BIG QUESTIONS
Is your company at all credible?
As marketers, we talk a lot about what we should be saying and how. But how much do we think about how it will land with our audience? The more we fail to consider that, the more disconnected we become from our audience. And while we might still be getting decent response rates, the messages (emails, ads, etc.) are silently killing our brand’s credibility. We all know the guy at the dinner party who is 100% focused on what HE’S saying. You stop listening and start to feel a tinge of disdain. You don’t find him credible either, because credibility is strongly linked to how others perceive a person’s balance between self-focus and concern for others (namely you). When the focus is unbalanced, the audience disengages and your influence, authority, and credibility disintegrates. Empathy…real empathy for your audience is therefore essential to marketing. Because no matter how many times you pound them with your message, you can’t persuade anyone who doesn’t like you.
TOOL JOY
Obsidian: The writing app that helps you think
DESIGN WE ❤️
Stripe BFCM machine
FinTech powerhouse Stripe (and Pinwheel client ?) launched an augmented video website of a live-streamed custom-built analog machine (aka Stripe BFCM Machine) that showcases data from Black Friday to Cyber Monday. The website also features a 3D interactive retro manual with additional context and killer schematic drawings. We love to see companies thinking well outside the box to to promote their products and expertise in unexpected ways- well done, Stripe!
BEEP BOOP
Total bologna: Oscar Mayer revived its iconic 1974“My bologna has a first name.” ad to tease a collaboration with Instacart. Does your brand have any artifacts that might be worth using?
Waste not: The flip side to consumption is waste. And waste only ever grows. This Netflix documentary “Buy Now! The Shopping Conspiracy” is an eye-opener. Heck, even the 2 min trailer is arresting.
SEO is not dead, episode #268: In this episode, Google itself comments on the impact of AI on SEO and asserts that SEO still has a role to play.
Speaking of Google and AI: Google’s new AI weather tool is breaking forecasting records, accurately predicting conditions up to 15 days in advance.
Primo people watching: Around 10 years ago, iPhones had a default function where you could upload your videos directly to YouTube. But they all got the same name. Millions of random vids went by “IMG_XXXX.” So now you can randomly flip through these fascinating glimpses into people’s private lives.
WORD TO THE WISE
“So much of why big movies just aren’t good is because they’re not being made by a person who cares about them.
They’re being made by people trying to make something they think someone else is going to like – and that’s not how it works. That something else is not art. It’s commerce.”
Rick Rubin, Record Executive, Author
WHAT CLIENTS WANT
The state of SEO in 2025
People ask us, “Didn’t AI kill SEO?” Our answer: “Erm, nooooo.” Digital marketing platform Conductor’s recent survey of digital stakeholders at big companies and small underscores this:
- 91% report that SEO positively impacted website performance and marketing goals in 2024.
- 63% reported that AIO (AI optimization) has helped their organic traffic, visibility, or rankings since it rolled out.
- SEO-savvy orgs were 3x more likely to report that AIO had a positive impact on their performance.
Bottom line: AI search is a “disruption.” In this adaptation, your credibility (EEAT) is more important than ever. So, too, are video and graphics. Pro tip: write for those conversational, long-tail queries driven by LLMs.
ICEBREAKER
What are you most excited about this year?
Todd: I’m excited to take a 2-week bike trip with my son Nick (and Pinwheel social media guy) to Japan in September. North Island. 500 miles.
Melissa: Seeing my son head off to high school. Each milestone with him is a gift as I didn’t think he would survive his birth!
Marielle: This March will be the third year in a row I go to Maui for a week with a girlfriend and do nothing but gaze at whale spouts, snorkel, hike, read, and eat fish and fruit.
Sarah: I’m looking forward to tons of beach time with my nearly 13-year-old pittie. We try to savor every moment and have at least one coastal adventure a day.
Sharon: I might visit Africa and China for the first time—fingers crossed!
John: My 2 daughters will be taking their first trip back to the US after 3 years in Catalonia, Spain to stay with family. I can’t wait to see how happy their grandparents will be after a 3 year grandkid drought.
FALLACIES, PARADOXES & THEORIES…OH MY
The Isolation Effect
A cognitive bias where one thing that stands out from a group of similar things is more likely to be remembered. First identified by German psychiatrist Hedwig von Restorff (note: great name for an indy rock band) in 1933. Her study found that when participants were presented with a list of similar items with one ultra distinctive, isolated item, their memory of the isolated item was much better. In 1893, the Financial Times used this to dominate their category by switching their paper to the color salmon. In 2007, Cadbury used this idea with their iconic “gorilla on the drums” TV ad to avoid financial ruin. The lesson: If you want your brand to be memorable, be bold and be different both visually and verbally. Rock on!
