Punk digital: why rebellion wins in marketing

In the movie High Fidelity there is a scene where John Cusack’s character says: “I feel like someone who all of a sudden shaves their head and claim they’ve always been punk”. That line hits me every time I see another LinkedIn profile pivot from ‘SEO Guru’ to ‘AI Evangelist’ overnight. All these ‘AI bros’ are out there shouting, “Disrupt or die!” while waiting for ChatGPT to generate their next “thought leadership” post.

My approach to digital marketing & eCommerce has always been laced with tech, whether it was building my first website in a text editor in the 90s or automating my first email campaign back when automation was still called mail-merging (and yes, I’m old enough to remember when that was cutting-edge).

You may have seen it already on this portfolio’s home page:

“I grew up in the era of digital pioneers. We were the first to ride the wave of the digital revolution, adapting as the world transformed at breakneck speed.”

… And yeah, we also made a lot of mistakes. But at least we were in the wave, not just watching from the shore.

You follow. We lead. (You just don’t know it yet)

Embracing change and testing new technology is what I have been doing my whole life. It’s what makes business life more exciting. See what works? Use it and scale it. See what doesn’t? Tweak it and test again or ditch it. Not every tool or tactic is right for everyone and that’s okay.

By the time new tech hits the business blogs or magazines and management starts asking, “hey, shouldn’t we be doing this?”, we’ve already tested it, adopted it or discarded it. However, a true Digital Marketing Punk is all about action and not about blowing their own trumpet. Yeah, okay once the tech becomes trendy, we might mention it. But we’ve been using it for ages already.

A punk approach to digital marketing & eCommerce

Skip the endless meetings and analysing a plan or new approach to death. In the modern world of digital marketing & eCommerce you need a punk approach. Punk isn’t about leather jackets and pins it’s a mindset. This is how it applies to Digital Marketing:

1. Ship, tweak, repeat. Ship it “broken”. Fix it later. If you’re waiting for perfect, you’ve already lost.

2. Hacker-first creativity. Solve marketing problems with code, automation and clever tech hacks before buying expensive tools. And when you do get tools to make life easier, check out alternative solutions before going for ABC or XYZ for the reason that “it’s what everyone is using”.

3. Radical transparency. Be realistic and straight-talking: no spin, no buzzwords, use clear metrics and plain English. If you’re using words like ‘synergy’ or ‘leverage,’ I’m already tuning you out.

4. Privacy-by-default. Design campaigns and stacks that minimise data collection, anonymise users and respect consent. Privacy isn’t a feature, it’s a requirement! If your marketing relies on creepy data practices, you’re not just unethical; you’re also going to get left behind when the regulations catch up. (And they always do.)

5. DIY stack. Prefer modular, open-source and self-hosted solutions; avoid monolithic platforms that lock you in. Or choose managed and hosted services based on standards so you have the freedom to switch providers. Your processes, your data. But funny enough, when you adopt these “alternative”, standards-based solutions, you tend to stick with them for the long haul, because they give you exactly what you need. The only reason a switch is happening is when they get purchased by Big Tech and enshittification starts to happen. Then you’ll be thanking the Tech Lords for the portability part.

6. Guerrilla growth. Use low-cost, high-creativity tactics (micro-communities, stunts, partnerships) over bloated ad buys. Anyone can pay 1000s of dollars for an ad campaign but have you ever spend $150 bucks for a creative guerrilla campaign at an event and have everyone talking about it? Yeah, done that… I think I have the t-shirt still somewhere in the back of my closet.

7. Tech-savvy skepticism. Embrace technology’s power but distrust centralised institutions that control it. AI is a tool, not a saviour; easy to pick up, hard to master and way overhyped. (See my take on this).

Ditch standard or “everyone’s approach” and go punk

I truly believe more companies need a Digital Marketing Geek instead of a bunch of standard digital marketers. You don’t need more people who just copy your closest competitor. If you’re going to steal inspiration, at least make it your own… And make it better.

Most ‘growth hacking’ is just spam with extra steps. Real growth comes from creating something people actually give a damn about.

Add the Digital Marketing Geek to the mix. Get alternative thinkers on board. Get the ones that may look like a regular Digital Marketer (yeah we are great at blending in) but sound like a true Digital Marketing Punk when they start talking. You’ll know the difference when unplugging their headphone as you want their attention. You either hear a song you’ve heard a thousand times on the radio (standard marketer). Or you hear something fast, packed with guitar riffs - provocative, raw, yet melodic (geek punk). That’s the sound of a real Digital Marketing Punk at work.

How to spot a punk vs poseur in Digital Marketing?

Once you get the hang of it, it’s really easy to spot a real Digital Marketing Geek with a punk approach vs the standard marketers aka the poseurs. Are you up for a quiz? Hey ho, let’s go.

1. They A/B test every subject line for 6 months before sending an email. (Poseur)

2. They send a handwritten note to 10 ideal clients with a USB drive of the company’s portfolio. (Punk)

See how easy it is. Let’s play another round of punk or poseur.

1. They wait for Gartner to name a trend before trying it. (Poseur)

2. They’re already using the tool that’ll be “the next-big-thing” in 2027. (Punk)

Are you craving the raw energy of real creativity?

Punk in Digital Marketing isn’t a look. It’s what happens when you stop asking for permission. No 12-week strategy decks. No waiting for the ‘right time.’ Just action, iteration and results that make people ask, “How the hell did they do that?”

So next time you’re in a meeting about ‘innovation,’ ask yourself: “Are we actually doing anything or just talking about it?” Oh and newsflash, if you’re waiting for ‘the right time’ to adopt new tech, then a newsflash for you: it’s already too late, so you better start working on it now to try to catch up.

You can wait for a band to become mainstream, be played on every boring big radio station and for them to play a big stadium gig in your town… Or you can go down to the basement of a local event centre or venue and see a band’s first ever gig. The first approach is comfy and flashy (and costs a lot more) but the second approach – the Punk Digital Marketer approach – is where the energy is.

So, are you here to follow the setlist or rip it up and play what you want? Horns up, get your boots dirty and make it happen!

“So many centuries
So many gods
We were the prisoners
Of our own fantasy
But now we are marching
Against these gods
I'm the wizard, I will change it all”

- Valhalla by Blind Guardian