The edge isn’t speed or scale — it’s taste. |
Yesterday, we unpacked the Yes Optimist Content Challenges Report and what it revealed about the state of B2B content: too much output, too little outcome.
That discussion reminded me of a recent LinkedIn post by Osman Lee, who wrote: “The most important marketing skill in the next decade isn’t knowing what AI tools to use — it’s taste.” In other words, the constraint isn’t production anymore. It’s knowing which of those 50 headlines or 20 campaign ideas are actually good. |
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If Tuesday’s takeaway was that content teams are creating more than ever, today’s is that discernment matters more than volume. The best marketers aren’t chasing every trend or tool; they’re sharpening their judgment. They know what resonates before the data comes back, and they can tell the difference between “technically fine” and “emotionally compelling.”
That’s why we’re taking today’s conversation in a more unexpected direction, blending marketing with a bit of anthropology. Because understanding taste isn’t just about aesthetics or performance metrics; it’s about studying people, culture, and the context behind why certain ideas stick. And, while AI can generate output, it still takes a human to understand how it all connects. |
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📣 Taste Is a Competitive Advantage - In a world overflowing with content, Sam Tomlinson argues that taste is a marketer’s greatest edge. He makes a compelling case for slowing down, trusting discernment, and focusing on quality over quantity to distinguish between noise and signal.
🧭 Anthropology for Marketers - If you never took Cultural Anthropology 101, this article is a perfect crash course on why the field matters for modern marketers. It breaks down how anthropology helps decode audience behavior, uncover cultural insights, and translate those patterns into stories that resonate.
🎨 Tastemaking: The Art Of Marketing With Culture In Mind - Although there’s a part of me that still cringes at the word “tastemaker,” this Forbes piece nails why marketers need to think like cultural anthropologists. Campaigns that earn attention do so because they’re grounded in cultural nuance, authenticity, and identity, not trends for trend’s sake.
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Developing Taste in a World Obsessed with Output |
If the Yes Optimist report was a reality check, Osman Lee’s post is the compass. He wrote, “The constraint is no longer output — it’s knowing which of those outputs are actually good.” That line struck a chord with me. Before I ever worked in tech or content strategy, I studied cultural anthropology and communication, and I’ve always been fascinated by art and aesthetics.
From sociologists like Pierre Bourdieu, I learned that taste isn’t just personal preference; it’s a social skill shaped by experience and cultural awareness. In art, as in marketing, taste reflects your ability to discern meaning beyond the surface and recognize what will move people emotionally, not just what will perform algorithmically. |
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Study what truly resonates.
Audit your last six months of work not just by clicks, but by human reaction. Which pieces inspired conversation, trust, or action?
- Seek feedback early.
Share drafts with Sales or Customer Success. They have the cultural context, or the “field,” as Bourdieu would put it, to tell you whether your message aligns with your audience’s lived experience. -
Test for emotional pull, not just formatting.
AI can remix or optimize, but it can’t feel. Taste comes from understanding rhythm, tension, and timing, which are the emotional layers of communication that data can’t quantify. - Iterate with intention.
Treat every campaign like a creative exercise, not a production line. Reflection is how taste is trained.
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In both art and marketing, taste is the bridge between intuition and strategy. It’s what turns good content into something memorable. And while AI may help us produce faster, it can’t teach us to feel and see what’s good. Because in the end, taste isn’t about perfection — it’s about perception. |
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🧠 Sales Ethnography: Understanding Buyers Through Observation & Insights - I could not leave sales out of the anthropology discussion. This piece explores how observing buyers in real contexts reveals what surveys cannot: the unspoken needs and behaviors that shape every deal. Ethnography turns curiosity into strategy, helping sales craft messages that truly connect.
📘 A Great Sales Pitch Hinges on the Right Story - The best sales conversations aren’t built on slides; they’re built on stories. This HBR article shows how aligning your narrative with a customer’s beliefs and motivations can transform a pitch into a decision.
📈 Sales 2025: How Data, AI, and Connection Are Reshaping Revenue Teams - From cycle lengths to win rates, this report breaks down how data and AI are reshaping the sales landscape while reminding us that human connection still drives conversion. It is a must-read for grounding your intuition in evidence. |
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Sales Has Taste, Too (Even If We Don’t Call It That) |
If marketers develop taste by curating what they publish, salespeople develop it by refining what they say. Every great rep knows that moment when a pitch feels off, like when the phrasing sounds too polished, or the value prop misses the mark. That instinct? That’s taste.
Just like in art or anthropology, taste in sales is about understanding what resonates across cultural, emotional, and situational contexts. You can’t fake it with scripts or templates. You build it through listening, reflection, and an awareness of your audience’s world. Here’s how to sharpen that kind of “sales taste”: |
- Listen for emotional cues, not just buying signals.
Know when to pause and when to push. If a prospect’s tone shifts, if they hesitate on a question, then that’s insight that quantitative data collection can’t capture. - Refine your message through repetition.
Every call is a small ethnography. Take notes on phrases that earn nods or stories that spark curiosity. Over time, these patterns become your intuitive playbook. - Collaborate with Marketing on story craft.
Sales has the ear, but Marketing has the pen. Work together to turn real customer anecdotes into persuasive narratives that feel authentic. That’s how alignment becomes artistry. - Use AI for awareness, beyond automation.
Let AI help you summarize conversations or spot trends in sentiment, but trust your judgment for interpretation. As Osman Lee put it, “AI can remix, optimize, accelerate — but it cannot discern.”
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Taste in sales is about reading the room and understanding that data shows what happened, but not why it mattered. And the best reps know that closing a deal isn’t just about perfect timing or polished pitches, but recognizing when a message truly lands. |
Whether you’re designing campaigns or conversations, the real skill is knowing what’s worth saying and when to stop talking. |
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Marketing says:
“AI says this version wins — highest click-through and time on page. Let’s scale it.” Sales says:
“Prospects tell me it feels robotic. They read it once, but it doesn’t stick.” |
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Translation: Optimization without interpretation is just noise. As a mixed-methods researcher, I’ve learned that the strongest insights emerge where numbers and narratives intersect, or where data explains what happened and stories illustrate why it mattered. |
→ AI can surface trends, run tests, and predict engagement, but it doesn’t know when copy sounds too polished or when a “winning” campaign actually falls flat in conversation. That’s why discernment, or taste, requires both statistics and storytelling. → Before scaling any “top performer,” pair your dashboards with dialogue. Ask Sales what customers are saying, listen to qualitative feedback, and trust your human ear for authenticity.
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Because great content isn’t just data-driven or emotion-led, it should be data-informed and human-approved. |
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Faithe has spent more than a decade helping people understand the tools that move business forward. With a Ph.D. in Communication Studies, she breaks down project management, office tech, and social platforms into practical insights for sales and marketing teams. |
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