How to De-Bro Email Marketing

You Rebel, You!

It’s easy to fall into fear-based marketing—especially when money’s always felt shaky, and our self-worth is tangled up in how we were raised. Maybe you grew up without having very much, and somewhere along the line, scarcity became your default setting. You learn to hustle, to prove, to grab whatever opportunity shows up—even if it doesn’t feel good. That survival energy? It can sneak right into your business. And that’s when fear-based marketing really gets its hooks in. I know, because I’ve felt it. But the truth is, when you start writing from trust instead of panic, everything shifts.

You ever feel that little flicker of cringe in your gut after you hit “send” on a marketing email?

Like… ugh, did I really just say that?

Not because it was badly written—but because it didn’t sound like you.

It’s subtle at first. You use the “right” language, follow the formulas, drop the urgency line you saw in someone else’s funnel… and still, something feels off.

I know that feeling. I’ve lived that feeling.

And if that pit-of-your-stomach tension keeps showing up every time you try to sell something?

Maybe it’s not you.

Maybe it’s the way we’ve been taught to market in the first place.

Let’s talk about that.

I didn’t get into this to trick people or write emails that sound like I’m auditioning for a webinar cult. I got into this because I care. About people. About making stuff that matters. About doing business in a way that actually feels good.

So if you’ve been feeling like the usual advice makes your skin crawl a little—you’re not crazy. And you’re definitely not alone.

Let me show you a better way.

One of my favorite songs as a teen was Billy Idol’s Rebel Yell. Picture this: me in high school, stomping through the halls in ripped jeans and a jacket pierced with safety pins. Bleached hair. Spiked up. Swagger dialed to 11.

Yep. I was that kid. And no, I didn’t just like Billy Idol—I was him. In spirit, at least.

Billy’s scream, that lip curl, that beautiful don’t tell me how to do it energy?

Still in my bloodstream.

And these days?

I’m bringing it right into my business.

Specifically—my marketing.

Because I’m fed up.

Lately, I’ve been thinking about how noisy and pushy the online business world has become. Everywhere you turn, someone’s shouting about their system, their shortcut, their seven-dollar magic trick. And honestly? It’s exhausting. Especially when you’re just trying to do good work, support your people, and grow a business that actually brings in a decent income. It’s hard not to feel like you’re doing something wrong just because you don’t want to rely on fear tactics.

Fed up with swindlers and snake oil sellers.

Fed up with the bro-marketing gurus shouting into the void and calling it “strategy.”

Let’s talk about something I know you’ve felt deep in your bones:

Marketing shouldn’t feel like a guilt trip.

You shouldn’t have to become a pushy, manipulative, “just one more spot!” machine just to sell your damn offer.

But that’s the script, right?

The one so many of us got handed when we stepped into the online business world:

Success = fake scarcity, pressure tactics, and weird DMs that feel like traps.

I call bullshit.

Loudly. With eyeliner on.

Because fear-based marketing isn’t just cringey—it’s corrosive. It erodes trust. It makes us second-guess ourselves. And worst of all? It makes genuinely brilliant, service-hearted people question whether they’re cut out for this.

So if you’ve ever felt like marketing just isn’t your thing…

If you’ve ever held back because the advice you heard made your skin crawl… but you want to let your inner rock star shine?

You’re not broken.

You’re a rebel.

And you’re in damn good company.

Here are 5 ways to de-bro your marketing

1. Ditch the fake urgency

Urgency can be powerful—when it’s honest. The moment I stopped trying to sound strategic and started being real about my actual limits, everything shifted. Instead of pretending I only had “2 spots left” (when I didn’t), I just shared the truth: how many people I could realistically support, when something would genuinely close, or that I needed a break after this round. And you know what? People appreciated it. Clarity builds trust—and trust leads to action.

“Only 2 spots left!” …when you’ve got a waitlist and zero start dates? Please.

Instead, I started sharing real boundaries:

Enrollment closes this Friday.

I can only take 3 humans this round and stay sane.

I’m taking a pause after this offer to rest.

The result?

People feel respected—and they still take action.

2. Write like a caring human

That’s when the second-guessing starts. You sit down to write something true, but all the noise creeps in—what will sound polished, what will convert, what that one webinar told you to say. Before you know it, you’re using words you’d never actually say, making promises you’re not even sure you believe in. It’s like you disappear from your own message.

You ever write something for your list and immediately think, “Wait… who is this voice?”
Like you blacked out and woke up as a marketing intern for a tech startup?

Yeah, I’ve been there—and I’ve rewritten enough emails to know that if it doesn’t feel good going out, it probably won’t feel good coming in either.

Every time I try to sound “professional,” something flatlines.

But when I write like me? Tangents, weird metaphors, nervous laughter and all?

People respond.

Because humans don’t want to read marketing robots.

They want to feel like someone gets them—and actually gives a damn.

3. Stop poking at pain just to sell

You ever sit down to write an email and feel like you’re supposed to stir up drama just to make a point?

Like the only way to “connect” is to crack people open first?

I don’t buy that—and I think we’re all craving something a little more honest (and a whole lot more human).

Yes, we want to name what people are struggling with. But digging at wounds just to flip it into a pitch? That’s not marketing. That’s manipulation. These days, I focus on what’s possible.

I want people to read my stuff and feel hopeful—not gutted.

4. Be upfront about what you’re doing

There’s a certain kind of email that makes your shoulders tense the second you open it. You can feel the pitch coming before you even finish the first sentence. It’s not that selling is bad—it’s that pretending not to sell, while clearly selling, makes people feel tricked. And honestly? We’ve all got enough trust issues without our inbox adding to the pile.

That weird shift from “just thought of you” to “buy my thing” halfway through the paragraph?
Yeah… I’m over that energy—and I’m guessing you are too.

No bait. No switch. No “just checking in” emails that morph into sales funnels mid-sentence.

If it’s a sales email, I’ll say so.

If I’m just showing up to share a story or tool, I’ll say that too.

Clarity builds trust. And trust is what actually sells.

5. Prioritize connection over sales

It’s easy to get caught in the loop of “more.” More content. More reach. More pressure to perform like your business depends on it—because, in some ways, it does. But when you slow down and look closely, there’s usually already someone paying attention. Someone who’s reading, listening, rooting for you quietly in the background. And when you start focusing on them instead of the algorithm? That’s when things get real.

There’s a lot of noise out there telling us to chase more—more followers, more clicks, more visibility.
but the real power? It’s in slowing down long enough to see the people who are already here.

Connection doesn’t come from shouting louder. It comes from speaking with care.
Not to the masses. Just to the humans who’ve already said “yes” with their time and attention.

Forget the follower count.
Forget the conversion rate (just for a second).
Look at the folks already showing up.
Write to them.

That’s where the magic is. That’s where the longevity lives.
Because when you write for people instead of at them—everything shifts.
Marketing stops being a performance and starts being a relationship.
It doesn’t have to be perfect. Or polished. Or optimized within an inch of its life.

And it sure as hell doesn’t have to make you feel like you’re selling out just to sell.

In the end, this isn’t about doing more or getting it perfect—it’s about building something real. You don’t need to talk to everyone. You just need to talk to the people who are already here, already listening, already curious. Keep showing up with honesty. Keep choosing clarity over hype. That’s how trust is built. That’s how a business grows—slowly, steadily, and in a way that actually lasts.

Keep rebelling.
Keep writing.
They’re listening.

I’m with you in the uprising.

Gregory