In this episode of Unicorn Campaigns, host Dave Valentine sits down with Tyler, the founder of Morning Mugs, a Baltimore-based coffee shop that’s redefining the café experience one color sleeve at a time. What started as a playful mug game in an office kitchen turned into a full-blown brand movement — with lines out the door and customers dreaming in purple.

🔥 In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How Morning Mugs grew from a quirky Instagram guessing game into a brick-and-mortar business with a devoted local following.

• The brand psychology behind Tyler’s color sleeve game — and how it turned a daily coffee run into a joyful, gamified ritual that sparks emotional connections.

• Why Tyler believes “people don’t buy what you sell, they buy why you sell it,” and how that belief shapes every customer touchpoint, from seasonal specials to event appearances.

• The secrets to creating consistent brand experiences across locations without losing the fun, flavor, and founder energy that built the brand in the first place.

• How Tyler handles the shift from operator to CEO, builds marketing into his weekly rhythms, and protects his time and focus like a true brand leader.

🎯 Whether you’re building a food & beverage brand, launching a brick-and-mortar store, or just want to turn customers into storytellers, Tyler’s approach to joy-first marketing and playful consistency is packed with inspiration.

Keywords for discovery: Morning Mugs Baltimore, gamified coffee shop, coffee marketing ideas, small business branding podcast, experiential marketing, brand storytelling, coffee sleeve game, customer retention strategy, emotional branding, cafe entrepreneur journey, marketing joy, Simon Sinek brand why, hospitality marketing podcast, Unicorn Campaigns podcast

📲 Follow @morningmugscoffee on all platforms or stop by one of their Baltimore locations to play the color game yourself.

🎧 Subscribe to Unicorn Campaigns for more behind-the-scenes stories of wildly successful marketing moves that built brands worth raving about.

In this episode of Vox & Coin, hosts Jake “The Wizard” Tlapek and Dave Valentine break down why most brands butcher the customer journey—and how to fix it with intentional design, strategic delight, and marketing that actually anticipates what your customer needs next.

💡 Spoiler: If your post-purchase flow starts with a receipt and ends with silence, you’re doing it wrong.

✨ This episode covers:

• Why a receipt is the worst thing to send right after a purchase

• How Apple, Disney, and Chuck E. Cheese build delight into every step

• Why your customer's next problem should be your next offer

• Real onboarding tips that turn “buyer’s remorse” into brand loyalty

• How dentists, HVAC techs, and SEO teams can crush the customer experience

• The art of re-enrollment: bringing customers back to their original vision

• What we can learn from Walkmans, Moldy Whoppers, and Chrome’s dino game

🧠 Plus:

• Confetti UX, dopamine hits, and why packaging is a marketing channel

• Designing for what hurts after purchase—before your customer even notices

• Why customer delight isn’t fluff—it’s retention

• The hidden moments that turn one-time buyers into loyal fans

🎯 Whether you're an eCom brand, agency owner, or SaaS startup, this episode gives you the playbook to stop losing customers after the sale—and start creating moments they’ll actually remember.

Search-optimized keywords: customer journey optimization, post-purchase marketing, customer delight strategy, onboarding experience tips, product packaging UX, how to improve retention 2025, best customer experience brands, re-enrollment marketing, delight-driven UX, Apple packaging psychology, SEO onboarding tips, small business marketing podcast, behavioral marketing insights, service business retention strategy.

💥 It’s insightful. It’s unexpected. It’s the wake-up call your customer journey needed.

Need help mapping your journey or upgrading your onboarding flow? Visit us at voxandcoin.com or follow Jake @wizardmarketing and Dave @realdeval.

🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review—so more founders, creatives, and brand builders can stop sending receipts and start building relationships.

In this episode of Unicorn Campaigns, host Dave Valentine chats with Ken Newman, the VP of Marketing at Zebra Pen — a brand that's quietly revolutionizing how we think about something as simple as writing. From songwriter competitions to fortune cookie fortunes, Ken’s creative strategies prove that even the most everyday products can spark unforgettable campaigns.

🔥 In this episode, you’ll learn: How Zebra Pen created national buzz by aligning with National Songwriters Day and spotlighting undiscovered artists who still write lyrics by hand. The origin of the iconic “Find Zen in Your Pen” campaign — and how it evolved from a product differentiator into a movement around mindfulness and mental health. Why Zebra invested in a 3D animated zebra mascot, and how simple packaging changes helped consumers finally “get” the brand. The wild marketing idea that put Zebra Pen inside millions of fortune cookies—and why it worked. Ken’s leadership philosophy, shaped by years as a coach and educator, and why great marketing starts with great internal culture and management.

🎯 Whether you’re selling tech, tools, or tangible goods, Ken’s story is a masterclass in emotional branding, out-of-the-box campaigns, and staying relevant in a digital-first world.

Keywords for discovery: Zebra Pen marketing, songwriting campaign, pen and paper movement, find zen in your pen, creative brand strategy, consumer product campaigns, coaching leadership in marketing, product storytelling, Ken Newman Zebra, Unicorn Campaigns podcast, fortune cookie marketing, songwriting sweepstakes, mental health awareness marketing, small budget big brand impact

📲 Follow Ken on LinkedIn and explore Zebra Pen’s campaigns at zebrapen.com — and don’t miss their ZenOffice videos on YouTube for a clever twist on office culture.

🎧 Subscribe to Unicorn Campaigns for more behind-the-scenes stories of wildly successful marketing moves that built brands worth raving about.