Friends of Dave: The Swimsuit Issue
As most of you know, I have always had an affinity for marketing. I also have been a data guy as far back as I can remember. So as I have evolved as a marketer, I have come to embrace the growing availability of metrics that go along with measuring marketing success. For me, it is near impossible to imagine how we did our jobs without being data driven. And the cool thing about the free version of Revue (the solution I am using to publish this newsletter) is that I am able to get a few metrics that help me improve the usability of the newsletter.
One thing I can regularly track is open rates. What's been interesting is that over each of the last 9 weeks, the unique open rate has been consistently at 57% of all subscribers (interestingly, you can also infer from the data when someone forwards the newsletter to others) -- about double what is usually expected from email newsletters. I thank you all for that.
From my experience, I know that a material factor in open rates (in addition to day/time delivered, size of the email, etc.) can be the subject line. If I was leading a corporate team on this, I might have them do A/B tests on subject lines across the subscriber base to help optimize open rates. But this is my hobby, so I'm not doing that. What you will see over the coming weeks is me possibly playing with the subject lines to see what works. I'll also continue to sprinkle in themed issues when it makes sense.
That all said: if you opened the newsletter this week expecting some provocative spread of fit people in beachwear, you will be disappointed (though scroll to the bottom for a payoff). It's 2017, folks, not 1977. I'm banking on an uptick in the unique open rate to above 65% as a result. We'll see -- all in the name of science and metrics, I guess.
Thanks again for the support. Once again, some interesting stuff this week, including a continuation of the AI thread. Enjoy!
XOXO
Dave
For the Deep Thinkers...
Can Americans be reasonable in the age of hyper partisanship? — medium.com
My original post on Medium with a simple test on whether you can be a reasonable person in a partisan world. Please check it out!
The man who studies the spread of ignorance — www.bbc.com
“I was exploring how powerful industries could promote ignorance to sell their wares. Ignorance is power… and agnotology is about the deliberate creation of ignorance."
Robert Proctor, science historian from Stanford, explores how the same tactics that tobacco companies used to get people to smoke is contributing to the "radical ignorance" we see today.
Charlie Munger on Getting Rich, Wisdom, Focus, Fake Knowledge and More (short read) — www.farnamstreetblog.com
Charlie Munger offers timeless and pithy wisdom on getting rich, focus, fake knowledge, understanding our circle of competence, and so much more.
Frank Abagnale explains why technology won’t stop breaches — arstechnica.com
Abagnale warned that the value of a medical record to identity thieves far surpasses that of just a name, date of birth, and social security number. I concur. Do you concur?
More on AI...
Why Taxing Robots is Not a Good Idea
To forestall a social crisis, Bill Gates recently mused, governments should consider a tax on robots; if automation slows as a result, so much the better. The Economist feels this would be hard to implement, revealing a lot about the challenge of AI.
How to Cut Through the AI Hype — blog.canaan.com
The search frequency of the term “Deep Learning” (DL) has grown 4x in the last two years. It also has increased in frequency in this newsletter by 200%, but I ain't mad.
Will Democracy Survive Big Data and Artificial Intelligence? (long read) — www.scientificamerican.com
We are in the middle of a technological upheaval that will transform the way society is organized. Scientific American takes a detailed look at how, if we are not careful, AI will evolve from programming technology to programming people. If found last week's AI themed newsletter fascinating, read this.
For The Startup Aficionados...
Lessons from Uber: Getting Human Resources Right
Great post by Fred Wilson showing how a messed up human resources organization can hit your company where it hurts most. As Uber (and notably Zenefits before it) is founding out.
Uncorking innovation with Treasury Wine Estates in Napa (long read) — techcrunch.com
What wine makers are going after with applied technology and science is a more profitable piece of an already sizable market.
For the Data Geeks...
The Data Behind Dining — www.theatlantic.com
Damian Mogavero, argues that analytics can help restaurants become more creative and profitable. It supports my hypothesis that, in 2017, EVERY business should consider itself a data business.
Urjanet is looking to sell utility billing data to lenders — techcrunch.com
More on the "every business should consider itself a data business" thread: Atlanta-based Urjanet is building a business around selling data on how regularly people and businesses pay their electric, gas, telecommunications, water, and waste bills to lenders to help assess risk.
For the FinTech Folks...
Financial Technology Partners FinTech Market Overview
In depth look at deals and valuations in the FinTech space by Financial Technology Partners. Follow Steve McLaughlin on Twitter or LinkedIn for regular updates on the broad market and FinTech sub-sectors.
In FinTech, China Shows The Way
China’s fintech giants are showing emerging markets that with the right technology, it is possible to leapfrog to new forms of banking. For developed markets, China offers a vision of the grand consolidation—apps that combine payments, lending and investment—that the future should hold.
Your Weekly Dose of Random Knowledge...
Inside Jack White's New Vinyl-Pressing Paradise — www.rollingstone.com
Read how Jack White and Third Man Records' new Detroit pressing facility is raising the bar for modern vinyl production.
How Terry Kniess Beat The Price Is Right — www.esquire.com In thirty-eight years, The Price is Right never had a contestant guess the exact value of prizes in the Showcase showdown. Until Terry Kniess outsmarted everyone — and changed everything.
And The Last Word....
Chris Cornell Covers "Nothing Compares 2 U" — www.youtube.com
Combine the vocal stylings of Chris Cornell and the lyrics of Prince and you get goodness. Worth listening to it: trust me.
Got feedback? Questions? Suggestions? Email me: dave@slingstonegroup.com