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The Two Books That Never Leave My Side: A Marketing Strategist's Essential Tools
- Kasi Drummer
- Aug 24
- 5 min read
How a simple notebook and planner became the foundation of everything I build for artists
Hey there, creative entrepreneurs!
I get asked all the time about the "secret" behind Built by Kasi's structured approach to marketing. Artists want to know how I help them move from scattered creative energy to systematic business growth. The truth? It all starts with two humble tools that live in my bag, on my desk, and honestly, probably under my pillow at night.
I'm talking about the notebook and the planner, not any notebook and planner, but the two specific ones that have become the backbone of how I think, strategize, and execute everything from website builds to quarterly campaigns for artists.
Why These Two Tools Matter (Especially for Creative Minds)
Before I dive into the specifics, let me explain something crucial: your brain is not designed to be your filing cabinet.
This lesson came from my evolutionary medicine background – our brains evolved to solve problems, not store endless to-do lists and brilliant 3 AM ideas. When we try to use our minds as storage units, we're essentially asking a Ferrari engine to be a warehouse. It's inefficient, exhausting, and ultimately counterproductive.
For artists especially, this matters enormously. Your creative brain needs space to innovate, to make unexpected connections, to see possibilities others miss. But when it's cluttered with "don't forget to update that meta description" and "email that gallery curator back," there's no room for the magic to happen.
That's where external systems come in – and why I'm evangelical about these two tools.
Tool #1: My Graph Paper Notebook (The Foundation)
This isn't just any notebook – it's a hardcover, A5-sized powerhouse with 312 numbered pages, a table of contents, and 100gsm paper that doesn't bleed. But here's what makes it irreplaceable for the work I do:
The Grid Changes Everything
Graph paper isn't just for mathematicians and engineers (though my science background definitely appreciates it). For marketing strategy, those little squares are pure gold:
Website wireframes happen naturally – I can sketch homepage layouts, plan user journeys, and visualize conversion funnels
Campaign timelines become visual – I can map out content calendars with precise spacing and clear connections
SEO keyword research gets organized into clean categories and hierarchies
Client strategy sessions become collaborative diagrams instead of messy notes
Portrait size for those longer notes that you might want to use more like a bigger notebook.
The Numbered Pages Are Non-Negotiable
This might seem like a small detail, but numbered pages transform a notebook from a collection of thoughts into a searchable system. When I'm working with an artist on their website strategy and remember a brilliant insight from three weeks ago, I can flip to my table of contents and find "Website Conversion Ideas - Pages 47-52" instantly.
How I Use It Daily
Every morning, this notebook gets the first 20 minutes of my day. I call it my "brain dump and architect" session:
Brain dump – Everything swirling in my head goes onto the page
Architect – I organize those thoughts into actionable categories
Connect – I look for patterns and connections across different projects
This practice alone has revolutionized how I serve artists and my own personal life. Instead of reactive problem-solving, I'm building comprehensive systems.
Tool #2: My Life Mastery Planner (The Engine)
While my notebook captures strategy and ideas, this planner makes things happen. It's an A5 undated planner with 196 pages of life transformation tools – and yes, I mean transformation literally.
Why Undated Matters for Creative Entrepreneurs
Artists don't work on calendar years. They work in creative seasons, project cycles, and inspiration waves. An undated planner respects this reality. Whether you're launching a collection in March or planning a solo show in November, this system adapts to your rhythm, not the arbitrary January 1st starting line.
The Structure That Creates Freedom
This planner includes:
Daily planning pages for focused execution
Weekly review spreads for strategic adjustment
Monthly vision mapping for campaign planning and important dates
Habit tracking for building sustainable systems
Goal-setting frameworks that actually work for creative minds
How This Connects to the Artist's Launch Academy
If you've been following my work, you know that the Artist's Launch Academy is built around the "Quickfire Quarters" method – my signature approach to quarterly marketing planning for artists.
This planner is where that method was born and continues to be refined.
Every system I teach in the Academy: from website strategy to SEO planning to campaign execution, gets tested first in this planner. It's my laboratory for what actually works in the real world, not just in theory.
The Magic Happens When They Work Together
Here's where these tools become more than just organizational aids – they become a creative partnership system.
Morning routine: Notebook gets the brain dump and strategic thinking. Planner gets the daily priorities and execution plan.
Client work: Notebook captures the big-picture strategy and systems thinking. Planner tracks project milestones and client communication schedules.
Academy development: Notebook holds curriculum development and teaching insights. Planner manages content creation timelines and pilot program coordination.
Personal growth: Notebook processes complex thoughts and connects dots across different areas of my life. Planner keeps me accountable to the daily habits that support my long-term vision.
Why This Matters for Your Art Business
I see so many talented artists spinning their wheels because they're trying to hold their entire business strategy in their heads. They have brilliant ideas that get lost, important tasks that fall through the cracks, and big dreams that never get broken down into actionable steps.
This is not a creativity problem, this is a systems problem.
When you externalize your thinking and planning into reliable tools, your creative mind gets freed up to do what it does best: create, innovate, and connect with your collectors on a deeper level.
The Bigger Picture
These tools aren't just about organization, they're about building the foundation for the kind of systematic, sustainable art business that can support your creative vision for years to come.
In the Artist's Launch Academy, we dive deep into exactly how to use planning and strategy tools like these to build marketing campaigns that actually work, websites that convert, and SEO strategies that bring the right collectors to your door. But it all starts with getting your thoughts out of your head and into a system you can trust.
Ready to Build Your Foundation?
The notebook and planner I use are linked above, and they're both available on Amazon. These aren't expensive investments, together, they cost less than most artists spend on supplies in a month – but the return on investment in terms of clarity, focus, and business growth is extraordinary.
If you're ready to take your art business seriously, to move beyond hoping and wishing into strategic planning and consistent execution, these tools are where that transformation begins.
Want to see exactly how I use these tools to develop marketing strategies for artists? The Artist's Launch Academy opens for public enrollment in 2026, with a proven curriculum that's already transformed pilot artists' businesses. Get on the waitlist to be the first to know when enrollment opens.
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