Time on Task: Marketing Isn’t Sexy, It’s Reps
NFL stars don’t skip the boring drills. Neither should you. What NFL training camp can teach us about editing ruthlessly, tweaking constantly, and showing up every day.
“Time on task.”
I’m a huge New Orleans Saints fan (that’s NFL football, not the footy futball, for you non-sportsball types).
During Drew Brees’ time with the Saints, that was a standard quote leading up to the season.
New wide receiver?
More time on task to learn each others’ body language.
Tweak to the offensive philosophy?
More time on task to get everyone on the same page.
You get the idea.
For the last decade of his career, it was already obvious he was a Hall of Fame player (and he’ll be inducted in 2026; I’ll be there!). Yet he continued to focus on the basics for his entire career, taking the time to learn and incorporate new plays and players into his game play. Every motion precise, measured, and intentional. The day before every game, he would run through the plays by himself — doing the footwork and going through all of his reads (options for who to throw the ball to). Just the basics, over and over and over to get that time on task in.
As I was reviewing my to-do list, I realized that a lot of what I’m doing now requires more “time on task:”
Writing (of course!)
Learning how to sell my services
Continuing to learn about AI – both to use for myself and to understand the trends in general to further help clients
There are other items, but those are the big three. The only way to get better at each? Time. On. Task.
So with the NFL season having kicked off last night (too bad both teams couldn’t lose!), I thought I’d share a few thoughts about how the NFL pros prepare for the season and the lessons we can apply to our marketing efforts.
It’s ALWAYS About the Basics and Fundamentals
I’ve been to a couple of NFL training camp practices; the Saints down in Thibodaux* (even if you’re from Louisiana, it is HOT with lots of mosquitos down there) and the Baltimore Ravens more recently.
You’ll see Pro Bowlers and Hall of Famers practicing the basics; you should too.
Catch. Throw. Run. Block. Tackle. When the game is on the line in the fourth quarter, muscle memory built on repetition can make the difference between winning and losing.
For instance, all players regardless of position take time to practice their first step, which is often different for run versus pass plays. Hand placement for blocking. Tackling angles. The basics of football are practiced from grade school to the pros.
As an editor, I would once or twice a week flip through the Chicago Manual of Style for a grammar look/refresh.
These days, I write 10 titles each day, trying to get better.
I write every day.
You can revisit the basics of sharing on social media. Take a quick class on the basics of blog writing. When you look at the basics from a position of experience, you’ll often get a new idea. Regardless, it’s never a bad idea to keep on top of doing the little things right.
Master the basics.
Warm Up.
You don’t get the blood flowing before trying to go full speed and you’re going to get hurt.
So do some research. Before you launch a full-blown content marketing plan, know what you want to do. If you’re stuck writing a headline; review an article about the basics of headline writing, start typing action words you might could use – just get the neurons firing.
Or literally warm up – take a walk, do some squats or pushups – a few minutes of physical activity can help you get mentally warmed up as well.
90 to 53 (Kill Your Babies)
Final rosters in the NFL are 53 players. For anyone who’s watched reality TV for men (like HBO’s Hard Knocks), teams winnow their rosters to the best 53 (plus 16 practice squad players).
When writing, you have to edit too – kill those babies (that means delete anything that doesn’t advance your story). I learned early in my career that editing isn’t just (or even most importantly) getting the grammar and spelling right – that’s just baseline.
Every year, fan favorite rookies and veterans are cut – maybe they’re too expensive, maybe someone younger is better, maybe they just can’t do the job any longer.
Over time, what works in marketing changes. We’re seeing that with SEO as AI answers from Google and the other search engines change how companies gain attention. You need to know when to cut an idea in favor of one that performs better.
Ideas are easy. Figuring out which ideas to use? That’s harder. Like an NFL team, you have to put together a team of players that will achieve your marketing goals. You have to edit your ideas for those that fit together best and is the best combination to accomplish your goals.
Never Stop Tweaking
NFL teams are never set.
There are players who have won Superbowls who weren’t on the team until the 15th week of a season.
Injuries are a constant and that’s one reason. But beyond that, each week, teams release and pick up other players via the waiver wire or sign other teams’ practice squad players to their rosters – players that might just be 1% better than the guy they currently have. The great teams never stop churning the bottom of their roster to get marginally better.
Do the same with your content. What’s not performing well? What had been doing well, but might need to be tweaked? Where can you improve?
If you’re not consistently getting better, then someone is gaining on you.
You’ll Fail. Move On.
Make mistakes at full speed. (Actually, pretty good advice for most things in life – excepting maybe learning to drive and snow skiing.)
The football term is “have a short memory.” Even the best players drop passes, miss tackles or blocks, and throw interceptions. The great ones shake it off and don’t let the mistake snowball.
Marketing or writing, some stuff will be loved, other stuff . . . not so much. Keep on creating.
Haloti Ngata is BIG.
No, that word isn’t big enough. Even amongst large men, he is a LARGE man – a “hippopotamic land mass” as Vizzini would say (that’s a The Princess Bride reference for you poor souls who aren’t fans). No takeaway here. Just. Damn. [This thought remains even though he retired a number of years ago. A HUGE man!]
I had a 310 pound dude fall on me in my last high school football game. If it had been Ngata, I might’ve died.
Looks Like Tarzan, Plays Like Jane.
In a more literary post, this would be “don’t judge a book by its cover.” This phrase describes a player who looks the part but doesn’t play like it.
We are too focused on design and appearances at times. Yes, content needs to at least be able to be read or viewed, but it doesn’t need to look perfect.
It doesn’t need to BE perfect.
I know I’ve found myself not doing something because it wouldn't have looked great. Sometimes, something that looks “just” good (or even not that good – witness some linemen and their less than athletic looking bodies) will get the job done.
Teams make this mistake over and over and over, drafting players with all the right measurables (big, fast, quick) and then some unknown rookie takes their job because they can’t turn those measurables into the ability to catch or run or tackle on the field.
Don’t mistake the cover for the substance. Absolutely do your best to make your content appealing, but never forget that something that looks raw and ungainly could be the perfect thing you need.
As a Saints fan, I think of Sammy Knight. He was too slow and too small and made the Saints as an undrafted free agent in 1997. Yet he always seemed to be in the right place at the right time – he started for the Saints for 6 years, then bounced around as a spot starter for another 6 years.
Sometimes the perfect fit isn’t the perfect package.
Have a Plan.
An NFL practice is scripted to get in the maximum amount of work done and to build on each successive day. Your content script is your editorial calendar. Without a calendar, you’ll end up doing ad hoc pieces of content and be at the mercy of whoever in your organization talks the loudest (and/or has the highest-level title).
That doesn’t mean you should be slavishly devoted to following a calendar – never be afraid to juggle it around when you have new ideas – but without one it’s too easy to put off writing “until later” (and later never comes; most Substack newsletters peter out after a few issues – create a calendar, don’t let that be you).
Kicking From the Side
I watched Justin Tucker, once one of (maybe the best ever) kickers in the NFL, meandered throughout practice, kicking field goals from all sorts of strange angles that would never happen in a game – from the back corner of the end zone, for instance. By practicing from such odd angles, I’m assuming that helps his accuracy when he kicks at the full width of the goal posts in a real game.
So do something different. Sharpen your skills by doing something extreme – or just try something different to break out of a rut.
Write a poem. (I like to goof around with haikus now and then.)
This post is ok.
I wished for better. But it
Isn’t horrible.
Write in first person if you never do.
Write a sentence using only words that start with “d.”
Write standing up.
Go outside and brainstorm.
Go guru and sit on a mountaintop (or beach or riverside or woods; depending on where you live).
Change it up. Look at the problem from a different angle. You never know what you’ll find.
Situational Awareness
Teams practice for situations – end of the half with 2 minutes, 2 timeouts, down by 6; end of the game with 1 minute, no timeouts, down by 3; goal line; 3 down and 12; teams even practice the “victory formation” kneel down at the end of games.
Especially for those of us with a social presence; what are you going to do if you mistakenly post/reply from “you” rather than “official you”? (I’m guilty of this one.) How will you handle a typo? A difficult customer? A troll? If you need extra design, do you know who you’ll talk to?
Be ready
It’s a Copycat League
Cover 2. West Coast Offense. Playing heavy nickel. The wishbone. Football coaches lift and adapt ideas from each other constantly. If it works one year, next year you’ll see other teams doing the same thing.
Likewise, venture outside of your work and your industry for successful ideas. See something you like that might work for you? Time to “repurpose.”
The Eye in the Sky Don’t Lie
You need to measure.
Teams tape every practice, scrimmage, and game so players and plays can be evaluated. At the core, football is a production business. You make the tackle or you don’t. You pick up the blitz or the QB gets sacked. You catch the last second TD or you lose.
For content marketing, the bottom line is the same. The best content in the world means nothing if you aren’t moving your target audience to take action. So use all the tools available to you and see which pieces of your content are performing.
You also need to measure the right things – teams often become fixated on a player’s measurables (much like many of us have an affinity for increasing page views). While an indication that the player/content could be successful; doesn’t always happen that way; see the “Looks Like Tarzan, Plays Like Jane” section above. The Saints just cut a player drafted in the 2nd round three years ago who had every positive measurable possible for his position; never translated to the field.
Teamwork
The QB needs to throw to someone. D-linemen keep blockers off of linebackers.
You don’t have to do it by yourself. If you are a team of one – join online forums or a professional association, find an accountability buddy.
Even if you work with folks you don’t like, swallow your ego and collaborate. While it’s more pleasant to work together and mesh your strengths with people you like; be a pro.
Content works better when it’s well designed. Designers need something to, you know, design. Not everyone is good at deciphering all of the analytics that can be collected. Work together to win your game of content marketing.
At every level, success comes down to repetition, refinement, and readiness. The pros may make it look effortless on Sundays, but the truth is it’s built on hours of drilling the basics, cutting what doesn’t work, and constantly tweaking for improvement.
Marketing is no different — every rep you put in compounds over time.
Stay on task, master the fundamentals, and you’ll put yourself in position to win.
The NFL is built on fundamentals; so is marketing. A newsletter is the simplest, highest-ROI channel you own — and my Newsletter-in-a-Box makes it hassle-free to get started.
*Thibodaux. For the curious: Tib-uh-dough. Also, Thibodeaux (my Mama was born a Breaux and then married a Braud. Both pronounced “bro.” Louisiana got some crazy pronunciation!)
Go see a game at Navy Stadium in Annapolis, MD (these pics were all taken in 2014 at a Ravens training camp practice there) if you ever get the chance; the atmosphere is great and downtown Annapolis is just a few moments away with great food, a fantastic museum at The Naval Academy, and fantastic ice cream.
Love this. Time on task really is everything, on the field or off. And here I am, a soccer girl, reading an NFL article … don’t block me, Bryant! LOL
Have a good Saturday.
Bryant, best post you ever wrote.