Head of Content @ LASSO | Co-host of That's Marketing, Baby | Delivering daily cheat codes for small content teams

I'm a creative director turned content marketer and strategist with more than 20 years of experience conceptualizing and executing breakthrough work for B2C brands like Eggo, Rice Krispies, Blue Cross, Cottonelle, and McDonald’s, and B2B brands like Fastly and Island.

I have a knack for leading cross-functional teams toward a common goal, bringing order to the oft-chaotic creative process, crafting insight-driven global campaigns, and bringing stories to life via long- and short-form content.

Marketers can spot lazy creative from a mile away.

We roll our eyes at generic messaging. 

And we definitely know when someone's trying too hard.

But we also know when something's genuinely different. 
When a brand is doing something we haven't seen before. 
When the execution makes us stop scrolling and think, "Okay, that's actually clever."

That's the bar I want Vector 👻 to clear.

And with that, I give you "Warm Water, Warmer Leads."

Jess Cook

Head of Marketing at Vector

The best headlines I've ever written all have one thing in common.


𝗦𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗻𝗼-𝗻𝗼 𝗻𝗼 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲.
(Morningstar Farms veggie sausage)
𝗪𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸 𝗶𝘁. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘄𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝘅 𝗶𝘁. 𝗝𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂. 
(McDonald's Egg McMuffin)
𝗜𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗶𝗻𝗯𝗼𝘅 𝗵𝗮𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗱? 𝗪𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲? 
(Vector newsletter)
 
👉 They contradict themselves. 
Admit to something "wrong." 
Flip an assumption on its head.
 
Which, importantly, makes them 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻.
 
Not like a conference room full of people workshopped 47 variations until everyone agreed on the safest, grammatically correct option.

(If you want to see what that looks like, I highly recommend giving Andrew London a follow. Check out his series "Forked by Feedback." Painfully relatable.)
 
Headlines like this assume the audience is smart enough to get it. They have an edge that makes people go, "Wait, what?"
 
𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺:
→ Say the thing you're "not supposed to say"
→ Contradict yourself on purpose
→ Flip a negative into a positive (or vice versa)
→ Use phrasing and construction your English teacher would have scolded you for

The bar on great headlines is LOW, and getting lower by the day. (Thanks, AI.)

Want to stand out?
Write something that makes people do a double-take.

Strategy is such a vague, floaty word that it tricks us into thinking we have to make it complicated. BUT...

The simpler the strategy, the more likely you are to:
- execute it well
- actually hit your goals

All it really boils down to is answering these 6 questions. 👇

1️⃣ 𝗪𝗵𝘆 are you doing marketing in the first place? (Goals)
2️⃣ 𝗪𝗵𝗼 are you marketing to? (Audience)
3️⃣ 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 will you say? (Pillar topics, angles, POV)
4️⃣ 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 will you reach them? (Distribution channels)
5️⃣ 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 will you reach them? (Cadence, relevant moments)
6️⃣ 𝗛𝗼𝘄 will you execute? (Big ideas, campaigns, tactics)

It doesn't have to be any more complicated than that.

We had 20 seats at our Exit Five Drive dinner.
 
And the way we filled them is different than what you'd expect.
 
Here's how we did it ⤵
 
Exit Five sent us an anonymized attendee list.
 
Just title, company, industry, and URL. No names.
 
So I passed it to our Rev Ops lead, Sara McNamara, and asked her to work her usual enrichment magic.
 
What she handed back was insane: 
→ Full names and LinkedIn URLs 
→ Their martech stack 
→ Number of ads currently running on LinkedIn
 
From there, I filtered ruthlessly:
 
✂️ Anyone running below a certain ad threshold (probably not our ICP) 
✂️ Small companies without the right team structure for our tool 
✂️ Anyone who wasn't a decision-maker or close to one
 
I needed people who could either make a buying decision or bring Vector 👻  directly to someone who could.
 
Then, I filled the other half of the seats with customers.
 
Joshua Perk 👻 was all, "Jess, we already sold them. What's the point?"
 
But because we seated them strategically next to prospects, we (the Vector team) didn't pitch Vector once that night.
 
We didn't have to.
 
Our customers did it for us—naturally, authentically, in their own words.
 
I'd walk around the restaurant and just... listen:
 
"Here's how we're using it..." 
"We've built our entire workflow around it..." 
"The results have been incredible..."
 
Way more powerful than anything we could've scripted.
 
Plus, it allowed our team to truly get to know our guests. We talked about our kids, our current Netflix obsessions, our favorite places to travel. All of which made follow up and opp creation a heck of a lot easier.
 
Josh and I break down our entire event sponsorship debut in the latest episode of This Meeting Could've Been a Podcast—out now!

• Why we selected the events we sponsored
• How we crafted an on-brand experience
• Our event plans for 2026
• The story of the three-hour scramble when the dinner got moved up a day

You know where to find the links! 👇

Hey, what are you doing Dec. 9-10?

Cuz it'd be cool or whatever if you could go to Full Circle with me.

It's for small, B2B marketing teams with big ambitions. Which, is like, totally us.

I made you a mix tape about it. ☺️

Wanna go?

☐ Yes (I left you a link in the comments.)
☐ No (Forget I said anything. Pretend this never happened.)

Full Circle Mixtape Vol. 2

Lead magnets have their place.

But this year, we focused squarely on awareness magnets.
 
And our podcast is proving it works.
 
→ More shared and talked about than 90% of shows on Spotify
→ Branded search up 430%
→ Inbound demos from people who "saw us everywhere"
 
They come in pre-sold on our vibe. Pre-educated on our POV. Pre-convinced we're the team they want to work with.
 
Meanwhile, our competitors are still gating their best ideas behind forms with very little investment toward getting people to CARE about them.
 
Sure that's harder to measure, takes longer to pay off, and requires way more creativity. 

But being forgotten is more expensive than all of that combined.

Because you can't convert people who don't know you exist.

------------------------

So proud of our little show that turned into a big show. Go check out This Meeting Could've Been a Podcast if you haven't already!

#SpotifyWrapped

Being forgotten is the most expensive problem in B2B right now. 💸


You could have the best product. 
The smartest team. 
The most compelling case studies.

But if you're saying the same things as everyone else?
You're invisible.

Here's what I've learned about creating content IP:

𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗜𝗣 = 𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗰𝗮𝗻'𝘁 𝘁𝗼𝘂𝗰𝗵
Your competitors can copy your messaging. 
They can knock off your pricing page. 
They can hire your people.

But they can't replicate the specific, weird, human things that only you can do and claim.

Instead of asking "what should we create?"
Ask "what can 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘸𝘦 say?"

𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗿𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁
Vector's content IP includes...
→ Our mascot, Ghosty (both the character and his wild card LinkedIn comments)
→ Our podcast, This Meeting Could've Been a Podcast (and the comics we use to promote new episodes)
→ The dynamic between me and Joshua Perk 👻 (which has taken on a life of its own)

None of that is product-led.
But all of it makes people 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 something about us.

If you're picking up what I'm puttin' down, I'd love to see you at Full Circle, the only conference for small B2B marketing teams with big ambitions.

I'll be talking about creating content so ownable and magnetic, your competition can't touch it with a 40-foot pole.

Save your seat down here! 👇

When you pivot your entire company, your marketing goals have to pivot too.


We spent months repositioning Vector: new messaging, new pricing, new website, new everything.

Which meant we also have to temporarily shift from "will we hit our revenue number?"
to "is this pivot even the right direction?"

𝗠𝘆 𝗷𝗼𝗯 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗲: 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲 (𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲) 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲.

I landed on three goals.

1️⃣ 𝗛𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 
(Peep the video to see where you want it to be.) 😁

2️⃣ 𝗜𝗻𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘀 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝗜𝗖𝗣 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗮𝘀 𝗯𝘆 𝟱𝟬% 

3️⃣ 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘀 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝘀𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗮𝘀 𝗯𝘆 𝟱𝟬%

Because positioning has to do TWO things at once: attract the right people AND repel the wrong ones.

We're nearly a month past launch, and we're nailing these goals.

But this taught me something valuable about pivots: You can't just keep measuring what you measured before.

Get the full scoop on how we pivoted Vector without breaking the business (and ourselves) in the latest episode of This Meeting Could've Been a Podcast—out now!

Rolling with a DEEP squad today.


Full Circle kicks off this morning and I'll be taking the stage alongside Kira Klaas, Matt Maynard, Luke Winter.

The party continues tomorrow with Molly Bruckman, Ari Yablok, Adam Holmgren, and Akshaya Chandramouli.

And we'll all be sharing what we're doing to build unforgettable brands in the age of AI slop.

There's still time to get your free ticket! https://lnkd.in/e8FZnPhs

Come be the Blanche to my Rose.

It's 2020, and I'm repurposing content from Fastly's annual customer conference.

I just needed a few great clips for organic social and paid promotion.

And yet, I spent a MONTH going back and forth with our video editor.

I watched hours of footage. Sent timestamps. Waited for drafts. Gave feedback. Waited again. Revised. Re-revised.

I ate, slept, and breathed that content.

By the time we were finally done, I wasn't even excited about the project anymore. The event had been burned into my retinas and repurposing took a disproportionate amount of my time compared to the business impact it could ever have.

Fast forward to 2025.

I'm still not a video editor. But I do have podcast footage that's too good to live on Spotify alone.

AND the world now has Goldcast.

I tested out their Agentic Video Editor for the first time this week: live, unscripted, figuring it out as I went.

I uploaded a clip from Vector's podcast where Josh and I deliver "positive affirmations for marketers" (yes, it's as silly as it sounds).

I prompted the editor to turn it into a fun social clip with B-roll, zoom effects, and quirky music.

First draft in under 2 minutes.

I watched it back, decided to lean into the weirdest moments, and asked it to add text callouts and swap the B-roll.

Another 2 minutes. Done.

What took a month in 2020 happened in 15 minutes while I was learning the tool for the first time.

The prompting is conversational. The iterations are instant. And suddenly, repurposing content doesn't feel like a project that always requires a full production team.

I'm still tweaking the final cut, (will drop the debut soon!) but I'm genuinely surprised at how much ground I covered in just a few minutes.

What content are you sitting on because video editing still feels too hard?

And what would you repurpose if you knew it would only take you 15 minutes?

#GoldcastPartner

Brand partnership • Head of Marketing at Vector

If you're spending $25k+ per month on LinkedIn ads, this is your BOGO moment.
 
No promo code needed.
 
Vector's new Bid Agent just launched, and it's basically Black Friday for your ad budget.
 
Flip a switch and start getting 25-60% more outcomes for the same spend.
 
𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀:
 
LinkedIn's Max Delivery is designed to win auctions. Not to maximize what you get for your money.
 
Bid Agent adjusts your bids every 15 minutes to find lower-cost windows and higher-density impression periods within your audience.
 
Same targeting. Same people. Way more outcomes per dollar.
 
"𝗪𝗮𝗶𝘁, 𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗸𝘀 = 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵, 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁?"
 
Nope.
 
LinkedIn still only shows your ads to the exact audience you define. Bid Agent just finds the moments when reaching them costs less.
 
(And things get REAL interesting when you layer it on top of your contact-level audiences built in Vector.)
 
If you're a demand gen leader that has this kind of buying power on your wish list, there's a link in the comments just for you.

It snowed here this week. So I need very little convincing.

But if you're someone who needs a bit more to go on...

Here's your sign to join me at Above the Fold in February. Two days of workshops focused on one thing—B2B websites—in Ft. Lauderdale, FL.

In my mind, I'm already there. 😎

See you in FL?

Appreciate the nod from The Standard + storyarb in this year’s roundup!

If you haven’t checked how your brand shows up in AI search, now’s the time. (Because the LLMs are already telling your story whether you like it or not.)

P.S. I built a tracker to help you audit it before your CEO asks. 👇

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