Introducing Marketing, Minified (for teams of one)

For more than one and a half years I've been the solo marketer of the world's leading open source text editor. It's an honor to be trusted with the brand and I'm proud that marketing delivered triple-digit growth in the metrics that matter during this time.

Unfortunately this came at a cost to my creativity. My writing has been sporadic, brief and mediocre. I had plenty to say, it just didn't seem relevant, interesting or helpful. 100% bona fide writer's block? More simply, I didn't make the time.

"Writing about a writer's block is better than not writing at all."
― Charles Bukowski, The Last Night of the Earth Poems

One recent weekend I downed work tools completely to create a plan to re-start writing. To make time to pause, unwind and contemplate how I could help others. In the stillness I discovered Marketing, Minified™.

Thinking about where I can (hopefully) add value, the one thing I can share with confidence is what it's like to be a marketing team of one. Especially in a high pressure startup environment.

Marketing, Minified is for everyone in a similar situation. Whether literally a marketing team of one, or a solo contributor in a larger organization.

In the coming weeks and months you'll find best practices that will help you get the job done, and I'll show you that you're not really alone. None of this is about hacks or quick fixes. It's about building a scalable, process-driven marketing function that runs (almost) by itself.

Where did the Marketing, Minified idea originate?

I'm a little geeky. I've always loved computers and technology. In JavaScipt it's a common practice to "minify" production code.

"Minification, in computer programming languages and especially JavaScript, is the process of removing all unnecessary characters from source code without changing its functionality.
– Wikipedia

I like the idea that code minification reduces the size of a codebase without impacting functionality. This seemed like an appropriate metaphor for marketing teams of one. We still have to get the job done. We just don't have room for any extra characters.

Divergence

I've played music almost my entire life. Not well mind you, but well enough. I once managed bands signed to major record labels. I co-founded Australia's leading indie publishing services business. I deeply love tech, tunes and words. Alongside my ideas about what it takes to be a great "minified marketer", I'll share some of my favorite things. Especially the tunes I'm listening to. I hope you'll join me on the journey, knowing that these diversions are the counterbalance to my work.

Once a person has reached enlightenment in one thing, (s)he will have an enlightened mind and understand many things.
— Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Hagakure

Comments and feedback

I proudly use the Ghost CMS. It's a simple, beautiful writing platform. I also support the open source project by paying for the pro, hosted service. The downside is that I get whatever is in the box. Unfortunately, post comments aren't presently included.

If you'd like to connect, please ping me on LinkedIn or Twitter.

Welcome, to Marketing, Minified™.

See my post Do marketing teams of one really exist where I share 5 tips to help 10x your impact.