In Marketing Your Messaging Is EVERYTHING

Andy Yen, the CEO of Proton.me, recently praised President Trump and the Republicans in a now deleted Tweet. People are obviously pissed, especially coming from the CEO of a company based in Switzerland, which claims to be neutral.

So as people start to delete their accounts and even publish angry messages across social media at Proton's accounts, the marketing/PR team decided to double down on their neutrality when they were called out on this. This just made it worse. Their response was what made be decide to close my account that I've had with Proton since they first started.

It's one thing for the CEO to be stupid and say something dumb, but for the company and their marketing/PR department not to acknowledge the elephant in the room makes it so much worse.

In marketing when something goes south with your messaging, you should get ahead of it. If you CEO says something stupid, because we all know they're human and do say stuff that isn't in line with the company, the marketing/PR team need to address it and not just double down on a fact that is no longer true.

I do think that Proton.me lucked out, being a small company that is mainly used by tech people, the news of Yen's praise and subsequent PR debacle has flow under the mainstream radar. Still it's a learning opportunity.

What do you think about the whole debacle? What could have Proton.me done better?

The Latest From The Entrepreneur's Enigma Podcast

Web Jawn

Apple introduces a new API to support more in-app purchase formats | TechCrunch

Apple announced on Thursday a new API called the Advanced Commerce API to support more in-app purchase formats, such as subscriptions and content add-ons.

TechCrunchIvan Mehta

Big move for Apple. Though they're still taking their normal cut! 😵‍💫

Short-Form Video Dominance: The Future Of Engagement In Social Media

Harness the power of short-form videos on TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts. Learn how to leverage this trend for your business.

Search Engine JournalDonna Almonte

Short-form is here to stay. My kid has built his whole channel on YouTube using the YouTube shorts feature. He gets more engagement with those videos than with his long form ones.

Does Google Favor UGC? Reddit Leads In Search Growth [STUDY]

Reddit leads in search visibility growth, according to a SISTRIX report, raising questions about Google’s preferences for user-generated content (UGC).

Search Engine JournalMatt G. Southern

Most platforms prefer UGC, so does Google.

OpenAI’s new Operator AI agent can do things on the web for you

It’s launching as a “research preview.”

The Verge

I'm not sure how much I'm going to trust AI to do my bidding at the start. But having AI agents do stuff for me is intriguing.

Anthropic’s new Citations feature aims to reduce AI errors | TechCrunch

Anthropic has released a new API capability that nudges its Claude AI models to cite sources in their answers.

TechCrunchKyle Wiggers

This is big. With citations you can get traffic to your site. It's like SEO but the AI way. 😜

Pixelfed Smashes Kickstarter Campaign Goal on Day One - We Distribute

After years of hardcore development, the Pixelfed project is taking a big next step by seeking crowdfunding dollars on Kickstarter.

We DistributeSean Tilley

This was huge. Pixelfed proved that people want a photo sharing platform that allows you to be who you are without a stupid algorithm.

Fed Up With Instagram? How to Move Your Photos to Pixelfed

You can keep your Instagram posts and host them somewhere other than Meta.

CNETSee full bio

Great tips on how to move from IG to Pixelfed!

The Challenge of Upward Momentum - We Distribute

In order to capitalize on network effects as people shift from old platforms to new ones, we need to think about what’s holding people back.

We DistributeSean Tilley

This is a great think-piece from Sean Tilley on how the federated and decentralized social web can survive.

Google agrees to crack down on fake reviews for UK businesses

Fabulous, now please make it global.

The Verge

This is good, but needs to happen everywhere not just in the UK!

Will AI Podcast Hosts Destroy The Very Soul Of Broadcasting?

As AI-powered podcast hosts become increasingly sophisticated, from BCG’s innovative GENE to the digital resurrection of Michael Parkinson.

ForbesBernard Marr

I've been thinking about this a lot lately. With AI you can train it to sound just like you. But it's not you. I personally don't think AI will take over the podcasting space. Now for the broadcasting space? Maybe.

Podcast Statistics & Industry Trends 2025: Listens, Gear, & More

Updated Podcast Statistics for 2025. Including industry growth, listener numbers, equipment & software podcasters use, discovery & more

The Podcast HostColin Gray

I love The Podcast Host blog. This is a good read.

Threads is testing ads in the US and Japan | TechCrunch

Meta’s X rival Threads said Friday that it is now testing ads with select brands in the U.S. and Japan. Instagram head Adam Mosseri said that the company

TechCrunchIvan Mehta

Of course this was coming.

Why I Recommend My Clients To Expand From SEO To YouTube

Learn how you can overcome the three key challenges of YouTube content.

Search Engine JournalKevin Indig

YouTube is the 2nd biggest search engine after Google. It's important not to ignore it.

Decentralized Social Media Is the Only Alternative to the Tech Oligarchy

The TikTok ban and Donald Trump’s rise to power show how fragile our social media accounts are. We must normalize and invest in decentralized social media.

404 MediaJason Koebler

Very true and it's clearing more than ever.

In Leaked Email, Elon Musk Admits Defeat on Twitter

Twitter’s financials are still looking pretty dire — as owner Elon Musk himself admitted in a January email to staff reviewed by the WSJ.

FuturismVictor Tangermann

He'll deny it. But yes, Twitter/X is a failure.

AI isn’t going to build your SaaS

AI won’t replace human expertise in SaaS - quality, experience design, and genuine customer care still matter most when building software products.

Justin Jackson

Justin is the co-founder of the Transistor.fm podcast host. He knows his stuff. Great insights here.

Perplexity submits a new bid for TikTok | TechCrunch

Perplexity AI has submitted a revised proposal to merge with TikTok in an arrangement that would give the U.S. government up to 50% ownership of the new

TechCrunchAnthony Ha

Interesting development. I'd prefer that to Elon owning it, that's for sure.

🎙️New Offering: Podcast Coaching 🎙️

I've been podcasting since 2010. During those 12+ years I've learned a thing or two about the ins and outs of the industry and approaching it the right way.

I've recently decided to offer podcast coaching as a service to share the knowledge that I've accumulated over the decade-plus in the industry.

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Web Find

From an Alignable group I help lead. Brian Griffiths is spot on with this tip!

Can't unsee this now!

Bwahahaha!

Web3 is Going Just Great

A timeline recording only some of the many disasters happening in crypto, decentralized finance, NFTs, and other blockchain-based projects.

Illustration: A sad-looking Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT monkey looks at a world engulfed in flames.Molly White

A great site made by Molly White about Web3's pitfalls.

Jay Acunzo is a story telling genius. You need watch this and subscribe.

That's It For This Week! Keep Rocking It!

-Seth

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