The Future of How We Buy is Sound

September 10, 2020·25 min·1 clip

Rodney Williams reveals he has gone into personal debt twice for Listener, saying 'if your idea is not good enough for that level of passion and effort, then maybe it's not a good idea.'

Audio is the starting point. The conversation treats sound as a practical way to rethink buying, not just a storytelling tool. Rodney Williams starts on a steady path: fresh out of college, he joins Procter & Gamble, works up through the company, and lands on the Pampers account. Then the friction starts to bother him. Coupons, paper, scans, taps, touches, and clumsy retail moments all feel too hands-on for the kind of commerce experience he imagines. That irritation turns into Listener. As co-founder and chief commercial officer, Rodney describes a buying experience where ultrasonic sound can move data without another tap or scan. The host keeps him grounded, especially on the question of when steady work becomes worth leaving. Rodney says he had goals in place. Funding, team support, and partnerships gave him enough backing that the choice felt clear. Then the story gets more personal. He did not tell his mother before he left, and she found out through his first newspaper article. What mattered to him was her pride. He was still helping the family and was not asking for help, so the risk felt different. It did not end there. Rodney says he has gone into debt twice, including a second stretch he was just coming out of. His bar is blunt: if an idea cannot pull that much effort and sacrifice out of you, maybe it is not the one. By the end, Listener is focused on solution selling, and the episode lands more on execution and market impact than on the novelty of sound itself.

As heard by us

A practical founder story about ultrasonic commerce, risk, and spotting retail friction early.

The Future of How We Buy is Sound uses Rodney Williams's founder story to make a clear business case for Listener, a company built around ultrasonic sound as a way to pass consumer information without the usual coupons, scans, taps, and other friction at the point of purchase.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

You want a founder story that starts in P&G and pivots into a company using ultrasonic sound to move information at the shelf.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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