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The Marketing Genius You’ve Probably Never Heard Of
From Kitchen Tables to $150B.
Vivek Nanda
September 21, 2025
In partnership with
Hello and welcome to the 185th edition of Fresh Salmon.
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Meet our primary partner for today’s edition: Synthflow. Check them out 👇
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Scott Cook: The Quiet Master of Narrative
When people talk about great storytellers in tech, they name Jobs or Musk.
But one of the most underrated? Scott Cook, co-founder of Intuit.
Cook wasn’t flashy. He didn’t wear black turtlenecks or host theatrical keynotes.
But he built Intuit into a $150B powerhouse by mastering something deeper: narrative empathy.
When he launched Quicken, he didn’t lead with features. He led with relief:
“Finally, a simple way to manage your money without the headache.”
Cook’s team literally sat in customers’ kitchens, watching how they paid bills, tracked receipts, and struggled with checkbooks.
Then he turned those insights into both product and story.
The message was simple: Quicken wasn’t software. It was peace of mind.
TurboTax wasn’t forms. It was freedom from stress.
Cook’s framework?
Empathy → Simplicity → Relief.
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Artists as Marketers: The Moves That Worked
Great artists weren’t just creative - they were master marketers.
Andy Warhol blurred the line between commerce and art, turning soup cans into cultural commentary.
Beyoncé transformed the album release by making the surprise drop itself the story.
Salvador Dalí crafted his persona into performance - his mustache and antics made him inseparable from his art.
Each understood: the product and the story are inseparable.
Why This Matters for B2B Founders
Most B2B marketing is lifeless: feature lists, jargon, and whitepapers.
Cook, Warhol, Beyoncé, Dalí - they remind us:
Marketing is theater. Storytelling is strategy. Narrative is moat.
When you master story, you don’t just sell.
You shape categories.
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The Storytelling Framework for Modern Founders
Lead with Relief - Distill your product into the pain it removes.
Anchor in Empathy - Do the kitchen-table research. Watch customers struggle, then tell their story back to them.
Design Suspense - Don’t just announce; build anticipation and moments.
Make it Spectacle - Not just updates. Moments that feel cultural, not corporate.
Fuse Persona + Product - Be the embodiment of your message.
The Trap of Empty Spectacle
Spectacle without substance is propaganda.
It manipulates for short-term wins but corrodes trust. Cook avoided this by rooting everything in real customer struggle. That’s why Intuit outlived shinier players.
The Key Takeaways:
Cook proved it: empathy beats ego, relief beats specs.
Artists remind us: persona, surprise, and commentary are assets.
Movements endure: because they’re rooted in truth, not manipulation.
If you’re a founder, you don’t need a bigger ad budget.
You need sharper empathy, a simpler story, and the courage to make your marketing performance worth remembering.
Because people don’t just buy products.
They buy relief.
Interesting Thing That I Wrote This Week
Some personal reflection here….
That’s it for this week! If you found this newsletter valuable, share it with a friend.
See you next time!
Do what is good for your soul ❤️
All the best,
Vivek
PS. Whenever you are ready, here are 3 ways in which I can help you and your business:
#1: B2B Marketing Consulting and Go-To-Market Advisory for your business.
#2: 1-on-1 Personal Coaching and Mentoring on anything related to Marketing and Go-To-Market Strategies for you.
#3: Promoting you or your brand via this newsletter.
For any of these things just shoot me a reply, and we will arrange a time to chat.