Recently I wrote an email listing Christmastime movies for marketers who like money.
Which then got this reply:
“Does any of these movies actually help? Or is it just content to produce over xmas time?”
Magnificent reply guy valor.
Especially since the exact helpful parts to watch/look for in each and every movie I listed were literally spelled out, in detail, in the very email he was reply guy’ing to. Which tells me he’s either (1) semi-illiterate and can barely read, or (2) was too lazy to bother reading, or (3) simply has TikTok brain.
I would not be shocked if it’s that last one:
TikTok brain.
It’s a phenomenon that is ruining a lot of people up in this industry. You can see it in the NPC-like lines they use in lockstep unison, the low IQ-bait trends they follow, and in the questions they ask — including questions where the answers are in the very email they are replying to like in the above guy’s case, or else are a 10-second Google search away.
Something else to think about:
I’ve seen email marketers worrying about having to compete with TikTok.
But you’re not really competing with TikTok. You’re competing with TikTok brain.
To beat that you have two options:
1. Dumb your emails down to Baby Shark level
2. Ramp up your lead curation/qualification game
Many are headed toward door #1.
But personally, I prefer door #2.
You can never really get rid of the TikTok brained ones of course. But in my experience, by not appealing to the boys and ghouls haunting TikTok and social media day & night, you will usually get a lot more of the higher quality leads who are actively avoiding learning from or consuming content from anyone who has TikTok brain like a lot of your competition who use TikTok no-doubt have.
One last thing.
I made some predictions for 2025 and beyond a few days ago.
And now here is another:
Email marketing will eventually be the exclusive domain of the thinking man or woman. Not just email marketers, but people who get on email lists at all. The Idiocracy boys & ghouls will stick to TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, and other similar apps. It may take a while for the cold email chumps to burn out (or get drafted for the next forever war), but I see it as inevitable.
When that happens?
Those who already have a list they are mailing each day will make out like bandits.
Those who wait, will lose out.
That’s my prediction — rooted in bias as it is.
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Ben Settle
