The Law of Shitty Clickthroughs and the №1 Life Skill Schools Don't Teach

The Law of Shitty Clickthroughs and the №1 Life Skill Schools Don't Teach

Introduction:
In the world of marketing, finding a strategy that works is a significant accomplishment. However, as time goes on and scalability becomes a goal, the effectiveness of these strategies often declines. This phenomenon is known as the Law of Shitty Clickthroughs, where all marketing strategies eventually result in declining clickthrough rates. On the other hand, schools fail to teach one crucial life skill - the ability to learn rare and useful skills on-demand. This article explores the connection between these two concepts and offers actionable advice for marketers and learners alike.

The Importance of Novelty in Marketing:
One of the key drivers of engagement in marketing is novelty. Customers respond to new and fresh ideas, but over time, the same ad creative can lead to declining clickthrough rates. Humans are wired to seek novelty while also being pattern-recognition machines. This means that any product that is first to market enjoys a limited window of high marketing performance until competitors enter the scene. To combat this, marketers should always strive to develop new creative and test new publishers to maintain performance.

The Technology Adoption Lifecycle:
Understanding the available market for a product is crucial. The Technology Adoption Lifecycle (TAL) model explains how early adopters actively seek out novelty, while the mainstream market requires more convincing. As a product scales, it reaches the mainstream market, which cares more about how it solves their problems rather than its novelty. Marketers can improve performance by adapting their strategies to cater to the needs of the mainstream market, focusing on problem-solving rather than novelty.

Discovering Untapped Marketing Channels:
In addition to traditional online advertising methods like banners, search, and email, it's essential to constantly seek out the next untapped marketing channel. Doubling down on existing channels might lead to diminishing returns, but exploring new avenues can provide a competitive advantage. By being early adopters of emerging marketing channels, marketers can enjoy uncontested opportunities and higher performance.

The №1 Life Skill: Learning How to Learn:
Contrary to popular belief, schools fail to teach the most important life skill - how to learn. Our culture is filled with learning myths that hinder success and result in wasted time and effort. Learning how to learn rare and useful skills on-demand is crucial in a rapidly changing world. The OODA Loop (Observe, Orient, Decide, Act) can be applied as a model for rapid iteration and learning. Speed of iteration is more valuable than the quality of iteration.

The Learning Loop and Shrink Learning Loops:
The Learning Loop involves taking in information, processing it through algorithms and reflection, experimenting with actions, and receiving feedback. This model emphasizes taking action, learning from experiments, and continuously improving. In contrast, traditional learning models often focus on accumulating knowledge without practical application. By shrinking learning loops, individuals can make small mistakes quickly and learn from them, leading to faster growth and success.

Embracing Change and Adaptation:
No business plan survives first contact with the customer. The gap between what entrepreneurs think customers will buy and what they actually do is inevitable. Instead of having long learning loops that can be detrimental to a business, it is crucial to embrace change and adapt quickly. Meetings should focus on execution and addressing fixed mindsets and limiting emotions at each stage of the learning loop.

Conclusion:
In a world where marketing strategies eventually decline and schools overlook the skill of learning how to learn, it is vital for marketers and individuals to adapt and seek out new opportunities. By embracing novelty, exploring untapped marketing channels, and continuously learning and iterating, success can be achieved. Remember, speed of iteration and the ability to learn rare and useful skills on-demand are the keys to thriving in a rapidly changing world.

Actionable Advice:

1. Constantly develop new creative and test new publishers to maintain marketing performance.
2. Adapt marketing strategies to cater to the needs of the mainstream market by focusing on problem-solving rather than novelty.
3. Embrace change, shrink learning loops, and make small mistakes quickly to learn and improve rapidly.