Jon Lombardo's Recent LinkedIn Posts

10 observations on the Top 10 websites: THE FOUNDATION ERA 1/ 90s pioneers Yahoo, Netflix, Google have survived multiple eras 2/ Yahoo (30) is the oldest site in the top 10 THE SOCIAL/MOBILE ERA 3/ Google controls the web's front door (Search) and living room (YouTube) 4/ Social media didn't just join the internet - it became the internet 5/ Facebook realized early - if you can't beat them, buy them 6/ Mobile changed how we browse - but not where we browse 7/ Until 2022, the newest top 10 site was Instagram (2010) THE AI ERA 8/ Google can rent cars (26), Facebook can vote (20), and ChatGPT can walk (2) 9/ What took Google and Facebook years, ChatGPT did in months 10/ ChatGPT 5.91% growth - AI is a new chapter in tech history

September to December is the most competitive time of the year for marketers, in B2B and B2C. Advertisers flood the market, trying to capture their fair share of seasonal sales. How can you make sure your brand comes out on top? If you want to know the answer to that question, then you’ll need to read our new report, developed in partnership with Intuit Mailchimp.

If you haven’t yet worked out what AI can do or why it’s valuable for your brand, consider these three principles for putting it to effective use say Jon Lombardo and Peter Weinberg https://lnkd.in/eCWEdpCH

The Alien Language of Amazon: How Computers Learned to Name Your Socks Last night, I was looking for wool socks on Amazon when I noticed something strange about the brand names. Scrolling through the search results, I read a string of bizarre names: ⇻ Reamphy ⇻ Yeblues ⇻ Simiya ⇻ Anlism ⇻ EbMore Each one sounded like it had been created by an alien civilization that had studied human language, but hadn't quite mastered it. And in a way, it is an alien language. The Amazon Dialect – as I call it – is a language of commerce created not by humans, but by algorithms trying to solve a specific problem: generating trademark-friendly names that sound just human enough to trust. Like any dialect, this algorithmic language has distinct patterns: ⇻ They are typically 6-7 letters long ⇻ They feel international but belong to no real culture ⇻ They blend English and alien roots (-phy, -ism, -more) ⇻ They hover in an uncanny valley - just familiar enough to trust So the next time you're on Amazon, take a look at the sock department, where the brands sound alien but the algorithms are very much from Earth. Once you spot these alien brands, you'll never see Amazon the same way. Evidenza

My AI strategy for 2025? Bet against change. I have always loved this Bezos story about change: "I very frequently get the question: 'What's going to change in the next 10 years?' But I almost never get the question: 'What's not going to change in the next 10 years?' And I submit to you that second question is actually the more important of the two — because you can build a business strategy around the things that are stable in time." Of course, Amazon has famously built a trillion-dollar business on 3 needs that never change: 1. Lower prices (the oldest law in commerce) 2. Faster delivery (the oldest law in service) 3. More choice (the oldest law in desire) As Bezos brilliantly observed, "it is impossible to imagine customers saying 'I wish Amazon had higher prices' or 'I wish they'd deliver more slowly.'" These aren't trends, these are constants. They were true in 1995. They're still true in 2025. They'll still be true in 2055. The great AI paradox? The more things change with AI, the more valuable it becomes to focus on what never changes. So, use AI to bet against change in 2025.

I am proud to share Evidenza is featured in Harvard Business Review. The HBR article below confirms what our customers experience daily — "Gen AI has the potential to be absolutely revolutionary in market research." AI Market Research is proving revolutionary in these critical areas: 1. Accessing hard-to-reach audiences: Creates AI copies of customers when real ones won't participate 2. Removing scale limitations: Builds 1,000+ respondent samples without recruitment hurdles 3. Reducing cost and time constraints: Delivers insights faster and cheaper than traditional research 4. Enabling empirical evidence for decisions: Provides data for choices that would otherwise rely on gut feeling 5. Connecting research to financial outcomes: Translates marketing insights into ROI terms for sales and finance teams I am especially proud of the progress we've made validating our approach through 60+ studies across markets and industries, consistently demonstrating strong correlations between human and synthetic responses. Bravo to the brilliant authors: Professor Stefano Puntoni of The Wharton School, Professor Olivier Toubia of Columbia Business School, and Jeremy Korst of GBK Collective. Grazie mille to everyone who has supported us. Link in the comments 👇

"Unique" insights are overrated. Unique insights may make for better conference presentations, but common insights make for better business decisions. If you're ignoring patterns because they're not unique enough -- which is, ironically, all too common -- then you're almost certainly leaving money on the table. Why are common insights so much more valuable? The math is simple: unique insights don't scale - they're unique by definition. When multiple customers mention the same pain point, you've found something valuable. Common patterns mean widespread demand - and that's where the real money is. Stop searching for needles in the haystack. Empires are built from the hay.

The Ferrari Paradox There stands Lewis Hamilton, F1's driving don, holding court at Ferrari's ancestral villa. The legendary F40, in Ferrari's signature red, waits at his side. The regal red shutters and iconic stallion flag complete the scene. My first instinct was: "What can marketers learn from this?" Upon reflection: nothing! Every element in the image underscores how unique The Ferrari Formula is: the villa (heritage), the rarity (scarcity), the F40 (engineering), and Lewis Hamilton (fame). Here's why The Ferrari Formula cannot be copied: 1/ Time: The Ultimate Luxury Even billionaires can't buy heritage. Ferrari's legacy was earned through 75 years of racing victories and engineering breakthroughs. No amount of money can compress time or manufacture history. When you buy a Ferrari, you're buying into a legend that began in 1929. 2/ Scarcity: The Waitlist Strategy Every Ferrari sale is carefully controlled. Their waitlists aren't accidents—they're a deliberate filter. Money alone won't get you a Ferrari; you must be selected. And when the world's wealthiest hear "not yet," the cars become even more desirable. 3/ Engineering: Perfection Begets Profit Most carmakers ask "How can we build more?" Ferrari asks "How can we build better?" Their R&D investment per car would bankrupt a normal manufacturer. But Ferrari isn't chasing volume—they're chasing perfection. This obsession with engineering excellence lets them command extraordinary prices. 4/ Fame: The Status Multiplier Ferrari doesn't just attract fame—it amplifies it. They've transcended the automotive category; their prancing horse and Rosso Corsa red are global symbols of excellence. When celebrities buy Ferraris, both brands gain power. When racing legends join Ferrari, both legacies grow. 5/ The Ferrari Formula Each element reinforces the others. Heritage validates. Scarcity intensifies. Engineering justifies. Fame multiplies. It's a self-perpetuating system of brand power built over generations. So there is one lesson, I guess. Some brands can't be copied — only admired from afar. Evidenza

I left LinkedIn last week after 10.314159 wonderful years. I joined LinkedIn as a clean-shaven chap with little worldly wisdom about marketing and advertising. I leave LinkedIn as a salt & pepper-bearded bloke who has learned, "the more I know, the more I know I don't know." However, one thing I do know is that I just left the the best job -- and the best co-workers -- I've ever had. I'm grateful to have worked with so many people who like to have fun, get shit done, and know how to have a good time. Thank you all. I'm also grateful to the numerous mentors, clients, and friends who supported The B2B Institute over the years. I remain forever indebted for your generosity and guidance. But, as one chapter ends, another chapter begins. As you may have seen, Peter Weinberg and I are leaving to start a company together. We're excited to put the marketing ideas we've been learning into practice for our clients (and ourselves).   We look forward to sharing what we'll be doing soon and, in the meantime, we're enjoying reconnecting with the many folks who have already reached out. Ciao for now, LinkedIn.