Posts by Chris
My Basic Ideas In a Nutshell
At its core, my method is a means of harmonizing the needs of capitalism and the needs of human beings; of maximally harmonizing the requirements of the future with those of the present; the needs of the individual with those of the whole. It reveals itself differently for each individual, but overall, this method should…
Read ItWhy did THIS popover work for me?
Given that I just wrote about how annoying it is to get email signup popovers earlier that day, it struck me as odd that this one “worked” for me. When I saw this, I somehow wanted it, and did not feel annoyed by it in the same way. Now, I’m sure this is personal, but…
Read ItHey there pretty lady, whaddya talk about I call you sometime?
Some years ago, internet marketers decided it would be very clever start pushing large forms in people’s faces that ask them to sign up for an email newsletter. These are called “popovers”, and can be programmed to appear at different moments when someone is visiting your site. The obvious core idea is: You have this…
Read ItDubsado: The emotional moat can be the essential ingredient for a company
The makers of Drift published a great little book called This Won’t Scale. Play #8 in this was Build an Emotional Moat Around Your Brand. The author goes on to talk about “crafting a consistent story” and every “touchpoint” being part of that—which is all good, but still sounds a little mechanical, if you ask…
Read ItPlease don’t jiggle
Dear designer-marketer: You think you are being cute by just making the thing you want me to pay attention to… jiggle a little. I am not stupid. I find it very annoying, and am very tempted to close your page right away. —User Unless you want to be annoying (I can’t figure out why you…
Read ItAnother good example of clear offer in email
This one is very simple, and you’ll see that the type is small and hard to read, but the point is that they are highlighting a promise of what you will get. And: In fact, notice that they are not highlighting the format, they are highlighting the outcome. “Weekly progress updates” is what you get…
Read ItNot being shy about your newsletter
I like the way Tim Ferris puts his newsletter as a menu item on his website. This is part of an integrated strategy—I like what he says about the newsletter too: Every Friday, I send out an exclusive email with the five coolest things I’ve found (or explored) that week. It could include exclusive giveaways…
Read ItA bold and honest ask
What I love about this is that the design itself says, “we are not afraid to ask first before we send you emails.” People actually get to decide. This was literally on their lead magnet page! Now, this is on the website for a design company, and so the design elements are very well executed,…
Read ItDecentralizing gig economies
Today I read a really interesting article about creating the Decentralized Web. The people pursuing the idea are seeking to extricate themselves from the hyper-aggregation of data and digital power in the hands of companies like Google and FaceBook. But this got me thinking about an idea I’ve been rolling around for a while. I’ve been…
Read ItA Thought Leadership Community Pilot
