The Only Sensible Policy for Commenting on Rumors
Deny enough false rumors and you’ll eventually turn “no comment” into confirmation. Why companies need a consistent policy for responding to rumors—and why the time to adopt it is before you need it.
The Market Segment Analysis Chart
Most segment-strategy discussions involve seas of numbers scattered across slides, spreadsheets, and dashboards. Here’s a simple chart that puts the relevant data in one place so you can spend less time reconciling numbers and more time deciding where to invest, what to fix, and when to get out.
The One Thing That Everyone May Be Too Busy to Worry About: Winning
Everyone on the executive team is busy making plan and improving efficiency. But who is making sure you’re actually winning the market? Why CEOs need to track market share — even when the data is imperfect.
Why I Believe in Categories, Just Not Category Design
Categories emerge from markets, not blueprints. Why category design can distract startups from building a company—and why the best way to create a category is to go sell some software.
Introducing Kellblog Subscriptions
(Edited 8/5 with expectations for more changes coming.) I often tell founders to "test by doing," so in this post I'll be practicing what I preach. After nearly 20 years of publishing Kellblog for free, I'm introducing subscriptions. I'll start by
Board Meetings: Your Notetaker Is Not Welcome Here
Good board minutes document decisions and process. AI notetakers capture deliberations, creating a second record that can undermine candor and increase legal exposure. Why no AI notetaker belongs in the boardroom—not yours, not the company’s, not anyone’s.
Please Don't Smooth the Metrics
Smoothing metrics can hide the very problems operators and boards need to see. A worked example shows how a rolling churn rate delays a critical conversation by six months—and why the volatility is the point.
The Kellblog Companion and Thoughts on Derivative Works
Introducing the Kellblog Companion, a new way to explore decades of posts by topic. Plus, why AI has changed my thinking about derivative works: the goal isn’t to recover lost traffic. It’s to keep reaching people.
What Mr. Jambo and Levi's Can Teach Us About Listening to Customers
A parody song and Levi’s ill-fated entry into suits illustrate a common mistake: listening to customers, then interpreting their words to fit the strategy you already wanted to pursue. Before deciding what they really meant, consider that they meant exactly what they said.
Book Review: The Curious Case of Mike Lynch by Katie Prescott
Katie Prescott’s biography of Mike Lynch is a compelling read with particular relevance in today’s AI boom. My review explores the danger of sustaining an aura of success, the difference between loyalty and truth, and the questions I wish the book had pressed harder.
Why I'm Joining the Board of Dreamdata
I spend a lot of time thinking about go-to-market efficiency — how companies decide where to invest their marketing dollars, how they measure what's working, and how they improve over time. For years, much of marketing measurement has revolved around attribution — trying to determine which programs, campaigns,
The Metrics Brothers Hiatus
We’ve decided, after 122 episodes, to put The Metrics Brothers podcast on hiatus. Let me explain how I think about that decision. On October 20, 1974, the Grateful Dead played what was then billed as their final show before an indefinite hiatus. The band was burned out. The touring