Today on Poetry in Marketing, I’ve got a windy, dramatic backdrop and a pointed little haiku:

Why pay for tactics

If you don’t understand why

You’re paying for them?

In this episode, I dig into a common (and costly) mistake: business owners signing off on a long list of marketing activities without truly understanding what those tactics are supposed to accomplish.

Social posts on multiple platforms. Lots of blogs. SEO. Lead magnets. Press releases. Great. But what job are they actually doing for your business?

There should always be a straight line between the money you spend and the results you expect. If you can’t clearly explain why something is on your marketing plan, it’s time to ask better questions.

In this episode of Poetry in Marketing, we dive into a hot topic with a fresh haiku:

AI can’t achieve

Beyond a user’s skill set—

Just like other tools.

There’s a lot of noise about artificial intelligence replacing marketers, but here’s the truth: AI isn’t a solution. It isn’t an employee. It’s just a tool... One that’s only as good as the person using it.

This week’s episode explores the myth of AI as a magic fix and reminds us why human expertise still matters. I share why AI is powerful only when guided by experience, and why your marketing strategy still needs a smart human at the wheel.

Hey, it’s Erik Wolf, and in this episode of Poetry in Marketing, I reflect on a conversation that happened during a Vistage talk in Philadelphia which inspired this week’s poem:

Marketing’s bigger

Than what most CEOs think

That marketing is.

Spoiler alert: Most CEOs underestimate what marketing really is. It’s not just websites, logos, emails, or trade shows. Marketing — real marketing — is a holistic business strategy. It’s about aligning product, message, and customer insight to drive growth. And yes, it lives way up in the C-suite, not just in Adobe Creative Suite.

This episode dives into why so many business leaders view marketing too narrowly... And how to shift that mindset.