Brand or demand? Most marketers have wrestled with that question-but what if it's the wrong question entirely?

In this episode of Beyond the Billboard, host Charlie Riley sits down with Sara Ajemian, VP of Brand & Communications at SOCi, to explore why brand and demand must work together-and how storytelling becomes the connective tissue across the funnel.

Sara shares how pre-work, shared goals, and a clear North Star keep campaigns aligned across brand, demand, sales, and product. She explains why pain points and tension fuel emotional campaigns, how to measure awareness and demand side by side, and why marketers need the confidence to say "no" when ideas don't fit the plan.

From NASDAQ billboards as social proof to nurture campaigns that convert, this conversation shows how brand can unify the entire organization-and why separating brand vs. demand only weakens the story.

Key Topics:
-Why brand and demand aren't competing priorities
-Storytelling as connective tissue across awareness, conversion, and loyalty
-Measurement frameworks that link top-funnel engagement to demo interest
-Real-world example of brand vs. demand conflict on a landing page
-How out-of-home campaigns tie to search traffic and attribution
-NASDAQ billboards as campaign "spokes" and social proof
-Using tension and pain points to drive emotional campaigns
-The role of a North Star and guardrails in keeping teams aligned
-Why brand allows marketers to confidently say "no"