At Merrick Creative, we believe the most powerful brands don’t just speak—they spark conversations that shape culture. This week, we’re proud to announce the launch of Merrick Studios, a new podcast network we’ve built in partnership with Grammy-nominated rapper and entrepreneur Bun B and music industry veteran Jeffrey Sledge.

Podcasting has grown up. It’s no longer two people yelling into a USB mic in their kitchen (though, to be fair, some of those shows are still great). Now we’ve got networks — real, curated ecosystems of shows — connecting brands with hyper-engaged audiences in ways banner ads can only dream about.

For most consumers, it’s not enough for products to just taste and look good: they need to do good too. 

What does it really mean to “go viral” on Instagram in 2025? And more importantly—how do you replicate it? We recently took a deep dive into a real-world case study that breaks the mold: the Instagram account @rhymecology.

Whether you laughed, cringed, or rage-tweeted your way through Happy Gilmore 2, one thing’s for sure: it was packed with cameos and product placements. Golf brands, fast food chains, energy drinks—even the sunglasses had their own close-up.

At Merrick Creative, we’re spending the summer doing what we usually do: building brands, telling stories, surfing (the web, that is), and pushing creative work forward. But this season, we’re also running a little experiment—finding practical ways to bring AI into our everyday workflows.

Athletes have been influencing consumer decisions long before the word “influencer” existed. (Think MJ and his shoes – enough said.) Here are best practices to actually make athlete partnerships work – without wasting budget on empty fame.

Working on a skyline-shaping development one week and a grocery-aisle breakout the next will stretch your brand muscles in multiple directions. But if there’s one thing we’ve learned at Merrick Creative, it’s this: smart ideas travel.

Great content doesn’t always need a big camera crew. In fact, some of the most engaging brand moments happen spontaneously — and the iPhone 16 makes it easier than ever to capture them in high quality.