♾️ 2025 unwrapped

You’re reading The Content Loop — a 5-min read on how B2B SaaS marketers can use original research and product-led content as a growth lever.

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2025 has been one hell of a year.

I’ve been writing and re-writing this newsletter to summarize what a rollercoaster it has been. Here’s the good, bad, and ugly:

1. Made a cross-country move with my family

I don’t usually talk a lot about the personal side of things. But one thing I’m incredibly proud of and grateful for is the ability to move out and give my family a better life.

I started freelancing in the academic space in 2018—but I moved on to B2B writing in 2021. It took me 6 months on Fiverr to realize I could make more money writing than by working 3 jobs at the same time.

A not-so-gentle nudge from my partner gave me the confidence to actually pursue freelance writing as a career.

It took me 4 years to save up and finally move out of the small apartment I grew up in. I literally used to spend 10+ hours sitting on the bed, cranking out articles.

Now, I finally have a desk of my own—so I don’t have to sit like a prawn anymore 😆 

It was a chaotic, bittersweet move, but it was one of my most important life goals, and I finally did it. 

2. Worked on some killer content projects

In 2024, I plucked up the courage to go all in with my content strategy service. After a couple of projects, it hit me that:

• I love talking to people about the work they do 

• I’m better off leaning into my academic side (research background)

• I enjoy talking about products when the company has a POV nailed down

So, I stuck to what I love and know the best: original research and product-led content.

Fortunately, I got to work with marketing leaders I love and respect—and companies that valued content whethere they were household names or not.

And needless to say, I did some of my most enjoyable work on series-, survey-, and interview-based content.

Definitely doubling down on these this year (reach out if you need support here! 😄)

3. Saw the (content) marketing space slow down

The first half of the year was great. I’m not going to lie. 

But as the year progressed, I did see a drop in inbound leads and a general sentiment in the space. I’ve spoken to dozens of freelancers and consultants, and we’ve all felt the same.

I’m not sure what the actual root cause is, but I do think it’s a mix of:

• Economic uncertainty

• Unclear positioning and GTM

• Budget constraints 

• AI (d’oh!)

LinkedIn and Slack communities were filled with so much noise about how AI was obliterating the marketing space. While that’s partially true, I think we’re giving it too much credit.

My perspective on AI has changed so much; details below. But the introduction of AI forced many companies to rethink what they stand for.

AI has been more of a forcing function, and that’s why so many companies have either dialed back their marketing, pivoted altogether, or merged with other companies.

Several of my own clients have also done the same.

What do you think?

I’d love to know—and maybe chat about this if you’re up for it!

4. Hit burnout and had to step away

As much as I loved all the work I was doing and hitting my goals, it came at a huge cost. 

I hit burnout, and it was so bad that by October, I fell sick and stayed sick all through December. I’ve hit burnout before, but this time around it was different. Being unable to think—when that’s your entire job—is not a fun experience.

I ran on the hamster wheel and made chaos a part of the process. There were literally times I’d stay up till 3 AM or wake up just thinking about work. Part of it was dealing with toxicity, but the other part was not upholding my own boundaries.

I’ll be hitting 30 next month, and now I actually realize how important your health is. You spend your 20s gunning to achieve every goal you can think of. But that’ll only do you in.

Fortunately, I was meeting my long-distance partner during the end-of-year break. We went on a short 5-day trip to Darjeeling—pictured below.

Turns out not looking at your screen and seeing K2 (the second-highest mountain range in the world) can really change your perspective.

Note to self: Take more breaks in 2026 😆

5. Realized the actual value of AI

If you’re anything like me, you know that 2025 was the year of AI. But it also came with a lot of whiplash on the topic.

Some hate it, some love it—but the rest sit comfortably in the “It’s a tool, no more, no less” bracket.

I’m in that bracket too.

I’ve moved all my AI-led workflows to focus on things like: 

• Gut-checking my drafts

• Fact checking

• Consolidating information from different sources

• Curating information for the assets

• Building projects with first-party data

• Building content plans based on market changes

There’s a lot of pressure to do more with less. I know, I know. We hate that phrase in our corner of the world, but that’s just the reality.

The thing is, no matter how much you use AI, it really doesn’t change the need to do that actual thinking.

I’m tired of seeing people asking for advice on a workflow or a strategic issue, and someone answering, “Have you tried ChatGPT or Claude for this?”

There’s a lot of value to be extracted from these tools, but if we’re moving to a point where our default is “There’s an AI for this,” we’re in deep shit.

Before you call me a hater, trust me, I’m not. Just someone who’s trying to make sense of where I really stand in the market today—and where marketing is moving as a whole.

Note: I’ll be unwrapping my thoughts on this in future editions and breaking down areas where I’ve seen real value.

Onwards and upwards

I’m not much of a resolution person, but there are a few things I’m definitely planning on doing. 

The first one? Learning to be more gracious to myself.

As solopreneurs, we tend to forget why we started building a business in the first place. 

For me, it was more about choosing an employment type that suited my personality. But more importantly, being able to design your life the way you want it while working on things you’re more inclined to thrive at.

I’ve always been a writer, nerd, and systems thinker. I love asking questions, digging through sources, pushing myself (and clients) to do the hard but important things.

So, I’m actively taking steps to focus on those things, i.e., original research and BOFU content. 

In the same vein, I also want to do more free-form writing and reading. There’s so much AI slop and tech bro speak out there, so I’m going back to my roots: reading non-fiction and writing for pleasure—not money.

This newsletter is also one part of that.

I want to be more transparent, honest, and silly this year. Instead of trying to educate and be serious all the time, I’d love for this newsletter to be more of a 1:1 with you.

This is all to say: Thank YOU for sticking with me through 2025 and giving me your precious time. There’s a lot to come, and I hope you get the value you’re seeking from this newsletter.

Today’s edition was my longest—so thanks for reading to the end.

Over to you: How did your 2025 go?

I’d love to know what’s going on in your world and if I can help in any way. Feel free to shoot me a reply!