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It really grates on me to get to the end of a heartfelt article like this and smack right into a corporate plug like "…and that's why I created iFixit.com - you
by jaysonelliot 13y ago
It really grates on me to get to the end of a heartfelt article like this and smack right into a corporate plug like "…and that's why I created iFixit.com - your free repair guide for everything!"
I'm not begrudging the founder of a company the opportunity to talk about who he is and why he created his business, but the way you do it matters. Is this an article about iFixit.com? Fine, I'd probably be interested in that, go ahead and let me know, then tell me about your grandfather who inspired you.
If it's an article about your grandfather, then just say something like "he inspired me to create my own business that helps people learn to fix things." You don't have to give yourself a plug. Lastly, if you absolutely must plug your company name, at least try to do it without making it sound like a line of ad copy. After a few hundred words tugging on my emotions and making me care about your personal story, it feels like a betrayal of my trust at the end to leave me wondering if I just read an advertorial.
- sliverstorm 13y agoThis community doesn't really seem to have a culture of making smooth plugs. I see pretty brazen plugs on a regular basis.
- jaysonelliot 13y agoYeah, but this is The Atlantic, a 156-year-old magazine with a reputation for literary and journalistic excellence. It's discomfiting to get to the end of an article in a publication of its caliber and be left wondering "what did I just read?"
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- greghinch 13y ago"a 156-year-old magazine with a reputation for literary and journalistic excellence" They've been coasting on that reputation without maintaining it for a decade or more.
- nijk 13y agoWhen The Puzzler died, The Atlantic died.
- drivers99 13y ago"Yeah, but this is The Atlantic, a 156-year-old magazine with a reputation for literary and journalistic excellence". The first thing I think of when I see The Atlantic is when they ran sponsored content as if it were a normal article, and the comments on that article were moderated by the marketing team so they were all positive. I think they really screwed up their brand that time.
- breck 13y agoI second that, should have started with the plug up top. Nevertheless, I loved the article and ifixit looks neat.
- pdog 13y agoThis article would have been a lot better without those last few paragraphs.
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- snarkyturtle 13y agoI don't see it as a plug but more of a validation. His grandpa raised him the right way and taught him the value of hard work, perseverance and dedication. Those are things that you need in the startup industry and yielded success in his grandchildren's work. Ifixit is already well known, so it stands to be an example rather than cheap marketing.
- isamuel 13y agoI liked it. I was in fact not aware of the driving idea behind iFixit, and I was inspired to check it out after hearing about this guy's values and where they came from.
- dbeardsl 13y agoIs a plug really that offensive when the thing that's being plugged is a 100% community commons licensed repository of repair manuals and is described as exactly that?