Pre-PS: I’m hosting a free branding event next Wednesday called “The 4 pillars of a sustainable brand”. No sales pitch, just strategy insights and a chance to build some community. You’re invited! Register here to join.
Hi Reader,
Here’s something I’ve been thinking about lately: What happened to making friends on the Internet?
I was around when blogging just started. We had Twitter parties and Facebook groups that actually felt personal. You could genuinely connect with people, have real conversations, build actual friendships. It was human.
That’s a lot harder to find these days.
Online marketing and social media feel mostly like a contest to see who can yell the loudest. We're all slammed for time and looking for ways to grow our businesses without having to post 10 times a day or spend hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars creating complicated funnels. And now we've got bots and vanilla AI content adding to the noise.
People are hungry for community.
They want something simple. Something that feels like them, where they can show up and be themselves.
Instead of trying to rack up followers or win a popularity contest, they want to make deeper connections with a smaller circle, but the right circle for them.
And from conversations I'm having, there are a lot of us out there:
→ The introverts.
→ The experts who are really good at what they do but don't want to be loud about it.
→ The people who want depth over volume.
→ The ones who want to stay in their zone of genius and would love to find creative partners but don’t know where to start.
This year, one of my big goals has been to be more intentional and active in connecting with other people. Not just clients, but also other brand builders, other industry experts, other people who are building the same kind of business I want to build.
That's why I’m launching The Brand Commons. I want to build a space where those of us who care about building brands strategically and sustainably can get together and have real conversations about the work we're doing…
…and maybe even make friends on the Internet again. 🫠
It's an experiment, honestly. And it’s kind of old-school: hang out on Zoom, bring in experts for fireside-chat style conversations, leave space for questions and conversation. I’ve been wanting to do this for a few years and I’m excited to give it a try.
Our next session is coming up next Wednesday, February 18 at 3pm ET, and we're talking about building a sustainable brand — so that you don’t have to burn it down every time something changes or goes wrong.
I’m aiming for something small and casual, thoughtful, and built for folks who'd rather have one meaningful conversation than a hundred surface-level interactions. And monthly, so can actually see each other regularly and get to know each other.
If that sounds like you, come on in and pull up a chair.
There are more of us than you might think. Let’s hang out.
Have a great weekend,
Kristen
Need 1:1 support? Here are a few ways we can work together:
Get clear: Download the free Brand Alignment Scorecard to see what's working in your brand, what isn't, and where to focus next.
Get focused: Book a Brand Strategy Session to work through a specific branding challenge or question.
Get stuff done: A Brand Retreat Day gives us focused time to tackle your biggest brand priority — messaging, positioning, creative direction, or whatever will move the needle most.
Go deep: The Brand Blueprint is my signature process for established service providers who need a comprehensive brand strategy that positions them for their next stage of growth.