POV: It’s your first meeting on a Monday morning after a long weekend.
Without fail, you’ve got a cup of coffee in your left hand, laptop in your right, and are mentally prepping yourself to muster up an ounce of energy. But, not if you’re Bryan Fittin.
Fittin, CEO and Founder of Go Rogue X, was on his second cup and ready to talk to us about all things product video and digital media. And to be honest, we were just as jazzed.
In the last month, Plum added Go Rogue X to its shop—as they’re offering Ad Creative for brands looking to up their digital product experience. The company is making huge strides in the online space, and continuing to innovate through product-led marketing. Jump head-first with us into Go Rogue’s origin story, findings within the video content niche, and how brands can elevate their bottom line.
So, how did Go Rogue X begin?
Bryan grinned— “that’s a long story.” We’ll cliffnote it for you.
Bryan is the owner, operator, and CEO of Go Rogue X. The film-focused marketing company became fb-official in 2019, but is actually a culmination of multiple endeavors from over a decade. Laying down creative roots, Bryan began photography in 2008 while he was traveling for his Fortune-500-in-a-suit gig. He started taking photos quite literally as a means to capture real life around him.
He took up the learning on his own—pouring energy and resources into additional classes and camera lenses. Bryan dove into multi-media production and honed his skills with white-lace weddings and button-up family portraits. In 2014, he expanded from photo and videography to the world of podcasts. With friend Eric Hinson, CEO of Explainify, they launched a concept revolving around business people choosing to risk stability and run after their dreams. (Not-ironically named Go Rogue). Although Bryan enjoyed his 9 to 5, he was “bit with the entrepreneurial bug,” his words not ours, and knew he was on the cusp of something extraordinary. After putting in his two weeks at his corporate job, he went Rogue.
In the beginning, there were trials, wins and losses, and plenty of learning. By investing in themselves, their equipment, and this creative passion, Bryan found himself with a growing team and a boomin’ business model.
How Did Go Rogue X find Plum?
Remember that podcast that Bryan started? Our CEO Rick West was asked to be a guest because he went rogue from P&G in 2001. We wouldn’t be the Plum you know and adore today!
Bryan commuted to our office to interview Rick one afternoon, and after their interview, Bryan clued him in to the beginnings of the start-up company.
“[Our conversation] really encouraged me to continue pursuing Go Rogue X,” Bryan said. “From that point on, it morphed into a video marketing company where we focus on long-form pieces of video content.”
Spill the tea. What does Go Rogue X really do?
“We call it the content engine.”
They maximize everything possible out of one recording: a podcast, video series, a zoom series, you name it. In the case of Plum’s product-ad package, brands get a 30-second reel, a stylized photo shoot, added text and animation, plus—if you ask nicely—a hand model.
From the beginning concept to a beautiful video, Bryan and his team create an exceptional experience for clients.
The team started solo with Bryan, but has since exploded with talent and creativity. Designers, editors, writers, podcasters, photographers, social media specialists, and multiple contractors have joined the movement.
How does Go Rogue X make videos that succeed for so many different clients?
Bryan admitted that he’s naturally “a sales guy.” From his years in corporate America, he learned to ask the right question: “The bottom line matters to everyone. Is what you’re doing producing results?”
When it comes to video and digital content, he stressed the importance of knowing what success looks like for every individual company. In cultivating marketing for digital platforms, the bottom line is the starting line.
“Especially in video,” Bryan told us, “we can make it look fun, polished, and trendy—but at the end of the day, if brands don’t sell anything—it doesn’t matter how pretty the video was.”
They always start with the end in mind when it comes to production.
The digital landscape has changed drastically. How has the Go Rogue X business model stood the test of time?
Bryan and the GRX squad has taken a front row seat to one of the largest shifts in digital media—not just in entertainment, but also in education. Leading up to and beyond the pandemic, the social media and ecommerce space has blown up with video communication.
The shift in the market has altered the amount of digital content that users consume each day.
“You have to be ethical about the content you’re producing,” Bryan shared, “but have your audience in mind.”
But what does that look like practically for Go Rogue X? Staying true to producing quality videos while putting client needs first. The spread of pocket-sized screens is continuing to take the world’s attention, and the team of creatives has anticipated and modified for social media platforms: repositioning for shorter form, bite size pieces of content. We see you, TikTok.
Go Rogue X is prepared to see the pendulum swing from long videos, to short, to photos, and back again.
How is Go Rogue X different from every other video-creating platform?
“We’re intentional in what we do.” No hesitation.
Yes, businesses are made to keep food on the table, but for Bryan, he’s determined to stay the course and remember why he left Corporate in the first place: making something fun with his friends. “That goes across teammates and clients and employees,” he reiterated.
“We don’t have customers, we have friends. If we’re going to do work with you, we want to get to know your brand, your voice, your audience. That’s at the forefront of every project that we work on.”
At the end of the day, the Go Rogue X team has two main goals for their clients (friends): one, they’re happy with the video, and two, it accomplished what they set out to do.
What can people get excited about with the Go Rogue X and Plum duo?
“Plum is meeting a gaping need in the marketplace, especially for brands that are trying to launch products.” Music to our ears.
Simply speaking? Brands need product videos to add to their product pages, and Go Rogue X is thrilled to offer those in a cost-effective, intentional way. Plum is just the shop where you find them and click “go.”
Bryan explained how clients struggle with getting both seen and connected to resources in the marketplace, that’s exactly what Plum is doing. To launch a product and be successful, clients have to think like Bryan—aka, with the end in mind. The visual, digital age is narrating the retail landscape, and Plum is thrilled to Go Rogue.
