Shoutout to everyone in SaaS going home for thanksgiving trying to explain WHAT THE HELL you do to your family āļøā¤ļø
At least we have eachother.
At least we have eachother.
Dave Gerhardt
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Here at my 5 copywriting rules. Written on my phone on the car ride to Vermont over the weekend:
1. Write like you talk. Not like you as a marketer. But you. The real person. The same way you would write an email to your friend to set up a play date with the kids.
2. Write choppy copy. Short sentences work great. Each line should play off of each other. You donāt need to finish every thought in every line.
3. First line, second line. The goal of your first line of copy is to get people to read the first line. The goal of your second line is to get them to write the third, etc. Ex: This is how I write email. Subject line gets you to open. First line gets you to the second, third, fourth, etc. all the way to the CTA. And the PS reinforces the CTA.
4. Loud up with pronouns. You. Me. We. I. Yes. Itās OK to write in the first person. Thatās how people talk.
5. Fill your copy with real examples. Not stock photos. Not highly manicured images. But real ones. To let people know youāre real. Upload pictures from your iPhone. Take screenshots of tweets. Those will boost up any email, blog post, or landing page.
#marketing
#copywriting
1. Write like you talk. Not like you as a marketer. But you. The real person. The same way you would write an email to your friend to set up a play date with the kids.
2. Write choppy copy. Short sentences work great. Each line should play off of each other. You donāt need to finish every thought in every line.
3. First line, second line. The goal of your first line of copy is to get people to read the first line. The goal of your second line is to get them to write the third, etc. Ex: This is how I write email. Subject line gets you to open. First line gets you to the second, third, fourth, etc. all the way to the CTA. And the PS reinforces the CTA.
4. Loud up with pronouns. You. Me. We. I. Yes. Itās OK to write in the first person. Thatās how people talk.
5. Fill your copy with real examples. Not stock photos. Not highly manicured images. But real ones. To let people know youāre real. Upload pictures from your iPhone. Take screenshots of tweets. Those will boost up any email, blog post, or landing page.
#marketing
#copywriting
Here at my 5 copywriting rules // even for B2B
1. Write like you talk. Not like you as a marketer. But you. The real person. The same way you would write an email to your friend to set up a play date with the kids.
2. Write choppy copy. Short sentences work great. Each line should play off of each other. You donāt need to finish every thought in every line.
3. First line, second line. The goal of your first line of copy is to get people to read the first line. The goal of your second line is to get them to write the third, etc. Ex: This is how I write email. Subject line gets you to open. First line gets you to the second, third, fourth, etc. all the way to the CTA. And the PS reinforces the CTA.
4. Loud up with pronouns. You. Me. We. I. Yes. Itās OK to write in the first person. Thatās how people talk. Be the GUIDE in your emails. Youāre the messenger reaching out on behalf of your company because you can HELP them.
5. Fill your copy with real examples. Not stock photos. Not highly manicured images. But real ones. To let people know youāre real. Upload pictures from your iPhone. Take screenshots of tweets. Those will boost up any email, blog post, or landing page.
1. Write like you talk. Not like you as a marketer. But you. The real person. The same way you would write an email to your friend to set up a play date with the kids.
2. Write choppy copy. Short sentences work great. Each line should play off of each other. You donāt need to finish every thought in every line.
3. First line, second line. The goal of your first line of copy is to get people to read the first line. The goal of your second line is to get them to write the third, etc. Ex: This is how I write email. Subject line gets you to open. First line gets you to the second, third, fourth, etc. all the way to the CTA. And the PS reinforces the CTA.
4. Loud up with pronouns. You. Me. We. I. Yes. Itās OK to write in the first person. Thatās how people talk. Be the GUIDE in your emails. Youāre the messenger reaching out on behalf of your company because you can HELP them.
5. Fill your copy with real examples. Not stock photos. Not highly manicured images. But real ones. To let people know youāre real. Upload pictures from your iPhone. Take screenshots of tweets. Those will boost up any email, blog post, or landing page.
Salesforce is a 100+ billion dollar market cap company.
AND THEY ARE STILL STRUGGLING TO TELL PEOPLE WHAT THEY DO.
They are running a massive brand campaign right now to go deeper. People know Salesforce, but the average person doesn't actually know what Salesforce *does.*
I loved hearing that. Because it's a reminder that messaging is HARD and it's never done.
#marketing
AND THEY ARE STILL STRUGGLING TO TELL PEOPLE WHAT THEY DO.
They are running a massive brand campaign right now to go deeper. People know Salesforce, but the average person doesn't actually know what Salesforce *does.*
I loved hearing that. Because it's a reminder that messaging is HARD and it's never done.
#marketing
I miss when LinkedIn was just people posting:
- PS we're hiring!
- Look at this award we won!
- Come to our webinar tomorrow!
- Have you read our new blog post?
Hey. Channels evolve, and I think LinkedIn has changed for the better. You should get rewarded for interesting content and having something to say -- not just posting links.
#marketing
- PS we're hiring!
- Look at this award we won!
- Come to our webinar tomorrow!
- Have you read our new blog post?
Hey. Channels evolve, and I think LinkedIn has changed for the better. You should get rewarded for interesting content and having something to say -- not just posting links.
#marketing
I've joined Drift as Chief Brand Officer, reporting to David Cancel. The result of a phone call from Elias Torres ā”ļø a few weeks ago.
I'll sharing the full backstory + what I'm working on in my newsletter this week --> join at davegerhardt.com. Usually goes out Weds/Thurs.
I'll sharing the full backstory + what I'm working on in my newsletter this week --> join at davegerhardt.com. Usually goes out Weds/Thurs.
There are 5 types of customers:
1. Most aware. These are the brand loyalists.
2. Product aware. They know you exist but they haven't bought from you yet.
3. Solution aware. They know there are solutions for their problem, but don't know youāre one of them.
4. Problem aware. They know they have a problem, but donāt know solutions exist.
5. Unaware. They don't realize they have a problem yet.
And they each require different messaging, content, and often strategy.
Another reason why marketing advice so often starts with āit depends.ā
1. Most aware. These are the brand loyalists.
2. Product aware. They know you exist but they haven't bought from you yet.
3. Solution aware. They know there are solutions for their problem, but don't know youāre one of them.
4. Problem aware. They know they have a problem, but donāt know solutions exist.
5. Unaware. They don't realize they have a problem yet.
And they each require different messaging, content, and often strategy.
Another reason why marketing advice so often starts with āit depends.ā
You can have a beautiful website and a great logo but no brand.
A brand is not your website. Or your logo. Or a witty tagline. āBuilding a brandā doesn't mean āgo hire a Creative Director.ā
A brand creating a feeling. An attraction. Hey. These people are like me! Or Hey! These people get me.
Design is a piece of the puzzle -- a big one. But paint doesn't make a brand.
#marketing
A brand is not your website. Or your logo. Or a witty tagline. āBuilding a brandā doesn't mean āgo hire a Creative Director.ā
A brand creating a feeling. An attraction. Hey. These people are like me! Or Hey! These people get me.
Design is a piece of the puzzle -- a big one. But paint doesn't make a brand.
#marketing
You can't help the startup founder who doesn't believe in marketing.
Earlier this week I was in a conversation with a bunch of students at Harvard Business School - all startup founders.
Someone asked how to make the time for marketing + brand building as a busy startup founder.
No one asks how to make time for:
- Hiring
- Finance
- Investors
- Advisors
- Product strategy
- Customer development
- HR
You make time for marketing by committing to it and making it a core part of where you spend your time.
Might not have to be the CEO, but someone - one of the founders - has to be responsible for thinking about marketing.
Unless of course people are just going to magically hear about your business, get to know, like, and trust you, and then buy your product without any marketing :) more power to you
Earlier this week I was in a conversation with a bunch of students at Harvard Business School - all startup founders.
Someone asked how to make the time for marketing + brand building as a busy startup founder.
No one asks how to make time for:
- Hiring
- Finance
- Investors
- Advisors
- Product strategy
- Customer development
- HR
You make time for marketing by committing to it and making it a core part of where you spend your time.
Might not have to be the CEO, but someone - one of the founders - has to be responsible for thinking about marketing.
Unless of course people are just going to magically hear about your business, get to know, like, and trust you, and then buy your product without any marketing :) more power to you
Atomic Habits, cold showers, and waking up before the sun is cool but have you ever started every morning with a screaming 3 year old in your room at 4:58 AM? Thatās how I start my day on the path to success ā
#marketing
#leadership
#marketing
#leadership
I don't want to be a billionaire. I don't really want to have dinner with billionaires.
I don't like traveling for work.
I don't like being away from my family.
I don't like meetings. I don't like networking. I'm not good at small talk.
I'd like to build a small, profitable business.
I'd like to be the anonymous rich guy at all of my kids school events and games and no one knows what I do or how I got there.
That sounds more appealing to me.
***
Follow me here Dave Gerhardt for more wealth building tips.
***
Edit: On the topic of dinner with billionaires ... Unless it was Jay-Z. I would take the dinner with Jay-Z vs. the $500k.
I don't like traveling for work.
I don't like being away from my family.
I don't like meetings. I don't like networking. I'm not good at small talk.
I'd like to build a small, profitable business.
I'd like to be the anonymous rich guy at all of my kids school events and games and no one knows what I do or how I got there.
That sounds more appealing to me.
***
Follow me here Dave Gerhardt for more wealth building tips.
***
Edit: On the topic of dinner with billionaires ... Unless it was Jay-Z. I would take the dinner with Jay-Z vs. the $500k.
6 signs you might have a brand:
1. People actually wear (and ask for) your swag.
2. People proudly put your stickers on their laptops.
3. People *actually* reply to your marketing emails.
4. People email you for no reason just to say hey I like X thing you said/did.
5. People buy tickets to your event without knowing much about the agenda.
6. People want to meet your marketing team when they come to your office ā just to say hi.
REMINDER: Brand is not direct response. Itās hard to measure with a spreadsheet. But itās not hard to measure with your GUT. Youāll know it when you feel it.
Donāt be afraid to use your gut in marketing today. Itās a lost art.
1. People actually wear (and ask for) your swag.
2. People proudly put your stickers on their laptops.
3. People *actually* reply to your marketing emails.
4. People email you for no reason just to say hey I like X thing you said/did.
5. People buy tickets to your event without knowing much about the agenda.
6. People want to meet your marketing team when they come to your office ā just to say hi.
REMINDER: Brand is not direct response. Itās hard to measure with a spreadsheet. But itās not hard to measure with your GUT. Youāll know it when you feel it.
Donāt be afraid to use your gut in marketing today. Itās a lost art.
I think way we train marketers/marketing teams is BROKEN.
We default to train people on technology first. Email. Social media. Landing pages. All the marketing automation stuff. AdWords. Facebook ads, etc.
What we SHOULD be doing is training marketers on PSYCHOLOGY first š§ š§ š§ š§
Understand what drives/motivates people -- and *then* layer on the tools & technology.
That's how I'd build the dream marketer.
Go and study:
- Social Psychology
- Cognitive Biases
- Go read: Influence, Thinking Fast & Slow, Predictably Irrational
*PS. Iām OK sharing this advice because I know that 99% of people will not actually go do it š¤·āāļø (thatās also how you can differentiate yourself ā actually go put in the work & study).
#marketing
We default to train people on technology first. Email. Social media. Landing pages. All the marketing automation stuff. AdWords. Facebook ads, etc.
What we SHOULD be doing is training marketers on PSYCHOLOGY first š§ š§ š§ š§
Understand what drives/motivates people -- and *then* layer on the tools & technology.
That's how I'd build the dream marketer.
Go and study:
- Social Psychology
- Cognitive Biases
- Go read: Influence, Thinking Fast & Slow, Predictably Irrational
*PS. Iām OK sharing this advice because I know that 99% of people will not actually go do it š¤·āāļø (thatās also how you can differentiate yourself ā actually go put in the work & study).
#marketing
I don't think enough people know that one of the keys to brand awareness is repetition.
Busy people need to hear about you over, and over, and over, and over again (and then through a friend) before they think about your product.
And went most marketing teams want to take 3 months to do a new website. You pick the project but it's usually months.
Marketing is a momentum game. Speed matters. And you'll learn faster too.
#marketing
Busy people need to hear about you over, and over, and over, and over again (and then through a friend) before they think about your product.
And went most marketing teams want to take 3 months to do a new website. You pick the project but it's usually months.
Marketing is a momentum game. Speed matters. And you'll learn faster too.
#marketing
Who broke LinkedIn. I want a refund.
I have 150,470 followers here.
I wrote a post this morning and it has reached 362 people and 8 likes.
Apparently they changed their algorithm?
This is why you build an audience you own through email and other channels.
I have 150,470 followers here.
I wrote a post this morning and it has reached 362 people and 8 likes.
Apparently they changed their algorithm?
This is why you build an audience you own through email and other channels.
The most important tool in marketing today is in the sales team's budget.
It's true. Usually they're the ones that paid for Gong.
I think Gong is the most important tool for marketers in 2020+
It's not about some AI or automation or optimization or tech. It's about listening to the actual words coming out of your customers mouth -- from anywhere.
I haven't been listening to enough customers first-hand, so I put the Gong app on my home screen and listened to Privy calls today as a podcast replacement during my workout, in the car doing errands, and cleaning the house.
Some of the best learnings for website copy/messaging, product marketing, ideas for content, pressure testing your company story/pitch, handling objections all can come from those calls.
Robert Collier said āalways enter the conversation already taking place in the customer's mind.ā
Sometimes you just need to go and steal the words of your actual customers.
#marketing
It's true. Usually they're the ones that paid for Gong.
I think Gong is the most important tool for marketers in 2020+
It's not about some AI or automation or optimization or tech. It's about listening to the actual words coming out of your customers mouth -- from anywhere.
I haven't been listening to enough customers first-hand, so I put the Gong app on my home screen and listened to Privy calls today as a podcast replacement during my workout, in the car doing errands, and cleaning the house.
Some of the best learnings for website copy/messaging, product marketing, ideas for content, pressure testing your company story/pitch, handling objections all can come from those calls.
Robert Collier said āalways enter the conversation already taking place in the customer's mind.ā
Sometimes you just need to go and steal the words of your actual customers.
#marketing
New Privy website coming.
New Privy book coming.
New Privy bootcamp coming.
New Privy trials up 50% since Jan.
Current size of marketing team: 5
Havenāt seen each other since March 13.
ā¤ļø
#marketing
New Privy book coming.
New Privy bootcamp coming.
New Privy trials up 50% since Jan.
Current size of marketing team: 5
Havenāt seen each other since March 13.
ā¤ļø
#marketing
It's 2020. Even if you have the best product, people won't believe it. Everyone is skeptical. Prove it. That's what marketing does. Build trust through content and prove it. š
#marketing
#marketing
Brand is all that matters right now.
One of the cool things about my job as the owner of Exit Five is I get to talk to CMOs and marketing leaders every week.
And the one place they are investing (and thinking deeply about) thatās not AI is BRAND.
This is: creative, events, mail, swag, out of home, and digging deep to re-connect with customers.
Because in a world where my AI agent is doing all of the research for buying things and presenting me a list of the top 2-3 vendors to pick, the last great differentiator just might be brand.
I picked them because well, I dunno. The AI said they have all the features I want. But I met their team at this event and they had awesome swag. It was a Nike golf hat that Iām actually going to wear.
Or the founder is actually a good person and kind and funny and authentic.
Some might call it taste, but thatās incredibly hard to define and we all have different taste. To some, the Olive Garden is the best Italian restaurant in the country. But if I ever brought Matthew Carnevale a bag of leftovers from the Garden I think he resign on the spot.
You know what Iām saying here?
Might be time to dust off the ol Guerilla Marketing playbook.
Stand out. Be different. Find new ways to connect with customers beyond ābut did we show up in Perplexity search???ā
One of the cool things about my job as the owner of Exit Five is I get to talk to CMOs and marketing leaders every week.
And the one place they are investing (and thinking deeply about) thatās not AI is BRAND.
This is: creative, events, mail, swag, out of home, and digging deep to re-connect with customers.
Because in a world where my AI agent is doing all of the research for buying things and presenting me a list of the top 2-3 vendors to pick, the last great differentiator just might be brand.
I picked them because well, I dunno. The AI said they have all the features I want. But I met their team at this event and they had awesome swag. It was a Nike golf hat that Iām actually going to wear.
Or the founder is actually a good person and kind and funny and authentic.
Some might call it taste, but thatās incredibly hard to define and we all have different taste. To some, the Olive Garden is the best Italian restaurant in the country. But if I ever brought Matthew Carnevale a bag of leftovers from the Garden I think he resign on the spot.
You know what Iām saying here?
Might be time to dust off the ol Guerilla Marketing playbook.
Stand out. Be different. Find new ways to connect with customers beyond ābut did we show up in Perplexity search???ā
YOU GUYS. Omg. I canāt believe it. Seriously.
200,000 followers on LinkedIn.
Started from the middle now we here!!!!
I came home today and my wife and kids had these balloons waiting for me because they know nothing means more to me in this world than how many followers I have on LinkedIn.
Thank you for your support over the years!
Iām going to ride this wave for as long as I can before AI takes my job.
Iām getting a lot of praise lately for being so ārealā and āauthenticā and my āwriting styleā just feels so āun-hingedā but this is just the cherry on top.
If you believe it, you can achieve it.
Thank you.
Especially to the moderators of LinkedIn Lunatics ā¤ļøš«”
200,000 followers on LinkedIn.
Started from the middle now we here!!!!
I came home today and my wife and kids had these balloons waiting for me because they know nothing means more to me in this world than how many followers I have on LinkedIn.
Thank you for your support over the years!
Iām going to ride this wave for as long as I can before AI takes my job.
Iām getting a lot of praise lately for being so ārealā and āauthenticā and my āwriting styleā just feels so āun-hingedā but this is just the cherry on top.
If you believe it, you can achieve it.
Thank you.
Especially to the moderators of LinkedIn Lunatics ā¤ļøš«”
Spent the last 7 days swimming all day with my kids. We had ice cream every night. Bike rides. Walks on the beach. Iām a 38 year old man but got to be a full blown kid on spring break with my kids.
The perfect reminder of what matters in this world. I didnāt use any Claude tokens this week either.
Thatās the post.
The perfect reminder of what matters in this world. I didnāt use any Claude tokens this week either.
Thatās the post.
If the job of VP Marketing is to send outbound email and create endless ad variations, then yes.
Please. Replace the VP Marketing with AI.
Please. Replace the VP Marketing with AI.
I feel empty inside.
That's what it is. It has finally hit me.
There is something soul sucking about being on video calls all day.
When I hang around people in-person there is a certain energy. I leave hanging out with friends, neighbors, parents with a GOOD feeling.
I am just a hopeless little knowledge worker in my house in Vermont talking into my MacBook Pro all day and there's no way we were meant to work this way.
Last week a few of the Exit Five team was in town and in a 45 minute car ride to the venue (we were seeing a space for our event) we solved like ... seven problems. And had some laughs.
Note: I also love being home, being around my kids, super lucky for the flexibility. But I am human can hold two different thoughts in my head at once.
I wish I was around the team more!! Playing music in the office. Getting around a whiteboard to draw something out quick.
Just sitting here in between meetings 2:55 PM ET going straight to LinkedIn to pour my heart out...
That's what it is. It has finally hit me.
There is something soul sucking about being on video calls all day.
When I hang around people in-person there is a certain energy. I leave hanging out with friends, neighbors, parents with a GOOD feeling.
I am just a hopeless little knowledge worker in my house in Vermont talking into my MacBook Pro all day and there's no way we were meant to work this way.
Last week a few of the Exit Five team was in town and in a 45 minute car ride to the venue (we were seeing a space for our event) we solved like ... seven problems. And had some laughs.
Note: I also love being home, being around my kids, super lucky for the flexibility. But I am human can hold two different thoughts in my head at once.
I wish I was around the team more!! Playing music in the office. Getting around a whiteboard to draw something out quick.
Just sitting here in between meetings 2:55 PM ET going straight to LinkedIn to pour my heart out...
When all the comments are AIā¦
And all the reviews about your product are good
The images are perfect
Thereās not a flaw in sight ā¦
What happens?
How do you do marketing in that world? Who do you believe and trust?
I open up Uber Eats (not here in Vermont because it doesnāt work here, but when Iām in a city) and the restaurant photos and food pics are all stock images.
Thatās not what the food looks like. I want the real pictures. I want to know itās real.
Unless you believe (and think life will be better) if AI does all of our buying and thinking?
There will always be a place for realness. For trust. For authenticity.
Use it to your advantage.
And all the reviews about your product are good
The images are perfect
Thereās not a flaw in sight ā¦
What happens?
How do you do marketing in that world? Who do you believe and trust?
I open up Uber Eats (not here in Vermont because it doesnāt work here, but when Iām in a city) and the restaurant photos and food pics are all stock images.
Thatās not what the food looks like. I want the real pictures. I want to know itās real.
Unless you believe (and think life will be better) if AI does all of our buying and thinking?
There will always be a place for realness. For trust. For authenticity.
Use it to your advantage.
I spent the entire weekend in Claude Code.
As a 38 year old man. With a wife. Kids. Lots of things going on.
But I spent the entire weekend in Claude Code.
Now, my wife is pissed. Says I was not present all weekend.
My kids - they were home, but I just ignored them and hid on my laptop in the other room.
But at the least the Exit Five webinar emails will now be 5x more efficient to create!
Marketing, baby.
As a 38 year old man. With a wife. Kids. Lots of things going on.
But I spent the entire weekend in Claude Code.
Now, my wife is pissed. Says I was not present all weekend.
My kids - they were home, but I just ignored them and hid on my laptop in the other room.
But at the least the Exit Five webinar emails will now be 5x more efficient to create!
Marketing, baby.
OK. I've been feeling super burnt out lately.
Not with work, but with AI.
I know it's incredible. But I am burnt out.
Too much time in all the AI tools. Too much time scrolling social media seeing the FOMO about this new skill vs that.
Gemini. ChatGPT. Codex. Claude. Claude Code. Claude Cowork. Cursor. How to automate your entire life. Why are you not doing this yet? How inefficient am I not mastering all these tools to run my life? My business?
And then the best thing happened.
One of my favorite artists J. Cole put out his "final" album The Falloff and this week he's been driving around his hometown in a Honda Civic and selling CDs out of the trunk.
In a world of fakes (or worse, your previous former favorite rapper hanging out on Epstein Island) this guy continues to be a breath of fresh air because he is real.
J Cole is actually famous for his lack of "flexing" - imagine that. He's not into fancy cars, jewelry, living a lavish live. He likes to make music, workout, play basketball, and connect with people on a real level. Hanging out at the mall in his hometown.
In a world where male role models seem to be ... vanishing by the month. I like this guy! This is a good trend!
Now I'm just wondering: how is everyone even going to play the CDs they are buying?? Who has a working CD player? Maybe that's why he kept the Honda Civic around...
Not with work, but with AI.
I know it's incredible. But I am burnt out.
Too much time in all the AI tools. Too much time scrolling social media seeing the FOMO about this new skill vs that.
Gemini. ChatGPT. Codex. Claude. Claude Code. Claude Cowork. Cursor. How to automate your entire life. Why are you not doing this yet? How inefficient am I not mastering all these tools to run my life? My business?
And then the best thing happened.
One of my favorite artists J. Cole put out his "final" album The Falloff and this week he's been driving around his hometown in a Honda Civic and selling CDs out of the trunk.
In a world of fakes (or worse, your previous former favorite rapper hanging out on Epstein Island) this guy continues to be a breath of fresh air because he is real.
J Cole is actually famous for his lack of "flexing" - imagine that. He's not into fancy cars, jewelry, living a lavish live. He likes to make music, workout, play basketball, and connect with people on a real level. Hanging out at the mall in his hometown.
In a world where male role models seem to be ... vanishing by the month. I like this guy! This is a good trend!
Now I'm just wondering: how is everyone even going to play the CDs they are buying?? Who has a working CD player? Maybe that's why he kept the Honda Civic around...
I'm worried about my brain. Am I relying on AI and the internet too much?
"Hey Siri who won the 1997 World Series"
(me on my phone at the gym with Claude): "Does it really matter if you target the rear delts if you're not trying to be a bodybuilder? What function to the rear delts have?"
(me in the car talking to Perplexity): "What are the origins of capitalism? Is money evil? Or is it the love of money that is evil?"
(me waiting in line asking Grok): "What are people on X saying about Iceman? This has to be Drake's best album since the 2010s. Is Whisper My Name the best song?"
I am curious person, and it's a gift - I ask a million questions, it makes me a good host and interviewer, and I can get to know you quickly at a social function.
But it's also a CURSE!
Because of AI and my phone I can get access to ANY. ANSWER. immediately.
This is wearing off on my kids too.
"Hey Dad, can you look up pictures of a spotted tree frog?"
"Hey Dad, can you look up who would win this pretend Pokemon battle?"
And I see it at work with fully formed adults, grownups: we are outsourcing SO MUCH of our thinking to a machine.
Look, the machine is really smart and has answers - but aren't our minds meant to wander? To wonder?
That's what's great about reading - you have to fill in the gaps and imagine what the characters look like in the book.
One habit I've built over the years that I (hopefully) help will combat this is writing. With a pen and paper - in a notebook.
And you might think I am the biggest dork in the world, but I have kept a journal of every day for the past 8 years. Sometimes I write just a few lines. Sometimes I write more. But the benefits have been incredible:
1. I have a log of every day with our kids. We went to the beach on this day. One kid puked in the car on this day. I have notes from the day my last company got acquired. I have notes about how I started birdie, birdie but shot 84 in a tournament and never want to play golf again!
2. I am an idea machine. I never have writer's block, because I write every single day, even when I don't want to. It's like a muscle. I am convinced this journaling habit is the reason.
3. Writing by hand is SLOW. And my hand writing is TERRIBLE. But this is a good thing. In a world where typos don't matter anymore because these LLMs just guess what you meant this feels like a benefit. Every day I am training my brain to slow down, process things, and think for myself.
4. I sleep better at night (or any time I am stressed). I write it down. Get it out of my head. If I have work to do's or random thoughts, I put them down (different notebook) and know I'll deal with them tomorrow.
5. I think there's big value in my children seeing me reading, writing, and doing things offline. My shitty handwriting, and all of that ink on the sides and bottom of my hand because I'm a lefty, and as left-handers write our hand trails directly over the freshly laid, wet ink.
Make time to think slowly too...
"Hey Siri who won the 1997 World Series"
(me on my phone at the gym with Claude): "Does it really matter if you target the rear delts if you're not trying to be a bodybuilder? What function to the rear delts have?"
(me in the car talking to Perplexity): "What are the origins of capitalism? Is money evil? Or is it the love of money that is evil?"
(me waiting in line asking Grok): "What are people on X saying about Iceman? This has to be Drake's best album since the 2010s. Is Whisper My Name the best song?"
I am curious person, and it's a gift - I ask a million questions, it makes me a good host and interviewer, and I can get to know you quickly at a social function.
But it's also a CURSE!
Because of AI and my phone I can get access to ANY. ANSWER. immediately.
This is wearing off on my kids too.
"Hey Dad, can you look up pictures of a spotted tree frog?"
"Hey Dad, can you look up who would win this pretend Pokemon battle?"
And I see it at work with fully formed adults, grownups: we are outsourcing SO MUCH of our thinking to a machine.
Look, the machine is really smart and has answers - but aren't our minds meant to wander? To wonder?
That's what's great about reading - you have to fill in the gaps and imagine what the characters look like in the book.
One habit I've built over the years that I (hopefully) help will combat this is writing. With a pen and paper - in a notebook.
And you might think I am the biggest dork in the world, but I have kept a journal of every day for the past 8 years. Sometimes I write just a few lines. Sometimes I write more. But the benefits have been incredible:
1. I have a log of every day with our kids. We went to the beach on this day. One kid puked in the car on this day. I have notes from the day my last company got acquired. I have notes about how I started birdie, birdie but shot 84 in a tournament and never want to play golf again!
2. I am an idea machine. I never have writer's block, because I write every single day, even when I don't want to. It's like a muscle. I am convinced this journaling habit is the reason.
3. Writing by hand is SLOW. And my hand writing is TERRIBLE. But this is a good thing. In a world where typos don't matter anymore because these LLMs just guess what you meant this feels like a benefit. Every day I am training my brain to slow down, process things, and think for myself.
4. I sleep better at night (or any time I am stressed). I write it down. Get it out of my head. If I have work to do's or random thoughts, I put them down (different notebook) and know I'll deal with them tomorrow.
5. I think there's big value in my children seeing me reading, writing, and doing things offline. My shitty handwriting, and all of that ink on the sides and bottom of my hand because I'm a lefty, and as left-handers write our hand trails directly over the freshly laid, wet ink.
Make time to think slowly too...
Ah nothing like a last minute surprise trip to the Super Bowl!
The best part about being the Founder is that you can do whatever you want with the company money.
We took too long to get our super bowl ad in but wanted to find a way to make an impact - so I decided to go and do some "guerilla marketing" at the big game.
Leads have been slow this month, but great founders just make shit happen and do the hard things no one else wants to do. So I'm here in SF for the big game game repping Exit Five.
Go Pats! And let me know if anyone else is here.
Hope my guy Uern (number 10) scores a touchdown! Ha!
The best part about being the Founder is that you can do whatever you want with the company money.
We took too long to get our super bowl ad in but wanted to find a way to make an impact - so I decided to go and do some "guerilla marketing" at the big game.
Leads have been slow this month, but great founders just make shit happen and do the hard things no one else wants to do. So I'm here in SF for the big game game repping Exit Five.
Go Pats! And let me know if anyone else is here.
Hope my guy Uern (number 10) scores a touchdown! Ha!
We invited 100 B2B marketing execs to Arizona for the first annual Exit Five Marketing Leadership retreat.
Kicked off last night with a little welcome mixer and dinner here on the lawn and spent the night hearing the same thing: "this is awesome, I'm so happy to be here."
And we haven't even gotten into the programming yet!
People are here because they want a peer group, a network, and they want to separate the hype you see on LinkedIn from reality; what's going on inside of a $300M revenue cybersecurity company from Texas and a $100M manufacturing company based out of Seattle is much different than what an AI creator with a Substack is telling you.
A peer network is more important now than ever. We hear daily from our members that there's a āton of changeā in marketing leadership now, and you're
all under more pressure now because of AI - it hasn't made things easier, just ratcheted up the pressure.
We're building the best peer network for B2B marketing execs with Exit Five, and it's so obvious whenever I get outside of the building and go meet everyone like this.
Today's agenda:
- First going to get a quick workout in before breakfast
- Keynote from the great Dave Kellogg on what it takes to the CMO everyone wants to work with
- Breakout groups based on industry/size/stage to discuss AI (off the record)
- Workshops on presenting to the board, managing up, team structure/org design, and personal branding
- Then we're outside all afternoon splitting up into pool, golf, yoga, workout, and back for dinner tonight
Kicked off last night with a little welcome mixer and dinner here on the lawn and spent the night hearing the same thing: "this is awesome, I'm so happy to be here."
And we haven't even gotten into the programming yet!
People are here because they want a peer group, a network, and they want to separate the hype you see on LinkedIn from reality; what's going on inside of a $300M revenue cybersecurity company from Texas and a $100M manufacturing company based out of Seattle is much different than what an AI creator with a Substack is telling you.
A peer network is more important now than ever. We hear daily from our members that there's a āton of changeā in marketing leadership now, and you're
all under more pressure now because of AI - it hasn't made things easier, just ratcheted up the pressure.
We're building the best peer network for B2B marketing execs with Exit Five, and it's so obvious whenever I get outside of the building and go meet everyone like this.
Today's agenda:
- First going to get a quick workout in before breakfast
- Keynote from the great Dave Kellogg on what it takes to the CMO everyone wants to work with
- Breakout groups based on industry/size/stage to discuss AI (off the record)
- Workshops on presenting to the board, managing up, team structure/org design, and personal branding
- Then we're outside all afternoon splitting up into pool, golf, yoga, workout, and back for dinner tonight
The comment section. It's always about the comment section.
If my wife sends me a TikTok or IG video, I go right to the comment section.
Half of the jokes in our friend group IG DM channel where you share videos is about what people say in the comments.
So on the whole "Founder Brand" create content online thing.
You can't just post on your page, or have someone ghostwrite for you on your page.
You have to work the comments! Your own comments. Commenting on other people's stuff. I don't even care if you write your own posts on LinkedIn in 2026; just be active in the comments. Make jokes. Add an insight.
Observe human behavior: we all go to the comments in our personal lives!!!
If my wife sends me a TikTok or IG video, I go right to the comment section.
Half of the jokes in our friend group IG DM channel where you share videos is about what people say in the comments.
So on the whole "Founder Brand" create content online thing.
You can't just post on your page, or have someone ghostwrite for you on your page.
You have to work the comments! Your own comments. Commenting on other people's stuff. I don't even care if you write your own posts on LinkedIn in 2026; just be active in the comments. Make jokes. Add an insight.
Observe human behavior: we all go to the comments in our personal lives!!!
I am having the most fun of my career. Right now! (literally right now as my son says, literally!)
The combination of working on Exit Five and all of the hype (good and bad) around what AI will do to marketing is super exciting.
I am having some of the most interesting conversations in years about marketing.
And to think, we used to just argue about MQLs and content downloads...
The combination of working on Exit Five and all of the hype (good and bad) around what AI will do to marketing is super exciting.
I am having some of the most interesting conversations in years about marketing.
And to think, we used to just argue about MQLs and content downloads...
We will place more value on the real. The authentic. The imperfect. To know it was made my by a human. I'm feeling a shift. We're using AI to get more productive, but something is missing. We're humans, we're tribal, we take pride in making things. For some, hey Dominos is the greatest pizza on earth. But for many, they want the TLC and care that goes into making a pie based on a recipe that was passed down by generations.
This is my time. I really believe this. I have been using my "writing style" which is really just a disregard for the rules of grammar for years now and everyone tells me how "authentic" it comes off. Even Claude tells me "ah, that was a very Dave detail you added there."
I think human made is going to have an important place in history.
In marketing, I think this presents a great opportunity to use real people, real faces, real stories. Even if the copy was not written by AI, if it somehow sounds like AI - people call it out.
Did you see the Monet experiment last week? A guy posted a picture of a Monet and told everyone it was AI and the comments were ruthless. Everyone had ideas and edits and they KNEW it was AI because of the brushstrokes and the layering and the texture (it was not AI).
So while you're all using AI to be more efficient, I'd also find ways to lean IN to the human stuff where you can.
Leave a smudge. Have a TYPO. Not on purpose, but just let it fly. See what comes out. Use a word that AI would never use, like "dope."
To quote the great poet Kendrick Lamar:
"Show me something natural like ass with some stretch marks."
We want it real!
At least I do.
But sometimes (usually on a Saturday morning at a germ infested indoor trampoline park with a bunch of 6 year olds) Dominos works just fine too.
This is my time. I really believe this. I have been using my "writing style" which is really just a disregard for the rules of grammar for years now and everyone tells me how "authentic" it comes off. Even Claude tells me "ah, that was a very Dave detail you added there."
I think human made is going to have an important place in history.
In marketing, I think this presents a great opportunity to use real people, real faces, real stories. Even if the copy was not written by AI, if it somehow sounds like AI - people call it out.
Did you see the Monet experiment last week? A guy posted a picture of a Monet and told everyone it was AI and the comments were ruthless. Everyone had ideas and edits and they KNEW it was AI because of the brushstrokes and the layering and the texture (it was not AI).
So while you're all using AI to be more efficient, I'd also find ways to lean IN to the human stuff where you can.
Leave a smudge. Have a TYPO. Not on purpose, but just let it fly. See what comes out. Use a word that AI would never use, like "dope."
To quote the great poet Kendrick Lamar:
"Show me something natural like ass with some stretch marks."
We want it real!
At least I do.
But sometimes (usually on a Saturday morning at a germ infested indoor trampoline park with a bunch of 6 year olds) Dominos works just fine too.