Notes

I've been saying this for over twenty years, and it's still as relevant now as it was in 2002.

Back then it was bands abandoning their dot coms for MySpace (remember Tom?). Now it's small businesses treating their Facebook page like it's their website. Same mistake, different platform.

There's a special kind of dread that comes with hovering over the Send button on a marketing email. You've checked the links, proofread it over and over, previewed it on mobile and desktop and mobile again. Still terrified.

And honestly, the tools don't help. Mailchimp, Constant Contact, Brevo, doesn't matter which one. They all give you a drag-and-drop editor that looks great in the preview and then lets you accidentally break your formatting, stretch an image, or send a test draft to your whole list. The templates are supposed to keep things consistent, but they're fragile, especially when more than one person is touching them.

But let's say the email looks fine. You hold your breath and hit Send. Now some unsubscribes roll in, and your heart sinks watching each one come through. It took me a while to learn that's completely normal, and that most of those people just had a bad day and cleaned out their inbox. Think about how many times you've done that yourself. It's not personal. It's just human behavior.

Most email anxiety isn't about the message. It's about the tool and the metrics you're staring at. The fix is a system that only lets you change what you're supposed to change, and knowing which numbers actually matter.

National Pencil Day. National Doughnut Hole Day. Employee anniversaries. There's always something to post about on your professional socials.

I made a short video about why that's a trap.

The short version: once you start posting about these recurring days, your audience expects you to keep doing it every year. You're committing to something that's easy to start and hard to maintain.

What to do instead: let those moments live in your daily rhythm and inform your brand naturally, not as performative posts. An employee anniversary is a great excuse for an internal celebration and a genuine thank-you, not another content piece your followers have to scroll past.

If you're stuck thinking through decisions like this one for your own brand, that's the work I do at Rendered Consulting.

There's a section of federal law, 4 U.S.C. § 8(i), that says the flag should never be used for advertising purposes. In any manner whatsoever.

I made a short video about it.

The short version: the flag code is advisory, not criminal. But the people who care most, veterans, service members, their families, they see it. And around here in the Metro East, with Scott Air Force Base right down the road, that's a lot of your customers.

What to do instead: use red, white, and blue as colors and design elements. Just don't drape the actual flag over your sale banner.