The 2030 marketing playbook

People. Community. Media.

Here’s my not-so-crazy prediction:

By 2030, every successful brand will follow the same marketing structure. Doesn’t matter what industry. Doesn’t matter if you sell matcha or microchips.

Three things will define the next wave of winning companies:

1. Human-led

2. Community-driven

3. Media-fueled

Let’s break it down.

1. Human-led: The founder is the funnel

People follow people. Not logos.

Bill Gates? 64M+ followers
Elon? 180M+
That’s more than Microsoft and Tesla combined.

We're entering the "face of the brand" era. The founder is the front door. The line between the person and the product? It’s getting thinner by the day.

People don’t just want what you’re selling, they want to know who’s selling it. What you believe in. What you stand for. What your daily routine looks like, your favorite podcast, your unpopular opinions.

Every founder with a vision will be expected to have a personal brand.
No more hiding behind the product.

If you’re building something and not showing your face, telling your story, or documenting the journey… You’re leaving equity on the table.

2. Community-driven: The community comes first

The best brands of the future?
They’ll start as communities, then become products.

Look at Sweet Honey Farm by Devon Lévesque.
The product is Promix.
Devon is the brand.
But the farm… That's the community. It’s a living, breathing space where people go to connect, train, grow. It’s the vibe. The energy. The movement.

Same with LSKD. They didn’t just build a product. They built a tribe.
Their apparel is the uniform but the community is the army.

By 2030, every legit company will have some kind of hub. A digital or physical space where customers turn into members, and members become ambassadors.

Slack channels. IRL clubs. Co-working barns in the middle of nowhere.
It won’t be about transactions. It’ll be about transformation.

3. Media-fueled: Don’t just sell It. Show it

You’ve heard me said that before… But here you go again:
Every company will be a media company (EC=MC).

Actually… Scratch that. Every founder will be a media company.

Podcasts. Documentaries. Radio shows. TikToks. Blogs. Films.
Content isn’t a marketing strategy anymore, it’s your identity.

Check out Lohause. They sell glasses, sure.
But scroll through their content and you’ll forget that.

They take you into their world, showing what they stand for, what inspires them, how they think. It's not just marketing. It’s meaning.

And that’s the future: the best brands won’t just sell you something.
They’ll invite you into their universe.

Like Bill Gates said, Content is king.

So what’s next?

By 2030, this will be the norm:

• You’re not a founder > You’re a storyteller.

• You’re not building an audience > You’re building a movement.

• You’re not running ads > You’re telling stories.

So ask yourself:

1. Am I showing my face, not just my product?

2. Am I building a space where my people can find each other?

3. Am I producing real content or just posting to keep up?

Hit reply and tell me which of the three are you leaning into most right now.
And which one do you need to double down on?

Keep on rocking 🤘
Alex,