STACIE THOMPSON
THE CLIFF'S NOTES VERSION
Born and raised in Texas, I found my way to Chicago 15 years ago and have found my home. 🤍
In short, if you're into stereotyping, here you go:
For Myers Briggs lovers: I'm ENTJ
What's my sign? Aries
Those who study Enneagram: Type 3
Birth order? Middle of 3 girls
General disposition: Optimist
I think it's hilarious when people say things can't be done.
I've very rarely found it to be true.
Usually it just means more money, more time, more energy or more vision. That's okay with me because I think finding solutions to things people think aren't possible is one of the most fun and rewarding things out there.
My friend Neil is super insightful.
These questions are from him.
What kind of projects excite you most?
Ooooh! You started with such a hard one!
I love projects that are really open-ended (what could you do with xxx brand, product, idea, etc...). Those allow me to really dream—to consider what the role that company/brand/person/product could have in the world and who they're meaningful for. Those keep me up at night swirling on the possibilities.
But I also enjoy projects that have really tight constraints—where you have to find a really creative solution to make an impact. We used to make the joke (when working on a haircare brand) that we would get projects like this that we had to "split hairs" to find a creative solution/ insight/ concept. 😅
At the end of the day, I think pretty much any kind of branding or marketing project could excite me as long as I get to work with kind, talented people. Projects are a real drag if I don't have others as collaborators or if they're not willing to play nice with others.
You’ve created countless brands, including the brand for your own company, Ovie. What will be important for brands to do over the next 10 years? How will they connect with consumers and stay relevant to their lives?
People understand branding at a level that's never been seen before. People are honing their personal brands and I think that makes us level the playing field a little with brands. As people start to see brands as peers, their expectations are going to be different. You have to engage when and how they want to—be flexible and transparent. Live values. Be more transparent. Be better.
How I think they can do that:
Add real value.
I don't mean sell your products more cheaply or devalue them so that your customers can save a buck—although people appreciate that in the short term, it affects the way they think about you as a brand, so I don't think it's doing you any favors in the brand-building space.
In a world where people are constantly inundated with content and things to redirect their attention, I think we'll see an increasing appreciation for understanding a consumer and giving them something to help them along the way.
For instance, can you educate them in something they care about? Something that will help them be better?
Or entertain them?
It's really about being more than just a brand who sells products or services- it's about being meaningful to them as a company they want to do business with on an ongoing basis.
Be real.
There's so much skepticism out there with people right now, being honest about who your brand is and what you stand for is important. Practicing transparency and showing a bit of the humans behind the scenes is going to continue to be important.
Just look at the new social network BeReal. People are yearning for real connections over polished. Brands are going to have to step up to that challenge- which I think is going to be hard for some.
Actually listen.
Find them and look them in the eyes. Ask them who they are and what their goals are (not necessarily what they want, because I think often we don't know until it's in front of us. Don't hide behind computers and data—get out and involved with what your consumers are involved with.
It'll be different for every brand. Connecting isn't a one-size-fits-all formula, unfortunately. You can't take a playbook from one and apply to another and have it magically work out. Each brand needs to understand their value in the lives of their consumers and play there. Are you a brand that brings entertainment? Bring it in unique ways.
A brand that is known for being super transparent with your ingredients? Offer ways for consumers to be educated so they can learn from you.
I think all brands are going to have to walk a very fine line of staying present, active and engaged while not being pushy or overstepping boundaries with consumers—because that's where trust is lost and brands lose their credibility.
Know why your brand exists.
That sounds a little ominous/extreme, but think about it. It's never been easier for someone to make a product and bring it to market with a beautiful brand. You can go to places like Fivrr and get just about anything you need to get a brand off the ground. That's the easy part.
Having passion, vision and a plan for who you are and what you stand for as a brand is going to be the thing that keeps you going while the others get forgotten. It's important to have a vision and mission (or however you want to phrase those) for companies so you have a rallying cry that drives internal decisions and external actions.
You have a non-traditional Instagram handle for yourself @facingsouth. Tell me about it.
When I made my Instagram account, I'd only been in Chicago for a few years. My husband and I left Texas and moved to Chicago—leaving all of our family and a whole bunch of friends behind. We didn't leave to run from anything. We left because we were running to something.
It was really important to me at the time (and still is) that I can continue to grow and evolve but always remember where I came from. To me, "facingsouth" represents that balance.
Is there a kind of brand you prefer to work with?
I definitely prefer to work with brands that have a story to tell, not just a product to sell. I'm always drawn to a brand with heart 🤍. You know, the underdog and needs to do something big to be disruptive... or the one that has an incredible mission but is terrible at articulating it so no one knows about them...or those that are actually working to make the lives of their consumers and people better—not just saying they are because it looks good to market themselves that way.
Those are really fun brands to work with because it's really rewarding to put my experience to work for them. It's where I can see my effort as a creator make a difference.
It's hard for me to work on a brand that doesn't have strong core values or a vision beyond making money. Those are the companies I just don't click with because they don't have something authentic to say or believe in.
As a consultant, a creative and a company co-founder, you juggle a few different roles in your professional life. How do you balance those roles and what have you learned from the experience?
I've spent the majority of my career building to where I am today. I didn't realize it at the time—I don't know if I'm capable of that kind of life planning. 😅 Working most of my career in agencies for every size brand, I've gotten to wear a TON of hats and be at just about every level of the "career ladder" while learning to juggle crazy tight timelines and crazy high expectations.
For me, balance of these feels really easy because I spent so many years out of balance. I have worked INSANELY hard my whole life—constantly working to impress (myself, my clients, my team) and pushing to be the best.
The biggest thing I've learned is also the thing that allows me to have balance in my life now and juggle all of these things.
I've learned what I'm actually good at and what I'm not.
I've learned what I love to do- what makes me feel alive, and what I don't—the things that leave me frustrated at the end of the day.
And I've learned to surround myself with people who are both inspiring and talented—and who are great at the things I'm not.
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And I've learned not to waste time and energy working with people who are a**holes.
I believe I'm good at articulating a vision and giving direction for bringing it to life. In finding & inspiring good, talented people (usually creatives) and pointing them in a direction and empowering them to push the vision forward.
When I'm functioning in that capacity, it feels so natural to me that it's easy to work on multiple companies at once, including my own. When you've co-led an agency of 100 people (40 creatives) with roughly 100 clients while also building that brand and navigating the fears and uncertainty of your people during a global pandemic and unrest in the city of Chicago (all while also dealing with your own startup and family and school for your kid).... juggling what I'm juggling feels really nice. 😉
What is something in your career that you're the most proud of?
I'm planning on my answer to this question changing in the next 6 months because of the things we're building with Ovie... but while I'm excited about it, it's still in process.
So I'd have to say building agency with my friend Scott Fujii. The agency we created, ES99, was one that I am unbelievably proud. The creative team was incredible. I built a team of people by finding other smart, talented, kind creatives that just wanted to do great work and push themselves and their clients. We created work that we were proud of—and that made clients happy. We built great relationships with our clients and we threw out all of the traditional hand holding that agencies do with their creatives. Our creatives were reliable and respectful. They didn't need to be babysat, in fact, they constantly blew me away with going above and beyond.
We were structured for mentoring—where we talked about our limitations and how we wanted to continue to grow. To have a growth-minded creative team of people who get their work done and support each other is a beautiful thing to witness. I'm super proud of that dynamic team of non-toxic creatives and the work we were able to accomplish. I honestly don't think any team could get out the sheer number of great ideas and articulations every day. It was really impressive.
I could talk so much more about that creative team, but it was also supported by so much that I can't take credit for—the devs, account team, research, sales, and the backing and support of a bigger parent company that gave us the freedom to run.
It was really pretty incredible.
What’s one thing about you that people wouldn’t expect?
My family (my husband, daughter and I) have hosted a dinner at our house (almost) every week for the past 14 years in Chicago and for 3 years prior to that in Dallas.
We call it Family Dinner Night.
We don't have family in Chicago (we knew almost no one when we moved up here) and we know that we're not the only ones, so we've started this to give people who don't have family here a place where they can come and feel grounded and supported.
It's a potluck where we provide the main dish (I'm not a chef... so it's never fancy) and everyone else brings the rest. Right now we average about 18 people, although it's been as big as 40 and small as 4 depending on what people are doing. We treat it like showing up at your parents or siblings. Wear whatever, bring whoever, pour your own drink and hang out as long as you want. 🤍
