Consistency is key.
I’ve been a Yankees fan for as long as I can remember.
My absolute favorite player of all time is #23, Don Mattingly, “Donnie Baseball,” the Hit Man. I love the stories of the greats, from the legend of the Bambino, Babe Ruth, to today’s Yankees like Aaron Judge, Ben Rice, Jazz Chisholm Jr., Giancarlo Stanton and Austin Wells.
Marketing today reminds me a lot of baseball.
Over a long season, you’re going to win some and lose some. You’ll have hot streaks and slumps. You’ll be on top, driving growth, developing your players and figuring out how to get the best out of the team.
But you can never take your eye off the ball.
The minute you start coasting, stop learning or stop trying to get better, someone else is studying the game.
They’re watching intent data.
They’re curating better content.
They’re learning how LLMs and AI are changing search and discovery.
They’re paying attention to how customers research and buy.
And they’re adjusting.
You also better know your numbers.
Baseball has RBIs, batting averages, strikeouts and ERAs.
Marketing has CAC, CPL, conversion rates, CLV, LTV and ROI.
But collecting stats isn’t the same as understanding them.
You have to know what the numbers are telling you, act on them and make decisions with the data in mind.
Because the game is always changing.
And here’s one of my favorite things about baseball:
Anyone can win the World Series.
The team with the biggest payroll doesn’t automatically win the championship.
Marketing is no different.
The largest organization with the biggest marketing budget doesn’t automatically win the market.
A smaller organization can outthink you.
Outlearn you.
Out-execute you.
Move faster than you.
Understand the customer better than you.
This can be anyone’s season.
Maybe that’s also why I love a great comeback story.
I love walking into organizations where there is chaos and creating clarity. I build systems that work, connect the pieces, develop people, look at what the numbers are telling us and help teams find a way to win.
Which brings me to one of the most important people on the field.
The coach.
Do you have the right players on the team?
Are they playing the right positions?
Are you developing them and helping them become better players?
When you don’t have the right player, are you willing to make the trade?
Does everyone understand the game plan?
Can you make the adjustments when the game changes?
And maybe most importantly:
Do your players want to play for you?
Because great coaches don’t just watch the scoreboard.
They know their players. They develop talent. They study the numbers. They make adjustments. They build systems. They create belief. And they get everyone playing toward the same goal.
The players matter.
The numbers matter.
The system matters.
The budget matters.
But the biggest budget and the largest payroll don’t always win the World Series.
Sometimes, it’s the team that is coached well, plays well together, understands the numbers and keeps getting better that wins it all.
That’s true in baseball.
And it’s true in business.
This can be anyone’s season.
Living Positive on Purpose 