iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 12/09/2025

Today marks 18 years since I bought my first iPhone. Never used a case. Never dropped and broke one. (And I held on to my original one)

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 01/06/2025

Looking at my newsletter stats, and it's kind of crazy to see that a subscriber who read so regularly just unsubscribed. I kinda want to email them and ask what happened.

List of recent issues of After Design. All but two were opened by the subscriber in question.

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 26/05/2025

Early on, I used AI to review my table of contents to make sure I had a clear through line. Toward the end, I used AI to help define three personas. Then I uploaded the book and ran through it and asked what might be missing for the personas. And I used it to do a first draft of the index.

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 23/05/2025

Making some progress on the slides for a speech I’m giving in a couple of weeks The copy is already written and the basic graphics have been created. Now I’m just designing the slides

Screenshot of an Adobe Illustrator window with multiple art boards made up of slides

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 10/05/2025

We still love to watch people who are great at what they do. The late, great Kim Jung Gi would do live drawing sessions. Could AI create art like him? Sure, probably. But it can't replicate the experience of watching him be amazing in person.

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 10/05/2025

If you like music and typography, Rockabuy Records has a series where the shop owner tries to guess the artist/album while just seeing one letter on the cover art. Fun way to kill a few minutes. www.instagram.com/reel/DJbcieh...

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 07/05/2025

In Chrome incognito mode, if you click and hold on the refresh button, you get refresh options.

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 29/04/2025

10:00 ET I’ll be appearing live on #TimTalk. We’ll be chatting about my book, The Visual Marketer. Tim said it changed his life, so I’m curious to find out what he meant by this. www.linkedin.com/video/event/...

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 27/04/2025

My book, The Visual Marketer, is a #1 best seller! (And #2 in design)

Amazon sales list showing The Visual Marketer as the #1 best seller

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 26/04/2025

The Kindle edition of The Visual Marketer is only $.99 for a limited time. Check it out and leave a review if you learn from it. Thanks! amzn.to/3YLVQjs

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 25/04/2025

Snoopy once wrote a Batman story. In the 1970s, the Peanuts strip had Snoopy struggling to write a novel. A few years later, DC and writer Len Wein used the text from Snoopy’s story as the captions for a 2-page Batman story illustrated by Walter Simonson.

Page of a Batman comic book using the same copy from the Peanuts strip.

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 24/04/2025

One of the strongest documentaries I’ve seen, ‘All I Can Say,’ is now streaming on Amazon. It’s made from camcorder footage shot by Shannon Hoon during Blind Melon’s tragically short career.

Blind Melon singer, Shannon Hoon, filming himself in a mirror

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 20/04/2025

She joined the Fantastic Four in 1984 while Byrne was running the book. Plus he did the She-Hulk graphic novel in 1985

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 16/04/2025

By focusing on customer satisfaction and employee satisfaction, companies can better optimize the overall value they create. Via HBR youtu.be/o7Ik1OB4TaE...

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 06/04/2025

I miss the days of my kids jumping around to the hot dog dance on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. But now they’re older and tonight we’re showing them Homey D. Clown clips on YouTube because In Living Color isn’t streaming anywhere.

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 31/03/2025

If anyone has a podcast and your target audience is marketers or communications pros, I have a topic they’ll find interesting. My book, The Visual Marketer, is made for marketers who have to make their own graphics. Let’s chat.

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 31/03/2025

The other day, an author I know asked if I was interested in illustrating a children's book. The style he is looking for isn't my natural drawing style. So, I spent some time today trying to learn the style. It's a lot of fun. I hope it works out. #drawing

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 28/03/2025

Only 66% of the Fortune 500 currently have an enterprise-wide CMO, but that number could change next week. Source: Spencer Stuart CMO Tenure Study 2025

34% of F500 companies with an enterprise CMO

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 28/03/2025

It’s almost not fair how good music was the year I turned 18

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 24/03/2025

I'm seeing more and more of this in analytics reports.

screenshot of URL with ?utm_source=chatgpt.com

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 22/03/2025

I went on Amazon this morning to discover my book, The Visual Marketer, is now available! #NewAuthor

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 22/03/2025

Look at the Rotten Tomatoes scores for #MadMen Such a great show!

Rotten Tomatoes score for Mad Men by season
Season 1: 85%
Season 2: 100%
Season 3: 97%
Season 4: 95%
Season 5: 97%
Season 6: 98%
Season 7: 90%

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 09/03/2025

A few visual facts from my new book. Plus some insight into why/how these visuals were created. visualmarketing.co #marketing #design

How we consume visuals is based on science. How we interpret them is based on culture.

People can identify an image as quickly as 13 milliseconds.

Breaking patterns informs the viewer it’s time to take an action.

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 05/03/2025

Unfortunately, she’s not around anymore (cancer sucks), but today I became a published author when I found a way to write about design. #design #marketing visualmarketer.co

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 04/03/2025

As I was prepping the announcement email that my first book is now available, a sale came through. It came through an organic search! #marketing VisualMarketing.co

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 28/02/2025

Design update for the Messenger icon. I wonder why Meta is bringing the color to be closer to Facebook?

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 26/02/2025

Repost with the first album you bought with your own money (mine was on cassette)

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 24/02/2025

Do more with less. Marketers are expected to do it all, even design. But no one taught you how to make visuals that actually work. Now, there's a book for marketers who want to understand the basics of creating visuals that capture attention and drive conversions.

The Visual Marketer, a new book by Jim MacLeod

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 19/02/2025

@malikafavre.bsky.social is releasing silkscreen color print versions of her Louisa Parris illustrations.

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 14/02/2025

As I'm creating promotional images for my upcoming book, I'm including the tips that I use to create the image ... right on the image.

High contrast gets noticed faster because we're biologically trained to search for predators or food.

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 10/02/2025

In my book, I talk about how our brain interprets these four different visuals that are all very similar.

Four different visuals for the concept "apple"

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 10/02/2025

Is anyone else seeing a rise in this type of screen size? When I watch HotJar recordings, I see more wide and short browser sizes. #UX #UI

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 14/01/2025

Walmart's visual brand refresh is ... the same? What's the point? Unless they're trying to use it to cover some other bad press. www.fastcompany.com/91258015/wal... #branding

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 07/01/2025

@tombrevoort.bsky.social your newsletter a couple of weeks back that included Paul Ryan art made me think of this photo. He and my mom briefly dated a long time ago.

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 07/01/2025

It's a new year. Make sure to double-check your social image templates. blog.hootsuite.com/social-media... #design

Table showing dimensions for images on different social networks.

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 05/01/2025

FYI. Many pop culture icons are entering the public domain in the next few years

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 30/12/2024

Very excited to hear Jason Mamoa is going to play the part he was always meant to play: #Lobo, The Last Czarnian

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 22/12/2024

On a Zoom with some friends and showing off old phones. I won #iPhone

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 18/12/2024

He must have some free time on his hands tonight

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 11/12/2024

Last year, I bought my son a box of 500 blank playing/trading cards. He has been making his own collection of superhero cards. I love watching his growth!

Two playing cards with Marvel's Avalanche drawn on them.

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 29/11/2024

For anyone wondering how #BlackFriday is going, our local police just emailed everyone to say “stop going to the mall.”

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 27/11/2024

It’s a thanksgiving miracle! Our doggy daycare just opened a spot. Now we can board our less-than-friendly dachshund when we’re hosting more than a dozen people tomorrow

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 23/11/2024

Went to the library so I could pick up the form that will let me donate my book when it comes out in a couple of months.

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 21/11/2024

TweetDeck circa 2015 is back!

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 17/11/2024

143k views. 2k likes. 1 new follower. Thanks, Threads.

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Jim MacLeod @jimmacleod.com · 04/07/2023

Of the 8 primary results for “is AI going to take my graphic design job,” 3 stated that AI would replace designers, while 5 suggested otherwise. Either way, AI will change the way designers work. www.linkedin.com/posts/jimmacleod_d…

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