Designing Tomorrow: Creative Strategies for Social Impact
Designing Tomorrow explores a new playbook for modern social impact leaders and brands to reach their true impact potential.
Why do some social impact brands thrive, while so many others fail to get traction, build support for their cause, and make meaningful progress? Imagine your impact with truly sustainable revenue and resources. With deeper community engagement and relationships. With more influence in your social impact category.
Hosted by Eric Ressler, Founder & Creative Director of Cosmic, with co-host Jonathan Hicken, Executive Director of the Seymour Marine Discovery Center, each episode dives into the strategies, mindsets, and behaviors top social impact brands use to play and win in the attention economy. Go beyond high-level concepts to specific tools and tactics you can use today.
Watch on YouTube or listen to new episodes each Tuesday.
Let’s design a better tomorrow, together.
Designing Tomorrow is a Cosmic Production. Learn more at https://designbycosmic.com/
- Update frequency
- every 7 days
- Average duration
- 25 minutes
- Episodes
- 61
- Years Active
- 2024 - 2025
Cosmetic vs. Strategic Branding
Branding is about far more than just slick, eye-catching aesthetics.
What truly transforms an organization is a brand built on vision and strategy. Without a clear strategy, positioning, and messaging…
How to Get Your Social Impact Flywheel Turning
Do you ever feel like you’re just STUCK?
Like no matter what you try or how hard you work you just can’t seem to get traction?
We’ve all been there before, and it’s NOT a fun space to be in.
Here’s the…
Are You Using Your Power or Giving it Away?
Far too many social impact orgs are giving their power away — and they don’t even know they’re doing it.
There’s a fundamental tension in the social impact space.
A tension between the generosity tha…
Core Values That Actually Work
Core brand values aren’t just fluffy words you put on posters.
But without the right approach, that’s all they’ll ever be.
Core brand values — when done right — can be absolutely transformative for y…
What Makes a Great Social Impact Marketing Team?
What makes an EXCEPTIONAL social impact marketing team?
Often, when we get this question from clients, they are trying to determine what ROLES to hire for.
But that’s putting the cart before the horse…
Test Your Niche with These 5 Questions
There’s one thing the most successful social impact orgs get right, every time.
They truly define and own a niche.
Owning a niche as a social impact brand is probably one of the most important — but le…
Embodying Your Brand in Real Life
Your brand is not your logo. It’s not your fonts, or your colors, or your voice. It’s not your content. It’s not your mission.
Your brand is:
↳ Whether you come through on the promises you make to you…
When You Should (and Shouldn’t) Rebrand
You probably shouldn’t rebrand your social impact organization.
Except, of course, when you really should. (wait, what?)
Because when the conditions are right, a rebrand can be one of the most powerfu…
A HUGE Designing Tomorrow Update
In this bonus episode, we're kicking off Season 2 with a new co-host, Jonathan Hicken.
Learn about Jonathan’s path to social impact, from being raised by peace corps parents in Venezuela to his curren…
Designing Tomorrow — Season 2 Trailer
We’re back with Season 2 of Designing Tomorrow, and we’ve got an exciting update.
This season, we’re joined by our new cohost, Jonathan Hicken. Jonathan has extensive experience as a leader in the so…
Are You Bold Enough To Lead The Conversation?
Today’s episode is going to be a little different. Because this is the last episode in our first season of Designing Tomorrow.
Today, we’re not going to introduce any new concepts or strategies. Inst…
Stop Chasing Revenue. Learn to ATTRACT it Instead.
Is your social impact brand attracting enough revenue to power your mission and build a healthy, sustainable organization? Or do you feel like you’re constantly chasing donors and customers just to k…
How to Build a Community People Will ACTUALLY Join
Is community in decline, or is the way we’re participating just changing?
The data and statistics, as always, are messy. And there’s valid opinions and arguments supporting different trends here.
But w…
Create LESS Content to Get Better Results
What if we told you that there is a way to work smarter, not harder, with your content strategy that can help you get the absolute most out of each piece of content and idea that you come up with?
Whe…
Why No One Cares About Your Content (And How to Fix It)
Are you tired of putting time and energy into creating content that just doesn’t get meaningful engagement from your community?
We’ve all been there.
You’re proud of your hard work and effort. A feeli…
Are Websites Dead? Not When They Grow Your Revenue Like THIS.
Are websites a dying relic of the internet’s past?
With so much of our digital engagement today happening through social channels, there’s an ever-growing narrative that your website just isn’t that …
We’ve GOT to Stop Marketing Like This.
Picture this: You’re scrolling through your inbox and see a message from an organization you support. But something’s not quite right.
The subject line reads “URGENT! WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT!”
You open th…
The ONE THING All Successful Social Impact Brands Get Right
There’s one critical piece of your social impact strategy that you have to get right.
When you don’t get it right, it holds back every facet of your growth and progress.
We’ve seen it block and hinde…
How Top Brands Win Your Attention. Every Time.
Today, you’ll consume 74GB of information. That’s the equivalent of watching 16 movies. In one day.
Our inboxes are overflowing, our social streams are noisy, we doom scroll short form content on app…
The Modern Playbook for Social Impact Brands
In our rapidly-evolving world, today’s social impact brands are falling behind their profit-driven competitors.
The old playbook for creating meaningful social impact just isn’t keeping pace with mode…