Category: Contentions
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Contentions: Content strategy, in action, at a very early startup
If you want to see a cool example of content strategy in action at a really early stage startup (pre-product, pre-seed, etc.), check out Aboard’s podcast. It’s just a podcast, accompanied by transcripts, which they launched after a launch party to keep people updated because the product was taking longer to develop than they’d estimated.…
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Contentions: If you really want to make an impact, tell a story
You may never own a pair of J’s, though there’s a chance you’ll know Michael Jordan’s story. You may not have heard one of Amanda Palmer songs, though you may know of her stories with crowdfunding. You may not watch Oprah, and you might still know her as a billionaire who started with nothing. Same…
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Contentions: Predictions drive great brands
A great brand is driven by a prediction. (That’s not the only starting point; a great brand can start as a lighthouse, too.) These visions of the future are the fuel for where the business goes. Ideas and people matter more than the product. Eventually, these ideas and people bear resemblance to religion; Apple, Soulcycle,…
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One with the people
Even if you come up with the most brilliant business, product, or creative idea, you’ll be limited by how well you can connect it with the people who get value out of it. You don’t just magically find these connections (and ideas!). You discover it through spending time with people and listening to what they’re…
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Contentions: Writing to understand
Writing can be a tool for marketing, creating media, and building an audience. But it’s definitely not the most valuable use of it. Many people and teams are constantly patterning themselves after what they see and believe to be successful. That’s because if they didn’t mimic the best practices, they don’t know what they would…
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My new website!
A lot of my best stories, experiences, and material were locked away in client pitch decks, email threads, and job applications. In the spirit of, “Publish, don’t send,” I put it all together at a new website. Check it out! More on the process and behind the scenes to come.
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Contentions: Describing your work
The way you describe your work is incredibly important. Not only is it how other people know what it is you do; it’s also a chance to show what you believe in, and to make the case they should believe it too. For example, Debbie Millman distinguishes between the image of “personal brand,” and the…
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Contentions: Defending the turf
It used to be marketing 101 that you shouldn’t be too honest. You either had the best product in the market, or you weren’t doing marketing right. When people brought up alternatives or innovative solutions to you, you should shut them down and attack these “objections.” Of course, that’s not the best way to do…
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Too big, too fast
I’ve got a draft of a post with a working title, “Better than SEO.” It involves what a venture capitalist named the “reversal of funnel” trend, where people start searching at platforms outside of Google. It started happening a few years ago with Amazon, and now it’s happening at TikTok and YouTube, and in groups…
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Contentions: Stop querying searches, and get out there
Search isn’t great for discovery—for helping to answer unknown unknowns. In other words, you’re not going to find things you didn’t even know you were looking for. Sometimes, the best way—the only way—to discover what you’re looking for is to actually go into the physical world. Get out of your chair. Open books and magazines.…