Introducing Motormouth

Christ. The audacity of launching a marketing newsletter in 2024. The sheer hubris.

Welcome to Motormouth, you gluttons for punishment.

Yes, it's another newsletter. Before you instinctively reach for that unsubscribe button (we see you), let's be clear about what this is. And more importantly, what it isn't.

Let's get one thing straight: becoming a “newsletter guy” was never on my vision board. After two decades in tech and marketing, I thought I was done. Done with the buzzwords, done with the circle-jerks masquerading as conferences. Done explaining to CEOs why their passion project isn't a brand strategy.

But here we are. You, me, and this... whatever this is.

Maybe, like me, you're also wondering when "authentic" became a synonym for "transparently manipulative." When this year's marketing trends will be more than just last year's reheated leftovers. Or perhaps you're that rare specimen: someone who still believes words matter, despite our industry’s best attempts to prove otherwise.

So I made this. Motormouth. It’s not pretty, or polite. It's not a blog, or a thought leadership platform, or god forbid, a "value-add content solution." It's... well, I'm not entirely sure what it is yet. An experiment in professional self-immolation, perhaps. A weekly post-mortem on marketing's latest self-inflicted wounds.

Every Friday, we’ll dive into our industry’s ongoing midlife crisis. We’ll share observations on our industry's ongoing identity crisis. We'll dissect campaigns that should’ve been strangled in the boardroom. We'll hear from people who create rather than “ideate.” And yes, I'll offer advice, because apparently I haven’t learned my lesson yet either.

It won't be pretty. It might be useful. It'll definitely be honest.

This is for the strategists who've run out of synonyms for "authentic." For the art directors tired of being asked to "make it pop." For the account managers whose souls die a little with each client presentation. For every professional who's had to nod sagely at "NFT-powered customer journeys" while dying inside.

Will we piss people off? Probably. Good. That’s how progress happens.

It's free because, frankly, I'm doing this for my own sanity. If you get something out of it, great. If not, there's always LinkedIn for your daily dose of corporate inspiration.

But if you’re still with me, I highly suggest you sign up. It's free, it's fresh, and I guarantee it'll be more interesting than whatever other rubbish is clogging your inbox. At least we promise to say something you’ll remember.

— Kieran

P.S. Have something to contribute? A story that would get you fired if you shared it at work? Send it my way. Misery loves company, and all that.