🎙️ Shelf Help Podcast: Adam Brown - Leading Social for the Fastest-Growing CPG Brands

On this episode, we're joined by Adam Brown, Founder & President of Sircle Media - the go-to social media agency for CPG brands. Adam has been in and around digital since 1999, starting Sircle in 2012 after a decade running sales and marketing in the mortgage industry. Adam walks through what it takes for social to impact retail velocity. One brand told him: move 10,000 units at Walmart and I do not care what it costs. He breaks down how his team proves that lift with control regions, geofencing and hyperlocal creator support, and why the Costco parking lot video every creative director hates keeps beating the polished stuff. He also shares the seeding math most founders never hear, one or two posts out of ten when you gift cold, and the college campus playbook he would run instead. --------------- Episode Highlights: 💡 The light bulb moment behind Sircle Media 💸 Pricing an agency at the cost of one hire ⚠️ The messy middle and the toughest year in CPG in 14 years ✂️ Why a 10% haircut beats cutting a partner 🔀 Social as a horizontal, not a vertical 📱 Two primary platforms, two secondary 🛒 What it takes for social to move retail velocity 📸 Scrappy UGC versus studio content 🎓 The college campus playbook for seeding 💳 The hot take that it is all paid now 🛍️ TikTok Shop and who it actually fits 💬 Community management as the most common miss 🔮 Trends: a return to fundamentals --------------- Table of Contents: 00:00 – Intro 01:05 – The light bulb moment behind Sircle Media 03:19 – Pricing an agency at the cost of one hire 04:54 – When a brand is ready for an agency 06:19 – The messy middle and the toughest year in CPG 07:47 – The 10% haircut across partners 09:37 – Social as a horizontal, not a vertical 11:59 – Two primary platforms, two secondary 14:56 – Making social drive retail velocity 18:34 – UGC versus studio when money is tight 20:00 – The college campus playbook 22:42 – Building for constant algorithm change 25:26 – The hot take that it is all paid 27:56 – TikTok Shop and who it actually fits 31:23 – Vetting influencers and creators 34:53 – Why most seeding programs flop 37:52 – Community management as table stakes 39:56 – Trends: a return to fundamentals --------------- Links: Sircle Media – https://www.sircle.me/ Follow Adam Brown on LinkedIn –   / adamjbrown23   Follow me on LinkedIn –   / adam-martin-steinberg   For help with CPG production design - packaging and label design, product renders, POS assets, retail media assets, quick-turn sales and marketing assets and all the other work that bogs down creative teams - check out https://www.kitprint.co/ Shout out to my friends over at Glimpse, the go-to partner for automating retail-related back-office operations and unlocking margin trapped in invalid fees and manual processes. Are you in the market for a new flexible packaging partner? Check out HD Packaging. Third-generation, family-owned and built for the needs of category leaders like Newman’s Own and A Dozen Cousins. Faster launches, lower costs, and no artwork fees. Looking to dominate the cognitive health space? Upgrade your formula with Cognizin. It’s the branded, clinically backed citicoline trusted by top innovators in supplements, foods, and beverages. Differentiate your brand today at Cognizin.com.