I’ve been noticing something interesting lately in the AI development space
People keep trying to apply marketing thinking to programming and it just doesn’t work
You know what I’m talking about – the whole vibe marketing approach where you focus on the feeling and the energy and hope the details work themselves out
But when it comes to vibe coding we’re dealing with something fundamentally different
Let me tell you about this friend of mine who runs a startup
He’s brilliant at selling ideas and getting people excited about products
So when he heard about vibe coding he thought it would be perfect for him
He could just describe what he wanted and AI would make it happen
Except that’s not how it works at all
His first attempt was a disaster
He gave the AI vague prompts like create something amazing that users will love
The result was a mess of conflicting features and broken functionality
Here’s the thing about vibe coding that many people miss
It requires precision in your intentions
You can’t just vibe your way through it
The whole point is to move from writing code to defining clear specifications
As the principles of vibe coding remind us code becomes capability while intentions and interfaces become long-term assets
This is where the marketing mindset falls apart
Marketing thrives on ambiguity and emotional appeal
Programming demands clarity and precision
Even when we’re using AI to generate the code
The quality of your output depends entirely on the quality of your input
I see this pattern over and over
People think vibe coding means they don’t need to understand how software works
They believe they can just describe their vision and magic will happen
But the reality is quite different
You need to understand what makes good software to create good specifications
You need to know what questions to ask and what details matter
The principle that really hits home here is verification and observation are the core of system success
You can’t just trust the vibes
You need to verify that what you’re building actually works
And that requires understanding what working means in technical terms
Another area where marketing thinking fails is in maintenance
Marketing campaigns have a shelf life
Software systems need to evolve and adapt
As the principles suggest we’re moving from software engineering to software ecosystem thinking
This isn’t about one-off creations
It’s about building systems that can grow and change over time
That requires thinking about standards and governance
About how different components will work together
About creating interfaces that remain stable while implementations change
The most successful vibe coders I know aren’t relying on good vibes alone
They’re combining clear thinking with AI capabilities
They understand that their role has shifted but hasn’t disappeared
They’re focusing on defining the what while AI handles the how
But defining the what well requires deep understanding
It requires knowing what’s possible and what’s practical
What scales and what breaks
What users actually need versus what sounds good in a pitch
So if you’re thinking about getting into vibe coding
Don’t approach it like you’re marketing a product
Approach it like you’re designing a system
Think about the long-term implications of your decisions
Consider how different pieces will fit together
Focus on creating clear, testable specifications
That’s where the real power of vibe coding lies
Not in vague aspirations but in precise intentions
Not in marketing hype but in solid engineering thinking
The tools have changed but the fundamentals haven’t
Good software still requires clear thinking
Just now we’re expressing that thinking differently