“We want to be the funniest thing you see on your feed, and our God metric for social are shares. That is the thing we want to see happen that lets us know it's broken through.” - Dan Murphy
In today’s media jungle, attention isn’t bought, it’s earned with bold, culturally sharp content. Liquid Death isn’t just selling healthy beverages; it’s building a brand that plays like a comedy studio and performs like a media company. With an in-house writers’ room, viral collabs, and a relentless focus on entertainment, Dan Murphy, SVP of Marketing, shares how the team is turning satire and storytelling into a playbook for brand relevance in the scroll economy and the age of the algorithm.
Dan Murphy is the Senior Vice President of Marketing at Liquid Death, where he leads brand strategy, creative campaigns, and content production. A veteran of Crispin Porter + Bogusky, Dan brings a deep pedigree in performance-driven, culture-forward marketing. He’s helped grow Liquid Death into one of the fastest-growing beverage brands by turning satire into serious results, and turning water into a movement.
Tune into the latest episode or read the transcript below to learn more. Here are some top takeaways:
Packaging That Breaks the Aisle Scroll
Dan reveals how Liquid Death’s beer-like cans and bold design weren’t just aesthetic choices. They were strategic. By mimicking energy drinks and beer, they made water visually disruptive. This design invites curiosity and signals rebellion in social settings, helping the brand stand out in a commoditized space.
Comedy as the Content North Star
Liquid Death’s approach is entertainment-first, with comedy as its core. Murphy explains that brands need a content strategy that's good enough to compete with everything else online. Their secret? An in-house writers’ room staffed by professional comedians and creatives from The Onion and Adult Swim.
Collaborations as Culture Vehicles
Brand collabs aren’t just co-branded merch, they’re performance art. Murphy shares how partnerships like ELF’s corpse paint kit and Tony Hawk’s blood-infused skateboards turn campaigns into stories the internet can’t ignore. These activations are not only authentic, but blend product, PR, and parody in one cultural punch.
Shareability Is the New ROI
For Liquid Death, it’s not about likes, it’s about shares. That’s the “God metric,” as Dan puts it. If people are sending it to friends, it’s working. Whether it’s a local news clip or a viral meme, every earned impression moves the needle—and the product—off shelves.
Real-Time Testing Before Big Media Plays
Before anything hits traditional media like CTV or the Super Bowl, it must first pass the audience test on social. Liquid Death uses their 13M+ followers to see what sticks organically before scaling it with paid support, ensuring every dollar is spent on something that already hits.
