Curiosity Is the
Best Strategy
Tools, experiments, and real-world projects for marketers who'd rather build than buy another subscription.
Built for People, Not Programmers
You don't need a CS degree to use AI well. You need curiosity, context, and someone willing to show their messy process.
Learn by Watching
Every project includes the walk-through, the rationale, and the honest “what I'd do differently.” No magic, no gatekeeping.
Build in the Open
The Sandbox isn't polished — it's working. You'll see experiments in progress, APIs being tested, and ideas mid-iteration.
Strategy Comes First
Tools are only as good as the thinking behind them. Everything here is designed to improve your marketing outcomes — not just look clever.
Marketing Planner Tool
Geographic targeting meets real public data — a planner that lets you estimate audiences by platform, demographics, and daily activity.
This tool combines census data, estimated platform usage, and population stats into a single planning interface. No subscriptions, no vendor lock-in. Built for mid-career marketers who need quick, actionable data without the enterprise price tag.
More from the Workbench
Active experiments and tools in various stages of completion. Click in to see the process.
Photo-to-Gradient
Mobile-friendly tool that extracts beautiful gradient backgrounds from your own photos. Download wallpapers, social assets, or screenshot overlays.
Decision Matrix
An interactive risk/reward plotter for marketing decisions. Drag ideas into quadrants and export your prioritization framework.
Strategy Randomizer
Spin the wheel for a daily strategy challenge. Built for creative teams who want to break out of routine thinking with low-stakes thought exercises.
From Photography to Marketing to AI
I started in photography, earned my degree, and dove into the deep end of marketing — social media, paid advertising, SEO, website analytics, stakeholder reporting. I've been agency-side, in-house, and now in Higher Ed.
At every job, I've worn multiple hats and approached new challenges with a simple rule: it's okay to fail and fall. This site is the proof of concept — a living demonstration that curiosity and AI collaboration can produce better work, not more work.
The most powerful tools in the world shouldn't require a computer science degree to master.Full Story
Featured Articles
Thought pieces, tutorials, and strategy breakdowns for marketers at every level.
Why AI Should Be Your Teammate, Not Your Replacement
A practical framework for incorporating AI into your existing workflow without the existential dread. Written for the mid-career professional who’s tired of hype.
Using Public Census Data for Smarter Geo-Targeting
Step-by-step walkthrough of how I built the audience estimation feature in the Marketing Planner — and how you can use the same data sources.
Permission to Play: Why Your “Imperfect” Process Is the Point
On the value of showing your work, embracing messy iterations, and why perfectionism is the enemy of professional growth.
Experiments in Progress
This is where the messy, in-progress work lives. Live demos, API tests, and UI prototypes — all transparent, all evolving.
Marketing Planner API
Public endpoint that returns estimated audience size by zip code, platform, and demographic filters. Free to use.
Still fine-tuning the platform activity weights
Gradient Extraction Engine
Canvas-based color extraction that analyzes your uploaded photo and generates CSS-ready gradient code with dominant palette.
Works great on landscape photos!
Home Hub Dashboard
An open-source personal dashboard designed to minimize recurring costs for the average household. Self-hosted, privacy-first.
Making this as cheap to run as possible