The Strategy Edit - Issue #01
- Debbie Hatumale - Uy
- May 20
- 5 min read
Two businesses, one newsletter, and a son who thinks my job is Craft Club
Hello everyone,
It's Debbie here. We may have met at a networking event, over coffee, or at a random webinar with 300 other people. Hello from Digital Solutions!
Okay, let's be real. If you're on this list, I probably added you, and I hope that's alright. This is the very first issue of The Strategy Edit and I'll be upfront about what it is: a weekly newsletter where I share what's actually happening in marketing and AI, and try to give you at least one thing worth using before you close the tab.
If you're new here, a quick introduction. I run two businesses. The Collab Co. is a marketing agency helping businesses grow with smart strategy, content, and AI tools. Only the Sweet Stuff is an ecommerce brand and crafting community with over 20,000 members across Australia. The two inform each other constantly, which is really the whole premise of what I do. I'm not just a marketer talking at businesses. I'm also a business owner living it.
Before we get into it, a little moment from this week that I have to share.
My son's school did a Mother's Day activity where the kids answer questions about their mums. I was not prepared for his answers.
She is so strong she could lift... a big box. (Hello, ecommerce life.)
She is good at... crafting. (Our 20,000-strong community would back him up on that.)
Her job is... Craft Club. (Technically accurate. I'll take it.)
Not a single mention of marketing, strategy, or AI. Honestly? I'm here for it. The version of me that made the biggest impression on him is the one packing orders and making things. He's also seen a strategy doc or two pop up on screen while hijacking my laptop for Minecraft YouTube. Interested? Absolutely not. He probably only knows about Craft Club because it means weekend trips to our mini warehouse, squeezed in between swimming lessons and his Nintendo. Kids are surprisingly observant. And surprisingly diplomatic.
ON MY RADAR THIS WEEK
The two tools I can't stop thinking about
To be fair, Craft Club is a very legitimate part of my life. Both jobs are real. But only one of them involves falling down TikTok rabbit holes at 10pm and calling it research.
Watch it here. Two things caught my eye.
The first is Higgsfield. Think of it as an AI video tool built specifically for marketers. You put in an idea, it helps you create polished video content for social, ads, and reels, and it even predicts how likely your content is to perform before you post. For business owners who feel like video content is out of reach, this kind of tool is a game changer.
The second is Meta's new AI skill, which lets AI assistants plug directly into your Facebook and Instagram data. Basically, instead of jumping between tools and manually pulling reports, your AI can now do it for you, inside your ad account. Less admin, more action.
Neither of these replaces strategy. But both of them level the playing field for smaller teams. The skill is still in knowing which tool to reach for, and why.
TRY THIS WEEK
Turn any PDF into a podcast with NotebookLM
If you're anything like me and can't sit still long enough to actually read, yes, this is my ADHD confession for the week, NotebookLM's audio overview feature is genuinely useful. You upload a PDF and it generates a conversational podcast-style summary you can listen to on the go.
Case in point: I've been trying to get through Jacinda Ardern's book for about six months. No shade, she's incredible, but I just cannot sit with it. Meanwhile I finished her Netflix doco the day it dropped. That's not a discipline problem. That's just how my brain works.
This week, try uploading a PDF you've been meaning to read, a report, a long article, a business book chapter, and let NotebookLM turn it into something you can actually absorb.
How to do it:
Go to notebooklm.google.com, create a new notebook, upload your PDF, and click "Generate audio overview". Done.
WHAT'S HAPPENING THIS WEEK
Two things worth sharing this week.
First, I had the pleasure of speaking at the Social Sip, a round table hosted by the West Ryde Chamber of Commerce. The conversation was brilliant. We went deep on marketing and AI, and the questions from the room were some of the best I've had. If you'd like the recording, just reply to this email and I'll send you the link.
Second, and this one genuinely made my week, I was featured in Optus's Future Fit series. It's a lovely post and I'm pretty chuffed about it. See it here.
FEATURED THIS WEEK
FEATURED THIS WEEK
Season 3 of Crafting a Business is coming and we're looking for guests.
We're booking recording days for the new season and we'd love to hear from small business owners, makers, and founders with a story worth telling. You don't need a huge following or a polished pitch, just real experience and something genuine to share.
There's an appearance fee of $179, which covers the videographer and studio - and it's genuinely great value for what you get. You'll walk away with your full edited episode to share anywhere - your website, LinkedIn, email signature - plus three ready-to-use social clips. It's a credibility asset, a content engine, and a new audience touchpoint, all from one recording session.
✶ You're a small business owner, maker, or founder
✶ You've navigated something real, a launch, a pivot, a hard lesson, or a win
✶ You're comfortable having an honest conversation on camera
Express your interest →
Or simply reply to this email. I read every one.
CLIENT SPOTLIGHT
Aus Hub
Each edition we shine a light on a client win. This week it's Aus Hub.
Sometimes the best content is already sitting in your archives, waiting for the right moment. Aus Hub shot great footage months ago and it was shared once. Now if you know anything about me, you know that we love to repurpose here at The Collab Co. We spotted the opportunity to amplify it, gave it a strategy, and it's now living a second life on social. The response has been brilliant.
Good content doesn't expire. It just needs the right moment and the right strategy to find its audience. Watch the video here.
EVENTS WE'RE AT
Sydney Podcast Shoot · 20 May Recording day for Season 3 of Crafting a Business. |
West Ryde Chamber, Women in Business · 27 May Joining the room for a morning of connection and conversation. |
Optus Future Fit · 28 May Featured as part of the Optus Future Fit series. |
Melbourne Shoot · 3 June Setting up a content day for one of our clients. Exciting things in the works. |
Thanks for being here for Issue # 01. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a big box to lift, a strategy to write, and a Minecraft YouTube channel to compete with for laptop time.
Debbie x
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