Marketing lessons that changed everything in 2024

This is the last issue of Write Like You Mean It for 2024. The next time you hear from me it will officially be the future. 🔮 

It’s been a whole year since Write Like You Mean It began. A whole year of writing to you every week, of hearing your feedback and growing our community of purpose-driven writers. 

I’m so excited to have you here – to know that there are writers and marketers like me out there who won’t compromise on values in order to reach and connect with our audiences.

Before we wrap up for the year, I want to share something special with you – the four most powerful marketing lessons I've used this year. These aren't just theory. They've transformed results in my nonprofit work, for clients and for me personally. 👇️ 

1. The ‘we’ word wake-up call

You craft the perfect message, hit publish and... tumbleweeds. Sound familiar?

The fastest way to improve your marketing? Count how many times you use ‘we’, ‘our’ and ‘us’ versus ‘you" and ‘your’ in your messaging. 

Most marketing messages I see are packed with "We're passionate about..." and "Our mission is..." when they should be focusing on their audience.

Check your website copy or latest email or social post. If there are more ‘we’ words than ‘you’ words, flip those sentences. Watch how much stronger your messaging becomes when it's about your audience instead of your brand.

2. The Star Wars marketing truth

Imagine you're watching Star Wars (stay with me here) but instead of following Luke's journey, the entire film focuses on Obi-Wan Kenobi banging on about how great he is at training Jedis.

Weird, right?

Yet this is exactly what brands do all the time. We position ourselves at the centre of our stories when we should be positioning ourselves as the trusted sidekick. Your audience isn't looking for another hero – they want to be the hero of their own story, with your brand by their side guiding them through.

Real connection – the kind that makes people stop scrolling and actually engage – happens when your audience sees themselves as the hero in their own story, not when we talk endlessly about our own.

3. The secret your audience isn’t telling you

Here's what loads of marketers get wrong: We exclusively focus on external problems and solutions when our audience is grappling with internal motivations.

At the social care org I work with, we had recruitment messaging focused on practical benefits like flexible hours and career progression. 

But talk to any support worker about why they do the job and they’ll speak about something deeper – about wanting to make a difference, about becoming the type of person who changes lives right there in their community.

This is the internal motivation you've got to uncover and address: What sort of person does your audience member want to become?

4. The right questions to ask

Trouble is with the above, most people won't tell a marketer their innermost hopes and dreams just because they ask. 

To get to the truth, find one person from your target audience and ask these three questions:

Their exact words in response are pure gold dust for your messaging. Use them.

These four quick wins alone will help transform your marketing messages in 2025. No dodgy marketing tactics, no countdown timers with false urgency – just authentic messaging that builds genuine trust and connection.

I'll be carrying these lessons into 2025, and I hope you will too. Because the world needs more marketers like us.

I’m taking a break over the holidays and will be back with your usual dose of ethical marketing tips on 8th Jan.

Until then, have fun and thanks for all your support this year. It means the world to me.

Kirsty

P.S. If you want to learn my entire framework for switching your marketing messages from ignored to utterly irresistible, start your 2025 with the HERO Framework course. Give yourself $100 with code 100-off at checkout. See if it’s a fit here 👉️ The HERO Framework: Switch Your Marketing from Ignored to Irresistible