I read something the other day that blew my mind: “Stop making ads, start making art.” It was a mic drop moment.

It got me thinking about this content disaster we're in. He opened it floodgates of mass marketing content. Sales presentations, blogs and social media posts in seconds – all with the click of an “easy” button. Don't like the way something sounds? Ask them to rewrite the copy in a different tone of voice. This ability has led many people to believe that because we 'can' create this way, we 'should'. It's easier. It's cheaper. It is more efficient. I get the hype. But I want to zoom in and look at the big picture.

Many of our major social media platforms already, if they don't plan to, offer ad-free options. Streaming services are offering ad-free subscriptions. Almost universally, marketing research shows massiveness ad fatigue among consumers. I hear this all the time from marketers and clients: “I just need to post more on Instagram,” “I just need a bigger ad budget,” and “I need more X.” More, more, more. Is more really what we need? Or do we actually need less?

Let's take off our marketer and business owner hats for a second and put on our customers' shoes. It is estimated that the average consumer receives over 10,000 marketing messages each day. Do they really want “more” messages? More content? More marketing? No.. So what do they want? What would feel good for them? Instead of More, so to speak better?

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Instead of posting something lame and 'marketable' every day on Instagram, how about posting something absolutely amazing and valuable once a week? Instead of posting 10 Blogs created by ChatGPT, optimized by SEO each month, what if you focused on creating something that was so creative and meaningful to your audience that they couldn't wait to read it and share it with their friends?

Personal opinion: we have lost sight of the main principle of marketing. The thing almost guaranteed to make consumers want to buy from you is that give the value first. This is why coupon codes work in retail and why free downloads and consultations work so well in service-based businesses.

Related: How to deliver more value to your customers and scale your company

Before we ask for the sale, we offer something useful. Are 10 AI-Generated Blogs Worth a Prospect? Or is it an excellent, thoughtful and well-researched guide that offers new insights? Which one feels more valuable to you?

I want to advocate that we begin to do less with our marketing. Stop pushing content just to push content. Keep those customer shoes. Ask, “Would this make sense to me/would it provide value?” If the answer is no, go back to the drawing board and find something that would. Focus on quality, not quantity. Your customers are smart; let's respect them and their time and bandwidth by providing marketing with meaning and substance. Stop trying to 'hack' or find shortcuts. THERE no shortcut to great marketing, just as there are no shortcuts to great art.

One of the last creators of our time was Picasso. Can you imagine waiting for him to create a new painting and post it every day on his Instagram? He would be exhausted. The work would be in vain. He would create only for the sake of continuing the algorithm, not for the joy of creating something meaningful.

How many of you have felt 'let down' by brands that have been too pushy or salesy? Or from those pieces of content that you actually took the time to read that were clearly written by a bot and were generic and just a waste of time? Stop doing it. Get off the hamster wheel and start having original thoughts again. One of the best pieces of advice I ever received was from a fellow marketer, Sarah Feeney, who told me (as per the brand) “If you want to be cool, to be cool.” Is your brand smart and innovative? JOIN smart and innovative. Put content that is smart and innovative. Is your brand fun and exciting? JOIN fun and exciting.

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Your marketing needs to matter – not just to you, but to your customers. They are the reason you are here. They are smart. They are exhausted. They want better from you than the same old thing they see everywhere else.

Great marketing is all about creating a real connection with your customers. It's not a one-way megaphone to “BUY NOW”. Nobody wants that. They want to feel like they matter to you. Make them relevant by stepping outside of your current digital marketing box and back to the creative drawing board.

Identify those cool, awesome, and great things you've wanted to do but felt too scared or busy to tackle. Make them your priority. Stop setting your sights on the next viral moment and set the bar for making real, authentic connections and impact. Above all, stop thinking like a marketer and start thinking like a customer.