Author: Andy (Page 1 of 27)

Stop Chasing Shiny Objects: Remove Barriers First

August 31, 2025 / Andy / 0 Comments

David Bayer, author and creator of “A Changed Mind,” has this simple formula I like:

Desire plus barrier removal equals desired outcome.

In plain English, most of us know what we want: more customers, more sales, more traction. But we forget the “barrier removal” part. And honestly, that’s where most marketing strategies get stuck.

Don’t Chase Shiny Objects Yet

It’s easy to think the next big thing will save the day. A TikTok campaign, a hot new CRM, some influencer deal. These things are cool to talk about at cocktail parties and networking events. (Plus, ad agencies will make you feel really special.) But truthfully, you don’t need another shiny object. You need to fix the stuff that’s already slowing people down.

What Is Vibe Marketing? Hype or a New Direction?

August 24, 2025 / Andy

I use Leonardo.ai as my go-to image generator, and recently their Senior Creative Technologist published a 27-page paper on “vibe marketing.” As a technology partner for creatives, when Leonardo publishes something that in-depth, it is worth paying attention. Seeing it explored at that level of detail piqued my interest and pushed me to dive deeper into the idea.

Why My Messaging Starts with 3-30-3

August 17, 2025 / Andy

Hook (3 seconds)

Most product messages fail because they start at the end. They lead with facts before earning the right to be heard. But people need something to grab their attention first.

Tease (30 seconds)

That’s why I work with something I call the 3-30-3 Rule. It isn’t a formula carved in stone, but a useful guide. The premise is simple:

The Childhood Stories That Make You Go ‘Wait, WHAT?!’

August 10, 2025 / Andy

How We All Missed the Crimes, Trauma, and Weirdness in Classic Kids’ Books

When you’re a kid, you just roll with the plot.

When you’re an adult, you realize half the books we grew up with are basically crime dramas… they just hide behind bright colors and rhymes.

Exhibit A: Curious George

30 Day Results of the Caffeine Purge

August 7, 2025 / Andy

About a month ago, I started dialing caffeine back to almost nothing.

I’m not going to lie, the 1st week was brutal. Even though I warned everyone, “Hey, I’m going to be cranky,” I seemed to exceed their expectations and still annoyed them.

But then it passed and now that I’m on the other side of it, here’s the quick report:

Sleep: The first week was amazing. Now it’s just… better. Not perfect, but steadier.
Focus: On the softball field I noticed a real difference. My reaction time was noticeably improved. I felt sharper, like my brain wasn’t juggling 34 distractions at once.
Mood: Less up-and-down. Easier to slow down and pause before responding. (That topic is probably worth a post or two of its own.)
Energy: No dramatic crashes at night, just a gradual wind-down. But also no huge daytime surges.
Weight: No big changes, other than a little natural water loss.

I still enjoy a cup of coffee here and there, and I’ll grab an iced tea at a restaurant if I’m out or in a coffee shop if I’m working. But the dependence is gone. And we’re measuring in cups, not pots.

Overall: Let’s call it a meaningful success with no downside. Not life-changing, not a miracle cure. Just a steady improvement that makes me feel pretty good about the choice.

How Do You Know It’s Time to Invest in a New Social Channel?

August 3, 2025 / Andy

I was asked an interesting question the other day by a senior marketer. She wantd my opinion on how to decide it’s time for a brand to start a new channel, as well as how I keep up on social trends.

It’s an interesting question, because here we are 20 years into this social media phenomenon, and there’s never been a perfect answer. If you rushed right into MySpace, or even Friendster, back in the day, you had to decide when to leave. Then came all the others, Shoot, remember when Google was trying to make everyone do Circles on Google+?

The good thing about social is that trends don’t go hide under a lot of research. They are literally blasting you in the face to the point you can’t ignore them.

So my opinion is that trends can be monitored constantly, but investment only happens when data shows audience fit, potential ROI, and brand alignment. And tofigure that out, we look at a few things:

The Strategist’s Dilemma: When Even Google Says “Just Let Us Run It”

July 27, 2025 / Andy

Early in my career, I was a tactician. Email campaigns, SEO, SEM, building landing pages, hacking together A/B tests. Whatever the job needed, I’d figure it out.

Then I got older. Took on bigger roles. Strategy became my thing. I got an MBA, which basically teaches you how to never do real work again. Just make PowerPoints and use fancy terms like “ubiquitous” and “leveraging synergies.” Just kidding. Kind of.

Then I taught at UW. Strategy-heavy, theory-driven. But not much time for learning how to troubleshoot a broken Meta ad pixel or chase down why TikTok didn’t like the file format you uploaded.

Fast-forward to a recent client gig. A small, scrappy brand with big potential. I figured with AI at my side, I could go back to being a full-stack marketer. The headlines promised that AI was like hiring a 12-person team. All I had to do was show up and prompt. Well, that’s what I thought would happen…

When You Have Too Much to Do, Stop and Do Less

July 13, 2025 / Andy

Eventually, the list gets away from you.

You sit down ready to work, but nothing moves. Your brain stalls. You’re not even procrastinating. You’re just stuck. The list looks like a mountain, and instead of climbing it, you stare at it, waiting for something to change.

The anxiety and stress don’t come from the list itself. They come from the pressure we put on ourselves to catch up. That pressure builds, and the spiral begins.

The Caffeine Purge Begins

July 6, 2025 / Andy

I drink a lot of coffee. Usually a full pot by the end of the day, and sometimes I throw in three or four Cascade Ice caffeine drinks just to round things out. It’s not that I think I need that much. It’s just what I do. Part habit, part coping mechanism.

But I’ve been feeling the effects lately and I don’t like them. Anxiety, restless sleep, a sense that my nervous system is running slightly off the rails even when nothing’s happening. So I’ve decided to do something about it. Not some dramatic life overhaul. Just one thing: cut back on caffeine with the goal of a total abstinence. Seven to ten days of tapering. Let’s see what happens.

The plan is to mix decaf into my coffee grounds, tart with half and half, then taper it down. That will remove about 1/3 and gives me a few days to fool myself before things get more difficult. Next, drop the Cascade Ice drinks and try to replace them with pure water and electrolytes. That’s 1/2 of the current state so 2/3 total.

Then, it’ll just be cutting down the pot to 1/2, then one cup, then none at all. Sounds easy. I mean, I’ve done much harder things.

Why now? Because I want better sleep. Less edge. More clarity. And I want to see what my face and gut look like without all the hidden water retention and stimulant drag. Ten days without caffeine should be enough to know whether any of that’s real or just a theory I invented while over-caffeinated.

So this is Day 1. No big declarations. Just an experiment. I’ll check back in if things get interesting.