From Insight Strategy to Media Targeting: Why the Translation Layer Matters
Most CPG brands don’t stall because competitors outspend them — they stall because they misread what’s actually happening in the category. At the $5–$30M stage, the problem isn’t lack of data, it’s knowing which signals matter and which ones are just noise.
This piece breaks down how category and competitive intelligence should inform real growth decisions — from positioning and pricing to channel focus and sequencing — so teams stop reacting and start making clearer, more disciplined bets.
Category & Competition: How to Read the Signals That Matter
How to see the landscape clearly without letting competitors define your strategy.
This piece breaks down how category and competitive intelligence should actually inform growth decisions — from pricing and positioning to channels and sequencing — so teams stop reacting to noise and start making disciplined bets as the category evolves.
Consumer Questions Every 2026 Plan Should Answer
Most CPG brands skip straight to tactics—channels, creative, retail strategy—without answering the foundational question: Who is this actually for?
Before you set revenue goals or pick marketing channels, you need clarity on your consumer. Not demographics. Not personas that sound good in a deck. Real human understanding—the kind that shapes every decision from product development to media spend.
The 5-Minute AI Visibility Test
Go to ChatGPT. Type in the problem your product solves. Does your
ChatGPT Is Recommending Your Competitors (Not You)
Go to ChatGPT right now. Type in the problem your product solves. (Example: "What's the best high-protein pasta for meal prep?" or "Best pasta alternatives for someone trying to build muscle?")
Are you in the top 3 brands it recommends? If not, find out how challenger brands can win in AEO.
10 Macro Trends Shaping 2026 Marketing
2026 won’t behave like 2025. And I’m pretty sure nobody else has “Ariana Grande foreshadowed TikTok Shop” on their 2026 bingo card — but stay with me, because it matters.
Consumer behavior is shifting fast. The brands that win in 2026 aren’t the ones who react fastest, they’re the ones who plan around the forces reshaping the market (and happen to follow my planning advice).
These are the 10 macro forces I predict will shape how consumers discover, evaluate, and buy in 2026 and what they mean for your brand.
2026 Marketing Planning Starts Now
Big CPG trained me to start with the consumer. DTC taught me how that consumer actually behaves across retail, Amazon, DTC, and now AI-led discovery. 2026 planning requires both. Most brands only have one.
So over the next few weeks, I’m breaking down the components of how I’d plan 2026 — the kind operators at $5M–$50M brands actually need to hit next year’s growth targets.
What I Fix Inside $5M–$50M CPG Brands (And How)
Most $5M–$50M DTC and CPG brands don’t stall because of channels or creative. They stall because the commercial engine stops working as one system. Here’s what actually breaks — and what to fix first.
How to Build a Performance-Driven Influencer Program That Scales
Most influencer programs rely on luck, not strategy. This breakdown shows how I transformed one organic creator win into a repeatable, performance-first growth engine using affiliate validation, whitelisting, and selective creator partnerships.
The Planning Model That Gets You to $5M Won’t Get You to $25M
The $200K Lesson Every CPG Founder Needs to Hear
I once approached a $200K launch the way I approached $11M launches — and it taught me something every founder should know.
A few years ago, I interviewed for a mid-size CPG brand and got the prompt:
“How would you launch X product with a $200K budget?”
At the time, I was coming off $5M–$11M big CPG launches… so let’s just say my answer reflected that.
Now I regularly build launch plans on $10K, and working at that level forces you to get brutally disciplined about what actually drives adoption.
Here’s the framework I use now — built for scrappy brands trying to grow without lighting money on fire.
Subscribe & Save isn’t a Retention Lever
S&S is not a retention lever.
Let me describe Subscribe & Save from the customer’s POV:
“I love the product. I want to buy it again. But I don’t know how fast I go through it… So now I’m supposed to pick 1 month? 2? 3? And if I get it wrong, I’m stuck skipping, pausing, editing, canceling.”
Consumption rarely matches the neat 30-day cycles brands default to.
CPG founders: AI is Your New Category Maker
And most brands aren’t ready for it.
I follow the same advice I give founders: Repurpose your content. Watch your analytics like a hawk. This morning I checked my website analytics and saw something new: a referral hit from ChatGPT.
No, ChatGPT didn’t magically “discover” my site. Someone asked it a question, it used my content in its answer, and the user clicked the source link pointing back to me.
That’s where marketing is headed: AI Search Optimization (AEO).
“What’s your ROI?”
A founder recently asked if I’d be open to being paid on commission instead of my usual retainer for my strategy work.
I get why they asked. It’s tempting to want everything to tie back to a clean ROAS number — especially when budgets are tight and results feel urgent.
But that question misses how growth actually works.
Too Many Priorities, Not Enough Precision
Founders, I hear ya.
Too many priorities, not enough time or hands.
But here’s the thing…
The 5 Growth Leaks Quietly Killing Most CPG Brands Under $5M
Most founders think they have a marketing problem. In reality, they have leakage — and the numbers tell you exactly where it’s happening.
Top 5 reasons: fuzzy positioning, no purchase or subscription strategy, channel sprawl, PDPs that don’t convert and no velocity system.
You just got on shelf — congrats! Now prove you can stay there.
Getting on shelf isn’t the finish line — it’s the starting gun.
Buyers watch those first 3 months closely and if your product doesn’t move fast enough, that space goes to someone else.
Going Viral ≠ sales
Every founder dreams of going viral.
Lately I’ve seen more brands hiring “social specialists with viral experience.”
Unpopular opinion: going viral rarely builds a business.
No Nielsen data? No problem.
“What should a brand do if they don’t have access to big data when pitching a buyer?”
Buyers are measured on a handful of metrics you can actually influence. Here’s what really matters to retail buyers (beyond sales & velocities).
If I Were a Brand Founder… Part 2
You can win Black Friday and still lose the quarter.
The difference? Systems that turn sales into sustained momentum.
Here’s how the best brands do it 👇
(Part 2: Conversion Strategies — the follow-up to Tuesday's Strategic Foundations.)