Bill Petrie just might have a screw loose. How else can you explain starting a business smack dab in the middle of a pandemic?

But that’s exactly what he and co-owner Kelsey Cunningham did when they launched brandivate just four months after lockdowns went into effect and #QuarantineLife became a thing.

“We were dumb enough to think we knew what we were doing,” jokes Petrie. “Let’s start a company during a pandemic… because why not?”

But don’t be fooled by Petrie’s naivete. The 21-year veteran of the promotional products industry knew exactly what he was doing, and he had an ambitious plan that included social media, industry influencers, and promotional products.

"Pick influencers who are active on social, fun, creative, and competitive." --Bill Petrie, brandivate

In this audacious episode of the Social Angle, Vinnie Driscoll and Melissa Newman pick Petrie’s brain about the campaign that put brandivate on the map, the six-step process he used to cultivate a successful brand launch, how influencers were chosen, and the importance of authentic engagements for inbound leads.

And since Petrie’s a big Van Halen fan, they also discuss David Lee Roth vs. Sammy Hagar, as well as favorite albums and songs.

This episode rocks so you might as well “Jump” in “Right Now”!

Podcast Chapters (only available on desktop)
03:55: What inspired Bill to launch brandivate
08:13: From conception to execution - how it all went down
21:48: How Bill vetted influencers
29:22: The power of inbound marketing
42:13: 3 questions about Van Halen, including favorite song

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Just wrapped up an exciting #SocialAngle podcast with @Melissa_ASI and @billpetrie where we discussed, among other things, the greatness of #VanHalen. Now I gotta know ... who is your favorite VH lead singer?#Poll

— ASICentral (@asicentral) April 7, 2021

Our favorite Van Halen songs

Bill's ("Unchained" from the album Fair Warning): 

Melissa's ("Hot For Teacher" from the album 1984):

Vinnie's ("Little Guitars" from the album Diver Down):