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Marginally Better S01E17: The Repair Relationship Revolution
A century ago, companies deliberately made products that wouldn’t last. Today, that model is being dismantled—by regulators, by consumers, and by a new generation of businesses built around repair, not replacement. In this episode of Marginally Better, Joe Taylor, Jr. explores the repair relationship revolution—from sweeping right-to-repair laws reshaping global manufacturing to companies like Framework…
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Marginally Better S01E16: The Community Currency
A productivity app on the brink of collapse rebuilt itself in a small apartment in Kyoto—and a decade later became an $11 billion company with 100 million users. What changed? Not the product alone, but the people around it. In this episode of Marginally Better, Joe Taylor, Jr. explores the rise of community as currency—why…
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Marginally Better S01E15: The Transparency Tax
In this episode of Marginally Better, Joe Taylor, Jr. examines the transparency trap: how brands learned the hard way that revealing everything can erode trust, fuel criticism, and even cost millions.
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Marginally Better S01E14: The Senior Surge Opportunity
In this episode of Marginally Better, Joe Taylor, Jr. breaks down the trillion-dollar gap between who has the money and who businesses design for—spotlighting winners, common “youngsplaining” mistakes, and simple UX fixes that boost conversions for everyone.
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Marginally Better S01E13: The Waiting Game Winners
Americans spend 37 billion hours a year waiting—about 118 hours per person—but smart brands are turning that dead time into delight. In this episode of Marginally Better, Joe Taylor, Jr. breaks down the psychology of waiting (why underpromising and overdelivering works, why occupied time feels shorter, and why fairness matters), and shows how Disney, Trader…
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Marginally Better S01E12: The Ghost Kitchen Customer Catastrophe
Ever ordered from three “different” restaurants and gotten the same fries, same sticker, same address? This episode of Marginally Better digs into the ghost-kitchen gold rush—and the trust crisis it sparked. Joe Taylor, Jr. unpacks how virtual brands multiplied behind a single line, why customers feel duped when the story doesn’t match the kitchen, and…
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Marginally Better S01E11: The Repair Renaissance
What if telling customers not to buy is the smartest growth move you can make? In this episode of Marginally Better, Joe Taylor, Jr. explores the Repair Renaissance—from Patagonia’s “Don’t Buy This Jacket” ethos and Minnesota’s nation-leading right-to-repair law to the global rise of Repair Cafés saving millions of pounds from landfills. We unpack how…
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Marginally Better S01E10: Designing for Trust: Inside the Privacy Economy
Joe Taylor, Jr. explores why privacy is becoming a luxury good, how small businesses are winning with trust-first strategies, and the economic realities behind “free” services.
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Marginally Better S01E09: The Death of the Phone Call (And Why That’s a Problem)
In this episode of Marginally Better, Joe Taylor, Jr. explores the rising “telephobia” reshaping customer service, why voice calls still convert better than any other channel, and how leading companies are bridging the gap between digital fatigue and high-touch connection.
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Marginally Better S01E08: The Privacy Paradox
In this episode of Marginally Better, Joe Taylor, Jr. explores the “Privacy Paradox” reshaping modern business.
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Marginally Better S01E07: Breaking Things, Returning Things, and Getting Things Right
In this episode of Marginally Better, Joe Taylor, Jr. unpacks how the speed-at-all-costs philosophy is being replaced by something smarter: thoughtful design, seamless returns, and customer-first decision-making.
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Marginally Better S01E06: The Screen We Ignore, The Skills We Discard, and When Organizations Forget Why They Exist
In this episode of Marginally Better, host Joe Taylor Jr. uncovers why most mobile experiences still fall flat despite making up the majority of web traffic.