Relationships are the currency of your brand

Without meaningful customer connections, even the most successful companies fade into the background.

At Spotlight Monkey, we specialize in humanizing brand identities through compelling, emotionally engaging narratives that resonate with your audience, build trust, and inspire lasting relationships.

Don’t let your brand fade away.

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Creating brand relationships.

Spotlight Monkey’s owner, Joan O’Connor, is a brand relationship expert known for her unique “brand therapy” approach, refined through years of award-winning Hollywood storytelling. Joan’s methods uncover what your audience emotionally craves and delve deep into your brand’s psyche to reveal the connective tissue that brings your story to life.

What you have to do is get into their heart. And how do you get into the heart? With stories.
— Dr. Jane Goodall, World's foremost expert on chimpanzees

Experts are talking

Paul Wernick, Screenwriter, Deadpool trilogy, Zombieland, and more

I met Joan, whom I nicknamed “Curious” (both because of her inquisitive nature and her love of Curious George), when she was producing an 'Investigative Reports' episode about the news station where I worked. Her tenacity, coupled with her kindness and intelligence, quickly broke down the walls of reporter and subject and ultimately led to a captivating show and a life-long friendship. We worked together on another show, and I was blown away by her storytelling prowess under immense pressure and ability to make even the mundane interesting. Plain and simple, Joan is a wonderful storyteller (ask her about her annual Christmas tale) and altogether human, and I’m excited to see her bring her talents into the world of branding. To quote old Curious George, ‘You never do know what’s around the bend… a big adventure or a brand new friend.’ With Joan you get both!

Denise Contis, Executive Vice President of Prime, CNBC

Joan is one of the most creative and innovative storytellers I’ve ever had the pleasure of working alongside. She is an award-winning producer who has created and managed a list of successful content brands. I recruited Joan when she was a young TV producer and it’s been a joy to see her career soar. She was and is a team player with an insatiable curiosity who never settles for the status quo. Joan has the rare gift of integrity and talent, which is the secret of her impressive track record of success.

Discovery Networks

Sverre Nordbo, Former Executive Producer and Head of Programming, TV Norge and Discovery Networks Norway

Joan cast over 100 contestants for the Norwegian hit show “Alt for Norge.” For 10 seasons she found and interviewed thousands of potential participants. I have just been in awe of her professionalism and how quickly she got to the heart and nuances of each person’s story which gave us a deep insight into their personalities so we could choose the right combination of cast members to appeal to our audience and make the show successful. I love working with Joan.

Erica Bethe Levin, Founder of Globowl

Joan O'Connor (aka Spotlight Monkey) is a creative genius, talented and effective storyteller, and one of the kindest people in business you'll ever meet.

As a seasoned founder, I've always felt pretty confident in telling my brand(s) stor(ies). However, we sometimes don't realize how close we are to it and how we may be missing the messaging boat. Enter Joan. With an objective eye and a heart for storytelling, she was able to update my website with copy that resonated with our target audience and NOT just with me as the founder.

She has that knack. She sees things other people don't and understands that everyone is unique and nuanced and that the brand needs to resonate in that same way. Joan pushed me to look into the emotional and psychological reasons why people would buy our product, and the story we tell today does that job better than I ever could have on my own.

I am so grateful for Joan's voice and expertise and will use her for all upcoming business endeavors and encourage you to do the same!

Clients from diverse industries

Clients come to Spotlight Monkey for a human touch & personalized experience because crafting your brand’s identity is personal.

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The most valuable branding relationship real estate is your customer’s memory. Here’s how Spotlight Monkey helps you land there.

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Brand identity & messaging development

Content Creation

Video production

Blogging & newsletters

Speech/Pitch strategy & coaching

Media strategy & coaching when interviewed

Brand narrative assessment