Why Marketers Should Read Philosophy—Yes, Even You, TikTok Strategist
Okay, hear me out: marketers should be reading more philosophy. Yes, I’m serious. I know you're probably rolling your eyes and thinking, “Sure, let me just add Plato’s Republic to my TBR list right after I finish my 97th HubSpot whitepaper on optimizing ad spend.” But I swear—this isn’t some pretentious plea to make you look cooler at your next agency off-site. (Though let’s be honest, quoting Kierkegaard over cocktails is an underrated power move.)
This is about becoming a sharper, more empathetic, and wildly creative marketer—the kind of person who doesn’t just follow trends, but understands why they matter in the first place.
1. Philosophy Makes You a Better Thinker (and That’s Marketing Gold)
Marketing is all about critical thinking. What makes someone click? Why does a message resonate? Why did that weirdly low-budget mayonnaise campaign go viral? (Looking at you, Hellmann’s.) Philosophy trains you to unpack assumptions, examine motivations, and dissect logic with surgical precision.
Reading Aristotle on ethos, logos, and pathos is literally just unlocking a 2,000-year-old brand strategy blueprint. He walked so your Q2 campaign could fly.
2. You’ll Write Better. Like, Drop-the-Mic Better.
Marketers are, above all, storytellers. And guess who were the OG storytellers? Philosophers. They just called their stories “dialogues” and included fewer hashtags.
Want to write copy that cuts through the noise? Try reading a little Nietzsche. (I mean, the man basically invented mic drops.) Or grab some Simone de Beauvoir if you want to add depth to your brand’s “female empowerment” message without sounding like an HR-approved Pinterest board.
3. Philosophy Builds Empathy—Which Is the Whole Game
Let’s be real: empathy is the billion-dollar skill no one talks about enough in marketing. You can’t connect with a customer if you don’t understand their pain, dreams, or occasional existential dread while online shopping at 2am.
Reading philosophy forces you to consider other worldviews, challenge your biases, and ask deeper questions like “What is happiness?” or “What does it mean to be free?” And suddenly, you’re not just marketing an app—you’re marketing a solution to someone’s very real, very human problem.
4. You’ll Be Less Annoying at Dinner Parties
Yes, this is selfish. But imagine how much more interesting you’ll be if, instead of saying “I A/B tested email subject lines today,” you say, “I’ve been thinking about how Hume’s theory of perception might explain why people skip ads on YouTube.”
You’ll be the mysterious intellectual of the marketing department. The one who drops Zadie Smith quotes into campaign briefs and still remembers to attach the deck before the meeting. Truly, a unicorn.
5. You’ll Stop Worshipping the Algorithm
We’ve become so obsessed with CTRs, SEO, and KPIs that we forget marketing is still a human endeavor. Philosophy reminds you that behind every impression is a person, not a data point. And maybe—just maybe—there’s more to success than pageviews and likes.
As Socrates probably said after checking his LinkedIn metrics: “The unexamined brand is not worth launching.”
Want to be a better marketer? Read philosophy. It won’t teach you how to go viral on Threads, but it will teach you how to think, empathize, and tell stories that actually matter. Plus, it pairs beautifully with espresso and smug satisfaction.
So go ahead. Dust off that copy of Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. (Or open the audiobook while you’re making Canva graphics—no judgment.) Your campaigns, your audience, and honestly, your soul will thank you.
Now excuse me while I go rebrand Descartes for Gen Z.
