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01 September 2025 | Issue #107

In this issue:

• Marketing for Humans
• CEX recap
• Fractional CMOs are compounding marketing problems
• Execs are using AI more than rank-and-file employees
• How to Doodlebomb photos
• The human proximity marketing playbook
• My first book signing
• Digital version of The Visual Marketer on sale now
• Design Quote of the Week

Marketing for Humans

Savvy marketers have shifted from years of “here’s how you use AI” training to focusing on how to create marketing that stands out from the cheap, easy, fast AI-generated content most teams produce.

This past week I had the honor of attending the fourth annual Content Entrepreneur Expo (CEX), hosted by The Tilt and Lulu.

People need to identify what AI can't do, and lean into that. Some interesting ideas:

• Being more crazy (Mark Schaefer)
• Attracting humans rather than algorithms (Wil Reynolds)
• Taking time to be mindful of your work (Ann Handley)
• Using repetition to build your brand (Jay Clouse and Joe Pulizzi)
• Identifying that 10x efforts lead to 100x results (Andy Crestodina)

There are so many ways to get your product or service to stand out when you put in the effort

During his CEX talk, Robert Rose shared the core ideas from his new book, Valuable Friction. His point was simple: if you want to stand out from the flood of AI-driven content, you need to slow down and create something that feels original.

That message lined up with what I was doing at the conference. I didn’t draw each speaker because I thought it would tie into Robert’s book, but the act of sketching gave me a way to create something different from the quick photo-and-quote posts we usually see on social. And I got to tap into a skill I haven't used in a long time.

​Here is a collection of what I learned at the conference.

TOOLS

Last year, I switched from Calendly to TidyCal, and it's one of the best decisions I made for my business. Instead of paying Calendly every month, I paid a one-time price to get lifetime access to TidyCal. It ties into my calendars and my video conferencing systems. It's all automated at this point.

TidyCal books appointments, sends reminders, and has all of the info I need to manage my calendar. Highly recommended!

NEWS AT THE INTERSECTION OF MARKETING, DESIGN, & AI

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Hot take: Fractional CMOs are making marketing's short-term thinking problem worse, not better.

Jon Miller breaks down the real pros and cons of FCMOs.

​Read now​

Executives are using AI more than rank and file employees

David Armano digs into new research showing that executives are actually leaning into AI faster than rank-and-file employees.

​Read more​

How to Make Mixed Media Art and “Doodlebomb” Designs

Want to find a way to stand out from traditional or AI-generated stock photography, put some of your creativity on top of it.

​Learn more​

The Human Proximity Marketing Playbook: Building Deep Trust Connections in a Digital Age

Richard Banfield shows why building trust face-to-face will always outpace what AI can deliver.

​View more​

THE VISUAL MARKETER

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This week had another career first: My first book signing!

Thanks to the folks at Tilt Publishing and Lulu, I was able to sign a bunch of books for folks who wanted to learn more about The Visual Marketer. It was fun talking about what I learned and what they’ll learn when they read the book.
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If you weren’t at CEX and want a copy, let’s make a deal:
For the digital version, use promo code: CEX25 to get the digital edition for $1.99 at my site.
Or, if you’re interested in the paperback, use promo code FreeS to get free shipping on the paperback.
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Offer good until Sept 12th, 2025.

RECENT AND UPCOMING ENGAGEMENTS

I talked to a few folks at CEX and will be on a group of podcasts in the near future. If you have a podcast and you're looking for a guest, let me know!

DESIGN QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“Design is the intermediary between information and understanding.” – Hans Hofmann

My AI disclaimer: I wrote all the copy this week, and then used ChatGPT for proofing. If AI generates the images, I include the prompt so you can see how I got to that image.

Thanks for reading!

–Jim

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