Seth Godin's best tactics for building remarkable products, strategies, brands and more
<p><strong>Seth Godin</strong> is a legend. He’s a marketer, teacher, entrepreneur, and author of more than 20 books, including <em>Purple Cow</em>, <em>Permission Marketing</em>, and <em>Linchpin</em>. He also writes one of the most popular and longest-running blogs in the world (approaching publishing 10,000 <em>in a row</em>!) and continues to shape how we think about marketing, brand, product, and creating lasting change in the world. In our conversation, we discuss:</p><p>• How to build remarkable products that spread</p><p>• The four critical strategic choices that determine your future</p><p>• How to develop good taste and high standards</p><p>• The role of tension in great strategy</p><p>• How Seth used Claude to write his newest book</p><p>• Much more</p><p>—</p><p><strong>Brought to you by:</strong></p><p>• <a target="_blank" href="https://getdx.com/lenny">DX</a>—A platform for measuring and improving developer productivity</p><p>• <a target="_blank" href="https://vanta.com/lenny">Vanta</a>—Automate compliance. Simplify security</p><p>• <a target="_blank" href="https://www.useparagon.com/lenny">Paragon</a>—Ship every SaaS integration your customers want</p><p>—</p><p><strong>Find the transcript at: </strong><a target="_blank" href="https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/seth-godins-tactics-for-building-remarkable-products">https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/seth-godins-tactics-for-building-remarkable-products</a></p><p>—</p><p><strong>Where to find Seth Godin:</strong></p><p>• Blog: <a target="_blank" href="http://seths.blog/">http://seths.blog/</a></p><p>• LinkedIn: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/sethgodin">https://www.linkedin.com/in/sethgodin</a></p><p>• Website: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.sethgodin.com">https://www.sethgodin.com</a></p><p>—</p><p><strong>Where to find Lenny:</strong></p><p>• Newsletter: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.lennysnewsletter.com">https://www.lennysnewsletter.com</a></p><p>• X: <a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/lennysan">https://twitter.com/lennysan</a></p><p>• LinkedIn: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/">https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/</a></p><p>—</p><p><strong>In this episode, we cover:</strong></p><p>(00:00) Seth’s background</p><p>(05:17) Understanding good taste and upholding high standards</p><p>(08:09) Become the best at whatever you do</p><p>(09:48) Seth’s journey as a product manager</p><p>(14:09) What people often get wrong when building products</p><p>(16:00) Building a brand in the age of AI</p><p>(19:04) Using AI to enhance writing</p><p>(22:40) Four critical elements for an effective strategy</p><p>(27:38) The role of tension in strategy</p><p>(29:15) The concept of the purple cow</p><p>(33:11) "Safe is risky"</p><p>(34:56) The power of systems</p><p>(37:07) Better waves make better surfers</p><p>(38:10) Rebranding vs. re-logoing</p><p>(43:07) Empathetic leadership</p><p>(44:14) Conclusion and farewell</p><p>—</p><p><strong>Referenced:</strong></p><p>• Seth Godin on the Tim Ferriss Show: <a target="_blank" href="https://tim.blog/2024/03/20/seth-godin-3/">https://tim.blog/2024/03/20/seth-godin-3/</a></p><p>• Persuasive communication and managing up | Wes Kao (Maven, Seth Godin, Section4): <a target="_blank" href="https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/persuasive-communication-wes-kao">https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/persuasive-communication-wes-kao</a></p><p>• Spinnaker: <a target="_blank" href="https://spinnaker.io">https://spinnaker.io</a></p><p>• Ray Bradbury: <a target="_blank" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Bradbury">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Bradbury</a></p><p>• Arthur C. Clarke: <a target="_blank" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_C._Clarke">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_C._Clarke</a></p><p>• Isaac Asimov: <a target="_blank" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Asimov">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Asimov</a></p><p>• Roger Zelazny: <a target="_blank" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Zelazny">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Zelazny</a></p><p>• Herbie Hancock: <a target="_blank" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbie_Hancock">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbie_Hancock</a></p><p>• Fahrenheit 451<em> (</em>game): <a target="_blank" href="https://www.filfre.net/2013/09/fahrenheit-451-the-game/">https://www.filfre.net/2013/09/fahrenheit-451-the-game/</a></p><p>• RTFM: <a target="_blank" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RTFM#">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RTFM#</a></p><p>• Intercom: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.intercom.com">https://www.intercom.com</a></p><p>• Claude: <a target="_blank" href="https://claude.ai">https://claude.ai</a></p><p>• ChatGPT: <a target="_blank" href="https://chatgpt.com">https://chatgpt.com</a></p><p>• Anthropic: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.anthropic.com">https://www.anthropic.com</a></p><p>• Steam: <a target="_blank" href="https://store.steampowered.com">https://store.steampowered.com</a></p><p>• P.F. Flyers: <a target="_blank" href="https://pfflyers.com">https://pfflyers.com</a></p><p>• Steve Blank’s website: <a target="_blank" href="https://steveblank.com">https://steveblank.com</a></p><p>• Marissa Mayer on X: <a target="_blank" href="https://x.com/marissamayer">https://x.com/marissamayer</a></p><p>• Jaguar unveils new logo ahead of electric relaunch: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgr0pw00n7qo">https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgr0pw00n7qo</a></p><p>• IHOP Becomes IHOb, the International House of ... Burgers: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.npr.org/2018/06/11/618844977/ihop-becomes-ihob-the-international-house-of-burgers">https://www.npr.org/2018/06/11/618844977/ihop-becomes-ihob-the-international-house-of-burgers</a></p><p>• Oreo’s Super Bowl Power-Outage Tweet Was 18 Months in the Making: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/oreos-super-bowl-power-outage-tweet-was-18-months-in-the-making-2013-3">https://www.businessinsider.com/oreos-super-bowl-power-outage-tweet-was-18-months-in-the-making-2013-3</a></p><p>• Tesla’s New ‘Ludicrous Mode’ Makes the Model S a Supercar: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.wired.com/2015/07/teslas-new-ludicrous-mode-makes-model-s-supercar">https://www.wired.com/2015/07/teslas-new-ludicrous-mode-makes-model-s-supercar</a></p><p>—</p><p><strong>Recommended books:</strong></p><p>• <em>This Is Strategy: Make Better Plans (Create a Strategy to Elevate Your Career, Community & Life)</em>: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.amazon.com/This-Strategy-Better-Elevate-Community/dp/B0D47T8S7N">https://www.amazon.com/This-Strategy-Better-Elevate-Community/dp/B0D47T8S7N</a>• <em>Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable</em>: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.amazon.com/Purple-Cow-New-Transform-Remarkable/dp/1591843170">https://www.amazon.com/Purple-Cow-New-Transform-Remarkable/dp/1591843170</a></p><p>—</p><p>Production and marketing by <a target="_blank" href="https://penname.co/">https://penname.co/</a>. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email <a target="_blank" href="mailto:[email protected]">[email protected]</a>.</p><p>—</p><p><em>Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.</em></p> <br/><br/>Get full access to Lenny's Newsletter at <a href="https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4">www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe</a>