Login
Join our Community
Close search

BUSINESS OF INFLUENCE PODCAST

Latest Episode
SUBSCRIBE

Listen to the podcast through the below channels

Listen on

Spotify

Listen on

YouTube

Listen on

Apple Podcasts

ABOUT BUSINESS OF INFLUENCE PODCAST

Style ID Africa is a full-service influencer marketing agency at the intersection of culture, creativity, and influence. We’ve helped brands build impactful connections with African…

LATEST EPISODES

←
→

ABOUT BUSINESS OF INFLUENCE PODCAST

Style ID Africa is a full-service influencer marketing agency at the intersection…

Episode 12

We identify authentic voices aligned with your brand values and audience through…

Episode 11

We identify authentic voices aligned with your brand values and audience through…

Episode 10

We identify authentic voices aligned with your brand values and audience through…

Episode 09

We identify authentic voices aligned with your brand values and audience through…

Episode 08

We identify authentic voices aligned with your brand values and audience through…

Episode 7

We identify authentic voices aligned with your brand values and audience through…

YouTube Video VVVadXNwUjYxRmZuS0N2MEhlOEhDcUtnLkZsZEhYLS13SWV3 In South Africa, two consumers can live completely different realities in the same market. LSMs don’t tell the full story like people in Alex owning iPhones. A copy-paste strategy won’t cut it for a young African consumer navigating tech and e-commerce.Watch the full episode to discover how to navigate the complex realities of the African consumer market!#MarketingStrategy #AdvertisingIndustry #FutureOfMarketing #TransformationStrategy
Why "Copy-Paste" Marketing Fails in South Africa | Market Reality
Style ID Africa 9 September 2026 9:00 AM
In South Africa, two consumers can live completely different realities in the same market. LSMs don’t tell the full story like people in Alex owning iPhones. A copy-paste strategy won’t cut it for a young African consumer navigating tech and e-commerce.Watch the full episode to discover how to navigate the complex realities of the African consumer market!#MarketingStrategy #AdvertisingIndustry #FutureOfMarketing #TransformationStrategy 1:02
Why "Copy-Paste" Marketing Fails in South Africa | Market Reality
YouTube Video VVVadXNwUjYxRmZuS0N2MEhlOEhDcUtnLkZsZEhYLS13SWV3
VIRALITY IS NOT LUCK, IT IS ENGINEERING AND MIKE SHARMAN HAS THE CASE STUDIES TO PROVE IT.In this episode of Founder's Desk, hosted by Tami Ruschin, Mike Sharman, founder of Retroviral, sits down for one of the most entertaining and strategically dense conversations this show has hosted. From Hollywood acting classes and catering for wealthy London households to building one of South Africa's most culturally influential creative agencies, this is a founder story that defies the conventional path and is better for it.The career conversation that opens this episode is worth the watch on its own. Mike's early experience in telephone marketing built the thick skin that every founder eventually needs. His time studying acting and comedy in Hollywood gave him something far more valuable to a marketer than a reel. It gave him a framework for understanding why things resonate.Marketing and stand-up comedy, he argues, are cousins. Both rely on identifying a shared truth, a premise that an audience already feels but has not yet heard articulated, and then delivering it in a way that creates a reaction. That insight runs through everything Retroviral has ever made.The virality conversation is the centrepiece of this episode and it dismantles one of the most persistent myths in the marketing industry. Virality is not a happy accident. It is a deliberate outcome built on remarkable content that captures a real human insight, seeded to the right people at the right moment to spark network effects that the algorithm then amplifies. Mike has done this consistently enough to call it a system, and this episode is the clearest articulation of that system he has ever put on record.The Nando's campaigns that defined an era of South African social media, the Mugabe lookalike activation that generated international recognition by engineering FOMO through controlled access, these are not just great creative stories. They are case studies in how cultural intelligence, strategic distribution and a willingness to take calculated risks combine to produce work that the industry talks about for years.The agency culture conversation is equally sharp. Retroviral's emphasis on diverse perspectives is not a values statement. It is a creative necessity in a market as culturally complex as South Africa, where tone deafness is not just a reputational risk but a commercial one. Mike is direct about the importance of asking the right questions upfront, setting clear parameters early and approaching collaboration with no ego, because the best work comes from teams that compete in execution and align in purpose.The episode closes with a commercial reminder that grounds everything that came before it. No amount of creative virality can save a broken product. The goal was always sales, acquisition and business impact, and creativity is the most efficient path to get there, not the destination itself.His advice to young entrepreneurs is the most honest thing anyone in his position could say. Chase your dreams while you are young and the weight of life's commitments has not yet made risk feel impossible. The current era, with AI reshaping what is creatable and distributable, is the best time in history to start something worth talking about.If you work in marketing, advertising, brand strategy or the creator economy, this episode is essential viewing.Founder's Desk is brought to you by Style ID Africa. ---- Enjoyed the podcast? Join the conversation using #FoundersDeskListen and Follow Us Apple: https://tr.ee/7S9Qw2RYaB Spotify: https://tr.ee/8yFVYi Instagram: https://tr.ee/9MFBqI TikTok: https://tr.ee/F5wHS1 LinkedIn: https://tr.ee/72U7z0Follow Our Host and Guest Tami: https://www.instagram.com/tami_blend_ruschin/ Mike Sharman: https://www.instagram.com/mikesharman/?hl=enEmail: info@styleid.africa Music Produced by Emcee: https://www.instagram.com/emceeiii/ #ViralMarketing #CreativeStrategy #Retroviral 37:38
Ep. 14 Virality by Design #foundersdesk
YouTube Video VVVadXNwUjYxRmZuS0N2MEhlOEhDcUtnLmVRMVFFVkhjRTNj
Connecting the Dots in Marketing: Embracing the Agile ConsumerYuvisti Ramgulam on why marketing teams need to look beyond a single corporate vertical. In an ever-changing omnichannel world, the strategy must evolve with the ultimate disruptor: the consumer.Watch the full episode to learn how to align your team with today’s agile consumer.#MarketingStrategy #AdvertisingIndustry #FutureOfMarketing #TransformationStrategy 0:58
Ep. 18 The Next Brief #businessofinfluence
YouTube Video VVVadXNwUjYxRmZuS0N2MEhlOEhDcUtnLkszRDE1eTVJYWFR
THE MARKETING INDUSTRY IS NOT BEHIND BECAUSE IT STOPPED LEARNING. IT IS BEHIND BECAUSE IT STOPPED UNLEARNING.In this episode of the Business of Influence Podcast, hosted by Leroy Marc, Yuvisti Ramgulam, a seasoned voice across client, consulting and production roles, sits down for a conversation about what the marketing and advertising industry needs to confront honestly before it can build anything worth building next.The framing that runs through this entire episode is precise and uncomfortable. The industry is no longer in its foundational phase but it has not yet arrived at what comes next. It is sitting in the middle, carrying the weight of outdated practices, inflated expectations and a volume obsession that has quietly crowded out the creativity and strategic clarity that made this industry matter in the first place.The production conversation is one of the most important reframes in this episode. Production has been treated as a support function, a line item that gets what is left of the budget after everything else has been decided. Yuvisti makes the case that this is exactly backwards. Production is the bridge between strategy and the consumer. It is where the idea either lands or falls apart, and an industry that treats it as an afterthought is an industry that has already lost control of its own output.The agency triangle insight is equally sharp. The persistent expectation that work should be quick, good and cheap is not a negotiating position. It is a contradiction, and the clients and agencies that keep having that conversation instead of a value driven one are the ones producing work that nobody remembers. The shift required is not tactical. It is cultural.The AI conversation in this episode is one of the most grounded takes on the subject this show has hosted. AI is an input, not a solution, and the industry's job is not to hand over the work but to decide what AI should do and what human judgment, talent and experience must retain ownership of. That distinction is the one that will separate the agencies that thrive in the next era from the ones that dissolve into it.The South African market insight closes the episode with something worth amplifying beyond this conversation. Local marketers operate in one of the most complex, fragmented and diverse markets in the world, and the resilience and adaptability that is required is not a limitation. It is a competitive advantage that the rest of the world has not yet fully reckoned with.This is the next brief and the industry needs to read it.If you work in marketing, advertising, production, brand strategy or the creator economy, this episode will challenge how you think about what needs to be unlearnt before the next era can begin.The Business of Influence is brought to you by Style ID Africa. — Enjoyed the podcast? Join the conversation using #BusinessOfInfluenceListen and Follow Us Apple: https://tr.ee/7S9Qw2RYaB Spotify: https://tr.ee/8yFVYi Instagram: https://tr.ee/9MFBqI TikTok: https://tr.ee/F5wHS1 LinkedIn: https://tr.ee/72U7z0Follow Our Host and Guest Leroy: https://www.instagram.com/leroymarcn/?hl=en Yuvisti Ramgulam: https://www.instagram.com/yuvisti/?hl=enEmail: info@styleid.africa Music Produced by Emcee: https://www.instagram.com/emceeiii/#MarketingStrategy #AdvertisingIndustry #FutureOfMarketing #TransformationStrategy 32:05
Ep 18 The Next Brief #businessofinfluence
YouTube Video VVVadXNwUjYxRmZuS0N2MEhlOEhDcUtnLk0yZGJtUTNhMkdF
Global research claims Gen Z is a lonely generation but does that actually hold up in Africa? When looking into local markets, the reality is completely different. African Gen Zs aren't lonely; they are connected by family and community, but they face a major lack of access compared to first-world countries. Discover why we need to start driving research directly from Africa, the continent with the largest Gen Z population.Discover how local insights shape global brand strategies.#IntegratedMedia #AfricanMarketing #ConsumerIntelligence #MediaStrategy 0:52
Global Trends vs. African Reality
YouTube Video VVVadXNwUjYxRmZuS0N2MEhlOEhDcUtnLkJTVmRVVHR4U3lN
Amanda Hoosen-Ramguthee shares why, despite cultural differences, human needs remain universal. From value and connection to trust, she explores how brands and creators can bridge the gap to make influencer marketing more meaningful.Watch the full episode to hear how we’re reshaping opportunities for creators!#IntegratedMedia #AfricanMarketing #ConsumerIntelligence #MediaStrategy 0:56
Ep. 13 The 54-Market View #foundersdesk
YouTube Video VVVadXNwUjYxRmZuS0N2MEhlOEhDcUtnLlRZRnc2ZUtGUVUw
Load More... Subscribe

Get IN TOUCH

sponsorship inquiries

Fill in your details below and a member of our Business Development team will be in touch to explore how Style ID Africa can help you connect, engage, and grow.

    Report

    Harassment or bullying behavior
    Contains mature or sensitive content
    Contains misleading or false information
    Contains abusive or derogatory content
    Contains spam, fake content or potential malware

    Block Member?

    Please confirm you want to block this member.

    You will no longer be able to:

    • See blocked member's posts
    • Mention this member in posts
    • Invite this member to groups
    • Add this member as a connection

    Please note: This action will also remove this member from your connections and send a report to the site admin. Please allow a few minutes for this process to complete.

    Report

    You have already reported this .