What we are thinking about.
Notes from running 8 publications and building tools for them. Restaurant SEO, local marketing, the boring parts that move the needle.
Adland’s Spring Circus: Etsy’s Sentimentality, NPR’s Smugness, and the Week’s 9 Most Overcooked Campaigns
Etsy, NPR, Primark, and more dropped new ads this week—none of them daring, all of them desperate for agency award approval. The industry’s afraid of real risk.
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Stop Playing Small: The Pathetic Epidemic of ‘Act Your Size’ Branding
If your brand still insists on 'acting its size,' you’re begging to be invisible. Ambition, not authenticity, wins the market this spring.
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CMOs Are Clueless About AI—and Their Agencies Are Even Worse
Three-quarters of CMOs admit they’re in over their heads with AI, but the real scandal is the industry’s addiction to outsourcing and magic-bullet solutions.
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Claude 3.5 API: How Anthropic Is Quietly Hijacking Google Rankings in 2026
In Q2 2026, over 38% of ranking product snippets on Google are written or templated with Claude 3.5 API, not by a human. This shift is invisible to most agencies.
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Why Agencies Skipping AI Search Traffic Reporting in 2026 Deserve to Die
Google’s SGE shipped to 2B users in May 2025, yet most agencies still ignore AI-powered search data. If your reports don’t mention AI, you’re paying for incompetence.
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Why Most Publishers Will Disappear in Google's SGE 2026—and How to Survive
By 2026, 80% of organic links in Google's SGE will be vaporized. If you're still clinging to Yoast and 'Ultimate Guides,' you're cannon fodder.
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Fractional CMOs Are the New Status Symbol for Growth-Obsessed Startups—But Don’t Call It a Bargain
The stampede toward fractional CMOs this spring isn’t about saving money—it’s desperation for real expertise, and the sharks are circling.
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AI’s Hidden Bill Comes Due and Uber’s Token Circus: The Real Price of Martech ‘Innovation’ This Spring
AI isn’t free—this spring, the bill is landing, and it’s ugly. Uber’s token meltdown is just the latest proof that martech hype hides busted infrastructure.
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Nike, McDonald’s, and Devin Booker’s Arizona Sneaker Stunt: Where Viral Marketing Meets Corporate Fan Fiction
Nike and McDonald’s turned Devin Booker’s sneaker drop into a corporate scavenger hunt in the Arizona heat, blurring the line between fandom and unpaid promo work.
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Cannes Beach Activations: Where ‘Experiential’ Means Fried iPads and Lifeguard Drama
This week’s Cannes ‘experiential’ beach stunts weren’t sunk by creativity—they were fried by overheated iPads, bureaucratic lifeguards, and plain old bad planning.
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60 Minutes Hands the Wheel to Nick Bilton—Is This a Rescue or a Rebrand?
CBS just nuked the old 60 Minutes playbook, firing Tanya Simon and handing the keys to Nick Bilton. This isn’t a facelift—it’s an ultimatum.
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Crocs Didn’t Get Lucky—They Weaponized the Hate and Won
Crocs turned public mockery into a money machine by leaning into the ugly, not running from it. Most brands are too scared to try.
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Ferrari’s Latest Design Fiasco: Welcome to the Jaguar School of Brand Suicide
Ferrari’s new model didn’t just miss the mark, it torched the brand’s luxury cachet and spooked the markets. Welcome to Jaguar’s old hell.
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No, Marketers: You Can’t “Optimize” Your Way Out of Being Untrustworthy Garbage
Marketers, your trust problem isn’t a funnel issue—it’s the result of years of treating customers like click-fodder. No AI, no A/B test, no plugin will fix this.
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Photography Gear NYC Restaurants Use for In-House Content
In the competitive landscape of New York City dining, visually appealing content is essential for marketing and engagement. Restaurants in vibrant neighborhoods like Williamsburg and the Lower East Side are increasingly relying on in-house
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UPS’s Fuel Surcharge Circus: Brands Eat the Bill as Shipping Grift Escalates
UPS just slapped brands with fresh 'surge emergency fees' from Asia, blaming fuel costs. It’s not innovation—it's margin padding, and brands are paying the price.
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Universal Ads Wants Your Pizza Budget—But Can’t Deliver a Slice That Sells
Universal Ads is piling on features, but unless it can make the phone ring for small businesses, it won’t steal ad dollars from social platforms any time soon.
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CBS News Radio Fades Out Quietly—While CBS Mornings Ignores Colbert’s Last Bow
CBS News Radio bows out after nearly a century, while CBS Mornings pretends Stephen Colbert’s Late Show finale never happened. The message: legacy means nothing.
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