Happy Sunday folks. ☕

You may notice the newsletter looks a little different this week. 

We're trying something new.

Taking more time to explore ideas that deserve, in our opinion that least, just that little bit more attention. Still fresh inspiration for the week ahead, but more substance.

With that being said, I hope it finds you with your feet up, coffee in hand. 

Let us know your thoughts by responding to this email. We love to chat. 💭

1. Opinion 

Substack's AI Playbook 🗞️🤖

"Substack is the new TikTok" - words overheard in the queue at my local coffee shop earlier this week. There's no doubt that long-form content is making a comeback. Every influencer and their dog has a Substack profile these days, and we're here for it.

Substack is not anti-AI per se, but in the arena of creative writing, the platform knows that there's a conversation to be had around transparency. Put simply, if you're going to use AI on Substack, firstly what's the point really, and secondly, be prepared to own that decision.

That's where Substack's latest updates come in.

Last month, the platform announced its new scan for AI text tool, which estimates whether text was written by a human or AI-assisted. It works on written content 100 words or more. Writers can also add a 'How I make this' transparency statement to posts, explaining their use of AI. 

AI is neither the hero nor villain. Neither is it the author of your next Substack article. But simply a tool with a role to play in the creative process. And a smart one at that. 

Creators, Marketers, Founders...we are all, somewhat blindly, finding our own ways of working with AI. There's no rulebook. The technology is constantly changing. My personal AI journal at times has felt like randomly feeding prompts into Claude, hoping that something will land (perhaps it's just me?) It's giving flashbacks to my design school days, attempting to learn Photoshop after missing all the lectures. It's humbling really. 

This is why honest conversation is SO valuable. If we're all in this together, how can we learn from one other?  

This week, Substack kicked off what will be a series of detailed interviews with creators on how they really use AI. It's refreshing to say the least. Many notes were taken. You can read the latest article here.

After all, the whole point of these tools is to create space to, well, create.

With this in mind, you can find our article on our how we're using AI at Brand Hackers here.

We love to natter. Respond to this email if you'd like to chat more on how your business is using AI.

p.s In the spirit of transparency, no AI was used in the writing of this email, other than a cheeky spell check. 😉  

2 - Inspiration  

Big Mo X Reebok 👑

This week, we've been dying to share this gem of inspiration from our Social Media Exec, Robin Paton-Copley.

I grew up in southeast London, as east as south gets on a diet of EastEnders.

So of course I'm going to talk about Reebok's campaign with British royalty: Big Mo Harris!!!!!

They weren't just TV characters; they're British culture. Reebok's new campaign gets that. Instead of chasing cool with another cookie-cutter influencer, they've leaned into what they're actually known for: classics.

That's the clever bit. It's self-referential marketing. Reebok is saying, we're as iconic and timeless as Big Mo herself. The campaign positions the brand as a cultural staple rather than just another trainer company. Reebok itself frames the idea around "Some people don't just wear Classics. They are Classics," with Laila Morse leading the campaign.

Hun culture is huge, and we're seeing more fashion brands embrace unexpected British icons. That's why campaigns with people like Grime Gran, Bus Aunty and now Big Mo land so well. We're craving humour, authenticity and a bit of levity (Bloody hell, we need it right now 😵‍💫 )

This feels like the most on-brand campaign Reebok has done in years. It taps into nostalgia without feeling forced, understands its audience, and reminds people why the brand matters.


📷 @loveofhuns

That’s it for the week - I'm off to start a Substack.

✍️,

James

p.s. Wondering what Brand Hackers is?

It’s your answer to a marketing dream team. We build fractional teams that seamlessly slot into ambitious brands to help them scale, fast.

Check out more here.

Hit reply to tell me more about your brand - I like chatting 🤓

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