"Dabblers Die." The Advice That Built Her Business | Jenn Schimmelpfennig, Pivot Brands

On today's show I sat down with Jenn Schimmelpfennig, founder and president of Indianapolis agency Pivot Brands. Pivot Brands launched in 2006 after Jenn built a brand-strategy segment inside Print Resources and spun it off with support from its owners. She describes learning business early from her father, starting her career post-9/11, and developing a strategy-first approach that uses research to define a brand's core idea and tone, with examples like GreenCycle's "GreenCycle equals mulch" focus and dog-loving Metazoa Brewing's "drink beer, help animals" positioning. She discusses earning credibility as a young woman by relying on customer and employee insights, insisting on a leadership-table posture, and staying focused on branding rather than taking every project. Our conversation also covers place branding through No Mean City in 2013 and the rapid-response Indy Welcomes All campaign in response to the Religious Freedom Restoration Act in 2015. If you like this episode and want to hear more Get IN. episodes where I interview Hoosiers making a difference, visit getindiana.com/podcast. You are going to learn about: - How Pivot Brands was Founded - The Process of Defining a Brand Identity - Place Branding Concepts Thank you to our partners: Visit Wabash County Bloomrank Check out these great clips from the show: 01:23 Guest Introduction: Jenn Schimmelpfennig, Pivot Brands 03:18 Early Business Spark 05:06 First Jobs And Learning 07:16 From Printing To Strategy 10:02 First Big Win GreenCycle 12:53 Finding Brand Voice 14:47 Launching Pivot In 2006 21:57 Building Credibility Young 22:50 Leading As A Young Woman 26:23 Growing Pivot With Purpose 27:53 Narrowing To Branding Lane 29:06 Saying No And Referrals 32:17 Starting Later And Niche 33:58 Quit Dabbling Commit Fully 35:48 Branding Places In Indiana 36:37 Authentic Place Branding 37:56 Measuring Place ROI 38:42 No Mean City Origins 41:03 Telling Hard Truths 42:41 80 Creators Collective 44:02 Name Meaning Layers 46:40 From No Mean City Forward 49:51 Indy Welcomes All Crisis 54:43 Branding Indiana Strategy 56:31 Word Association Game 01:01:50 Why Indiana Home Get IN. is brought to you by our friends at Sweetwater. Whether you are looking to start a podcast or level up your current show you need to hit them up.