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  • The Atomicdust website homepage design on a tablet
    , ,

    How We Built Our Website With AI (Oh Yeah, and People)

    Fifteen years is a long time to have the same website. Our old website did the job. It brought us qualified leads every week, housed two thousand blog posts and…

  • A Repeatable Marketing Strategy Framework title on design grid with blue gradient

    A Repeatable Marketing Strategy Framework

    Originally published in February 2015. Rewritten in July 2026, because AI changes marketing execution. When I first became interested in design, I was obsessed with grids and patterns. Grids are…

  • Marketing Planning for 2026 -Everything You Need to Know

    Marketing Planning for 2026: Everything You Need to Know

    Recently, the American Marketing Association St. Louis Chapter asked me to speak on a panel about marketing planning—specifically, how I build marketing plans for my agency and our clients. I…

  • WashU Law admissions brochure with campus imagery and branded shield design.
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    Recruiting Ambitious Legal Minds at WashU Law

    You can tell a lot about a university by how it speaks to its future students. And when that university sits a few blocks from your office, you feel even…

  • Inside the Atomicdust marketing agency in St. Louis

    Atomicdust Wins Best Marketing Firm in St. Louis for the Fifth Year in a Row

    We got some nice news recently—Atomicdust has been named Best Marketing Firm in St. Louis by Small Business Monthly. The cherry on top? It’s the fifth year in a row…

  • Atomicdust Partner and Account Director Jesse McGowan reviews brand identity designs in the office

    How to Prove The ROI of Branding

    Bookmark this for when your CEO asks, “Will a rebrand really be a smart investment?”   You never know what type of questions you’ll get when you’re presenting to a…

  • Our Thinking

    Ideas on branding, marketing and web design.

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    • We Rewrote Our Healthcare Marketing Guide for the AI Era

      We Rewrote Our Healthcare Marketing Guide for the AI Era

      Back in 2016, we published a guide called Content Marketing: A Guide for Healthcare Marketing Managers. It told…

    • Rebranding versus Brand Strategy: Knowing Which One Your Business Actually Needs

      Rebranding versus Brand Strategy: Knowing Which One Your Business Actually Needs

      A client call last week reminded me of a question I hear all the time: rebranding versus brand…

    • Brand Due Diligence: The Risk You’re Not Measuring

      Brand Due Diligence: The Risk You’re Not Measuring

      This is for my friends in private equity. From my experience, private equity firms stress-test everything. Cap tables.…

    • Three Ingredients for M&A Brand Systems

      Three Ingredients for M&A Brand Systems

      I love watching that Netflix show, “Chef’s Table”. In a Michelin-starred restaurant’s kitchen, every person has a station.…

    • Branding by Committee: You Don’t Ask Everyone Where the Couch Goes

      Branding by Committee: You Don’t Ask Everyone Where the Couch Goes

      I was scrolling the other day and read that a medical device business got carved out of its…

    • Sleep Scores and Search Rankings: Over-Optimized and Under-Felt

      Sleep Scores and Search Rankings: Over-Optimized and Under-Felt

      As a society, we’ve started letting the metric make the decision instead of informing it. I’m a recovering…

    • How We Built Our Website With AI (Oh Yeah, and People)

      How We Built Our Website With AI (Oh Yeah, and People)

      Fifteen years is a long time to have the same website. Our old website did the job. It…

    • A Repeatable Marketing Strategy Framework

      A Repeatable Marketing Strategy Framework

      Originally published in February 2015. Rewritten in July 2026, because AI changes marketing execution. When I first became…

    • We Rewrote Our Healthcare Marketing Guide for the AI Era

      We Rewrote Our Healthcare Marketing Guide for the AI Era

      Back in 2016, we published a guide called Content Marketing: A Guide for Healthcare Marketing Managers. It told…

    • Rebranding versus Brand Strategy: Knowing Which One Your Business Actually Needs

      Rebranding versus Brand Strategy: Knowing Which One Your Business Actually Needs

      A client call last week reminded me of a question I hear all the time: rebranding versus brand…

    • Brand Due Diligence: The Risk You’re Not Measuring

      Brand Due Diligence: The Risk You’re Not Measuring

      This is for my friends in private equity. From my experience, private equity firms stress-test everything. Cap tables.…

    • Three Ingredients for M&A Brand Systems

      Three Ingredients for M&A Brand Systems

      I love watching that Netflix show, “Chef’s Table”. In a Michelin-starred restaurant’s kitchen, every person has a station.…

    • Branding by Committee: You Don’t Ask Everyone Where the Couch Goes

      Branding by Committee: You Don’t Ask Everyone Where the Couch Goes

      I was scrolling the other day and read that a medical device business got carved out of its…

    • Sleep Scores and Search Rankings: Over-Optimized and Under-Felt

      Sleep Scores and Search Rankings: Over-Optimized and Under-Felt

      As a society, we’ve started letting the metric make the decision instead of informing it. I’m a recovering…

  • July 2025 Marketing + Design Events

    July 2025 Marketing + Design Events

    Summer’s in full swing and the marketing world is serving up some seriously hot events to keep your creative fires burning. From decoding Gen Z to sharpening your design skills,…

  • June 2025 Marketing + Design Events

    June 2025 Marketing + Design Events

    Summer’s heating up—and so is the creative game. This month, trade beach reads for brand strategy, color theory and type design as you dive into a lineup of events built…

  • Gradient swirls and grid representing 2 businesses merging with structure

    Rebranding After a Merger: What Marketing Teams Need to Know

    Companies are being built and sold faster than ever before. Every day, there are new startups, new products and new services. And every day, competitors join forces in the hopes…

  • May 2025 Marketing + Design Events Atomicdust

    May 2025 Marketing + Design Events

    Summer is on the horizon, and so begins the season of wanderlust. As you’re looking at destinations, don’t forget to make space to let your creativity roam free. Whether you’re…

  • Mike Spakowski, Partner / Creative Director at Atomicdust

    Atomicdust Team Hits the Stage at MDMC 2025

    “Ask anything.” That simple directive in ChatGPT—and really, AI overall—is changing marketing. AI tools can outline strategies, write copy, generate images and handle tasks marketers used to spend hours on.…

  • April 2025 Marketing + Design Events

    April 2025 Marketing + Design Events

    This month has a great lineup of events designed to sharpen your skills, spark new ideas and help you stay ahead of the curve. Refine your SEO game, explore the…