✍️ dads’ notes on our careers (unfiltered)

Father’s Day is Sunday. If you ask a dad what he wants to do to celebrate, he'll probably say, "I don't know, whatever you want.”

He does know. He just won't tell you.

Getting people to say what they actually think is kind of our whole job here at the 'arb. 

So we turned the mic on the fathers and father figures in our lives — and asked them the 1 question they were least prepared for:

What do you think I actually do all day?

Some of them surprised us. Some of them did not. All of them were very confident.

That’s right! We’re back at it again, bothering our parents in their busy lives to ask them what they think we do all day. 

After our moms had so much fun gabbing, the dads of the ‘arb wanted to prove that they do actually listen to us. (Sure, Dad.)

Let’s see how they did.

“What do you think I do for work?”

"It's a global career. You deal with people around the world. You hire people. Then you give them a job description. Then you all come together and put this project in play. That project is business, of course." —Derald, our own CEO’s dad, and a retired painter

"Tell people's stories for marketing purposes." —Bill, pastor

"Oh, you still have that job? Very good, I am glad they are keeping you around." —Ali, former CEO and current restaurant owner

"What does ‘B2B marketing’ mean to you?"

"B2B? Well … it's a step up from A&A." —Derald again

"I do not have a clue." —Joseph, retired network administrator and scientist

"Bank to bank marketing, by any chance?" —John, bus driver*

*close enough, John

"If I said I had to 'help executives build their personal brand,' what would that mean to you?"

"Extend their reach and credibility around thought leadership in their domain for business and their particular expertise set.” —Brian, financial services executive

"Helping the executive to be more visible to consumers of their product whereas they might be in the background and nobody knows about them.” —Ron, financial advisor

"What do you think goes in a 'content kit?'"

"Questions and answers. Lots of questions about the company and its goals." —Jason, kindergarten teacher

"Swag that helps potential customers of your client better grasp the product." —Bill again

"If you had a newsletter, what would it be about?" 

 "Helping my daughter figure out her expenses." —Brian again 

"Daily wisdom from 5 year olds. Like, 'Mr. Miller, what are you?' and 'It was 3 the whole time!'" —Jason again

"What's the best part about being a parent (figure)?" 

Time to see dad’s soft side:

“Watching your kids develop into wonderful human beings.”

"Definitely watching you grow and seeing how you turn out in the years ahead."

“Inviting beautiful children into your world and watching them completely change your life for the better, broadening the family in so many ways, watching them grow and flourish.”

“To see your children grow up, share in positive experiences you have with them, see them have children, and see the cousins playing together.”

“Realizing my kids are my favorite people to be with.”

No, no, we’re not crying. We just turned the sprinklers off and happened to get water specifically in our eyes and nowhere else 🥹

Thanks dads, for always saying yes to us after mom initially said no. Turns out you have been listening this whole time — we owe you more than we could ever pay back.

Campaigns that got us talking: Dad is always complaining that he’s tired, so Dunkin’ said: Here’s my gift to you. Now, with a literal bucket of coffee, Pops will have no shortage of caffeine. Plus, the bucket doubles as extra storage for later.

AI spotlight: Companies that cut customer service staff to fund AI are about to have an awkward conversation with HR. Gartner predicts that by 2027, half of the companies that reduced headcount citing AI will rehire people into the same roles, just with different job titles.

Dad was right: You can't just swap out the person who actually knows what they're doing and expect nothing to break.

Stuff that makes us scroll back up: Devon Butler picked apart Nike's famous 3-word motto to show how "Just Do It" would die in today’s swirl of feedback and stakeholders.

Round 1: too vague. Round 2: too commanding. Round 3: something no one would ever put on a shirt or a billboard.

Imagine telling your dad how to grill a burger. Exactly, leave the making to the pros.

“Don’t fix it if it ain’t broke.” —ancient father proverb

Except half the marketing internet is currently convinced everything is broken. SEO is dead. AEO is the only thing that matters. Throw it all out.

Our content strategist Emily Greffenius has been saying it since before the panic set in: If your SEO foundation is solid, you're already most of the way there. Good AEO builds on what’s working.

Feeling good about your SEO but not really sure where you stand with LLMs right now? 

We built a tracker to help you figure that out. 

Free, ungated, no strings — just like the advice your dad always gives you.

Get the LLM Sentiment Tracker →

Despite their stoic nature and one-word text responses, dads get irked by more than food sticking to the grill. Unless you want to lose your allowance, try avoiding these:

• Calling his entire music collection "old people stuff"

• Telling him how to drive

• Using his "good" screwdriver for something that is definitely not a screw

• Explaining how something works that he invented before you were born

• Touching the grill. Like, at all. Don’t do it.

• Holding the flashlight wrong during a project he swears he can fix on his own

• Asking "what do you want to do for Father's Day?" three days after Father's Day (SERIOUSLY?!)

Oh, you did all of these? Great job. Welcome to a 9 p.m. curfew. And no, Dad does not care that you’re over 30 or how this is so unfair. 

His house, his rules.

Dads don't usually lead with the soft stuff. They come with "did you eat" and "what's your plan" and a very specific look when they think you're overcomplicating something simple.

Which, honestly? Valid.

The best content we've ever seen doesn't overthink it either. It says the thing directly, means it, and shows up again next week. That's the deal.

Happy Father's Day to the guys who've been doing it right this whole time — we owe you more than we could ever pay back. (Literally, thanks for being our bank accounts for so long!)

See y'all next time.

— the storyarb writers’ room 🫡

Oh! And another thing... Father's Day started with a tragedy. Sonora Smart Dodd, raised by her single father after her mother died in childbirth, came up with the idea in 1909 to celebrate the dads who stick it out. When she finally got it off the ground, men pushed back, calling it "unmanly" and a "commercial gimmick." It took 60 more years before it became an official holiday in 1972.

Dads resisted a whole holiday made in their honor. Very on brand. You should still probably call yours though.