Jason Miller is a content marketing legend and the perfect interview subject to kick off "The Hook," our blog for sharing the industry's interesting characters and latest thinking in content marketing.
First, a little background on Jason. At LinkedIn, he developed the Sophisticated Marketer's Guide, a groundbreaking editorial that achieved that rare combination of a brand amplifying and lead generation powerhouse. He's currently the Head of Marketing at Jigsaw, and he's brought his business acumen, boundless energy, and non-stop creativity to marketing roles at Microsoft, Marketo, and Active Campaign.
If you've ever been to a concert in London, you've likely seen Jason in the pit with his camera taking jaw-droppingly cool photos of everyone from Kiss to Ringo Starr to Tom Morello.
Read on to hear Jason's insights on using LinkedIn, his content marketing philosophy, and what content marketers he pays close attention to.
How did you get mixed up in marketing?
At no point did I ever say, man, I want to be a B2B marketer. I was in college working three or four jobs and I could only attend part-time, nine hours a semester. I remember being there for five years and thinking I was never going to get out. I went to my counselor and said, when do you think I can graduate and she said, take this this and this and you can get a marketing degree. I said, I'll take it.
I think a lot of people know that I used to work in the music business and watch it crumble into nothing. I watched that industry fight digital, tooth and nail, instead of embracing it. Then I switched over to B2B. My connection to music is still there more than a decade later through my blog Rock N Roll Cocktail and my music photography. I still go to one or two gigs a week. It's my passion, my true passion and I never get tired of it.
I love marketing as well and I'm literally having the best time of my marketing career right now. So I guess I have my cake and eat it too, but I don't sleep much and I just never turn it off. I have to be creating something, all the time.
What's the best piece of content you ever created and why?
Probably B2B Dinner for Five. Because number one, it was just fun. Number two, I didn't think we could pull it off without any real budget. It was real, honest, and completely unscripted. We took the idea from Dinner for Five and made it into B2B and it was awesome.
Somewhere, someone has the footage from the end of the dinner as we were polishing off the wine pretty good. The fact that we were nominated for a Masters of Marketing award (Marketing Week's big award - first time LinkedIn was ever nominated for a marketing award in Europe by the way) was gravy. We didn't care about that, but we were up against campaigns and brands that had spent hundreds of thousands of dollars, and we were under 10k. Brains over budget. Oh, and it drove a shit ton of pipeline.
What content marketer do you pay the most attention to and why?
The quiet ones. The ones who are doing the work and too busy to post every single detail to LinkedIn. But seriously, I think Jay Acunzo continues to lead the pack in things we should really all be paying attention to but seem to be ignoring.
I met Emma Stratton last year at TurningFest, and I think she's really interesting. Her new book Make it Punchy is essential reading. There are a few OGs of B2B as well still making some noise, Jon Miller of course and ex Gong CMO Udi Ledergor has a new book that just dropped and I read it within the first week of having it. Amanda Natividad, VP of Marketing at Spark Toro, is also one I follow on both LinkedIn and Instagram. She's smashing it with Threads which I find interesting. She does a nice mix of marketing and opinions on everything else, but she's real and not trying to be something she's not which I think is rare.
The ones I avoid are the contrarian marketing jerks who tend to bash on the marketing discipline flavor of the month just to get engagement. God, I hope this is a trend that ends sooner than later.
What kind of content should everyone absolutely stop doing?
Gating anything. Period.
What kind of content should everyone absolutely start doing?
Opinions. Strong opinions on the why, rooted in research and actually doing the work.
Do you have a philosophy of content?
Create, write, speak, like you are creating for five people who give a shit about what you have to say. Unleash your personality and be louder and more energetic than the ones who think they know it all.
How are you using AI? How should marketers be using AI?
As a springboard for creativity. As a big idea generator. As a validator for my own thought processes and creative processes. As an assistant for proofing my work. For research and for analysis. Freeing up more time for me to think strategically and more big picture.
What's the biggest misconception about content on LinkedIn today?
That it has to have engagement to have impact.
What's the biggest content mistake you made?
Thinking that a big brand could be bigger and bolder with their approach. That's why I don't see myself working for a big company and the reason I love startups and scaleups. There's a level where anything a big brand does it doesn't really need to grow any longer, it's all about maintaining. When you maintain, you play it safe. There's a certain level of engagement you are going to get with your content no matter how terrible or unhelpful it is. And there are a lot of marketers that I've found are ok with that. I'm not. I need to be somewhere where I'm constantly challenged. I tend to favor the underdog brands.
Thanks, Jason! Look for more insights on content marketing in The Hook. Follow us on LinkedIn.