Give First, Win Later
Marketing Dopamine • July 25, 2026 Give First, Win Later Most marketing asks for something before it has given anything. A sign up before a single ounce of value. A pitch before a relationship. An ask before a reason. [...]
The Trust Chemical Loop
Marketing Dopamine • July 24, 2026 The Trust Chemical Loop Trust can be described as a feeling. It's a pattern the brain has learned to expect. The same principle applies to every relationship we build, including the relationship between [...]
The Demo Copy Ritual
The Demo Copy Ritual Before a book reaches a single reader, it reaches one more person first. The author, holding a copy that is not quite real yet. That is what a demo copy is. A proof. The physical [...]
Why I Trust The Process
Why I Trust the Process I just hit publish. Not “finished writing.” That happened weeks ago. Not “sent to the editor.” That happened even earlier. I mean the actual button. The one that sends a manuscript into Amazon’s system [...]
Your RAS Is Always Listening
Your RAS Is Always Listening I didn't always know that the work I was creating was leading me toward Marketing Dopamine. Years ago, I started journaling. Eventually, I began transcribing parts of those journals and turning them into blog [...]
Attention Is Rented. Trust Is Owned.
Attention Is Rented. Trust Is Owned. The last week has been a lesson in this principle for me. Minnesota has been incredibly hot, and instead of sitting on the patio or finding ways to stay cool, I've been inside [...]
Curiosity Opens the Brain
Curiosity Opens the Brain I learned something about curiosity while writing this book. When I first started, I thought I knew exactly what I wanted to say. The original manuscript was called Behavior-Based Marketing Strategy. It was a good [...]
The Pleasure-Pain Balance
The Pleasure-Pain Balance As I've been writing this book, I've started noticing these patterns in my own life. Over the past week, we've been hosting a friend from Seattle and enjoying a staycation. We've been exploring coffee shops, trying [...]
Dopamine 101 for Marketers
Dopamine 101 for Marketers What does dopamine have to do with marketing? Marketing is about websites, social media, advertising, email, branding, networking, and sales. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter. What does one have to do with the other? More than [...]
The Scroll That Never Ends
The Scroll Never Ends Have you ever started scrolling to check one thing... and twenty or even thirty minutes later wondered where the time went? I know I have. The more I've learned about how people make decisions, the [...]