Storyteller + Brand Builder
Michael
Sudmeier
I partner with brands worth believing in, helping them craft stories that are as authentic and original as they are. And by amplifying these stories, I guide them in solidifying their identity, establishing credibility, building a community around their brand, and driving sales. For over fifteen years, partners at the forefront of their industries have trusted me with their marketing, copywriting, editorial initiatives, and public relations.
Drop In
Marketing | Public Relations | Copywriting | Editorial Initiatives
Industries
Action Sports
Lifestyle
Outdoors
Luxury
B2B
ABOUT
AUTHENTIC EXPERIENCE
By creating stories and experiences that are as authentic as they are compelling, I guide partners in distilling and amplifying their messaging while cultivating a loyal community around their brand.My ability to craft stories and build brands stems from my own experiences. After growing up riding the icy parks and pipes of the Midwest, I moved to Breckenridge, Colorado to live in a parking lot and snowboard everyday. Although I spent my evenings with my head beneath the dashboard of my Jeep Wrangler and my toes touching the tailgate, the days were worth it.The search for snow continued, taking me to the Tetons the following year. From there, a passion for teaching led me to the Zuni Reservation, where I served as a Teach For America corps member for three years. In the midst of spending seventy hours each week grading essays, developing curricula, and working with students, I made a weekly pilgrimage to Arizona Snowbowl, Silverton, or Wolf Creek. For many years, I also spent my summers directing outdoor education backpacking programs in northern New Mexico. Sometime between shredding and teaching, I biked across the United States a few times.After returning to Jackson, Wyoming, I began dividing my time between writing and riding. This led to serving as the Managing Editor of Teton Gravity Research, where I spearheaded the company's editorial, content marketing, and social media efforts. Throughout this journey–and beyond–I wrote pieces and created content that found their way to the pages and pixels of dozens of publications and media platforms, including the New York Times, Backcountry, The Mountain Gazette, TransWorld Snowboarding, and other legendary titles. I also served as the Wyoming Arts Council’s Fiction Fellow. I now collaborate with a range of brands on marketing, public relations, copywriting, and editorial initiatives.
EXAMPLE WORK
SHRED.
I managed SHRED.'s global PR and helped spearhead marketing initiatives and social media for the helmet, eyewear, and protection brand. In time, this helped contribute to a 60% year-over-year growth in purchase orders in the United States while also solidifying the company's identity and overall brand strategy.Given SHRED.'s status as a small, independent brand that swings well above its weight class, I embraced diverse responsibilities and created meaningful opportunities for the brand—all while equipped with minimal resources. While in charge of global PR, I helped fuel sales and increase brand awareness by earning editorial coverage in endemic and nonendemic print and digital media, including The Wall Street Journal, Outside, CNBC, Ski, Pinkbike, MIT News, The Snowboarder's Journal, Bike, Powder, GearJunkie, SGB Media, and Freeskier.While serving as the brand's de facto copywriter, I ensured our ecommerce copy and social media aligned with SHRED.'s rebranding, which placed a new emphasis on creating an identity that was accessible and inclusive. Equally important, the resources I crafted helped differentiate SHRED. from its competitors, increase awareness of its proprietary technology, and better communicate the emotional benefits of the brand's products. I also collaborated closely with colleagues to develop marketing initiatives, implement a new social media strategy, produce point of purchase resources, create and execute SHRED.'s YouTube strategy, and forge affiliate partnerships with a curated network of media.During my time with SHRED., I played a crucial role in refining the brand's presence in North America—which was especially important given SHRED.'s global headquarters are in Venice, Italy. Historically, the brand's copy and marketing initiatives lacked the polish, authenticity, and credibility that SHRED. deserved and that the North American market required.
EXAMPLE WORK
STANCE
From 2011 to 2015, I served as Stance's primary copywriter. During this time, the iconic sock and knitwear brand transformed from a small start-up with a handful of employees to a global player with $70 million in annual revenue. Stance Cofounder Aaron Hennings described me as "the voice of the brand."I helped refine Stance's voice and identity by crafting copy for diverse applications, including product packaging, catalogs, newsletters, social media, biographies for the brand's Punks & Poets ambassadors, Google Ads, and thousands of sock descriptions.The copy and resources I created helped launch collaborations with Star Wars, the NBA, Dwayne Wade, the Johnny Cash estate, Vans, and MLB. I also created the copy and assisted with refining the positioning necessary to launch a range of new product categories, including snowboarding, athletics, running, motocross, underwear, and the brand's dress and premium socks. Stance continues to use much of the copy I crafted.
EXAMPLE WORK
teton gravity research
I spearheaded Teton Gravity Research's editorial, social media, and content marketing initiatives. This involved managing a team of in-house staff and interns and a network of contributing writers and photographers; creating and managing exclusive content distribution partnerships with third-parties including The New York Times and USA Today; developing TGR's editorial vision and calendar; spearheading Tetongravity.com's transition from focusing exclusively on snowsports to becoming one of the world's leading action sports destinations; managing the brand's content creation and procurement budget; collaborating with the production team to market TGR's films and develop resources for supporting them; collaborating with the company's design and development team and a third-party agency to redesign and relaunch TGR's website; and countless other responsibilities. The work my colleagues and I did to develop and execute our editorial vision and redesign Tetongravity.com more than doubled the brand's website traffic, resulting in a substantial increase in ad and partnership revenue.
Current and Recent Partners
STANCE | SHRED. | NORDICA | TETON GRAVITY RESEARCH | DEELUXE SNOWBOARD BOOTS | SNOWSPORTS INDUSTRIES AMERICA | OUTDOOR LIFE | LIMMER BOOTS | NICHE SNOWBOARDS | THE MOUNTAIN GAZETTE | TRANSWORLD SNOWBOARDING | TRANSWORLD BUSINESS | CANDYGRIND | BACKCOUNTRY | BICYCLE RETAILER AND INDUSTRY NEWS | SPACECRAFT | FLUX BINDINGS | ICELANTIC + FIRST DEGREE | GLOBAL SALES GUYS | HEXO PLUS | KILLINGTON + THE BUTTERY AGENCY | KRONICLE | MOONBIKES | ILLUMINATI SNOWBOARDS | SKI AREA MANAGEMENT
