Jordan Utter

Thanks for having me back. Grateful to be here. It's been a while. It has been since the Nashville day, I think. Yeah, that was a fun one. That was a fun one. Studio's a lot nicer. Did a lot better job with this one.

That's what Nick does best, challenge the team. I was excited. I kind of see it as... it shouldn't matter what we're selling. The content that we put out leading up to this should make people feel like, I don't care what VPN is about to launch. I want it. And you do that. There are a lot of ways. One is we can't speak about the product benefits. We can't tell people the ingredients.

We can't break down the formula. We can't, we can barely touch on how it will make them feel. So ultimately what it comes back to is we have to make people feel the, I love what you said, and now we can actually say it, the high that this product comes with, the focus, the sharpness, the clarity, the energy, but we can't really say that yet.

So I was really excited, but also it was like, this is a challenge. It still is a challenge, truthfully. But I was excited. I saw it as an opportunity to push the team. I saw it as an opportunity to take a very unconventional approach and kind of stretch myself creatively. I think, like you said, it's easy to kind of see all the content that gets put online.

see all the content we've done before and get stuck in that. It's not a rut because it's working, but as you do best, as a pioneer, as a visionary, say, what if we did it differently? Let's take a risk. And I think a lot of creatives talk about taking a risk, but this is truly a risk because we didn't even say the product name up until the day we launched it, which...

obviously for anyone with common sense or in marketing is pretty contradictory to what you usually do. So I was excited, but also nervous and felt really challenged.

what do we talk about? If we can't say the name of the product, if we can't talk about the ingredients and the benefits, where do we even start? Which ultimately I was like, that's why we're here. That's why we're at a round table right now to come up with that. Because as kind of stated earlier,

the product is amazing and it will sell itself and we could take the same approach and it will absolutely crush. And I think to kind of echo what you said and what I kind of then echoed to the team was like, we know we can do what we've always done. This is an opportunity to stretch ourselves and to try something new and to make some real noise. And if it doesn't work,

We learned a ton, as we always say, like it's a failure, but we learn from it and it provides clarity. But if it does work, it could 10x that original goal of whether it's revenue, it's sessions on the site, it's awareness on social. And so that's what comes with risk is ultimately what I told the team is that's what comes with risk is if it works out.

everyone's going to talk about it, which is kind of some of the inspo that we both had was, man, what are some of the marketing campaigns that we still talk about? And they're always the ones that are disruptive and they're new and they're fresh in a world of just thousands of pieces of content going out every day. Ultimately, it's how do you stand out? This is one way to do it.

It's definitely not going to blend in. And now it's like, but we also can't let it get lost and not be exciting. So that was the challenge. It's going to be one or the other. There's no in the middle with this one.

Yeah, I think one of my jobs, one of the most important aspects of my job is to keep in mind that when this is all said and done, what does success look like? What are the objectives? What can I take from all these meetings that we've had amongst each other, but primarily you? And

put that on paper of what our objectives because I think it's easy for a creative team to take what you've said and just start moving and say let's just make anything that looks cool and it sounds cool and it gets people's attention but I think for my job especially it's to corral all the ideas and the thoughts we've had and say okay what does that look like in a three to five bullet point list of this is success at the end of the day and

And so I always start there. And just for some insight, one of those that we wrote down was this is bigger than a product launch. It's a stake in the sand that BPN is here as an endurance supplement company aiming to be the number one. This is kind of our stake in the sand of a very innovative formulation that And honestly, kind of challenging the market.

We're not creating a new product category, but we're really challenging how people fuel. We're showing endurance athletes we're committed to them. And then, you know, it's not us versus other companies, but there should be an evolution that occurs from this. We should start to see more products that start to challenge this, that have nootropics and have caffeine added and

start to label it as an endurance pre-workout. And again, not saying it's new or original, but ultimately I felt like this is a moment for us to challenge the market and say like, we're here. I think a lot of the other products we've launched, GoGels, GoBars, ultimately was what you were saying earlier in the podcast, this kind of seamless

crossover of BPN and the endurance market saying we need this and we need you guys to make it and they are innovative formulations but this one feels different in a way that was us just dipping our toes into the endurance and getting the foundation laid so I start with the objectives and then from there it's called Blue Sky and it's What could this look like? What could this be?

What does the music sound like? What do the visuals sound like? Where are we shooting? And this one's really unique for people that follow BPN. Most of the settings we shoot in, we don't get to choose. It's Luke Hopkins is doing a race in Madison, Wisconsin. Well, that's our setting. That's what we've been given. Nick's doing Leadville, and that's our setting. And those are amazing environments.

But for this one, it was really fun because we could say, where do we want to shoot it? This with what athlete, what does it look like? Um, how do we want to shoot it visually? What is it? What does it look like as far as Lynn's choice and all the tactical creative decisions, but it all starts in that blue sky.

Usually I come up with about three approaches and I used to probably bring those three to you or to someone on the team. But now I think I've gained the confidence. Like I'm coming with this one, my best foot forward. Um,

From there, get alignment from you, creative, obviously put together a creative direction pitch, a deck that has visuals and really make you feel what this campaign will look like if it was on our YouTube or Instagram grid and get your sign off. And from there, it's go time with the team, essentially travel shoots, um,

all the things that come with producing a shoot to get it done, and then working with Trey on social deliverables and how are we rolling it out. There's a lot of phases, not to bore people with all the details, but it all starts in what if and what could it be, and blue sky is what we call it.

Yeah, I'd say it was two phases with it being a unique launch. It was two phases. We knew phase one was going to be this kind of mid-May to launch day, and it was going to be very cryptic. It was going to be very aspirational, making people feel what this potential product that they don't know yet is going to do for them, but not saying it. We can't launch ingredients.

People don't know it has caffeine. They don't even know it's a play on G1M Sport yet. Completely just foundational. clean slate. Um, so everything we shot in that is very, um, immersive and cryptic and makes people feel something. So it's people out of breath. It's the chain of a bike moving. It's a skier on, you know, um, and a high rocks workout with Lucy it's max bombing a trail. And,

Again, all of that should lead to this. I don't care what this product there is about the launch. Like I want it. Like I stand for this too. It feels gritty. It feels like it's going to elevate my performance. I think at the end of the day, that tease phase, if you call it the phase where we're looking just build hype, build awareness and kick off the conversation was amazing.

all about starting conversations around this product, just getting people to say, what the heck is this? It makes me feel like I want to go train and I don't know what it is, but I want to use it. Phase two launch and kind of into infinity is we had to make a hard pivot to education and start to really make up some ground on letting people into what is this product? Why was it formulated this way?

When should I take it? What is it going to actually do for me? Um,

while still maintaining you know the brand equity of making people feel commitment and feel performance but we have to make up some ground on the educational level so it's kind of this two-phase launch really um that's kind of the way we bucketed it internally as well it was almost two two launches yeah like two separate launches in one yeah because typically when we launch a product there is the lead up

Yeah, I think to the point of the content flywheel amongst partnerships and marketing is a great point and obviously something that we're continually getting better at. But I get that question a lot of times. how is brand and marketing different? How is brand and partnerships interact?

And ultimately, it kind of starts with that high-level creative direction, which we get your sign-off on, and to the point you just made, making sure that's carried out through performance marketing, any ads people see it should feel different intention and different strategy, but it should feel like our organic social.

We have obviously went through a lot of phases of how our performance marketing looks and it's really dialed now. And that flywheel, that communication is probably the toughest part of a successful product launch or campaign is it's easy to have the creative team go execute and not easy, but it's one part to have them go execute and make amazing visuals, amazing social content. But now it's,

how does that translate to email and SMS and how does our athletes talk about it? And I think this launch, we probably have done the best job we've ever done of making sure everyone's at least on the same page of what these two phases of launch look like.

But it's ruthlessly every day checking in on that and trying to make sure people are still up to speed, especially from a creative brand director standpoint. Yeah, it's cohesive and consistency. Yeah, not operating in silos like you said earlier.

And I think it all comes back to, it feels like us truly trying to serve the committed athlete. Like you and the product team so much work into creating this formulation. And it's not just to throw something together that sounds cool and, oh, it'll make you feel this way. It's truly like, what do people need?

And again, I feel like the last few years getting into the endurance community has been more, let's lay the foundation, BPN launching their version of what's maybe already out there, the gels and the bars. And again, this is out there, but it feels like it's a very

specific product for a very specific type of person who is looking to train and change their life and have massive goals whether it's a marathon PR or their first ultra or to win an ultra not just electrolytes to stay hydrated it feels like it's a real honestly a big brand play for what we stand for in a way and all of our other products obviously are that but this feels like it's just more

I don't know. Has a weight to it, you said. It's a good way to put it. I don't know if we know what it'll become. I think when you talk about serving the customer, you're meeting their needs, but you're also opening their eyes to what could be. And I think I'm living testament of that when it came to this product. I was like, I don't really know if I would use that. It sounds really cool, but...

And I use it and I was like, oh, oh, like my eyes are now open. This makes sense. I'm like, I just want this instead of coffee. And then also take electrolytes next to that or G1 Sports. Like, dude, just give me it all in one at 5 a.m. in the morning before I work out. I don't need all these different liquids. So, yeah, I think people don't know. We don't know where it'll go yet.

The market doesn't know yet.

Wow, that's a good question. That's a heavy question. I thought we were just going to talk about the product.

Yeah, I mean, one, it's been amazing and so fulfilling and obviously, not to sound cliche, but insanely grateful for it and truly mean that. And I think ultimately, you just said it, like when you're in it, it feels chaotic and it feels blurry and it feels fuzzy.

But I would say, especially encourage anyone who's in the thick of it, we're still in the thick of it, but I would say at this point of time in BPN... it's the most clarity I've personally ever had. Everything we're doing, like you said, we have so much going on. Everything we're doing, all these massive projects, there's never really a question of why.

We do a good job of asking that up front, I will say. Our process has just gotten better, whereas before it was like, amazing idea, move on it, we get halfway into it, and also three other projects going on, and we're like, wait, Why did we sign up for this? Why are we doing this? And now it just all feels so intentional, so clear. And I think that just comes from reps and reps and experience.

And I think probably one of my biggest tensions over the time at BPN has been trying to get more clear, trying to provide more clarity for our team But sometimes you just don't know when you're in it. You just got to just keep trudging forward and make decisions and live with it.

And I'd say, I don't know how you feel now, but I would say at this point of BPN, again, this is the most clarity I felt. And I can only... And just kind of off the cuff here, only attest that to just reps and experience.

Like you said, there was never this kind of moment, even coming back from Nashville, there was never really this hard moment where you're like, Jordan, you're stepping back onto the BPN team as well. Because I was, for anyone who doesn't know, only on Nick Bear's YouTube and his content. There was never this hard moment.

We just both kind of were starting to pick up some slack here and there and take on projects. And then before we know it, we're back here and We're just in it. And I think too many people want to, everything to slow down and be methodical and be intentional. And I think you just have to trust your instinct and trust your gut and just keep trudging and trudging and trudging.

And one day you pop up and it's like, whoa, look, how the heck did we get here? Like, I mean, the interview we did the other day for the new HQ YouTube video, I felt like I couldn't even start sentences because it's just so overwhelming to think about because I haven't really thought about it. We've just been in it. But it was a good moment in time to reflect.

And even this question now, I'm like, dude, I never reflect on these things. But if I had to chalk up one thing right now, it would be. absolute clarity and just intention with everything we're doing. We don't have it all figured out. Absolutely not. But everything feels like it has a deep, clear why behind it, a clear purpose.

And I would say in the last the previous five years, that's probably been one of the tensions is like, is this the right move? Why are we doing this again? And you just trust it and trust it and trust it. So I'm grateful that BPN's gotten to where it's at because when you're in it, it feels a little bit like we don't know what we're doing. And I know a lot of people feel that way.

Anyone I talk to that's in a similar position as myself or leading teams and companies, everyone's just figuring it out, man. It's, yeah, I don't know. There's no magic bullet, no magic answer. I think it just comes back to reps and experience.

Oh, did you really?

Yeah. Manana.

Manana Coffee Shop off South Congress. Yeah. Did you talk to him? Yeah. I don't know if he remembered me because I was producing the podcast when he came on. And I think he remembered the face. But yeah, he's a super nice guy. Love Sam. Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah.

That's great, and I think when I'm thinking about Sam and David? David, yeah. David, I want to say David, from the founders. Both Sam feel inspired by this, and also the guests that David's had on, or he's talked about, sorry, their biographies. One thing that I've soaked in the last year that's just made – building VPN so much more fun and opportunistic.

And just honestly, to even to this whole launch, if I tie it back into G1M Sport Plus, my reaction being like, yeah, let's do it. This is an amazing opportunity has been the guests he's had or he spoke about the super successful billionaire entrepreneurs and then also just Sam's demeanor. is they use the word gamify it.

And I love this because, and to tie into your point, I think when you have that mindset of like, foot on the gas, but, like, there's this end. There's, like, we just got to get here. It's because it feels so life or death business and brand. And what they've done such an amazing job, both of their demeanors, is, like, at the end of the day, like, we're just in it for the long run.

And at that point, you accept there's going to be massive failures, massive successes, and it becomes kind of this, like, this game. They call it gamify, whether that's, you know, how people would choose the word or not. But I liked it a lot because it kind of gives it this – childlike, like, man, we're just, it's not life or death.

We're just like playing this big game that we're going to do for the rest of our life, whether it's BPN or it's some other venture in the future. And that's made like way more fun for me because you can care deeply. Your foot can be on the gas. You can be running at full speed. But at the end of the day,

you know it's not always about like when we get here, when we do this, you're like, we're just in it. There's no finish line. Like, let's just have fun and be in it. Accept the chaos, accept the turmoil and the hardship and the failures and the highs and the successes. And then you're not too high and too low. And I think that's amazing advice. And I think-

David talked a lot about that from Sam Walton, Walmart founder. And I was like, dude, if that guy can feel like that and have thousands of employees, we can do the same. So I thought it was really cool. You care deeply.