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 Hey Marketing Bestie, My brother did my fantasy draft and he risked it all and went Christian McCaffrey as my #1. I hope that was a good choice, because otherwise I have to do the punishment. Water aerobics class. Was this email forwarded to you? Sponsored by Roku 3 reasons you (yes, you) should know how to create shoppable streaming TV ads for the holidays:
This cheatsheet from Roku is ungated, and has all the basics: 3 different types of shoppable ads (aka Action Ads), when to use them, creative ideas, a monthly strategy guide, and real examples. 7 Marketing Hills I'll Die on Today1️⃣. You have to be a T-shaped MarketerONLY being specialized as a Marketer won't cut anymore. You need 1 deep skill, + working knowledge of everything around it: copy, data, design, paid, brand, community, etc. Marketing has never required more nuance. That "not my department or speciality" excuse doesn't work anymore. You have to understand how all of Marketing works. Actually, you have to understand how the whole business works to win in Marketing. Go deep on 1 skill, go wide on everything else. Specialized Marketers will get automated 1st. And, get close with your Finance team, too. Marketers that are close to the math are strongest. 2️⃣. Marketing fundamentals matter more than everThis is what I mean by practicing the fundamentals...understanding people, psychology, copywriting, the art of persuasion. What I like to do is study popular Marketing books that have been around more than 20 years like Oglivy on Advertising, Cashvertising, Postioning, Influence, Test Advertising Methods, etc. ^^^ It's like everything in life. Once you get good the bar is raised. Keep studying. Remember when I wanted to name my son Ogilvy? That's how attached to the Marketing giants I've become. Don't worry I didn't name him that. AI can now write you a headline in 2 seconds, but if you don't understand why 1 headline works and another doesn't, you're not there. Get there! 3️⃣. You can't teach tasteTaste is NOT a framework. I've never seen anyone make a course or guide called "10 Steps to Good Taste". If you see it, please don't buy it. 😉 Taste comes from reps and from consuming. Scrolling too much on social, making a swipe file of ads that made you feel something and then reverse-engineering why, making 243 ugly things before you make 1 great 1. It's earned over time by doing the thing, not by downloading. You build taste by doing the work, over and over. Consume. Don't check my screentime, though. Please. 4️⃣. If you're not learning AI right now, that's badAmong the 34 other things Marketers need to do, keeping up with what's new or trending isn't optional anymore. It's part of the role, and always will be. That doesn't mean having shiny object syndrome and trying everything. It means researching and testing new things, then figuring out why they work or why people are using them. We've seen and see social algorithms change, platforms rise and die (RIP Vine and MySpace, we miss you), your audience's attention moves fast. AI is just the latest NEW thing you have to learn, and this time the need to learn is moving faster than any platform shift. Marketers who "don't do AI" are the same 1's who "didn't do TikTok or Linkedin" in 2019. We remember. Please don't sit this 1 out and you won't just fall behind, you'll be playing catch up for awhile. I'm also not saying you need a mini mac. There's a middle ground here that I think is the right space to play in. 5️⃣. The market is the only judge of a bad MarketingConversion and sales are the only scoreboard that matters. Make money and you've done it. I don't care if the ad is ugly, unpolished, or looks like it was made in Microsoft Paint. If it converts, it worked. Marketing isn't a design or an award competition. I mean it is for some. It's a persuasion and attention competition, and the market grades on a curve you don't control. But I still do believe you still need SOME brand guardrails, you can't go totally rogue LOL. Again, marketing is about nuance. Remember this: Ugly-but-converting beats beautiful-but-broke, every single time. And, if the market likes it, you've done a really good thing. 6️⃣. You are your own best MarketerSomething I've learn in my years in Marketing: nobody's coming to hype you up. Not your boss. Not your work best friend. Nobody's building your personal brand while you wait for permission. Posting online is NOT vanity. It's networking at scale. Perception beats reality. It sucks, but it's true. I'm really glad I posted online back when it was embarrassing. Again, that sucked but it was a good thing. You wouldn't skip networking events for 5 years and expect a full Rolodex. You can participate online and build your brand and nobody will do that for you. You have to be a little selfish to win. And, high-effort. Once you post, tell me. I'll hype you. 7️⃣. Data tells you what happened. It doesn't tell you what to say.Dashboards and tracking are necessary. They're not sufficient. I've watched Marketers stare at a spreadsheet for an hour looking for a an answer that was never going to live in a spreadsheet. Data can validate a message, it can't invent a story out of thin air. Use data to check your instincts. Not to replace them. MEME OF THE WEEK  🎙 TUNE IN Podcast to listen to this week: A CMO's guide to pipeline math What you will learn: 🎙: Why your cost per opportunity can never go up JUST FOR FUN 🤩: Brand of the week: Go-to-Millions Are you a Sephora or Ulta family? No judgement. Your friend, | |||||||||
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