Customers Care About Problem, Not Your Brand or Features
If you removed your logo and product name, would your ideal customer still recognize their own problem? Most companies fail this test. That's the real question founders should be asking about their marketing and sales going into 2026. Because there's a big difference between speaking from your company's perspective (features) and speaking from your customer's perspective (outcomes). It's one of the most overlooked growth mistakes I see. Most marketing and sales conversations over-index on: • a great product (features and quality) • an experienced team (years in business) • pricing and packages Here's what most founders miss: Customers don't care about this nearly as much as you think. What they're actually thinking is: "I want the best solution to my problem — ASAP." But they're also skeptical. They've tried solutions that didn't work. They're bombarded with offers that all sound the same. They're not looking for promises — they're looking for proof this will work for 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 situation. When marketing and sales fixate on features instead of outcomes, skip personalization, or push too hard — they don't build confidence. They scare customers off. Not because the offer is bad. But because the experience feels misaligned with the buyer's reality. That's why when founders want to skip messaging, I stop them. Messaging isn't "soft." It's what determines whether your marketing and sales generate ROI. If your message doesn't reflect how your customer sees their problem, more activity won't fix it — it just amplifies the misalignment. This isn't an algorithm issue. It's not a volume issue. It's a perspective issue. Marketing and sales that talk about you get ignored. Marketing and sales that talk about what changes for the customer convert. 💎 Does your marketing pass the logo test?
Ads That Feel Like Stories Win Every Time
Your best ads usually won't look like ads. They’ll look like stories, case studies, lessons, and “behind-the-scenes.” Buyers are numb as they enter into a new year. The ad that wins will be the one that doesn’t feel like one. Try this ad framework: •...
Target the Silent “Almost‑buyer” For Hidden Profit
Your most profitable segment is the one no one talks about: The almost-buyer. People who: • Visited 3 or more PDPs • Added to cart but bounced • Engaged with 2 or more emails but never converted They know your brand, they just didn’t cross...
Publish Before You're Ready: Consistency Beats Perfection
Nobody has it all figured out. Not me. Not the experts you admire. Not anyone. We are all just making it up as we go. I was 38 when I started writing online. Zero followers. Zero engagement. Zero clue what...
Anthropic Takes Enterprise Lead as OpenAI Shifts to Consumers
The AI LLM market share story of 2023-2025 is one of just ... massive change. Fast. Enterprise LLM Market: 2023: OpenAI 50% | Anthropic 12% | Google 7% 2025: Anthropic 40% | OpenAI 27% | Google 21% 🥇Anthropic went from distant third to...
Storyteller Roles Become High-Leverage Hires for Startups
I'm hearing that more startups and growth companies are hiring for the "storyteller" role. I think that's cool. It's a very high-leverage role/skill.
Agency, Not Tools, Drives Real Impact
Agency is the scarce resource. Tools are abundant. Information is cheap. Coordination is easy. None of that changes reality by itself. Agency does. Agency is deciding when there is no proof, acting when outcomes are unclear, and remaining accountable after the result shows...
Great Marketing Starts with Customers, Not Competitors
The best marketing ideas come from studying your customers (not your competitors)
Creation Demands Accountability, Not Just Clever Talk
To create is to take responsibility for a piece of reality. When you create, something exists tomorrow that did not exist yesterday, and you are accountable for how it behaves in the world, not how it sounded in a room....
B2B Buyers Now Validate Tools via Instagram Video
Buyers Are Researching You on Instagram The more you optimize for video and visual search on platforms like Instagram, the more your B2B tools get discovered by users showcasing real-world results, not just traditional SEO. The sooner you realize Ubersuggest...
Organic Social Reach Declines, Budgets Slashed in 2026
Organic social is a channel you can't ignore. But in 2026, most companies are decreasing their organic social budget. Why? Becauseof a continual decline in reach. https://t.co/5W3Mfbm9Jn
Revive Cold Lists with a 3‑email Narrative
Your email list is only cold if your offer is. The real unlock isn’t a new audience. It’s better messaging to the one you already own. Here’s the 3-email arc that turns cold into curious: • Email 1: Insight-led, no pitch • Email 2: “What’s...
AI B2B Takes Off in 2026 After 2025 Foundations
We are literally >just< getting going in AI B2B. Really, most stuff didn’t even work before Claude 4 and the beginning of 2025. That’s why Lovable, Replit, Cursor, Gamma, etc. exploded. The models alone weren’t good enough — until early...
Startups Must Join ChatGPT Early or Lose Customers
The startups mentioned here are thinking about the ChatGPT App Store wrong. Distribution mechanisms are only one part of the puzzle. The reality is that ChatGPT is becoming the starting point for many startups' customers. As other competing...
Google Says AI Search Rewards Human‑written Content
Google's Danny Sullivan says that all their ranking systems, including AI search, reward content that is written for humans. https://t.co/8GqjcUFl32 via @martinibuster, @sejournal
Beyond Big Data: Human Insight Drives Marketing Differentiation
my husband challenged me yesterday: if you say "go to market using research, not assumptions" companies are gonna think you mean Big Data 👀 my husband is an engineer, so I get where he's coming from... data means big complicated...
Learn AI Faster with a Personal AI Buddy
The best way to learn AI? Get yourself an AI buddy. 😊 Mark Hinkle and I met up last Saturday, had such a great time… we did it again this Saturday. I’ve been using Gemini for Gmail, and Mark asked,...
AliaLearn Delivers 2.2×
One piece of software that we have a 99% usage rate with clients is @AliaLearn. @iamshaanarora and team have created a phenomenal tool at a price that just makes sense. Have never had someone cancel once they onboard. Lowest improvement I’ve seen them...
Marketing Requires Ongoing Maintenance, Not One‑Time Spend
“I don’t understand why no one is booking a call.” He’d spent thousands on his website. The offer was solid. The messaging looked fine. So I clicked his booking link. It led to a 404. Another founder? Her inquiry form...
Set Clear Expectations to Drive Speed, Ownership, and Results
New & aspiring marketing leaders: It's super important to set expectations for yourself and for the team. Think of them as your values. Without them? Your team will thrash constantly and hesitate to make decisions that move projects/pipeline/people forward. Here's...
ChatGPT Overtakes Google as Go‑to Source for Real Answers
Google is losing ground and conversations like this make it obvious. Most people still think “search = Google,” but real users are quietly shifting. When they need clear answers fast, they’re opening ChatGPT instead. Not for entertainment for real life...
AI SEO/GEO/AEO Investment Surges Into 2026
AI SEO/GEO/AEO doesn't seem to be dying anytime soon. Just look at what people are doing with their 2026 budgets. https://t.co/VUdQcfLKXH
Speak Softly: Narrative Ads Win Over Fatigued Buyers
Your buyers are tired. They frequently see 80+ ads per day, so the solution is not to shout louder. Write like you’re the only one left whispering. • Anchor ads in narrative • Run “Story, Value, CTA” frameworks • Focus on their future rather than...
Layered Outreach Beats List Burnout: Sequence Each Channel
Touchpoint stacking is an art. Brands tend to burn out their lists because they treat every send the same. Here’s how to re-layer your outbound: • SMS = scarcity ping • Paid = story and context • Organic = social proof loop • Email = long-form...
Guard Your Focus: Turn It Into a Competitive Asset
Focus used to be a habit. Now it’s an asset that must be defended. AI constantly invites expansion. Founders who don’t guard focus end up running a portfolio instead of a company.
AI-Native B2B Firms Surge, Seat‑based SaaS Lag
The Great B2B Bifurcation of 2025 Palantir +142%. HubSpot -51%. Despite the fact both businesses end the year pretty strong. Some patterns from the top 25 B2B / SaaS public companies: What's working: 🔼AI-native infrastructure (Palantir, Cloudflare, MongoDB) 🔼Mission-critical + high switching costs (CrowdStrike, Palo...
Simplify Growth: Master Facebook, Google, Email First
Hot-take: Most companies / people over complicate their initial growth. Most brands can grow to $10M+/year with just Facebook, Google & Email. You don’t need dozens of sales channels. Focus on these and get really good at them before looking...
Top CROs Have Already Built 2026 Teams
The best CROs have mostly recruited the teams they need for 2026 already Half the job is recruiting
AI Accelerates Customer Expectations—Adapt or Fall Behind
Customer expectations don’t stand still — they escalate. What made you successful yesterday may not keep you successful tomorrow. With AI reshaping the rules of the game, the success equation is changing faster than ever. How can you exceed customer...
Speed of Insight Delivery Determines Organizational Progress
Progress is constrained by how fast information moves. It has nothing to do with raw intelligence. Ambition does not fix it. Neither do longer hours. Information has to travel. It has to reach the people who can decide, and it...
Sergey Brin Could Be Google's Satya Nadella
The question I've been asking myself for the last 3 years: Who will do for Google what Satya did for Microsoft? Turns out, it might be Sergey Brin. Not that he's going to take on the CEO role, but that...
LinkedIn Reveals Essential Video Ad Tips
LinkedIn Shares Video Ad Tips [Infographic] https://t.co/gSRGhQg4r1
Email's Future: Replies Over Lists, Human Verification
Email needs more love in 2026. Simply having someone on an email list will no longer be the asset. And it won’t be open rate. What will matter is having someone willing to reply. Email stops functioning primarily as a...
Simplify LLM Scaling with OpenRouter, Avoid Model Chaos
I can be slow sometimes I didn't totally get why products like @OpenRouterAI are a big deal but this week I hit API issues with OpenAI and had to manually add a fallback to Anthropic. A real pain. And I also...
Three Key Snapchat Trends Every CDO Must Know
As a Chief Digital Officer, 3 things jumped out to me in Snapchat for Business 's latest report. Let's unpack what you need to know before 2026 - ready? And, get the full Snapchat Generation report: https://lnkd.in/eBs4gESm #snapchatpartner
Own Problems, Propose Solutions, Accelerate Team Momentum
From my end-of-year reflections: if you bring a problem, be sure to bring a proposed solution. And no, it's not because leadership doesn't want to hear about the issues. It's actually the exact opposite... because the fastest way to lose...
Lenovo's Emily Ketchen Leverages AI to Market Unseen Products
How Lenovo's Emily Ketchen markets never-before-seen products in the age of AI https://t.co/2EvWMPwCKe
Budget Limits, Not ROI, Often Stifle Brand Growth
Sometimes, the answer genuinely is that marketing doesn't have enough budget to do what the company is asking. It's not a popular answer to give, and there's even a tired cliche about how marketing always wants more money to spend,...
Training Turns Sales Rep Into Heart‑Driven Performer
Last week I had one of my most rewarding experiences of the year. Here's the story: A CEO came up to me after I had one of his sales reps in a 2-day training with me weeks before. Here's exactly...
AI Startups Bleed Revenue Due to Perfectionist Promises
The AI bubble is cracking. AI startups are losing 50% of their revenue within a year. A new report is circulating in VC circles, and the numbers are brutal. I just read Kyle Poyar ’s latest report, and one chart...
Prioritizing AEO/GEO Over Search Yields Near‑Zero ROI
Google's Danny Sullivan addressed questions about how to talk with clients amid changes related to #AI and search. https://t.co/jVWqEApg0n via @martinibuster, @sejournal "It absolutely makes zero sense to prioritize AEO/GEO over Google and Bing search at this point because the...
Scale Faster: Hire Leaders Better Than Yourself
How do founders that have never done it before scale to $10m, $100m, $1B in ARR? They hire people better than them This is the mistake most Stretch VPs make. They don’t hire folks better & later more experienced than...
Key Branded Search Metrics Every B2B Marketer Should Track
Branded Search Metrics to Start Monitoring - B2B Marketing Blog | Webbiquity - https://t.co/gL10Lm4tZn via @seosmarty
AI ROI Arrives Now, Peaks by 2027
Real AI ROI is here. Companies like UPS and Rocket Mortgage are slashing costs and boosting efficiency. But the true impact kicks in by 2027. Adapt, learn new skills, and get ready for the next wave. https://t.co/JXsOdAOIxi
B2B Buyers Go Rep‑Free; Revenue Teams Must Lead Early
Gartner’s recent sales research shows that a majority, 61%, of B2B buyers now prefer a rep-free, self-service buying experience, relying on digital, information-rich research instead of talking to sales early on. This means your Sales team is effectively ‘late to...
Build a Unique Premise and Signature Talk
If you want to book more speaking engagements, there are 2 things you need to develop: 1. Start by developing your premise and IP, and ensure your speech is not just a wall of smarts, but a narrative argument for...
Segmentation Is Essential; One Bad Segment Kills Deliverability
Your Emails Are Getting Penalized for This One Mistake (And 90% of Brands Are Guilty) The more you segment by behavioral engagement (opens, clicks, replies), the more inbox AIs will reward you with prime placement, even if your overall list...

Social Media Ad Budgets Shift by Platform in 2026
Here’s how social media ad budgets are being adjusted in 2026 by platform. https://t.co/UujGF0vTlY
Understand Why Customers Buy, Not Just What They Bought
You can’t scale what you don’t understand. Most brands exit BFCM with: • ROAS snapshots • SKU velocity charts • Attribution dashboards But none of that tells you why people bought. Here’s your post-Q4 insight engine: Run a 2-question post-purchase survey: “What almost stopped you from buying?” and...
Master Marketing by Studying Psychology, Not Dashboards
The best marketers study people more than Meta dashboards. If you want to actually get good at marketing, ditch the Google Ads, CRO, and SEO. Start with psychology. Understand what drives action, what builds trust, what creates desire. Human behavior will never change at...