Want To Be a Great Marketer? Stop Thinking Like One

I read something the other day that lit my brain on fire: “Stop making ads, start making art.” It was a mic-drop moment.

It got me thinking about this content catastrophe we find ourselves in. AI has opened the floodgates of mass marketing content. Sales presentations, blogs and social media posts within seconds — all at the click of an “easy” button. Don’t like how something sounds? Ask it to re-write the copy with a different tone of voice. This ability has led many to believe that because we ‘can’ create this way, we ‘should.’ It’s easier. It’s cheaper. It’s more efficient. I get the hype. But I want to zoom out the lens and look at the big picture.

Many of our major social media platforms are already, if not planning on, offering ad-free options. Streaming services are offering ad-free subscriptions. Almost universally, marketing research indicates massive ad fatigue among consumers. I hear this all the time from marketers and clients alike: “I just need to post more on Instagram,” “I just need a bigger ad budget,” and “I need more X.” More, more, more. Is more really what we need? Or do we actually need less?

Let’s take off our marketer and business owner hat for a second and put on our customers’ shoes. It’s estimated that the average consumer receives over 10,000 marketing messages every single day. Do they really want “more” messages? More content? More marketing? NO. So, what do they want? What would feel good to them? Instead of More, how about better?

Related: Why Personal Branding Matters More Than Ever for Successful Entrepreneurs

Instead of posting something lame and ‘salesy’ every single day on Instagram, what if you posted something absolutely amazing and valuable once a week? Instead of posting 10 ChatGPT-generated, SEO-optimized blogs each month, what if you focused on creating one thing that was so creative and meaningful to your audience that they couldn’t wait to read it and share it with their friends?

Personal opinion: we have lost sight of the top principle of marketing. The thing almost guaranteed to make consumers want to buy from you is to provide value first. It’s why coupon codes work in retail, and why downloads and free consults work so well in services-based businesses.

Related: How to Provide More Value to Your Customers And Scale Your Company

Before we ask for the sale, we provide something of use. Are 10 AI-generated blogs valuable to a potential customer? Or is one great, thoughtful, well-researched guide providing new insights? Which one feels more valuable to you?

I want to advocate we start doing less with our marketing. Stop pushing out content just to push content. Keep those customer shoes on. Ask, “Would this have meaning to me/would this provide value?” If the answer is no, go back to the drawing board and find something that would. Focus on quality, not quantity. Your customers are smart; let’s respect them and their time and bandwidth by providing marketing with meaning and substance. Stop trying to ‘hack the system’ or find shortcuts. There is no shortcut for great marketing, just like there is no shortcut for great art.

One of the ultimate creators of our time was Picasso. Can you imagine expecting him to create a new painting and post it on his Instagram daily? He’d be exhausted. The work would be crap. He would be creating just for the sake of keeping up with the algorithm, not for the joy of making something meaningful.

How many of you have felt the ‘ick’ from brands who have been way too pushy or salesy? Or from those pieces of content you actually took the time to read that were clearly written by a robot and were generic and just a waste of time? Stop doing it. Get off the hamster wheel and start having original thoughts again. One of the best pieces of advice I ever received was from a fellow marketer, Sarah Feeney who told me (as it pertained to branding) “If you want to be cool, be cool.” Is your brand smart and innovative? Be smart and innovative. Put out content that is smart and innovative. Is your brand fun and exciting? Be fun and exciting.

Related: When AI Gets It Wrong: Are We Sacrificing Personal Touch and Sense for Speed?

Your marketing should matter — not just to you but also to your customers. They are the reason you are here. They are smart. They are exhausted. They want better from you then the same old same they see everywhere else.

Great marketing is about creating a genuine connection with your customers. It’s not a one-way megaphone to “BUY NOW.” Nobody wants that. They want to feel like they matter to you. Make them matter by stepping outside your current digital marketing box and returning to the creative drawing board.

Identify those cool, amazing, great things you have wanted to do but have felt too scared or busy to tackle. Make those your priority. Stop setting your sights on the next viral moment and set the bar for creating real, authentic connections and impact. Above all else, stop thinking like a marketer and start thinking like a customer.