Or, yet another reason to regret your high school hair style (yep, that one)...

Hello Content Creators!

A couple times per year, my parents send my brothers and I each a fresh box of photos from our youth.

As you can imagine, my kids get quite a kick out of seeing the way I dressed in high school.

And my hair. Oh God, my hair:

But I bet I'm not alone in looking back with a mix of laughter and embarrassment.

But I know me, and I know that I've grown into a more stylish (maybe), mature (questionable), intelligent (indubitably) adult (debatable).

But here's the problem

When I see my high school friends posting thought leadership pieces, personal growth advice, and other professional-seeming, otherwise intelligent bits online, I can't help but think of them in high school.

You know, the ones who were so high that, on flat ground, thought they were walking up stairs.

Or the ones who jumped out of their moving pickup truck to pole vault onto trees.

Or that guy who snuck past the Do Not Climb signs and then fell off a waterfa... oh, wait, NVM. That was me.

The point is, no matter how successful and smart and professional these folks seem now, I have a hard time seeing past their idiotic* high school selves.

And I'm sure they see me the same way.

*seriously, we were all idiots in our teens, right? No? Just me? OK, carry on...

Just remember that while you build your brand

It's easy to get excited about a new brand, new initiative, or new launch.

Maybe you just want to GO FOR IT and start spreading the word!

The smart thing to do is look at how it all connects to your larger brand message, identity and persona.

Does it reinforce those things? Or contradict them? Or just seem random and out of character?

Is it the kind of thing you want your brand remembered for?

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A Recent Content Project

This one's not mine, but it's awesome. Boston Dynamics are masters at showing off what their robots CAN do.

Meaning, they don't show how their robots actually get used in boring industrial applications.

Rather, they show them doing parkour, box jumps, acrobatics, and more insanely cool stuff.

Their videos rack up tens of millions of views because they show something exciting! Something that defies reality and blows our minds!

And their latest video shows four different robots dancing together. It's so incredible that my wife still doesn't believe that it's not CGI (it's not). The fine movements and *cough* motor skills are so unbelievably, insanely amazing that it actually does seem almost unreal.

Watch it, then tell me you're not super excited about Boston Dynamics!

But how can I do this?

This reminds me of a mountain bike disc brake video where, in a test lab, someone dragged the pads on a brake rotor until it was glowing hot. Then they applied enough pressure to stop the wheel, and it still stopped.

Shimano didn't do this. SRAM didn't do this. Nor any other brake brand. But they could have. It was a mesmerizing video, and a brand could have demonstrated how freakin' amazing their disc brakes are...even if we will never, ever, EV-ER be able to recreate those levels of heat in the real world.

How could you showcase your products in such an over-the-top fashion that people can't help but talk about it, share it, and remember it?

Cool Stuff I've Found

This week, it's random...

Tony’s Chocolonely is my favorite non-fancy chocolate. Their dark chocolate isn’t super dark, only 70%, but also not super sweet. It’s a good mix when you need something to satisfy a post-dinner sweet tooth without really doing any damage. And, the bars are huge, making them a great deal, too! Not a fan of dark? My daughter loves their milk chocolate.

Deckers X-Lab is a recent find. And while I haven’t put any miles on their wild-looking K-ST21 (top) running shoes yet, their X-Scape casual shoes (bottom) are ultra cushioned and supportive for walking and just hanging out. Check them out if you, like the rest of the world, has been going on a lot more walks lately!

Ornot Thermal Jersey has a soft Merino wool interior under a stretchy Nylon and Lycra main fabric. It's a nearly perfect shoulder season long sleeve cycling jersey that works great on its own or layered under a jacket. I have one from the prior season that's a lovely cornflower blue. This season, it's Coyote or this Sage color. Their Magic Shell jacket is amazing, too.

Don't look back,

Tyler Benedict

PS - Can you forward this to one friend who likes marketing (or weird shoes)? Thanks!

*Any items, services, or products mentioned in these emails are provided solely because I think you'll like them. I don't sell this space, but some links might be affiliate links, which earns me a small commission (beer money, really) if you buy something. This helps support all the free content. Thanks!