Latest news with #StephenRosa
Forbes
10-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
How To Find A Spokesperson When It's Not The CEO: 15 Expert Tips
Many startups have discovered the power of founder-led, human-facing engagement as a powerful tool for connecting with target audiences. However, no matter how much buzz or success a company's products or services might be generating, sometimes the founder or CEO is not well suited to serve as its main public face and storytelling voice. Fortunately, there is no rule that a startup's primary communicator must be the founder or CEO; the right approach could involve star employees or even carefully chosen partners or loyal customers. Below, members of Forbes Agency Council share practical ways to identify and elevate the best alternative spokespeople to convey a new company's core values and brand story. 1. Let Your Customers Do The Talking Allow customers to do the talking. Everyone knows every CEO is going to say whatever is best for their company. Customers, however, have no skin in the game. Having a bullpen of articulate, loyal customers to carry your flag will always resonate more than CEO-speak. CEOs talk to shareholders, but customers talk to other customers. - Stephen Rosa, (add)ventures 2. Leverage C-Level Bench Strength Smart CEOs leverage their team's strengths. Many successful companies position CTOs or product experts as primary spokespeople, while CEOs focus on investors, employees and strategic partnerships. Consider elevating technical co-founders, the head of product or engineering leaders who can authentically discuss innovation. Hire a media-trained CMO or partner with customer advocates. - Kathleen Lucente, Red Fan Communications 3. Consider An AI-Powered Persona If the CEO isn't the right fit, AI can effectively emulate their voice and presence, offering a scalable, front-facing alternative when paired with thoughtful visuals. Otherwise, a long-term spokesperson can work—but today's audiences increasingly expect AI-powered personas, making authenticity less about 'who' and more about 'how.' - Austin Irabor, NETFLY 4. Media-Train Internal Experts Experts rule in business today, so find experts in your ranks. Get media training for them, and be sure they know the key messages of the organization. When they get an interview, make sure they share it on their own social media profiles as well as the company's social accounts to establish their thought leadership. - Nancy Marshall, Marshall Communications Forbes Agency Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify? 5. Define Multiple Spokespeople's Lanes We always suggest our B2B tech clients have three spokespeople: a corporate visionary, the technical voice and an industry expert. The CEO does not have to be front and center—use written content instead of live interviews. Often, a chief or vice president in a product, technology or revenue role works well. Define swim lanes for each spokesperson, and then polish the narrative for each. - Lindsey Groepper, PANBlast 6. Scout Out A Genuine, Charismatic Advocate Find someone who lives the brand—an early employee, a passionate customer or a charismatic team member. The spokesperson doesn't need the CEO title; they need credibility, relatability and camera presence. Authenticity can do more than ineffective communication when building trust at scale. - Jimi Gibson, Thrive Agency 7. Activate A Distributed Voice Model When CEO visibility isn't a strategic fit, activate a distributed voice model by elevating trusted leaders across functions. These internal ambassadors drive earned media, deepen audience engagement and scale authenticity. This approach strengthens brand trust, broadens market exposure and builds reputational resilience independent of any one individual. - Amy Packard Berry, Sparkpr 8. Find A Representative Who Embodies Brand Values Today's audiences crave human connection, not just polished messaging. Even if it's not the CEO, having a consistent and personable representative builds trust, relatability and brand identity, which are critical for early growth and media engagement. The key is choosing someone who embodies the brand's values, can communicate with confidence and has a genuine connection to your product or customers. - Paula Chiocchi, Outward Media, Inc. 9. Don't Rely Too Much On A Single Individual Leaning too hard on a key person can backfire—great for early traction, but it makes exiting harder when the brand's tied to one face. If the CEO's not the fit, build around a creative director, an ambassador or even a character. The goal is a relatable voice that isn't a single point of failure. - Miller McCoy, Limitless MFG 10. Pair Founders With Strategic Partners Pair the founder with a strategic partner—like a product lead, customer success head or trusted advisor—who can share the spotlight. You don't need one 'face,' but a team that reflects the brand's voice. It's about credibility and connection, not just charisma. - Christine Wetzler, Pietryla PR & Marketing 11. Elevate A Senior Employee In a market valuing human, founder-led engagement, startups can consider elevating a senior team member in product or customer success as the spokesperson. Look for someone authentic and dynamic who can share the brand's story with confidence and authority. This approach builds trust while freeing the CEO to focus on other priorities that continue to strengthen the company's market position. - Elyse Flynn Meyer, Prism Global Marketing Solutions 12. Hire An External Industry Veteran Recruit a respected industry veteran specifically as chief evangelist—someone with preexisting media relationships and deep sector credibility who genuinely believes in your mission. This strategic external hire brings instant market authority. Find someone with proven audience engagement, empathy on camera and a track record of owning the brand narrative. - Lars Voedisch, PRecious Communications 13. Look At The Rest Of The C-Suite Think of the people who are already sitting at your C-suite table. If they've got strong communication skills and years of industry observations and care enough to share them, they might be the perfect fit. And let's not forget that some startups have multiple founders. You might have more options than you think. - Nataliya Andreychuk, Viseven 14. Have Your Publicist Take The Role Having the brand's publicist would be the second best choice if the CEO isn't well suited to front the press. Often, I have to be my clients' spokesperson, and it's a role that has to be taken seriously. The person needs to have strong speaking skills and the ability to answer questions live on TV, radio or even a podcast while also reflecting the brand's values. - Adrian Falk, Believe Advertising & PR 15. Prioritize Authenticity Over Title Look for someone on the team who's natural on camera, passionate about the mission and relatable. It doesn't have to be the CEO or a C-level employee; authenticity matters more than title. - David Ispiryan, Effeect
Forbes
08-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
'Friends' Vs. 'Adults': What These Shows Can Teach Us About Marketing To Gen Z
Stephen Rosa is the CEO/chief creative officer of (add)ventures and an Emmy-winning writer/producer. In the early '90s, I found myself staring down a very messy fork in the road. I was in my 20s, torn between chasing a comedy career in Los Angeles, diving into New York's creative scene with nothing but a notepad and a dream, or sticking closer to home with a marketing job in Massachusetts. I knew I had talent—I could write, I could perform and I could pitch—but I also knew talent wasn't a strategy. And back then, I needed a plan more than a punch line. At night, I'd watch Friends—or shows like it—and see a version of adulthood that looked, if not attainable, at least aspirational. Six people were living in apartments too big for their paychecks, drinking lots of coffee and cracking inside jokes. Pivoting was a punch line, not a survival strategy. Life looked chaotic, but charmed. And we bought that version of adulthood. Brands sold it right back to us, wrapped in denim jackets and grande lattes. The Gap, Starbucks, Pottery Barn and even the iPod—they weren't just brands and products; they were identity markers. Ross's coffee table (yes, the one Phoebe hated) wasn't just decor. It symbolized a craving for belonging and order in the chaos. Marketers thrived on aspiration. If you wore the right jacket, drank the right coffee or picked the right CD, you'd find your place. Pivot. Flash forward 30 years to FX's new series Adults, and the tone has changed dramatically. Set in Queens, it follows five 20-somethings who are less bonded by coffee and more by therapy, ghosted texts and existential dread. It's not a reboot. It's a reckoning. Where Friends offered a fantasy of adulthood, Adults offers the reality. Relationships are frayed. Jobs are joyless. The group chat goes unanswered. It's a world where people aren't becoming adults—they're already there, and they're barely holding it together. As someone who came of age during the Friends era—and now leads a creative agency full of Gen Z talent—I can say this shift isn't just about TV tropes. It's about a broader cultural and marketing pivot. We're still selling adulthood, but the terms have changed—massively. Then: Selling Aspiration In the '90s, marketing followed a formula: Introduce a dream, insert a product and show the transformation. Want to belong? Buy this soda. Want to look successful? Wear this suit. There was a problem and a product that served as the solution. It was from A to B. It was straightforward and predictable. The tone matched the times. There was optimism in the air. Adulthood was portrayed as linear: Get the job, meet the person, find the apartment and furnish it with friends. The journey was messy, sure, but it was always pointing toward something better. Now: Selling Process Adults reminds us that life today isn't linear. It's circular. It loops. It spirals. The characters aren't climbing—they're clinging. There's no triumphant soundtrack—just ambient unease. For Gen Z, adulthood isn't about arriving. It's about enduring. It's not about having it all—it's about managing the weight of it all. And in this world, transformation feels disingenuous. What resonates now is recognition. This is why brands like Glossier thrive by enhancing natural features instead of covering them up, and why mental health apps like Calm and Headspace feel like necessities, not luxuries. The winning brands today aren't guides to a better life. They're companions for the one you're already living. They don't promise escape. They offer empathy. From Shared Spaces To Solitary Screens Friends had Monica and Rachel's apartment and Central Perk—spaces where connection happened spontaneously. Adults has subway rides, brunches that end awkwardly and a lot of lonely scrolling. Physical proximity has been replaced by emotional distance. This matters for marketers. Because the myth of a shared, universal experience no longer holds. Many of today's consumers don't congregate—they fragment. They live in algorithmic silos and identity niches. As a result, campaigns must function more like conversations than broadcasts. Visibility isn't enough. Brands must be emotionally available. That means less polish and more presence. Authenticity Is The New Currency What makes Adults work isn't plot—it's honesty. Characters flail. Conversations trail off. Scenes linger in discomfort. And audiences see themselves in that messiness. We're in the era of radical relatability. Gen Z doesn't reward perfection—they reward participation. Brands win not by being slick, but by being sincere. Consider how Oatly embraces its awkwardness, or how jewelry brand Mejuri frames luxury as self-worth, not status. These brands aren't shouting slogans. They're sharing humanity. And in a fractured world, that connection is priceless. The Friends Generation Is Running The Show Let's face it—most of us in the C-suite grew up on Friends. We remember the rhythm of the laugh track and the ease of the resolution. And often, we default to storytelling that reflects that worldview: setup, struggle and triumph. But Gen Z usually doesn't see life that way. They don't expect clarity. They expect complexity. And if we want to reach them, we have to be willing to get a little uncomfortable. When I first watched Adults, I felt like the emotional rug had been pulled out from under me. Where was the payoff? The cozy couch? The group hug? But discomfort is often the first sign that we're learning. And marketers—especially those of us raised on the comfort of sitcoms—need to learn fast. So here's the pivot: Let's stop marketing the dream and start marketing the dialogue. Let's ask more than we assume. Let's reflect rather than direct. Because today, the brands that thrive won't be the ones that shout the loudest. They'll be the ones that gently break the awkward silence. Forbes Agency Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
