By Vicky Sidler | Published 15 June 2025 at 12:00 GMT

According to a new profile in Fortune, the three-person tent company SlingFin has quietly built a profitable business by educating customers instead of marketing to them.

No ads. No CTAs. No “our story” pages with soft-focus images and acoustic guitar music.

Just deep, technical blog posts about fabric UV resistance, written by a guy who also handles customer service and wholesale accounts.

It’s the kind of anti-marketing approach that makes you wonder if you’ve been overthinking everything. Because let’s be honest—if you’ve ever said “I hate marketing” out loud (possibly while squinting at your 17 open Canva tabs), you’re not alone.

Turns out, you don’t need to become a personal brand or funnel ninja. You just need to know what your customers care about—and explain it clearly.

The Tent Built for the Death Zone:

SlingFin’s founder, Martin Zemitis, made his mark designing gear for The North Face and Mountain Hardwear. But he got tired of being told his tents were too advanced for mass-market buyers.

One of his most infamous designs? A tent built for Babu Chiri Sherpa, who planned to spend the night on the summit of Mount Everest. The marketing team called it “the world’s highest coffin.” Chiri survived. So did the tent.

That tension—between building the best gear possible and trying to “position” it for mall shoppers—led Zemitis to start SlingFin. No shortcuts. No suits. Just elite gear for elite adventurers.

And somehow, without traditional marketing, they made it work.

What SlingFin Does Instead of Selling:

Their approach is refreshingly simple:

1. Teach Instead of Sell:

Tim Hunt, SlingFin’s marketing lead (who is also the product guy, wholesale guy, and support desk), writes blog posts explaining how and why the gear is designed the way it is. One post, about UV resistance in fabrics, took months to write and includes lab-style tests, photos, and charts.

It’s not sales copy. It’s education. And it works—because the readers are the kind of people who treat tents as safety gear, not glamping accessories.

2. Let Trusted Reviewers Handle Validation:

Instead of buying glossy ads, SlingFin puts their gear in the hands of niche reviewers who know what they’re doing. These folks don’t sugarcoat. But when the product holds up, the reviews build real trust.

Plus, the affiliate links let SlingFin track the impact without guessing.

What You Can Borrow From This (Without Climbing Everest):

As a Duct Tape Marketing Strategist and StoryBrand Certified Guide, I’ll say this clearly: if you can explain what you do and why it matters, you’re already doing the most effective form of marketing.

Here’s how to adapt SlingFin’s method for your business:

✅ Pick One Question Your Customer Has:

Start with the thing you explain over and over again. Write it out. Keep it simple. Make it useful. It doesn’t HAVE to be a 5,000-word blog post, don’t worry. But it DOES have to be real, honest content. Bonus points if you include a diagram, photo, or real-world example.

✅ Publish Once, Then Reuse:

That blog post? Turn it into 3 social posts, an FAQ for your site, and a follow-up email. Congratulations—you’ve just built a content system without calling it that.

✅ Drop the Pretetious BS:

Talk like a human. Explain like a guide. If your product or service is strong, clarity is more persuasive than any tagline.

Want to Build Trust Without Feeling Salesy?

If your gut says “I don’t want to market, I just want people to get it”—I made this for you.

Download my free 5-Minute Marketing Fix. It helps you write one clear sentence that explains what you do and why people should care—based on StoryBrand principles, with zero BS.

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Because let’s face it: if a guy can build the world’s lightest tent for Everest and still hate marketing, you can find a way that works for you too.