Notes
Notes on things I've observed working in D2C paid media. Not a newsletter — just things worth writing down.
Topics
Total
10 notes
Strategy
Sophisticated attribution models make sense for mature brands with the resources to run them. For a lean D2C brand, there is usually a better option — one number that cleanly connects ad spend to new customer growth.
24 May 2026
2 min read
Growth
Accessibility is usually framed as a compliance requirement. That framing undersells it. A site built for accessibility is also a site that ad platform algorithms can read clearly — and that changes your conversion efficiency without touching a single campaign setting.
20 May 2026
1 min read
Thinking
You can do everything right and still get burned. The ad platform itself is part of the outcome — and the sooner you account for it as a variable, the less you'll confuse its problems for your own.
20 May 2026
2 min read
Thinking
The platforms change every year. What makes people buy hasn't changed in decades. Getting these two things confused is how you lose the plot.
19 May 2026
1 min read
Growth
After working with multiple D2C brands, I've noticed a consistent pattern in where growth stalls — and it's rarely the ads.
5 November 2025
1 min read
Paid Media
The biggest waste in Meta Ads isn't bad targeting. It's running the same creatives past their prime.
22 August 2025
1 min read
Strategy
ROAS is a useful proxy but it isn't a profitability metric. The number that actually matters is contribution margin.
18 June 2025
1 min read
Strategy
Most brands think about retention when growth stalls. That's too late. The best time to build a retention system is when acquisition is working.
10 April 2025
1 min read
Thinking
Both reward patience, pattern recognition, and thinking several moves ahead. Both punish reactive, short-term play.
28 February 2025
2 min read
Paid Media
The brands that maintain strong margins at scale are almost always the ones that treat creative as a strategic function.
14 January 2025
2 min read