In this episode of The Snoball Effect podcast, we chatted with Eric Dahl, Senior VP at Roofer Marketers, a division of JobNimbus. Eric’s path to marketing was unconventional, starting in real estate investment before he took a risk that would change his career. His father, a highly decorated advertising executive, helped shape Eric’s love for creativity and marketing. Outside of his impressive career, Eric is also a self-proclaimed "OG sneakerhead," boasting an extensive collection of Nike sneakers. With extensive experience in taking risks, we asked Eric many questions about risk-taking in marketing, handling failure, and understanding when to take a leap of faith.
Key Questions
Why Should I Take Risks in Marketing?
Taking risks is a fundamental part of marketing, and according to Eric Dahl, it’s crucial for standing out in an increasingly crowded field. In the podcast, Eric explained that playing it safe might get you by, but it’s the bold moves that can propel a brand forward. "To stand out from the rest, we're expected as marketers to be the creatives to come up with ideas and to really prime the pump with creativity that is not going to be stagnant over time," he said. The key is to break away from traditional approaches and inject creativity into marketing strategies. Whether you’re launching a new product or rethinking how you present an old one, risk-taking often leads to more authentic connections with customers.
Eric shared the story of his first big risk, which came early in his career. He was fresh to the marketing world when he landed a role that he admits he was underqualified for, simply because the CEO decided to "take a risk" on him. This experience shaped his view on how powerful risks can be. "The CEO's exact words were, ‘We're willing to take a risk on you, Eric.’ He took a risk on me. And so, because of that, I'm here," he recounted. This example serves as a reminder that risks, while scary, often come with the potential for great reward. For Eric, that early leap of faith set the tone for a career filled with bold moves.
One of his most successful risks involved a client who was fixated on feature-heavy ad campaigns. Eric proposed a different approach: "I told them that they were approaching their ads all wrong because they needed to focus on the emotions rather than the core features of the product.” Luckily, this risky confrontation with his client paid off. He continued, “Because we took that approach, we were able to go into a Black Friday time of year and I think that they hit all time sales records." This story underscores Eric’s belief that great marketing often comes from trusting your instincts and not being afraid to step outside the box.
What If I Fail?
Failure is a natural part of taking risks, but it shouldn’t be feared. In fact, during this episode, Todd and Eric agreed on this rule of thumb — ”I need to have a fall-on-your-face failure every quarter or I'm just not taking enough risk.” Eric views these failures as learning opportunities, a chance to refine ideas and strategies. The ability to risk and fail is what separates average marketers from exceptional ones.
Eric recalled a time when a risk didn’t go as planned. Working on a brand overhaul for a real estate client, his team decided to revitalize the brand’s voice. "I liked the direction of changing things up by having a more bold and in-your-face type of an approach. But in the moment I realized it was a risk," he admitted. The result? The campaign flopped. "It was too bold of a shift of a brand voice evolution. I knew that it was a risk, but I think that the learning lesson for me was to trust my gut." Despite the failure, Eric walked away with an important lesson: trust your instincts, but also be aware of how far you can stretch your brand’s identity before it breaks.
Eric Dahl
Senior vp @ roofer marketers
“I knew that it was a risk, but I think that the learning lesson for me was to trust my gut.”
Importantly, Eric emphasizes that failure isn’t something to be ashamed of—it’s part of the journey. "You don’t always hit home runs," he acknowledged, "but sometimes you got to swing for the fences." By framing failure as a stepping stone rather than a dead end, Eric believes marketers can grow stronger and more resilient. For him, it’s about striking a balance between bold risks and thoughtful reflection, using each failure as a data point to inform future decisions.
How Do I Know When to Take a Risk?
Knowing when to take a risk is as important as knowing why. Not every situation calls for a bold move, and sometimes you need to recognize the signs that it’s time to shake things up. One of his friends refers to it as a “spidey sense,” but Eric just calls it his gut feeling. While it goes by different names, it describes the feeling you get when a campaign starts to stagnate. Eric elaborated, “There's components that we can look at where maybe a campaign underperforms or there's ad fatigue… Those are the indicators where maybe it's time to go about this differently and to shake it up a little bit and approach it from a different perspective.” Paying attention to those indicators and numbers can help you determine when it’s time to take a calculated risk.
Pro Tip:
Keep an eye on indicators like campaign performance, customer engagement metrics, and market trends. When any of these numbers start to flatline, it may be time for a strategic risk.
Taking risks isn’t about being reckless — it’s about being strategic. One of the challenges marketers face is the tension between sticking with what works and innovating. "It's always that crossroads — Do I continue to push the gas forward to add more complexity to this and take on additional risk?" Eric asked. In the end, try not to make impulsive decisions. Risks should always be informed by data and experience, so keep an eye on the indicators mentioned before like campaign performance, customer engagement, and market trends.
Ultimately, Eric believes there’s no universal formula for when to take risks. Each situation is unique, and as marketers, it’s important to develop the intuition to know when to push boundaries and when to hold back. "I don't think that there's one set answer… There are those indicators where you can get a feel for it, but then you've got to make the executive decision as to which way to go,” Eric advised. He added that the best marketers are those who can walk the fine line between creativity and responsibility, pushing just far enough to innovate without destabilizing a brand’s core message.
Marketing is a Speed Game
Beyond risk-taking, Eric offered several other valuable insights during this podcast episode. One of his core beliefs is that "marketing is a speed game." In today’s fast-paced environment, the marketer who gets to market first often wins and clients expect speed. "If you’re looking at marketing like it has to be played as fast as possible, you're doing it the right way," Eric stated. However, he emphasized that speed shouldn’t come at the expense of quality. "There has to be the duality of the attention to detail on the other side of the equation, because if you throw out a campaign or put out an asset or begin an initiative where it's not buttoned up, you're going to look foolish," he reminded. Marketing is about maintaining momentum — constantly iterating and refining while keeping an eye on the ultimate goal.
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Schedule DemoAnother key takeaway from Eric’s career is this three-step marketing framework: create, validate, replicate." This simple yet powerful approach has guided him through many successful campaigns. "Those three words are so timeless for a marketer," Eric explained. "And for me, that's my recipe where it doesn't have to be super complex, but if you take that approach of creating, validating, and replicating, you are doing your job as a marketer." This method ensures that marketers aren’t just throwing ideas at the wall to see what sticks — they’re systematically building on what works and scaling it for maximum impact.
Whether you’re a new marketer just starting out or a seasoned professional, Eric’s advice offers a blueprint for success: take bold risks when the time is right, learn from your failures, and always keep moving forward.
