> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://kelfordinc.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # What’s on the back of the box? — Kelford Labs Weekly - URL: https://kelfordinc.com/whats-on-the-back-of-the-box-kelford-labs-weekly/ - Published: 2026-09-17T11:51:19.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-17T11:51:19.000Z - Description: Why we need middle step content. - Author: Joel Kelly - Tags: attention, blog, content, middle step, service, specific, Weekly Labs For at least one or two of you reading this right now, I’m about to utter two of the most nostalgia-inducing words ever coined: *Sega Dreamcast*. Right? **Okay, for the rest of you, let me explain:** Leading up to its launch in 1999, the [Sega Dreamcast](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dreamcast) was one of the most anticipated consumer electronic entertainment devices to date. According to a former Sega executive, it achieved “the biggest 24 hours in entertainment retail history.” It was a *big deal*. I couldn’t afford one at the time, as my sole source of income was from my after-school newspaper delivery route, so the best I could do was rent it for the weekend from our local video game store. That store closed decades ago, but I swear I could paint you a picture of every aisle, every nook, every console sitting on the counter ready to be played by customers and staff. The best part was picking up a game box or jewel case and reading the back. You’d scan the covers or spines as you browsed, catch a glimpse of something that looked cool, and turn it over and pore over the details. The specs (how many players? how much space would it take up on the memory card?), the story, the marketing copy that told you what made it different from all the other games on the shelf or that you already had at home. **See, the back of the box was *the most important real estate* for old physical products like that.** The front cover had to compete against all the other front covers. Its job was to [grab attention](https://kelfordinc.com/what-we-pay-attention-to-kelford-labs-daily/) and get you to take [one step closer](https://kelfordinc.com/being-found-from-far-away-kelford-labs-daily/). The back of the box, though, was considered in isolation. You can only read the back of one box at a time, and its job was to make you [comfortable enough](https://kelfordinc.com/closer-marketing-clearer-marketing-kelford-labs-daily/) to drop your hard-earned cash (and/or parents’ credit card deposit) on this game instead of *that* game. But even now that software is sold entirely digitally, you still kind of get the “back of the box” experience. If you buy a video game on your PS5, for instance, you can usually look at screenshots, read marketing copy, get the details about how many players and whether it’s online or off, and even watch exciting trailers. If you buy an app on the App Store, you can browse the screenshots, read about the privacy information, and visit the developer’s website to learn more. Physical products may have lost their brick-and-mortar real estate, but they have mostly preserved their digital “back of the box” on their websites and in online storefronts. **But I think *a lot* of service businesses *haven’t*.** In fact, most websites for services, like consultancies, advisors, even marketers, are all front-of-the-box experiences. They try to grab your attention with some clever hook or jargony headline, and then absolutely fumble it from there. Usually, there’s a sparse About page, some team headshots, and a contact form. If you’re lucky, there’s a portfolio of work, and maybe a case study or two. **But for the browser, the person considering multiple options, they often have very little (if anything) to rely on to make them more comfortable getting closer.** They can usually only choose to contact the firm, or close the tab. There’s no blog, no newsletter, no “[middle step](https://kelfordinc.com/whats-your-middle-step-kelford-labs-daily/)” content to keep them engaged and even entertained while they browse. And I think that’s a *huge* mistake. It’s like placing the box on the shelf and giving it an exciting front cover but leaving the back of it completely blank. It’s just a white rectangle with a price tag. **Look, I’m not saying everyone needs to do** [**what we’ve done**](https://www.kelfordinc.com)**: Making your *entire website* a newsletter is a bold and not-for-everyone move.** But there’s a middle ground for middle-step content. One where you don’t think of your blog as an acquisition engine, but as a way to make those who’ve *already found you* more comfortable getting closer. Your newsletter isn’t about getting as many subscribers as you can and selling into the list, it’s about giving the people who find what you do interesting *more to read* before they choose to buy. **A step toward you, at their pace, instead of a “buy now or buy never” ultimatum.** As I’ve written before, [*physicality signals commitment*](https://kelfordinc.com/physicality-signals-commitment-kelford-labs-daily/). Printing your video game on a disc and selling it at a retail store tells your customers you’re committed to sticking with it and supporting it over time. Ditching the discs and [telling your customers](https://www.polygon.com/sony-digital-games-lawsuit-california/) they don’t really own the content they pay for is the exact opposite of that. So a website for a service business that contains comfort-creating content signals commitment to the work, to the client, to the category in which you operate. A one-page website without any supporting content is the front of the box. **It might be time to start working on the back-of-the-box content.** Let me know if you’d like some help. *(Oh, and if you responded to the Dreamcast content, you should know I just bought my first one last week)* ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5a/75/5a75dc74-aafc-42ff-a23a-da6b80d4c2f9/content/images/2026/09/IMG_1880.JPEG) A 27-year-old Sega Dreamcast with the game Shenmue --- [***Kelford Inc.***](https://www.kelfordinc.com/) ***are content marketers for expert advisors. If you’re struggling with what to say and where to say it to attract your ideal clients,*** [***we’ll show you the way***](https://kelfordinc.com/contact/)***.***