Introduction to Nick Stagge
We have Nick Stagge on the show today, a great entrepreneur and marketing leader who loves building amazing brands and relationships.
As Founder and CEO of The Grounded Company and Underground, Nick has spent his career creating cult-like followings that drive consistent, long term growth for world-class brands. He’s worked on brand positioning, digital design, high-performing ad creative, UGC and social media for many successful companies.
Nick’s not done being an entrepreneur. He’s also involved with Search Party and Fusion Retail.
One thing I’ve always liked about Nick is his commitment to mental health. As a co-founder of We.Are.Mind he worked with a growing community of everyday people to stand up and speak out about mental health realities.
He’s had leadership roles at GoPro, Skullcandy, Zumiez, VidArmy and Roster (formerly Wooly) where he’s shown he can lead and inspire teams to achieve great things.
Table of Contents
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Who is Nick Stagge?
Early Life and Family History
Nick grew up in a small town in Northern Utah, spent his summers running through cornfields and trying to tip over cows. He says his childhood was pretty normal, played sports and did well in school, but didn’t really enjoy it.
Nick shared an interesting family history. The name “Stagge” is a made up name, they can’t go back more than a few generations. Family lore is that Nick’s ancestor fled from Bavaria, Germany, because the government was after him. He walked across Canada and settled in Utah, changed his name to Stagge and never told anyone his real name.
This weird background led Nick to claim he might be the rightful king of Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria. On a work trip to Germany he visited the castle and felt a deep connection, he thinks his ancestors built it.
Childhood Challenges
Nick’s childhood wasn’t without its challenges. At 6 years old he experienced trauma and abuse which shaped his personality and outlook on life. This experience made him more self reliant and rebellious against the norm.
He always felt like the odd one out, whether at home, school or in the neighborhood. But Nick chose to turn this into an advantage, became the black sheep and made it work for him.
Early Career and Risk Taking
Despite being rebellious Nick played it safe in his career until 30. It was then he started taking more risks in his professional life. But it took him another 10 years to build up the courage to start his own business.
Nick got into the digital world later in his career. He started working young, had about 60 jobs by the time he was 19. His big break came when he walked into Zumiez, a retail company and convinced them to hire him as a store manager with no experience.
Current Projects that Excite Nick
Nick is currently involved in several exciting projects:
- The Grounded Company: This is Nick’s primary focus, a creative agency he founded about three and a half years ago. They work primarily with e-commerce brands, helping them tell better stories and share them in compelling, unique ways to build cult-like followings and drive sales.
- Underground: A sister company to The Grounded Company, Underground was created to cater to smaller startups and bootstrapped businesses that couldn’t afford The Grounded Company’s services. It offers affordable creative services, making buying creative as easy as buying a pair of socks online.
- Fusion Retail Group: Nick recently joined this company as a partner and CMO. Fusion Retail Group specializes in getting digital brands into retail stores like Target, Walmart, Costco, and Best Buy.
- Search Party: This is Nick’s newest venture, still in its infancy. While details are scarce, Nick mentioned that they’re building it in public and are close to launching.
The Birth of The Grounded Company
Nick shared the fascinating story of how The Grounded Company came to be. After leaving VidArmy, he decided to offer fractional CMO services. Within 24 hours, he had signed two big brands. The third call came from the Harmon Brothers, who asked if he owned a creative agency. Despite not actually owning one at the time, Nick said yes and was immediately given several clients to onboard.
This unexpected turn of events aligned with Nick’s passion for creative work, branding, messaging, and storytelling. He seized the opportunity, and The Grounded Company was born.
Tactical and Strategic Digital Marketing Advice from Nick
1. Consistency and Persistence in Online Presence
Nick emphasizes the importance of showing up consistently and being committed to your online presence. He shared his own experience with LinkedIn:
“I started posting on LinkedIn eight or nine years ago. For the first year or two, I’d be lucky to get a like or comment on something. But I didn’t stop. I kept trying.”
He advises against getting discouraged or embarrassed. The key is to keep going and put yourself out there in a way that’s comfortable for you.
2. Find Your Voice and Try New Things
Initially, Nick tried to position himself as a thought leader by sharing articles from reputable sources and commenting on them. However, this approach didn’t work well. He realized he needed to try new things and find his own voice.
“You have to try new things and find your voice. I know that’s fairly generic advice, but it’s the people who follow that, that are then later asked for their advice.”
3. Choose the Right Medium for You
Nick points out that different people are comfortable with different mediums. For example, while some marketers excel at video content, others might prefer writing. The important thing is to find what works for you:
“If you compare me to Bobby Macy, Bobby’s great on camera. He’s comfortable on camera. So he does a lot of video. I don’t like it. I feel weird recording a selfie video and posting it. So I write. They’re both okay. They’re both good options. Find the option that works for you.”
4. Focus on Adding Value and Being Yourself
Nick advises focusing on adding value and being authentic. He believes that if you do this and keep at it, you’ll eventually figure out what works for you and your audience.
5. Don’t Ignore Offline Strategies
While digital marketing is crucial, Nick emphasizes the importance of not neglecting offline strategies:
“Everything doesn’t have to be digital. Go to events, don’t worry about doing things that scale. You have limitations, but you can learn how to use those limitations to your advantage.”
He suggests that small and medium businesses can compete with larger companies by doing things that don’t necessarily scale, such as:
- Showing up at events and shaking hands
- Sending handwritten letters to customers after purchases
- Knocking on doors
These personal touches can set you apart from larger competitors who may not be able to provide such individualized attention.
6. Embrace Your Limitations
Nick encourages businesses to turn their limitations into strengths. He uses The Grounded Company as an example:
“We’re almost four years old as a company. And it was only a handful of weeks ago we launched a website. We never had a website. And I kind of hate the fact that we have one now. My team armbarred me into it, but they’re like, we need it. We need it. And I’m like, we haven’t needed it. We don’t need it. We don’t have to do things that everyone else does. We get our business through other avenues. Let’s focus on those. Let’s do things that don’t scale.”
7. Think Outside the Box
Nick shared an inspiring example of thinking outside the box with the story of Shepard Fairey and the Obey brand:
Shepard Fairey, known for designing the iconic Obama “Hope” poster, started as a street graffiti artist. To promote his Obey brand without a big budget, he targeted young, hipster fashion enthusiasts who cared about art. His team would go to clubs, events, and concerts where their target audience hung out. They created Obey stencils, snuck into bathrooms, taped the stencil on the mirror, colored it in with lipstick, and then left quickly. This guerrilla marketing tactic created buzz and intrigue around the brand, eventually helping it grow into a multi-million dollar company.
Where Does Nick See the Future Going in Digital Marketing?
Nick shared several insights about the future of digital marketing:
1. Content as the Primary Targeting Tool
Nick believes that content will become even more crucial in targeting audiences:
“Content is going to be the thing that makes people say, ‘I’m interested’ or ‘I’m not.’ And that is the targeting. It means that you likely need to have even more content than ever before. It means you probably need to change the way that you’re running content.”
2. Intentional Content Segmentation
Rather than creating broad content that appeals to everyone, Nick suggests creating content that intentionally eliminates certain audiences:
“Instead of trying to create content that scales across everyone and you let your advertising strategy target, I think you actually should have content that eliminates people and gets people to scroll beyond you. And that’s not a bad thing.”
3. Optimizing for Engagement
Nick shared an interesting strategy for YouTube advertising:
“You can optimize for watch-through so you don’t have to pay for the first 30 seconds. But if they make it to 30 seconds and/or they click, you pay. If that’s the case, then we intentionally try to use those first 30 seconds to hook someone, to build some brand awareness and recognition. And then thirdly, to get people to click out of the ad.”
This strategy allows for building brand awareness while only paying for engaged viewers.
4. Emotional Connection in Content
Nick emphasizes the importance of creating content that forges an emotional connection:
“Most people in most scenarios decide to buy based on emotion and then they justify that decision based on logic. So the more emotionally charged we can create ads, the better.”
He notes that while humor (as used effectively by companies like Harmon Brothers) is one powerful emotion, it’s not the only one that can drive engagement and conversions.
5. The Continued Importance of Video
While Nick acknowledges that video content is currently dominant, he cautions against dismissing other formats:
“It’s easy to say video’s king and it is, but it’s also not the only royalty sitting at the table. We have a couple of clients and their best performing ads are static images.”
He advises focusing on what works best for your brand and audience, rather than blindly following trends.
6. The Role of AI in Digital Marketing
Nick sees AI as an essential tool in the future of digital marketing, but not as a replacement for human creativity:
“You gotta find a way to leverage AI. Or you’re going to get crushed, but I don’t think that the answer is letting AI take over. I think it’s another tool, much like the wheel and the hammer and anything else that’s out there. You want to be handy with that thing, but I don’t, for the most part, think you’re going to let it take over.”
How to Get in Contact with Nick
For those interested in connecting with Nick or learning more about his work, he suggests the following:
- LinkedIn: Nick Stagge
- Website: Underground
Nick encourages people to reach out and connect, emphasizing his openness to networking and sharing ideas within the digital marketing community.
Advice to My Younger Self
When asked what advice he would give to himself he said:
- Believe in Yourself: Nick said self confidence and trusting yourself.
- Be Willer to Take Risks: He said he did take risks in his career but could have been bolder:
“I did believe in myself. I did take risks, but maybe not big enough. Maybe I had enough hesitation that I didn’t really swing when that one came down the middle of the plate and I should have.”
Nick tells his younger self (and by extension, others) to take the big swings, don’t get upset when you miss and just keep swinging. He says you can’t go wrong with that.
Books, Podcasts, and Leaders That Inspire Nick
Nick shared some resources and people that currently inspire him:
Book
“The Culture Code”: Nick highly recommends this book, “spectacular book about the power of people and community and culture”. He says understanding those things is key to building and achieving almost anything.
The Culture Code on Amazon
Leaders That Inspire
Nick says there are many amazing people doing good in the world but he specifically mentioned three that inspire him daily:
- Elliot Beeson
- Adam Tarr
- Kurt Campbell
Nick likes these team members for their problem solving approach, selflessness with their skills and time and how they support the team and give them autonomy.
Conclusion
Nick Stagge’s journey from a rebellious youth to a digital marketing entrepreneur is full of valuable lessons for both aspiring marketers and seasoned professionals. His focus on authenticity, emotional connection and thinking outside the box in marketing is a breath of fresh air in a digital world.
As the digital marketing landscape changes Nick’s advice on using online and offline, creating targeted content and embracing new tech like AI while keeping it human offers a path to success in this ever changing field.
Whether you’re just starting out or looking to level up your marketing Nick’s journey and insights are applicable across industries and business sizes. His story is proof that persistence, adaptability and courage to take the leap will get you where you want to go.
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