AdTalk by AdClass

Ex-Acquisition.com Director Tobias Allen on AI, Branding & Direct Response In this episode, Tobias Allen joins Dakota Hermes to talk about how AI is reshaping marketing, what brand really means in 2025, and why the fundamentals of persuasion never die. They break down what’s working in paid ads right now, how to think about brand vs. direct response, and how marketers can stay dangerous in the...

Most ad accounts don’t stall out of nowhere (unless you literally only launched a set-and-forget way back in 2020). You need to know where to look and how to fix an underperforming account before it really causes a problem. Lucky for you, The AdClass 5-Step Diagnostic Playbook is here to save the day! Caleb, Dakota, and Matthew show how they audit and diagnose ad accounts to spot the true constrai...

The world of advertising moves fast. What worked last week might flop today. In this “state of the union” episode, Caleb, Dakota, and Matthew break down what’s actually working right now in paid advertising, with a special look at how organic content is reshaping the way ad campaigns are being built and scaled. The team dives into the power of organic-style content, why webinars are making a comeb...

You've probably heard of vibe marketing, but what exactly is it? Sometimes the best marketing isn’t about hard selling at all, it’s about creating a vibe people want to be part of. In a world oversaturated with CTAs and scarcity plays, audiences are gravitating toward brands that feel authentic, intentional, and emotionally magnetic. And with the rise of AI integrations into workflows, we are...

When a client comes to you after spending $340K on ads with zero sales attributed, where do you even start? In this episode, Caleb and Matthew break down the exact steps they took to turn a restaurant POS account with plenty of spend but no results into a funnel that’s now producing a 28X LTV return. From fixing funnel gaps to improving lead quality and dialing in creative, this is a real-world ca...

Is the era of overly polished, AI-generated ads finally dying? In this episode, Caleb and Matthew sit down with performance strategist Elly Charland to break down what’s actually working in ad creative right now, from viral hooks and pattern interrupts to low-budget videos that outperform studio shoots. It’s a deep dive into why “realness” is winning and how even a phone-filmed ad can dominate in...

Building a strong company culture without a physical office might sound challenging historically speaking, but it’s been one of the most central reasons for growing our fully remote team to a point of amazing success. With insights on everything workplace culture including the importance of daily team syncs and celebrating wins to hiring with intentionality and leading with trust, we’re sharing wh...

In 2025, high-ticket sales aren’t as simple as they used to be. With rising ad costs and a growing trust recession, buyers are more skeptical than ever. So how do you keep high-ticket conversions strong? One solution is low-ticket offers. A well-placed low-ticket product can serve as a bridge, building trust and qualifying serious buyers before they ever reach your high-ticket offer. But if you’re...

Don't call it a comeback! Caleb, Dakota, and Matthew return to catch up on how the marketing landscape looks in the wake of the continued rise of AI. AI has been a hot topic globally in almost every industry for the last few years, but it is undeniably reaching new heights in recent months. With new ChatGPT models released more and more frequently, companies developing new AI-centric tools in...

Wondering how to optimize your Meta ads in today’s privacy-first world? Dakota and Matthew break down the Conversions API (CAPI) and explain how it can drastically improve your ad performance by solving the issues caused by browser-based tracking limitations. Learn what CAPI is, how it works, and why it plays a pivotal role in better targeting and more accurate data. From real-world examples to be...

Call cost cut in half WHILE call quality increased? In the high-ticket world, having a marketing team behind your back that works hard to deliver strong results means everything. But that's not all that Jon Chintanaroad found when he signed AdClass to handle marketing for his business Recruiting Accelerator. Caleb recently sat down with Jon (at Jon's request) to talk about his experience...

Remember the 2016 and 2020 elections? Other than the political ramifications, there were huge shifts in the online marketing world too. As a result, election years have become minefields to navigate ever since. Caleb and Dakota talk about what those shifts could look like in 2024 as we enter the new election cycle, what they're already seeing in ad accounts, and best practices to make sure yo...

We know high-ticket sales and paid media inside out, so if you're in this area of digital marketing and struggling to get highly qualified leads, this is for you! Dakota and Matthew discuss the best ad funnel that is running game in the high-ticket marketing world and one that will change how you run your ads in 2024 (and beyond)... If you enjoyed this episode and want to keep up with all thi...

What would a huge boost in sales output look like for you this year? Today's guest, CloseSales.com founder Austin Medlin, explores the factors that are constantly in play when working out how to turn a lead into a sale. Spoiler alert: if you're not converting leads, you might be the problem... Caleb sits down with Austin to discuss his background in sales, what key lessons he has learned...

Before you swipe away, no this isn't TMZ. However, the culture-dominating relationship between Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce is having a widespread impact on the marketing world. Call it what you want but after a cruel summer for the economy, it feels like everything has changed. So is this a love story, or just a sweet nothing designed to rake in revenue? Caleb and Dakota talk it out to get...

What does success look like to you? And what would it take to achieve it? Today's guest knows a lot about what it means to work hard for what he wants, but also what it takes to succeed not only in business but also personally in a healthy, balanced lifestyle. Attitude is everything. Get ready to be inspired! Caleb and Dakota sit down with Weston Hudspeth to discuss the current state of the h...

Out of nowhere, Snapchat announced itself as the fastest-growing social media platform of 2023 so far, outperforming the likes of TikTok, Instagram and, yes, Threads. Did we secretly time-travel back to 2013? And what does it mean for advertising? In other news, Elon Musk keeps stepping on rakes he places in front of himself by announcing the end of the block feature on X/Twitter, Meta weighs up a...

What would you do if your monthly revenue grew from $6k to over $90k in less than a year? That's exactly what happened to AdClass student Dr. Matt Shiver, who launched his coaching offer into the stratosphere through paid advertising! To find out how it all went down, Dakota and Caleb discuss with Matt the critical changes he made to both his organic and paid strategy to generate a perfect le...

Sometimes in life, you just have to tip your hat to the greats... Dakota and Caleb consider what is at the core of some of the greatest and most expensive ad campaigns of all time, the legacy they left, and whether they really were worth the billions of dollars worth of cash needed to create them in the first place. If you enjoyed this episode and want to keep up with all things advertising, be su...

One normal day of marketing. All we ask. Will never happen. The human riddle-wrapped-in-a-mystery-inside-an-enigma that is Elon Musk decided to let the bluebird fly the cage by rebranding Twitter to X (1:55). All the while, Threads (Meta's competitor to X (ugh seriously)) struggled to maintain it's record-breaking pace as post-launch engagement fell by 70% (13:30)! The battle between Elo...

Out of left field on July 3rd, Threads appeared on the Apple App Store with a shockingly-soon release date of July 6th. Within a week of the launch, Threads had over 100 MILLION active users on the platform thanks to one of the most impressive organic campaigns ever undertaken in the social media age. The Elon vs Zuck war has officially begun!  Caleb and Dakota talk through the insane launch campa...

In a turn of events that shocked literally nobody, because this is 2023 and we live in a simulation, Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg are reportedly preparing to fight it out IRL. Not satisfied with waging an online war of culture-defining proportions, the two billionaire man-babies are training to square up against each other in the octagon. Who will win? Will it even take place? Is this actually ju...

Late in 2021, Mark Zuckerberg announced the decision to rebrand Facebook to Meta with the intent of building the social media giant around the Metaverse, a virtual reality platform. That was cute! Then Apple announced the Vision Pro; RIP Metaverse 2021-2023. Caleb and Dakota react to the huge Apple WWDC announcement and its impact on the AR/VR industry, whether the Vision Pro is a good thing for s...

Things are always changing in the world of advertising and marketing, so here's a State of the Union to get you caught up on everything we're clued in on (plus the usual amount of singing). After reflecting on the state of the economy (5:15), Caleb and Dakota talk through the major changes impacting advertising at YouTube (8:40), reappraise the place of Bing as a legit platform thanks to...

We can all point to an ad or two, either from our childhood or more recently, that just stuck with us. It could have been down to any number on factors; did it have cute animals, a catchy jingle, great humor, or something else that set it apart? In this episode of AdTalk, Caleb and Dakota look back on some of their favorite ads growing up and why they had such a lasting impact (2:26). After, they...