What Allison Ellsworth has said about Brand positioning

Ellsworth says Poppi's number one KPI was brand awareness and that brand considerations overrode data on decisions like the Costco variety pack.

“our number one KPI was brand awareness. How do we truly build a long-lasting generational brand with every ounce of every decision that we did?”

My First Million: I built a $2,000,000,000 business on vibes (Aug 24, 2026) · Listen from 3:57

Ellsworth says the Super Bowl ad tripled Poppi's awareness overnight and reclassified the product as a soda by saying so 17 times.

“After the Super Bowl, we said we were a soda 17 times in that Super Bowl ad. Afterwards, everyone calls us a soda”

My First Million: I built a $2,000,000,000 business on vibes (Aug 24, 2026) · Listen from 15:36

Ellsworth says embarrassment is the most underexplored emotion in achieving success and holds people back from trying.

“I think embarrassment is the most underexplored emotion when it comes to being successful in life”

My First Million: I built a $2,000,000,000 business on vibes (Aug 24, 2026) · Listen from 24:17

Ellsworth, who says she is severely dyslexic, rejects the idea that business books and meditation routines are necessary and instead follows culture.

“I'm like severely dyslexic. You could not like pay me to read a book”

My First Million: I built a $2,000,000,000 business on vibes (Aug 24, 2026) · Listen from 25:49

Ellsworth says the best brands are only 10 to 15 percent better than the established norm rather than radically new niche products.

“I think that we make the best brands and the best businesses are 10 to 15% better than the established norm. It's not the niche products”

My First Million: I built a $2,000,000,000 business on vibes (Aug 24, 2026) · Listen from 36:08

Ellsworth says the marketer's goal is to move buying power from the head to the heart by tapping nostalgic emotion rather than listing ingredients.

“how do you get to the consumer and you move the buying power from the head to the heart so they're emotionally connected with your brand”

My First Million: I built a $2,000,000,000 business on vibes (Aug 24, 2026) · Listen from 37:07