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My career has focused on building brands, creating customer demand, and driving…
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The Practical Art of Finding the Truth
The Practical Art of Finding the Truth
I remember the day I discovered that I was genetically connected to Diane Arbus. Profoundly moved, having left an…
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Lauren Snyder posted thisYou should talk to me if… You have a great hospitality, food or wellness brand, but somewhere along the way, the experience and the story stopped matching. You’re doing a lot of marketing. You’re less certain it’s doing a lot for the business. You have plenty of agencies and partners executing, but nobody is asking whether you’re asking them to do the right things. Your brand grew. The organization grew. The number of people touching it grew. Somehow, clarity didn’t. People love you once they experience you. The problem is getting more of the right people to experience you in the first place. You’re opening something, repositioning something, trying to fill something, or wondering why something that should be working isn’t. You have an extraordinary physical experience that becomes decidedly less extraordinary somewhere between discovery, booking, arrival and return. Your customer data exists. Your technology exists. Your marketing exists. They don’t seem to know one another particularly well. You don’t need more marketing. You need to understand what’s getting in the way. That’s usually where I come in. I like complicated businesses. I like getting close enough to understand what is really happening, finding the problem underneath the problem, and turning that into something people can actually act on. Sometimes that’s brand. Sometimes it’s demand. Sometimes it’s the experience itself. Usually, it’s several things pretending not to be related. If any of this sounds familiar, you should talk to me.
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Lauren Snyder posted thisI woke up this morning to an unexpected act of generosity. No announcement. No questions. No need to explain or ask. It was another reminder that some people have an extraordinary instinct for knowing when and how to show up for others. It affected me more deeply than I can say. We talk a lot about generosity as something we do when we have abundance. But I am increasingly convinced that some of the most meaningful generosity comes from people who simply understand what it feels like to need a hand. There are so many people struggling right now. People between jobs. Waiting for a contract to come through. Caring for family. Facing an unexpected expense. Building something that hasn’t paid off yet. People who may look perfectly fine from the outside while privately trying to figure out how to make the numbers work. Sometimes the distance between fear and relief isn’t enormous. And sometimes what a person needs most isn’t advice or judgment or a conversation about what they should have done differently. They need someone to see them. This morning reminded me that if you are in a position to help someone, help them. Quietly. Preserve their dignity. Don’t make them earn your generosity by explaining their hardship. And if you’re the one struggling right now, please don’t mistake this chapter for the whole story. There are good people in the world. There is generosity you cannot see coming. Things can change between one night and the next. Today renewed some of my faith in people. And it made me certain of something else: whenever I am in a position to be that person for someone else, I will be.
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Lauren Snyder shared thisI really think we need to talk more about gratitude as a growth strategy. Every sale should be celebrated. Every purchase should feel appreciated. Someone chose you. Out of thousands of options, they spent their money on something you created, sourced, stocked, designed, refined or served. What happens next may be as important to growth as what convinced them to buy in the first place. Thank you should mean more than a confirmation email. Thank you means welcome to our family. Thank you means the hands that made this, stocked this, wrapped this and refined this are proud that you welcomed it into your life. Thank you means we hope you stay. I don’t think this is accomplished through generic CRM journeys and automated email marketing alone. It might be a handwritten note tucked into a package, a check-in timed to when a product should be running low. It might be a thoughtful reminder that something may need replacing or a message hidden on a label or tag that acknowledges the person who bought it. It might be an unexpected invitation to see what is coming next. The post-purchase experience should be as considered as the experience that convinced someone to purchase in the first place because these moments are not extras. These moments are extensions of the brand and the people behind it. They also create opportunity. A genuine thank you can become an invitation to offer feedback or to introduce a complementary product. Equally valuable is an opportunity for a loyal customer to receive an early look at something new. Every touchpoint is an opportunity to make someone feel enough a part of the brand that they want to share it with someone else. That is how a buyer becomes a repeat buyer and how a customer becomes part of a community. Increasingly, it is how every customer has the potential to become a micro-influencer. We spend an enormous amount of money convincing people to buy. Maybe we should spend a little more time showing them how much it mattered that they did.
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Lauren Snyder shared thisOn this rainy day, armchair travel has brought me a little clarity. The invitations are intriguing. The welcomes that follow often aren’t. Somewhere along the way, the industry has mistaken hospitality marketing for promotion. The imagery invited me in. I imagined the destination, the people, the feeling of being there. Then, almost immediately, the conversation shifted to fourth nights, resort credits, discounts, and limited-time offers. The host disappeared, replaced by the transaction. But hospitality has never been about the transaction. It’s about how someone makes you feel. From the moment someone discovers your hotel, resort, restaurant, or destination, you’re already the host. Every photograph, film, email, and word should feel like an extension of that welcome. So here are my pleas. Please don’t offer: A daily resort credit. Instead, invite me to experience something your team genuinely hopes I will love. Tell me why your chef rises before dawn to visit the local market, then say, “We’d be delighted for you to experience dinner with us, as our guest.” A complimentary spa treatment. Instead, tell me why this ritual has been cherished for generations and why it belongs at the heart of a visit to your destination. A fourth night free. Instead, tell me why one more day matters. Tell me the extra morning means I can linger over breakfast, discover one more hidden corner, meet one more local, or simply settle into the rhythm of a place instead of rushing through it. Your offer hasn’t changed. Its meaning has. The finest hospitality brands must understand that generosity is more powerful than promotion. Don’t simply ask for a booking; create a sense of welcome. When you share what you treasure most, guests should feel engaged before they’ve even arrived. Hospitality is a warm invitation into something exceptional. I’d bet my career on this: when we stop pushing discounts and start gifting irreplaceable moments, we won’t lose bookings. We will elevate demand.
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Lauren Snyder shared thisI’ve been thinking a lot lately about where ideas come from. For me, they have never appeared out of thin air. They begin with paying attention, watching how people behave, listening to what isn’t being said. They emerge when traveling, reading, walking through a hotel, sitting in a restaurant, or talking to a founder. I want to experience a brand as a guest before I experience it as a marketer. Inspiration comes from observing the world with curiosity. One of my favorite moments is when a small observation begins to take shape as something much bigger. One idea connects to another, a pattern emerges, and suddenly there is a path that wasn’t visible a few minutes earlier. I still love that feeling as much today as I did when I started my career. The best part is when you’re surrounded by people who enjoy building on ideas together. One person sees a possibility. Someone else adds another layer. Before long, the conversation has moved beyond solving today’s problem to imagining tomorrow’s opportunity. I’m sometimes frustrated with things that get in the way of that kind of thinking. Some organizations have become so focused on minimizing risk that they stop imagining what’s possible. Quarterly pressures make it harder to invest in ideas that may transform a business over the long term. Others spend so much time refining what already exists that they forget to ask what should exist next. At some point I realized that generating ideas wasn’t simply part of what I do. It’s how I think. I’ve discovered that my greatest professional satisfaction comes from uncovering opportunities hiding in plain sight, connecting dots that don’t seem related until they are, and looking at today’s business while simultaneously seeing where it could be years from now. Data is essential, but so are human insight and emotion. The strongest brands understand both. Every meaningful piece of growth I’ve been fortunate enough to help create began with curiosity, a willingness to challenge assumptions, and the confidence to imagine something different before anyone else could see it. For me, inspiration has never been separate from business. It has always been where growth begins.
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Lauren Snyder posted thisThe last few months have been humbling. I’ve spent my career building brands, launching destinations, creating demand, and helping companies grow. My value has always been rooted in ideas and seeing possibilities that others didn’t. I am a guru of dot connecting and ultimately building something from nothing. I, like many others, have been wondering whether that’s enough anymore. Today, anyone can ask AI for a marketing plan, a positioning statement, a campaign, or a press release in seconds. It’s remarkable technology and I use it every day for something. I’ve also been asking the harder question: If AI can generate ideas, what is the role of the people who built careers creating them? I don’t have the answer. What I do know is that the best work of my career was never only about the idea itself. It was convincing people to believe in it. There is a lot of work in bringing together operations, finance, sales, design, communications, and leadership behind a shared vision. There is a delicacy in navigating uncertainty. There is gravitas in making decisions when there isn’t a playbook. Those things still matter and I hope they always will. I’m very curious how others are thinking about this. If you’ve built a career on creativity, strategy, or leadership, has AI changed how you view your own value? Has it changed the expectations from your clients or company? I’d love to hear how you’re navigating it.
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Lauren Snyder shared thisThose who know me know that this bracelet rarely leaves my wrist. It doesn’t matter what outfit I have on or where I’m going. It has two parts. The linked chain was given to me by my dad, who passed away almost three years ago. Other than the design being a perfect mix of white and yellow gold, industrial and abstract all at once, I am carried by the fact that he picked it out himself for me. The second part is an evil eye found in Greece. My dad thought this would ward off anything other than goodness. I put the pieces together one day because they felt meant to be. When it’s on my wrist, I am connected to him and the unconditional love he gave freely. It has accompanied me through some of the best moments of my life and helped me through some of the most difficult. It has shielded me when grief felt unbearable, when doubt crept in, and when life seemed determined to test me. It has reminded me that I carry a part of him with me wherever I go, a quiet source of strength, courage, and comfort. Intellectually, I understand that the protection from bad intentions and bad juju mostly exists in my own mind. That’s ok. The bracelet is more than jewelry; it’s a reminder that I was loved by someone who believed I could do anything. And on the days when I forget that, it helps me believe it too. As Father’s Day approaches, I’m reminded that holidays often land differently depending on where we are in life. Before losing both of my parents, I understood that these days could be difficult for some people. After losing them, I experienced it in an entirely different way. I’ve always been drawn to building brands, experiences, and stories that connect emotionally. The things we treasure most are rarely the things themselves. They are what they represent: a memory, a feeling, a person, a moment in time. This bracelet is proof of that. And so is love.
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Lauren Snyder shared thisI consider myself lucky for several outstanding reasons. First, I was born and raised in New York City. Go Knicks!!! That was a front-row education in culture, nightlife, culinary experimentation, and the ways people are different and the same. As a student of New York, I started life with a high-octane boost of exposure. Second, I had the chance to work for great visionaries. Across technology, hospitality, publishing, and luxury services, I had access to extraordinary ideas, a lack of fear around trying what had never been done before, an obsession with detail, and leadership rooted in inspiration and compassion. I worked in countries around the world, and twice had the gift of being part of places from the earliest inceptions of tourism. To create where no one had tread before was one of the most significant lessons in understanding how brands must integrate with community, beliefs, and values. Third, I have two sons who have brought me along with everything that touched their lives. I became an armchair expert in traveling with babies and learned, in real time, what parents needed. I learned the vernacular that kept me current and connected to their passions and activities. I became fluent in gaming, EDM, DJs, music festivals, AI, and cybersecurity. Through their girlfriends, I dove into makeup and beauty trends and gained a deeper understanding of the insecurities, aspirations, and influences that shape both purchase and perception. Last, I have been privileged to see, visit, and live through extraordinary moments in history. Anyone who lived through COVID can now say this, but each of these world events, whether political, medical, cultural, or personal, taught me tolerance, context, and understanding. It all leads to what makes up human nature. We are the sum of our parts: our past, our present, and our dreams for the future. What makes our point of view relevant is how porous we are willing to be. We learn from places, from work, from our families, from strangers, and from moments we never expected to matter. I am still learning every day. For that, I consider myself lucky.
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Lauren Snyder shared thisOne of the things I love most about brand building is that the best ideas often show up where you least expect them. I take pictures of everything and save anything that inspires. Today I came across a simple piece of social content that wasn't particularly expensive, complicated, or groundbreaking. What it did exceptionally well was allow people to see themselves in the experience rather than simply observe it. The most effective brands don't simply communicate features and benefits. They help people imagine what it would feel like to be there. They create anticipation, joy, escape, and emotional context. I have always believed that content is most powerful when it feels less like marketing and more like seeing through your own eyes. Years ago at Atlantis, I led a conscious decision to move away from traditional resort advertising. We featured real Bahamians and Atlantis team members rather than professional models. Guests would often arrive and recognize the very people they had seen in our content. We created recurring personalities and stories that became part of the fabric of the brand. One of those personalities, Kool Aid, became a guest favorite because he represented the warmth, energy, humor, and spirit that made Atlantis feel distinctly human. We focused on showing rather than telling. Instead of describing the magic of the destination, we invited people to experience it alongside the people who brought it to life every day. The result was more than a 300% increase in engagement. The increase did not come from bigger budgets or more polished creative. It came from creating content that felt both authentic and immersive. People are not simply buying a room, a meal, a service, or a product. They are looking for something that incites joy, feels like an escape, or allows them to picture themselves in a moment they want to experience. When people can see themselves in the story, the connection becomes far more powerful. That principle is one I find myself returning to again and again. Check out this video, "atlantis koolaid" https://lnkd.in/eyEawBhS
Lauren Snyder replied to a comment
1mo
Elliot Sloane Elliot, coming from you, this means a lot. Thank you. And I’ll happily take ‘generosity of spirit’ as part of the job description. ❤️
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Lauren Snyder reacted on thisLauren Snyder reacted on thisI’m incredibly proud to share that I’m stepping into the role of President at Dentsu Creative Canada. As I approach 15 years with dentsu, this moment feels especially meaningful, not because of the title, but because of the people and experiences that have shaped the journey along the way. I’m deeply grateful to everyone who has trusted me, challenged me, and supported me throughout my career. A special thank you to Stephen Kiely, who has mentored me and advocated for me, and shown me what great leadership looks like. Along the way, I’ve learned that it isn’t about having all the answers. Leading is about creating the conditions for great people to do great work with curiosity, accountability, partnership and, above all, a little kindness. Our industry is changing quickly, which makes the opportunity ahead a little scary but even more exciting. I can’t wait to work alongside our incredible teams, clients, and partners to shape what comes next and create work that makes a meaningful difference. The title may be new, but the commitment isn’t. Here’s to the next chapter! Special thanks to LBBonline - Little Black Book and Strategy Online for the coverage. https://lnkd.in/g94HX7tx https://lnkd.in/gp9m8WqxDentsu Creative Canada names Dimitra Georgakis presidentDentsu Creative Canada names Dimitra Georgakis president
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Lauren Snyder liked thisLauren Snyder liked thisBeginning in spring 2027, we will open The Heartwood, a private 20-room retreat setting within The Shenandoah Nature Resort, and the first place where invited guests will begin experiencing what we call The Shenandoah Energetic. The Heartwood will offer hosted, invite-only stays for a founding community of conscious leaders, entrepreneurs, artists, investors, culture shapers, and industry disruptors who are helping shape a more regenerative future. Together, we will begin building the culture of The Shenandoah before the full 120 room resort opens in January 2028. So, we would love your suggestions in the comments section: Who is leading in a way that feels courageous, generous, and ahead of its time? Who is building something our culture needs? Who is carrying work that could grow stronger in our environment when connected to other like-minded leaders? For more information, see our blog at https://lnkd.in/eEf-suZN.
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Lauren Snyder liked thisLauren Snyder liked thisI keep thinking about Alix Earle and her sister Ashtin, who recently shared that they both tested positive for a BRCA mutation. Saying that out loud and raising awareness will send other families to get tested who never would have. That matters. I'm BRCA1. In 2014, at 40, I had my ovaries removed at Memorial Sloan Kettering to get ahead of the cancer that had already come for my mother and my grandmother. The surgery worked. It was the right call, for me at the time. What nobody prepared me for was the morning after. I went into surgical menopause overnight. Not the slow slide most women get. A cliff you jump over without knowing what’s on the other side. I didn't sleep through the night for six months. I gained 20 pounds. My marriage nearly buckled. A neighbor caught sight of me in the hallway and asked if I was okay, because I clearly was not. And here is the part that still makes me angry. Once the surgeons had prevented the cancer, I was essentially deleted from the system. Their job was done. Mine was just starting, and there was no one to send me to. I see this over and over again today. I spent five years looking for a doctor who actually understood menopause. Five years. That is the gap I want BRCA carriers to know about now. When facing that surgery, you are not only deciding about cancer. You are deciding about menopause too, and you want to know where to turn before you make that decision, not five years later. I’m stronger and better now but it took years before I understood what was happening to my body. September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month and Perimenopause Awareness Month. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Menopause Awareness Month. Those calendars overlap for a reason. For a lot of us, it is all one story. I couldn't find the expert, empathic, ongoing care that I needed. So we built Alloy Health.
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Lauren Snyder liked thisLauren Snyder liked thisIt’s that season again. The “I think we made a bad hire” calls are picking up. Leaders haven’t suddenly gotten smarter…it's because annual planning started. Budgets are open. Performance is under a magnifying glass. Leadership teams are staring at their org charts and naming the voids and the weak links out loud for the first time all year as they build toward 2027. 23 years in search, and I feel it every time. The teams burning the midnight oil because they’re understaffed. The leader quietly wondering if their own seat is safe if they can’t build a high-performing team. The exec who knows exactly who the problem is and has spent eleven months hoping they’d grow into it. Here’s what never makes the board deck: Bad hires don’t show up in the P&L. They show up in the forecast you missed. The two good people who quit. The quarter you spent cleaning it up. The most expensive bad hires are the ones finance can’t find until it’s too late. We measure the easy costs. Recruiting fee. Onboarding. Training. Severance. Tidy, board-friendly numbers that fit in a box. But the real damage doesn’t fit in a box. Real damage looks like: - Strategic drift while the wrong leader makes the wrong calls. - The team that quietly stops believing. - The client relationship fraying long before anyone notices. - Everything that didn’t get built, fixed, or sold while the wrong person held the seat. And then the next leader spends their first six months cleaning up instead of building the future. I call it the “iceberg effect”. The visible cost is the tip. The invisible cost is where companies bleed, often without ever knowing it. Companies are excellent at measuring hiring activity. They are shockingly bad at measuring hiring consequences. So here’s the test I’d give any leadership team this planning season: Picture your most important seats. President. Head of Sales. Head of Technology. Head of Operations. Now write down the KPIs for each one. Not responsibilities. Not “be strategic.” Not “drive growth.” Not “own the function.” Actual, measurable outcomes. If you cannot measure what winning looks like, you cannot hire for it. That’s where the miss begins. Long before anyone signs an offer letter. AND, if this exercise takes you more than ten minutes for any seat, you have a clarity problem. Fix that first, and the hire gets a whole lot easier.
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Lauren Snyder liked thisLauren Snyder liked thisStudio at CitySpire offers private suites, team offices, and desks on demand in the heart of Midtown Manhattan. With flexible terms, attentive hospitality, and move-in-ready space, Studio makes it easier for teams to focus on what’s next. View available offices.Book Offices, Desks & Meeting Rooms | Studio by Tishman SpeyerBook Offices, Desks & Meeting Rooms | Studio by Tishman Speyer
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Lauren Snyder reacted on thisI’m excited to be joining the Optimal Advisory Collective and this impressive community of leaders. I'm looking forward to sharing perspectives, learning from others, and collaborating with the Optimal team — and I'm especially looking forward to getting together in New York next month!Lauren Snyder reacted on thisOptimal is all about the perspective we get from knowledgable, experienced leaders. As we continue to grow, we are thrilled to announce Amy Brandt's addition to our esteemed Collective. Amy has deep strategic and financial expertise. She is the former CFO of Auberge Collection with 20+ years of finance and investor relations leadership at global luxury hospitality brands, including Auberge Collection, Belmond, and Kerzner International. Amy and our wonderful community will be getting together on October 29th in New York with a great array of companies as Luxury, Sports, and Technology all converge. https://luma.com/f29wd5y0 Andrea Resnick Jonathan Feeney David Schick Blake B. #LuxuryHospitality #LuxuryTravelOptimal Advisory Luxury, Sports & Fintech Summit · LumaOptimal Advisory Luxury, Sports & Fintech Summit · Luma
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Lauren Snyder liked thisLauren Snyder liked thisOne of the things I love most about building a hospitality company is the incredible variety of people you get to meet along the way. I just finished an intense, but incredibly fun, California roadshow through San Diego, Newport Beach, Los Angeles, Malibu, Montecito, Santa Barbara, San Francisco, Marin and Yountville. The variety and quality of people we met was surreal: press, sales partners, customers, home buyers, agencies, real estate agents, travel advisors, investors, family offices, advisors, potential sites, GMs, chefs, talent agents, celebrities, tech platforms, connectors, private equity, venture capitalists, lenders, designers. And somehow, every one of those conversations connects back to building a better hospitality company. Just writing that list reminded me how broad the job of a hotelier has become. Real estate, design, operations, food, technology, sales, capital and brand, but ultimately, it all comes down to relationships. Every meeting was different, but the quality of the conversations was incredible, and most importantly, they were a lot of fun and learned so much. I also had the chance to stay at some exceptional hotels along the way, including Malibu Beach Inn, El Encanto Santa Barbara, and The Huntington Hotel. Patrick Davila, Oscar Diosdado Murillo and Aaron Feeney were incredible hosts. A few meal highlights: the chicken at Zuni Café, the crudo at San Ysidro Ranch, and the duck at Mister Jiu’s. And a special thank you to Jeff Senior, Omar Palacios and Tyler Carrico, who continue to support us across so many aspects of building Paradero and Comunal. Having great advisors and partners who challenge you, open doors, and genuinely want to see you succeed is something I’m incredibly grateful for. 10 intense days, a lot of meetings, a lot of learning, a lot of fun, but ultimately, this is a people business!
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Lauren Snyder liked thisLauren Snyder liked thisSharing for all those who knew my brother. And who’ve always wanted to know why we had different surnames. Information on that, and the celebration of his life is below. https://lnkd.in/gDbwsjDM ✌️🖖
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Lauren Snyder liked thisLauren Snyder liked thisBecause there is nothing more perfect than Tunnel View at sunset.
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FORCE: Facing Our Risk of Cancer Empowered
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Improving the lives of individuals and families facing hereditary cancers. FORCE serves as a champion, unifying the community and advocating for awareness, access to care and better treatment and prevention options.
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