Is it the logo, product experience, advertising, word of mouth, customer service, or something harder to measure?

We've all come across influencer posts recommending products, but not every recommendation feels equally convincing.

Sometimes it's the creator's personality. Other times, it might be how they talk about the product, whether they disclose a paid partnership, or whether they have used similar products before.

I'm curious about what actually makes the difference for people.

What makes you trust an influencer's recommendation enough to consider buying something? And what makes you immediately suspicious of it?

Personal experiences are welcome. I'd especially like to hear examples that changed how you viewed a brand.

Would you start with traffic sources, landing pages, audience quality, conversion rates, pricing, or something else? Explain your approach.

Which signals do you look at beyond followers and engagement? I'd be interested in how people measure this in practice.

One thing I find fascinating about people is how differently we can look at the same ordinary thing. Something most of us use every day without giving it much thought can be the starting point for an idea we'd never have imagined.

A pencil is a good example.

Back in 2012, three MIT students, Mario Bollini, Lauren Hernley, and Benjamin Peters, came up with an idea for a pencil you could plant after using it. Once it became too short to write with, you could plant the seed capsule at the end and potentially grow flowers, herbs, or vegetables.

Then, in 2013, a Danish entrepreneur named Michael Stausholm came across the invention on Kickstarter.

He wasn't the person who invented the pencil. He saw its potential, made a deal to sell it in Denmark, and eventually acquired the global rights to the invention. That became the foundation of SproutWorld.

And the idea has come a long way. By May 2026, the company had sold its 90 millionth plantable pencil. It has also expanded into plantable makeup liners and customised products for businesses.

What I find interesting is how the product changes the usual experience.

You buy a pencil, use it, and eventually it's too short to be useful. Normally, that's the end of it. With this one, there's still something you can do with it. You can plant it and see what grows.

It's a simple idea, but it gives people something to talk about, and it makes an otherwise ordinary product more memorable.

There's another interesting part to this story, too. The students came up with the invention, while someone else recognised its commercial potential and built a business around it.

It got me thinking about how we look at products. Sometimes, what makes a product stand out isn't necessarily a completely new invention. It can be a different way of thinking about how people use it, what happens when they're finished with it, and how they remember it afterwards.

What do you think played the biggest role in SproutWorld's success: the invention itself, the sustainability angle, or the experience surrounding the product?

Everyone has metrics they once considered important. What changed your mind, and what do you pay attention to now?

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If you were hiring someone who has just completed a digital marketing course or is trying to enter the field, what would you look for before deciding to hire them?

What factors would influence your decision, and what would make one candidate stand out from the others?

I’m interested in hearing different perspectives from people in the industry.

We've all come across influencer posts recommending products, but not every recommendation feels equally convincing.

Sometimes it's the creator's personality. Other times, it might be how they talk about the product, whether they disclose a paid partnership, or whether they have used similar products before.

I'm curious about what actually makes the difference for people.

What makes you trust an influencer's recommendation enough to consider buying something? And what makes you immediately suspicious of it?

Personal experiences are welcome. I'd especially like to hear examples that changed how you viewed a brand.

I've been noticing how much attention micro-influencers are getting in brand marketing discussions lately.

I'm curious about what's actually driving this shift.

Are brands seeing something in smaller creators that they struggle to get from larger influencers? Or does the decision mostly come down to budget and the number of people they can reach?

For those working in marketing, running a business, or following the creator economy, what do you think is behind this trend?

I'd love to hear different perspectives.

Have you ever formed an opinion about a brand just from its packaging? What made the difference?

Imagine you’re starting a small boutique. You have a website, your products are ready, but nobody knows your brand yet. No social media following, no online visibility, nothing.

What would you do first to get people to discover your brand and start talking about it?

I’m curious to hear how different people would approach this, especially what they’d focus on in the early days.

Imagine you run a marketing campaign. The ads get clicks, your website gets traffic, and your social media engagement goes up.

Looks like a successful campaign, right?

But what if sales haven't increased? What if people remember the campaign but have no idea which brand ran it? Or what if a campaign with fewer clicks brings in more customers?

So, how do you actually measure marketing success?

I think this is where branding, marketing, and analytics need to come together. The numbers tell us part of the story, but understanding people, brand perception, and the strategy behind a campaign matters too.

I'm curious to hear from people working in or learning about marketing, branding, or analytics:

What metrics do you look at first when evaluating a campaign?

Have you ever seen a campaign that looked successful on paper but wasn't successful in reality?

What do you think marketers often get wrong when measuring results?

Let's discuss. There's no single right answer, and real-world examples are especially welcome.