Simple Marketing For Smart People: The One Question You Need to Win Customers without Gimmicks, Hype, or Hard Selling

If you’re like the typical reader of this book, you’re not looking for a quick fix; you’re looking for long-term, sustainable business growth. To achieve it, you must prioritize your attention upstream to your core message first.

Connect your claims to the beliefs required for your customer to buy. Flood your content with proof. Throw in colors, sounds, feelings— the whole shebang. Hit your point from every angle. Make your case bulletproof.

We’ve established that you and I have a tendency to dive into details and get stuck. So, when it comes to marketing, we must do everything we can to resist running off to obsess over our website, install all the plugins, and mindlessly start cranking out content.

I was responsible for everything in my business—designing the slides, keeping track of time, managing the Q&A, and you know, teaching the course. While it was exhilarating to pursue my passion, the burden of having to do it all myself felt like a crushing weight on my shoulders.

The feedback I hear most from clients is that I help them achieve growth that lasts—not just temporary spikes. This book embodies that philosophy, providing you with strategies for sustainable growth in a noisy world.

When creating any new piece of content, I now ask, “Which belief is this going to instill or strengthen?” If I can’t find one, or if I already have a lot of content that reinforces that belief, I forget it. It wouldn’t be a good return on investment for my time.

The argument-based approach also boosted my confidence—a change my audience noticed. They were looking for more than information. They wanted guidance from someone willing to take a stand, and constructing content as an argument for a particular viewpoint does more than share information—it creates clarity and conviction.

Don’t attach your identity to the details and complexity of your topic. Your value goes far beyond that.

When you speak on your recommended approach, don’t just say, “Here’s what I recommend.” Instead, say, “Here’s what I recommend, and here’s why.”