Uncomfortable truth:
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Aggressive, emotionally manipulative marketing works.

Not everywhere, not forever — but often enough, and especially in the short term. That’s why so many businesses keep using these tactics: with certain audiences and contexts, they get results.

But after 15+ years in this field, I know this: more than another Stripe ping, I’d rather look in the mirror and feel proud of the person staring back.

Here are my 9 commandments for non-icky marketing:
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#1 — Thou Shalt Address Objections Honestly
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Your product is not for everyone. Say it outright:
“This won’t work if you can’t put in 10 hours a week.”
“Don’t take this program unless you have at least 3 years experience.”
“Our Landing Page Intensive is only for brands with clear positioning.”
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​#2 — Thou Shalt Choose Transparency

Tactics that bend the truth often work in the short term — like inflating results, cherry-picking data, or padding testimonials. But the trust you lose when clients realize it’s not the full story costs more than the sale you just closed.
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​#3 — Thou Shalt Respect Thy Audience

Treat your audience like smart humans capable of making good decisions. (Because they are.) Listen to their feedback. Give them the facts. Then trust them to say yes or no without manipulation. Don’t gaslight them.

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[Recent real example: An unsubscribe page featured this option — “I don’t remember signing up for these emails.”
​Excuse me? I do remember. I never signed up. Give me the “I never signed up” option. Don’t gaslight me into thinking I forgot.]
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​#4 — Thou Shalt Promise Only What Thou Can Deliver​
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You can’t guarantee someone will make six figures. You can guarantee your framework, your support, your materials. Be careful about the prominence and verbiage of explicit (and implicit) promises in your messaging.
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​#5 — Thou Shalt Pass the Neighbor Test​
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If someone outside your marketing circle saw your work, how would you feel?
Think of a neighbor, a friend, a respected teacher at your kid’s school. How would they react, reading your sales page? If you wouldn’t show it to someone you respect, don’t ship it.
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​#6 — Thou Shalt Write Like a Human, Not a Hype Machine​
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If your sales page has an overdose of superlatives — “life-changing, revolutionary, never-before-seen!” — tone it down. Use plain language. Talk like you would to a smart friend over coffee.
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​#7 — Thou Shalt Not Rub Salt in Wounds

Don’t be an emotional button-pusher:

“If you don’t solve this today, your business will collapse / your marriage will fail / you’ll die alone with 7 cats.” Stop the ping-ponging between shame (“you’re lazy”), guilt (“don’t let your family down”), and FOMO (“everyone else is in already”).

Social proof and urgency and cost-of-inaction have a place, but use them with discretion and care.
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​#8 — Thou Shalt Not Bonus-Stack to the Heavens

“$49,327 worth of value…all yours for just $97.”
Spare us the exaggeration. If you’re putting a dollar value, it better be real.
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​#9 — Thou Shalt Not Create Guilt-Ridden Exits

Don’t create pop-ups where the “no thanks” button says:

“No, I don’t want to grow my business”

or

“No, I prefer being broke.”

or

“I want to opt out of the money-printing emails” 🙄🙄

​Reader, in the past, I defaulted to some of these strategies myself. They’re so widespread in the marketing world that using them felt obvious.
But looking back, I didn’t feel good about it — and it wasn’t respectful to my customers.

With time in this industry comes clarity. And today, I know the rules I want to live by, and the standards I want my messaging to hold. (If I ever violate one of these, hold me to it.)
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Bottom line: Market with integrity.

Just because other marketers use a tactic (maybe very successfully!), doesn't mean you should use it. Their values might not align with yours.
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>>> Reader, what would you add as #10?

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