MELISSA MARASCO

For too long, communications has been misunderstood as a transactional discipline—a simple game of pitching stories and collecting press clips. But that narrow view fundamentally misrepresents what great communicators actually do. Communications isn't just about earning media coverage; it's about playing reputational chess, where every move shapes how stakeholders perceive your organization, often three or four steps ahead of the immediate moment. David Ogilvy famously said,

In an age where consumers encounter thousands of marketing messages daily, something interesting is happening: the brands that resonate aren't just selling products—they're inviting us into fully realized worlds. World building, a concept borrowed from fantasy literature and film, is emerging as a powerful framework in brand communications. The underlying psychology is fascinating: our brains process narrative immersion in remarkably similar ways, whether we're exploring the

When a brand, public figure, or organization faces a crisis, traditional playbooks tend to default to legal reviews, tightly worded...

I recently returned from a trip to Japan — a country where tradition and modernity exist in a seamless, respectful balance. As I walked...