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29 June 2025 | Issue #98

In this issue:

• Cutting Costs or Increasing Productivity
• LinkedIn Personal Branding Statistics: New Data
• AI Use at Work Has Nearly Doubled in Two Years
• Embracing Anti‑Design: How to Do It Well
• Anthropic Launches Program to Track AI’s Economic Fallout
• Design Quote of the Week

Cutting Costs or Increasing Productivity

Recently, I had a conversation with a couple of people who had radically different views on how to use AI. It clarified something I'd been toying with, but hadn't quite grasped.

1. Some businesses will use AI to cut costs
2. Some businesses will use AI to grow

One person is ready to use AI to cut costs by reducing headcount.

The other is ready to use AI to increase productivity.

Not only did this make me more optimistic, but it also helped me see that changing the branding of this newsletter makes sense. The original mission of After Design was to help designers transition to adjacent careers.

But over time, I changed the content of the newsletter to help those who are trying to use AI to be more productive.

I moved from person 1 to person 2

(not that I wanted to cut jobs, but I assumed that many people were going to be cut.)

I'm optimistic because it shows that there are people who want to grow rather than just cut costs.

Which organization are you a part of? Are you cutting costs or increasing productivity?

I'm not saying one method is better than the other. You know your business and goals better than I do.

But your people will feel the difference. Businesses that are cutting budgets have fear-based cultures. They're not as productive because they're spending mental energy worrying about the next round of cuts.

Businesses that are growing inspire innovation. It's exciting to find new solutions to old problems.

Personally, I've worked for failing businesses. You can taste the fear in the air. Productivity goes way down because people are distracted. It takes a toll.

I've also worked for businesses that are in hypergrowth mode, and it's energizing to dig for new solutions. We all love that "Eureka!" moment.

So the question comes down to: Do you want to grow your business or remain flat? There's profit both ways. But I've worked for public companies, and I know that staying flat is moving backwards.

A business that can train employees to be more productive with AI will be more successful in the long run. Or you can hire someone like me, someone who is constantly finding new ways to use AI to be more productive and can layer that on top of existing expertise across the team.

NEWS AT THE INTERSECTION OF MARKETING, DESIGN, & AI

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🫱🏼‍🫲🏻 LinkedIn Personal Branding Statistics: New Data

New research from Copyblogger reveals key strategies for boosting your personal brand on LinkedIn, including when to post and how reposting can expand your reach.

• Reposts often outperform originals. Seventeen percent of top posts were reposts, and 67% of those actually did better than the original versions.
• Engagement drops as audience grows. Users with under 50K followers average a 1.38% engagement rate, but this falls to just 0.51% for those with 200K–500K.
• Image usage is most popular. 59% of the posts were image based. 67% of the top-performing posts were image posts
• My Take: There are some good stats in here. I use LinkedIn often, and this has made me rethink some strategies.

​Keep reading​

📈 AI Use at Work Has Nearly Doubled in Two Years

Gallup’s latest research, published June 16 2025, finds that AI adoption in the workplace has surged. It reveals significant increases across usage frequency and highlighting a growing gap between deployment and strategy.

• AI adoption is skyrocketing. The share of U.S. employees using AI “a few times a year or more” rose from 21% to 40% over the past two years; those using it weekly doubled from 11% to 19%, and daily use increased from 4% to 8%.
• White‑collar and leadership roles lead the way. Frequent usage is highest among white‑collar workers (27%, up 12 points since 2024) and leaders (33%), compared to just 16% for individual contributors.
• My take: These numbers seem right. The delay in companies implementing AI guidelines also seems right, though still lacking. Also, I think ICs are using AI more than leaders, but leaders are more likely to lie on these surveys.

​Keep reading​

🫟 Embracing Anti‑Design: How to Do It Well

A new piece from Shutterstock explores how embracing anti‑design—an intentional break from minimalism—can inject energy, memorability, and creative freedom into branding, web, and ad projects while challenging conventional aesthetics.

• Anti‑design stands out. By deliberately rejecting traditional design rules, anti‑design yields bold, chaotic visuals that capture attention, infuse campaigns with nostalgic or counterculture vibes, and help brands cut through digital noise.
• Balancing chaos with clarity is key. While maximalist and messy layouts can elevate brand memorability, they risk confusing users, reducing accessibility, and may not suit corporate contexts—so designers are advised to temper anti‑design with strategic restraint.
• My take: This makes me think of '90s design. Layers and layers with off-putting typography. Big fan!

​Keep reading​

🙈 As Job Losses Loom, Anthropic Launches Program to Track AI’s Economic Fallout

A new TechCrunch article from June 27, 2025, reports that Anthropic has unveiled its Economic Futures Program—a comprehensive initiative aimed at understanding and shaping AI’s economic and labor market impacts.

• Evidence-based insight: Anthropic is funding rapid grants (up to $50K), hosting policy symposia, and scaling its Economic Index—collecting and publicizing anonymized data to ground discussions about AI’s benefits and risks in actual usage trends .
• Strategic policy shaping: Beyond tracking job loss predictions (e.g., half of entry-level white-collar roles ousted within 1–5 years), the program’s symposia aim to inform mitigation strategies or support GDP gains—depending on what the data reveals.
• My take: Take this with a grain of salt. AI isn't going to tell you how much damage AI is causing.

​Keep reading​

THE VISUAL MARKETER

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Did you miss my recent appearance on Katie Brinkley's Rocky Mountain Marketing Podcast? I walk through some of the key components of the book.

RECENT AND UPCOMING ENGAGEMENTS

I also have a few other podcasts, roundtables, and a webinar in the queue.

If you're looking for podcast guests, or want to collaborate on something, shoot me a DM.

DESIGN QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“Simplicity is about subtracting the obvious and adding the meaningful.”
– John Maeda

My AI disclaimer: I write the main story and additional sections. For the news section, AI writes the summary, and then I contribute My Thoughts. 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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