plugging newcomers into the network, retaining talent as costs rise, and building the “connective tissue” that makes access to capital, mentorship, and resources feel seamless. Jason and Reagan share how CRDA thinks about intentional growth, why quality of jobs matters, and what needs to go right over the next five to ten years including deeper venture capital relationships and stronger commercialization pathways. If you care about Charleston economic development, startup ecosystem growth, venture capital, and the future of Silicon Harbor, this conversation is your map. Subscribe, share this with someone building in the Southeast, and leave a review with your take: what would make Charleston’s innovation story undeniable? South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA) is a public, nonprofit organization that fuels South Carolina’s innovation economy by supporting technology-based startups, academic research, and industry partnerships. Through funding, coaching, and its investment arm SC Launch, SCRA helps early-stage companies grow, commercialize ideas, and scale within the state’s key innovation sectors. King & Columbus is a full-service marketing and advertising agency based in South Carolina that helps brands grow through a mix of creative storytelling and data-driven strategy. They offer everything from branding and content creation to media planning, digital advertising, and PR—focused on delivering measurable results across digital, social, and traditional channels. https://kingandcolumbus.com Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2203107/support] Title Sponsor: Charleston American Marketing Association [https://charlestonama.org/] Presenting Sponsor: Charleston Media Solutions [https://charlestonradiogroup.com/] Annual Sponsor: ‪ [https://www.youtube.com/@PollenSocial]SCRA; South Carolina Research Authority [https://scra.org/] Quarterly Sponsor: King and Columbus [https://kingandcolumbus.com/] CAMACast Cohosts: Stephanie Barrow [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephbarrow/], Mike Compton [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikecomptonproducer/], Rachel Backal, [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachelbackal/] Tom Keppeler [https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomkeppeler/], Amanda Bunting Comen [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amandabc/],  Silicon Harbor Hot Take Host: Stanfield Gray [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stanfieldgray/], https://digsouth.com Produced and edited: RMBO Advertising [https://www.rmbo.co] Photographer | Co-host: Kelli Morse [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelli-morse-6312218/] Score by:  The Strawberry Entrée [https://www.youtube.com/@thestrawberryentree9563/playlists]; Jerry Feels Good, CURRYSAUCE, DBLCRWN, DJ DollaMenu Studio Engineer: Brian Cleary [https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-cleary-radio/] and Mathew Chase YouTube... [https://www.youtube.com/@CharlestonMarketingPodcast]

From Project Manager To Pageant Titleholder: A Real Playbook For Building A Public Personal Brand While Growing Your Career w/ Analise Healy

How are we doing? Who do you want to learn from next? Text us with notes and ideas. [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2203107/fan_mail/new] A personal brand can open doors, but only if it’s built on something real. We sit down with Analise Healy, Miss South Carolina Collegiate America and a project manager at Momentum Marketing, to unpack what it actually looks like to grow your career while your life is increasingly public. From the “how does the crown stay on” moments to the serious work behind being a titleholder, Analise shares the habits and mindset that keep her grounded and effective. We dig into her pageant journey from the high-pressure Miss USA system in New York to finding the right coaching, bouncing back from disappointing placements, and ultimately earning her state title in South Carolina. Analise  explains why confidence is built through reps, how interview prep forces real self-knowledge, and why you “never truly lose” if you leave with lessons, relationships, and a clearer reason to come back stronger. Then we zoom into the marketing side: managing clients across industries, staying detail-oriented, and building trust through fast response times and direct phone calls when things get complicated. She also shares practical time management tactics, plus a thoughtful take on using AI tools like ChatGPT for social media brainstorming without losing your voice. At the heart of it all is her community service platform, MusicLink Foundation, which connects underprivileged kids to free or re South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA) is a public, nonprofit organization that fuels South Carolina’s innovation economy by supporting technology-based startups, academic research, and industry partnerships. Through funding, coaching, and its investment arm SC Launch, SCRA helps early-stage companies grow, commercialize ideas, and scale within the state’s key innovation sectors. King & Columbus is a full-service marketing and advertising agency based in South Carolina that helps brands grow through a mix of creative storytelling and data-driven strategy. They offer everything from branding and content creation to media planning, digital advertising, and PR—focused on delivering measurable results across digital, social, and traditional channels. https://kingandcolumbus.com Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2203107/support] Title Sponsor: Charleston American Marketing Association [https://charlestonama.org/] Presenting Sponsor: Charleston Media Solutions [https://charlestonradiogroup.com/] Annual Sponsor: ‪ [https://www.youtube.com/@PollenSocial]SCRA; South Carolina Research Authority [https://scra.org/] Quarterly Sponsor: King and Columbus [https://kingandcolumbus.com/] CAMACast Cohosts: Stephanie Barrow [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephbarrow/], Mike Compton [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikecomptonproducer/], Rachel Backal, [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachelbackal/] Tom Keppeler [https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomkeppeler/], Amanda Bunting Comen [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amandabc/],  Silicon Harbor Hot Take Host: Stanfield Gray [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stanfieldgray/], https://digsouth.com Produced and edited: RMBO Advertising [https://www.rmbo.co] Photographer | Co-host: Kelli Morse [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelli-morse-6312218/] Score by:  The Strawberry Entrée [https://www.youtube.com/@thestrawberryentree9563/playlists]; Jerry Feels Good, CURRYSAUCE, DBLCRWN, DJ DollaMenu Studio Engineer: Brian Cleary [https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-cleary-radio/] and Mathew Chase YouTube... [https://www.youtube.com/@CharlestonMarketingPodcast]

The Relationship Revolution And The Rise Of One-To-One ABM w/ Sloan Newman

How are we doing? Who do you want to learn from next? Text us with notes and ideas. [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2203107/fan_mail/new] Most marketing advice still starts with “get more leads.” We want to start somewhere more honest: the accounts you already know can change your year if you build the right relationships. That’s why we brought on Sloan Newman, author of The Relationship Revolution and an account-based marketing leader working in global B2B tech, to unpack what one-to-one ABM actually looks like when it’s done well. We talk through the shift from shouting into the void to building trust deep in the funnel, where marketing partners with sales and account teams week after week. Sloan breaks down the ABM tiers (programmatic, one-to-few, and one-to-one), why definitions get messy in modern marketing, and how a simple framework like the three Rs (reputation, relationship, revenue) helps you build credibility, expand what clients know you can do, and shorten sales cycles with real personalization. We also touch on AI in B2B marketing, not as hype, but as a practical tool for focus and smarter execution. Then we go behind the scenes on the author journey: pitching publishers, negotiating rights, cutting drafts, surviving edits, and the hustle of getting a business book into the world. Along the way, Sloan shares stories from Charleston to Seattle to the fencing strip, including a mindset shift that applies to both sport and strategy: stop reacting to the weapon and start reading the person. Listen, share this with someone who owns pipeline, and if it resonates, subscribe and leave a review. What part of ABM do you want to get better at next? The Relationship Revolution by Sloan Newman - Buy your copy today. [https://www.amazon.com/Relationship-Revolution-Mastering-Account-Based-Management-ebook/dp/B0GGWDQTZ3] South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA) is a public, nonprofit organization that fuels South Carolina’s innovation economy by supporting technology-based startups, academic research, and industry partnerships. Through funding, coaching, and its investment arm SC Launch, SCRA helps early-stage companies grow, commercialize ideas, and scale within the state’s key innovation sectors. King & Columbus is a full-service marketing and advertising agency based in South Carolina that helps brands grow through a mix of creative storytelling and data-driven strategy. They offer everything from branding and content creation to media planning, digital advertising, and PR—focused on delivering measurable results across digital, social, and traditional channels. https://kingandcolumbus.com Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2203107/support] Title Sponsor: Charleston American Marketing Association [https://charlestonama.org/] Presenting Sponsor: Charleston Media Solutions [https://charlestonradiogroup.com/] Annual Sponsor: ‪ [https://www.youtube.com/@PollenSocial]SCRA; South Carolina Research Authority [https://scra.org/] Quarterly Sponsor: King and Columbus [https://kingandcolumbus.com/] CAMACast Cohosts: Stephanie Barrow [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephbarrow/], Mike Compton [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikecomptonproducer/], Rachel Backal, [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachelbackal/] Tom Keppeler [https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomkeppeler/], Amanda Bunting Comen [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amandabc/],  Silicon Harbor Hot Take Host: Stanfield Gray [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stanfieldgray/], https://digsouth.com Produced and edited: RMBO Advertising [https://www.rmbo.co] Photographer | Co-host: Kelli Morse [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelli-morse-6312218/] Score by:  The Strawberry Entrée [https://www.youtube.com/@thestrawberryentree9563/playlists]; Jerry Feels Good, CURRYSAUCE, DBLCRWN, DJ DollaMenu Studio Engineer: Brian Cleary [https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-cleary-radio/] and Mathew Chase YouTube... [https://www.youtube.com/@CharlestonMarketingPodcast]

How MUSC Turns Clinical Problems Into Funded Startups

How are we doing? Who do you want to learn from next? Text us with notes and ideas. [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2203107/fan_mail/new] Most people talk about “fixing healthcare” from the outside. We wanted the view from inside the machine. So we sat down with Todd Headley, CEO of the Zucker Institute for Innovation Commercialization at MUSC, and Bob Crutchwell, Managing Director of the 1824 Fund and the South Carolina Health Innovation Fund, to unpack how healthcare innovation actually gets built, tested, protected, and funded in Charleston. We walk through MUSC’s commercialization pipeline, from clinicians and researchers spotting real problems to a structured process of assessing market need, product-market fit, and scalability. Todd shares how the Zucker Institute sources a huge volume of new ideas each year, why not every innovation should become a startup, and what it takes to move from an early concept to pilots and clinical trials. Bob explains why MUSC created a venture fund, how non-dilutive funding like SBIR and STTR can push a company farther before raising private capital, and what “escape velocity” looks like when a team is ready to build commercial momentum. We also get specific about what makes something investable in health tech and life sciences: intellectual property strategy, defensibility, milestones, and the realities of healthcare workflows. Then we zoom out to the future, including value-based care, care at home, rural access, and how AI in healthcare and agentic AI could speed de South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA) is a public, nonprofit organization that fuels South Carolina’s innovation economy by supporting technology-based startups, academic research, and industry partnerships. Through funding, coaching, and its investment arm SC Launch, SCRA helps early-stage companies grow, commercialize ideas, and scale within the state’s key innovation sectors. King & Columbus is a full-service marketing and advertising agency based in South Carolina that helps brands grow through a mix of creative storytelling and data-driven strategy. They offer everything from branding and content creation to media planning, digital advertising, and PR—focused on delivering measurable results across digital, social, and traditional channels. https://kingandcolumbus.com Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2203107/support] Title Sponsor: Charleston American Marketing Association [https://charlestonama.org/] Presenting Sponsor: Charleston Media Solutions [https://charlestonradiogroup.com/] Annual Sponsor: ‪ [https://www.youtube.com/@PollenSocial]SCRA; South Carolina Research Authority [https://scra.org/] Quarterly Sponsor: King and Columbus [https://kingandcolumbus.com/] CAMACast Cohosts: Stephanie Barrow [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephbarrow/], Mike Compton [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikecomptonproducer/], Rachel Backal, [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachelbackal/] Tom Keppeler [https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomkeppeler/], Amanda Bunting Comen [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amandabc/],  Silicon Harbor Hot Take Host: Stanfield Gray [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stanfieldgray/], https://digsouth.com Produced and edited: RMBO Advertising [https://www.rmbo.co] Photographer | Co-host: Kelli Morse [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelli-morse-6312218/] Score by:  The Strawberry Entrée [https://www.youtube.com/@thestrawberryentree9563/playlists]; Jerry Feels Good, CURRYSAUCE, DBLCRWN, DJ DollaMenu Studio Engineer: Brian Cleary [https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-cleary-radio/] and Mathew Chase YouTube... [https://www.youtube.com/@CharlestonMarketingPodcast]