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The fisher’s aquarium
Something clicked for me today, it may be the beginning of a perspective that finally settles within me what I dislike about the human-attention-arms-race we see in marketing which has weaponized psychology.
Just as the platforms have algortihmatized, the marketers had to figure out theirs as well. This is capture, this is hooks, this is “getting people to care” getting them to read, getting them to do anything. It’s making a splash, it’s putting yourself out there in a form which is recognizable to fight for attention.
Not everyone is kind with these tactics. Users feel burned when they go down what seems like a journey of connection, just to realize it was another funnel. Just another being told to buy something. Because who wants any of the connection without the incentive? Ah.. economics, our beautiful driver for humanity. The force that churns us into dollar signs, customers, clients, and prospects.
The arms race of social media has deeply baked in to how we communicate with large or anonymous groups of people. Forcing us to be marketable and play by rules of psychology to capture those crowds surfing the web.
Everything aside, I heard Justin Welsh (of all people) say something about his posts leading to links back to his website/blog.
Certain social media posts were meant to de-platform users. To bring them (out of the pond the way I see it) into his own world. A world where “I control the narrative. I don’t have to compete with algorithms.” This made me think of a new metaphor for how I view the “Buckets” for which the internet can reach vast audience traffic.
Most of the internet was these obscure sites, where anyone could create anything. Social media sites are still hosted on the internet, they’re just the most highly populated biggest sites where users spend their time. These sites now all have their own meta for users to reach each others (outbound) post engagement.
But I can have a totally different “End” to my funnel than the marketers. While they have products, services, and sell their “Authority” on things to build credibility for it.
I can solve problems which lead users to my own sites where they can really see that I’m just curious about solving problems.
I do my fishing at the same pond as everyone else, but once I take you out, I just put you into an aquarium. A place which I’ve curated to reflect my world. A place where I can be more genuine and honest because if you’re there you probably already care more.
“These essays are a record of my intellectual quest to make sense of the world. They’re the diary of my contemplative life.” David Perrell
The website allows me to do essays the exact way I want to do them, and I can slightly edit them for newsletter, and posts. Or I can just make the posts and letters I want, without them having to be on the site. Win-Win.
So you see a post that clears your psychological blockers. (Unfortunately I do still have to ocmpete in this arms race, but my incentives are different. That is where I struggled.) Then it’s really all a funnel to bring users to my world, where I don’t have to compete, where I can relax and be me. Where I don’t need any tactics. That will be my pure space. A piece of land that I own rather than the attention which I would have to rent on other sites.
Hello {User} I’m glad you made it to my site. I hope you’ll find it cozy here. You’ll find that I have nothing to sell to you, have fun exploring to your heart’s content.
If I do have any scheme, it’s in the fact that I don’t want to be alone, you’ve been captured by that desire and the tools I use to fulfill it.