Susan Credle on M&M’s, Allstate Mayhem, Brave Clients, and the Death of Populist Advertising

Susan Credle has helped build some of the most famous advertising characters of the last 30 years, from the M&M’s ensemble to Allstate’s Mayhem. In this episode of Second Wind, she joins Kerrie Finch and Gully Flowers for a sharp, funny and unusually honest conversation about what makes creative work last.

Susan talks about seeing brands as characters, how M&M’s grew from candy mascots into a comedic ensemble, why Mayhem worked because it was deeply strategic, and what great clients do that risk-averse ones often miss.

She also gets into one of the biggest tensions in modern advertising: the gap between work that wins awards and work that reaches real people. From the rise of case studies to the decline of truly populist creative, Susan makes the case for work that does not need to be followed around and explained.

This is a conversation about brave clients, fragile progress, creative leadership, the pressure of becoming one of the first female CCOs in America, and why the best work should make someone in the world say thank you.