--- title: "DumbCMO: Marketing, explained like you’re a normal person" description: "All of marketing (SEO, ads, social, email, analytics, branding) explained in words your mom would get. Every note opens with a TL;DR and ends with something to do today." url: https://dumbcmo.com --- # Marketing, explained like you’re a normal person. SEO, ads and social media in words your mom would get. Every note starts with the answer. Free, no signup. [Who’s this guy?](https://dumbcmo.com/about) ## Fresh notes **Latest note: [Instagram’s October 2026 update: Features, Series, Live, and TV](https://dumbcmo.com/blog/instagram-october-2026-features-series-tv)** (Building an audience, 2026-10-28) > **TL;DR:** Instagram is testing horizontal Features up to about 90 minutes, Clips as Reels, episodic Series, and more discoverable Lives — plus Apple TV in the US. Most of it is invite-only, with no YouTube-style ad share yet. Steal the clip-to-long habit; don’t rebuild your week around a beta. - [Meta’s brand formats: Super Burst, First Impression, Reels Trending](https://dumbcmo.com/blog/meta-ads-october-2026-updates): Meta’s Brand Summit (15 Oct) pushed Ads Super Burst, First Impression Ads (US test), and broader Reels Trending Ads. Today (28 Oct) product browsing turns on in existing ads unless you opted out. Here’s the plain-words tour with a doodle for each format. - [ChatGPT ads: how they pick who shows, in plain English](https://dumbcmo.com/blog/chatgpt-ads-how-they-work): ChatGPT ads are chosen by matching your ad to the conversation, then auctioned. 100,000+ advertisers are already in. For most small businesses, watch for now, and don’t move your budget yet. - [Google Ads: new spending controls and a 1-click AI Max test](https://dumbcmo.com/blog/google-ads-channel-priority-and-ai-max): Google Ads is rolling out controls to say which channels get your budget first, plus a one-click test of AI Max. Both are useful, but all channels default to high priority, so nothing changes unless you change it. - [Google rankings shook on 24 October. Should you do anything?](https://dumbcmo.com/blog/google-ranking-shake-october-24): Many rank trackers spiked on Saturday 24 October 2026, which suggests Google changed something. Google hasn't confirmed it. Wait a week, check Search Console, and change nothing in a panic. - [Google’s AI summary now shows on over 80% of searches](https://dumbcmo.com/blog/ai-overviews-on-80-percent-of-searches): Tracking tools now put Google’s AI summary on 80%+ of searches, up from about half in mid-2025. Your clicks may keep falling. Your job is to be the business the summary mentions. [All notes](https://dumbcmo.com/blog) ## What are you stuck on? Pick a topic. Each page has the big ideas, the words you’ll hear, and the scams to dodge. - [SEO, dumbed down](https://dumbcmo.com/seo): SEO is getting Google to show you when people search for what you sell. The clicks are free. The catch is time: think months, not days. - [Local SEO, dumbed down](https://dumbcmo.com/seo/local-seo): Local SEO is showing up when someone nearby searches for what you sell, like “bakery near me”. Most of it is your free Google Business Profile and your reviews. - [AEO and AI search, dumbed down](https://dumbcmo.com/seo/aeo): AEO is getting mentioned when people ask ChatGPT or Google’s AI instead of searching. It’s mostly SEO with a new name: clear answers, real reviews and a name people search for. - [PPC and paid ads, dumbed down](https://dumbcmo.com/ppc): PPC means pay per click: you pay Google or Instagram each time someone clicks your ad. It’s fast, and it stops the second you stop paying. - [Google Ads, dumbed down](https://dumbcmo.com/ppc/google-ads): Google Ads put you at the top of Google when someone searches for what you sell. You pay per click, so the trick is paying only for searches from people ready to buy. - [Meta ads (Instagram and Facebook), dumbed down](https://dumbcmo.com/ppc/meta-ads): Meta ads show your stuff on Instagram and Facebook to people who weren’t looking but might want it. Meta’s automation does a lot of the work, and you’re still responsible for what it runs. - [Social media, dumbed down](https://dumbcmo.com/social-media): Social media is showing up where your customers already scroll, often enough that they remember you. Followers are nice. Messages and sales are the point. - [Instagram for business, dumbed down](https://dumbcmo.com/social-media/instagram): Instagram is where people find you by scrolling. Post for the people who’d actually buy, and count messages and orders, not followers. - [WhatsApp for business, dumbed down](https://dumbcmo.com/social-media/whatsapp): WhatsApp is where your regulars already are. Use the free Business app, message only people who said yes, and send things they’d actually want. - [Black Hat](https://dumbcmo.com/black): Black-hat marketing tricks, why each one backfires, and the honest version. - [Case studies](https://dumbcmo.com/case-studies) ## Free tools - [Should I run ads yet?](https://dumbcmo.com/tools/should-i-run-ads): Answer four yes/no questions and find out if paid ads make sense for your business right now, or what to do first. - [What does a customer cost me?](https://dumbcmo.com/tools/customer-cost-calculator): Work out what one customer costs you (CAC), what they’re worth (LTV), and how long until they pay you back. ## Scam Watch Pitches that land in your inbox every week, crossed out. - [“Guaranteed #1 on Google”](https://dumbcmo.com/scam-watch#guaranteed-first-page): Nobody controls Google’s free results, and Google’s own guide to hiring an SEO says so. Usually the “#1” is for a phrase nobody searches, or it’s a paid ad. - [“We’ll get you into ChatGPT answers, guaranteed”](https://dumbcmo.com/scam-watch#guaranteed-ai-answers): Nobody controls what AI tools say, and Google says there’s nothing special to do for its AI features beyond normal good SEO. It’s the old “#1 on Google” pitch with a new sticker. - [AI-written reviews, “undetectable”](https://dumbcmo.com/scam-watch#ai-written-reviews): Fake reviews are fake whether a person or a robot writes them. The US FTC’s review rule covers AI-generated fakes and it has been enforcing it in 2026; the UK’s CMA has opened formal fake-review cases too. ## The Dumb Dictionary - **CAC:** What you spent on marketing to get one new paying customer. - **Engagement:** Likes, comments, shares and saves. People doing something with your post. - **PPC:** Ads where you pay each time someone clicks. - **ROAS:** Sales from ads divided by what you paid for the ads. $4 back for every $1 is a ROAS of 4. - **SEO:** Showing up when people Google stuff. - **Vanity metric:** A number that feels good but doesn’t pay rent. Followers, views, likes. [Open the dictionary](https://dumbcmo.com/glossary) --- Free, not an agency, and the joke is always on jargon. Never on you. [How DumbCMO works](https://dumbcmo.com/about)