How to Make a Ton of Money Selling Dumb Stuff
Insights on marketing, business, branding, products, design, founders, and culture.
GM everyone.
I mentioned Emily Sundberg in my newsletter yesterday prompting her to share my letter, and since then my phone has been blowing up with emails telling me how many new subscribers this newsletter was getting.
So if you’re new here, welcome. Here’s a little about me—
I’m Jake. I live in New York City.
My career to this point has consisted of helping brands speak to the world with better content and strategies.
I copywrite, design, make videos, launch websites, and, above all, tell stories.
I write this daily newsletter where I cover insights on marketing, design, fashion, business, and culture.
And I am currently blasting New Love Cassette by Angel Olson.
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News
Thank f*cking god April Fool’s is over. I find April Fool’s to be the most trite ‘marketing holiday’ on the planet. I don’t want to see fake products, staged announcements, or that a company is changing their name. If you’re a serious brand, its a day to just not post anything. The one thing I didn’t mind was Equinox’s fake Lost and Found auction, where the brand ‘announced’ they’d be auctioning off items left in the locker rooms over the years. Items included jewelry, apparel, and a VHS workout video. If I made this I would have leaned in a bit more. Why not have more recognizable items left in the locker that form connections with the broader world. I want to see something like Mary-Kate or Ashley Olson’s beat up Birkin bag with just a pack of Marlboro Lights inside for auction.
Monte’s sauce and Greenberg Bagels are collaborating. The collaboration sandwich will be available exclusively at Greenberg’s new West Village location and will feature Monte’s sauce. I saw
share this. The announcement video was cinematic, playful, and a perfect example of how to announce a collaboration online. They easily could have just posted a static graphic, but the stylish video was much more effective in teasing out the collab. It was giving Aime Leon Dore promo film. Video and storytelling is critical to world and brand building, and nailing your brands style on video is even more important. I am seeing this cinematic style used more often, and its refreshing amidst a sea of lo-fi TikTok content.
Emma Chamberlain is selling a $40 stained baby tee. The new apparel drop is literally just a white shirt stained with coffee (it’s called the Life is Messy tee) I would say this is dumb and lazy but it’s sold out so what do I know. The Chamberlain brand is STRONG, and I suppose this messy aesthetic fits into her whole vibe.
The utility phone case is 2024’s hottest accessory. Ever since Hailey Bieber’s Rhode dropped their iPhone case that can hold lip gloss, we are witnessing more brands across sectors repurpose this simple format. Porsche showed off their version of a phone case that can hold your Cayenne Turbo car key. It was an April Fool’s joke, but I’ve written extensively about how the ‘accessory accessory’ is going to be big, and is probably a huge money making opportunity for all my entrepreneurial readers. Its low cost to produce (literally just molded plastic) and the format can be repurposed to hold just about anything small. I’ve seen brands pop up selling iPhone cases that can hold miniature silverware for your al fresca Summer meals. Run some Meta ads with UGC style photos. Money printer go brrrrrrrrrrrrr. I can’t believe I write this newsletter and don’t have an phone case brand with this elite intel.
Smart Water is launching in cans. Liquid Death really set off a chain reaction of Big Water™️ brands canning their product. This is not particularly innovative and I doubt other water brands will experience a major bump by trying to replicate LD’s success. Did you know Liquid Death is valued at $1.4 billion, arguably from the can design alone. Here’s my takeaway, if you’re a packaging designer, consider taking some equity in exchange for a lower fee. I would love to read an interview with whatever Parson’s grad staff member at a CPG agency designed this can hungover one afternoon, and the brand to go on to see so much success. I am not sure that’s how it really happened but maybe.
The In and Out format is here all year long now. Typically, this tried and true listicle format is relegated to EoY, in anticipation for what is In and Out for the forthcoming year. But Haloscope, a digital fashion mag, has launched a new social media series with creators dropping their own Ins and Outs year round. The first one features a list from Ana Salazar. The design of this post is REALLY well done.
Who Do You Know? is a daily newsletter covering marketing, business, branding, products, design, founders, and culture.
Its written by Jake Bell, a content marketing and brand strategist in NYC.
To get in touch visit www.jb.studio or email jake@jb.studio
Loved this post! Honestly, I do wonder if I’d have an easier time meeting my water intake in (cool) cans … but you could not pay me to buy the Chamberlain shirt.
LOLLL the shirt is bad. Use my water strategy: a case of pure la croix or 3-4 mountain valleys per day