The ROI of Boring
Tired of chasing trends? Good. Forget viral — the real ROI lives in repetition, trust, and unglamorous consistency. That’s where real marketing begins.
“Making money IS sexy. It’s never boring.”
I was talking with Baron Gemmer, he owns an ECM consultancy, at an AIIM conference 13 years ago about the marketing problems of the ECM (enterprise content marketing, now the IDP, intelligent document processing) industry. At the time, the industry was shifting to “the cloud.”
There was a LOT of marketing about “the cloud” – which, at base then and now, is just a different way to provision and implement the same technology functionality. I was saying something like the marketing folks in the industry focus on sexy over the boring stuff that works – they were focused on the delivery method over business value/solving problems.
Which led to his epic response.
After wading through a batch of hustle-bro porn, er, advice the other day, Baron’s answer popped back into my head.
And honestly, it still applies to everyone — from software vendors to local service businesses. Every industry has its version of “the cloud:” something shiny enough to distract you from the simple, consistent work that actually drives results.
The Boring Secret of Marketing (Anything, Really)
Here it is – do the work.
There’s no such thing as overnight success (unless you are veryveryVERY lucky).
That “overnight success” was built on months (or years) of boring.
Boring editing. Boring follow-ups. Boring routines that look like nothing — until suddenly, they turn into results.
But we hate boring.
We crave the dopamine hit of “new” and the applause of “launched.”
That’s why most marketing collapses before it compounds.
People quit before boring pays off.
Just look at Substack. How many newsletters have 3 or 14 or 20 posts and then . . . nothing?
The Vanity of “Viral”
“Going viral” almost never happens — and when it does, it rarely lasts.
On TikTok, “viral” might mean a million views in a few days. On Instagram, maybe half a million. On LinkedIn, tens of thousands of impressions when your norm is hundreds. On Substack, a flood of new signups after one widely shared post.
Sounds magical — except for the math.
Over 90% of posts never spread beyond one connection. Less than 1% ever reach viral territory, and even those spikes fade fast. The attention doesn’t compound. It evaporates.
But business leaders still fall for it. They see headlines about overnight success and assume virality equals victory. One survey found 58% of consumers believe a viral product is “worth the hype,” which only feeds that illusion.
Smart marketers and business leaders know better — they plan for momentum, not miracles. They measure reach by consistency, not luck. They build trust, reputation, and repeatable systems — because those are the compounding assets that actually pay off.
Viral is a lottery ticket. Boring is a business model.
Boring Builds Muscle
Been shuffling around like a creaky old guy after a harder-than-remembered five-mile walk in the woods Saturday.
A sadly simple reason: I haven’t done the boring basics of lifting regularly for a year. Had I maintained the fitness and muscle I’d built, it would’ve still been strenuous — but not “ohmygodwhydoIhavestairs” strenuous.
Every skill that looks effortless is built on repetition.
Drew Brees continued to practice footwork drills after 20 years in the NFL.
Writers write daily.
Marketers test subject lines, again and again and again.
Boring is the toll you pay for mastery.
The problem is, most people pay for a week and then ask for a refund.
That lesson hits everyone involved in marketing eventually — the grind is the only path to the goal.
Boring Separates the Professionals From the Dabblers
If you’ve ever launched something — a campaign, a newsletter, a product — you know the cycle.
Excitement. Momentum. Then… crickets.
Boredom.
That’s where the work really begins. What was effective? What didn’t work? Where can we test? What can be improved?
The amateurs disappear.
Professionals keep going.
Lather. Rinse. Repeat. Consistency beats intensity every time.
You can’t out-hustle inconsistency with brilliance (and you probably aren’t as brilliant as you think).
Boring Is Where Trust Grows
When someone sees you show up every week, even when it’s not perfect — that’s what builds credibility.
The best marketing isn’t the flashiest. It’s the most dependable. (Like email, which returns a reliable ROI when done well — unverifiable stats say the ROI can be as high as $36 for every $1 spent.)
The useful information customers know will be in their inbox from you, without the non-stop hassle of the hard sell.
Glamorous?
Nope.
Does it work?
Yes. (And you can put an ROI on trust.)
The ROI of boring is exponential — trust, familiarity, and a reputation that lasts longer than a campaign cycle.
So the next time you’re tempted to chase the bright and shiny of “going viral,” remember: established brands are built one unremarkable day after another.
Because when consistency compounds, it stops being boring — and starts being profitable.
If you want a system to turn “boring consistency” into compounding trust, start a newsletter. It’s the single most productive kind of boring I know — and Newsletter-in-a-Box makes it effortless.
Musical Interludes
Written and edited while listening to this playlist. I had no idea there was a vintage soul and funk scene in France until Saturday. This is some seriously good background work music (also good for cooking).
There's something important here - consistency is more impactful than intensity and hoping for something to save you from the work (i.e., virality) is a fool's errand. However, I do believe that you have to enjoy the fundamental elements of the work you're doing to keep doing it. Boring implies that you're not engaged, that you're simply going through the motions. If you're going to write daily, for example, you have to enjoy writing. Not always, not every single moment, but most of the time. Being invested in the process itself is essential to being able to show up consistently.
P.S. Appreciate the jams at the end!
Good article. Sound arguments.
Fantastic music selection.