The Ad Project, Powered by Podean

Joe Shelerud welcomes Will Fisher , CCO and co-founder of Amerge, fresh off the announcement that Amerge is joining Podean, the same group that acquired Ad Advance just weeks earlier. In this episode, Joe and Will pull back the curtain on what it really takes to build a world-class Amazon agency, and what joining a global group means for their teams, clients, and the future of retail media. Key Ta...

Joe Shelerud , CEO of Ad Advance, sits down with Ryan Craver , Chief Strategy Officer of Podean, for a candid, fast-moving conversation on what's actually happening in AI right now — and what it means for agencies and marketers. Key Takeaways: The pace is the story. From ChatGPT's launch in November 2022 to Claude Sonnet 4.6, OpenClaw, and Perplexity Computer all dropping within weeks of each othe...

Joe Shelerud is joined by Mark Power, co-founder and Chief Engagement Officer at Podean — the global commerce agency that recently acquired Ad Advance — for a candid conversation about building agencies from the ground up and why culture is the most underrated competitive advantage. Key Takeaways: Mark's 30-year journey from B2B email marketing in London → content marketing → IPG → founding Podean...

If you've ever struggled to justify brand spend to a CMO or CEO — this episode is for you. Joe Shelerud is joined by Tony Miller , Director of Programmatic Strategy at Ad Advance (now powered by Podean ), to break down one of their most powerful tools: Customer Avatar . Instead of relying on assumptions about who your customers are, Customer Avatar reverse-engineers your actual best buyers using A...

In Episode 176, Maarja Hewitt and Tony Miller , Ad Advance's Director Programmatic Strategy, discuss Amazon DSP’s shift to the Open Internet with new partnerships from Roku, Disney, Netflix, and Spotify. Key takeaways include: One-Stop Shop : Amazon DSP expands to offer video and audio ads across the Open Internet. Unified Media : Solves fragmentation by offering better frequency control and measu...

Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2025 delivered big numbers, but not in the way many brands expected. In Black Friday & Cyber Monday 2025 Results: Shopper Trends & AI’s Impact , host Maarja Hewitt is joined by Ad Advance VP of Operations, Erik Swenson , to break down how the holiday shopping season really played out. They look at traffic, conversion, and sales trends, why the events felt soft...

Recorded live at Amazon Ads unBoxed, Joe Shelerud talks with Meredith Goldman , Director of Media Enablement at Amazon Ads , about the newest innovations across DSP, AMC, AI-driven creative, and audience expansion. They explore how Creative Agent and Ads Agent are lowering barriers for advertisers, how advertisers can use AI without replacing human expertise, and how AMC is becoming the central hu...

In Episode 173 of The Ad Project , Joe Shelerud continues the AI conversation with Ad Advance Software Engineer Roger Branham — expanding on how OpenAI’s Agentic Commerce Protocol could transform not just shopping, but advertising itself. They unpack: How ChatGPT and Gemini could evolve into major ad platforms What happens when generative AI gains deep insight into user behavior The tension betwee...

In this episode of The Ad Project , Joe Shelerud talks with Ad Advance Developer Roger Branham about how AI is disrupting eCommerce . They explore: ChatGPT’s new instant checkout and what it means for sellers How the OpenAI x Stripe commerce protocol could reshape online transactions Why Walmart might adopt AI faster than Amazon How data ownership, ads, and trust evolve in an AI-driven world What...

Live from Amazon Accelerate, Joe and Adobe’s David Devisser unpack the new Adobe Express integration with Amazon Ads. You will see how to discover policy-ready templates, connect your Creative Asset Library, run real-time checks, and export to the right specs in one flow. Key takeaways You can start from Amazon Ads templates inside Express, then customize quickly. Real-time policy checks and safe-...

Episode 170 of The Ad Project was recorded at Amazon Live Studios in New York City, where Joe Shelerud sat down with Destaney Wishon (BTR Media) and Jennyfer Guone (Amazon Ads) to discuss the launch of Creative Studio , announced at Amazon Accelerate. What you’ll learn in this episode: How Creative Studio streamlines ad creation from concept to final video or image asset. Why AI + Amazon retail in...

In this special episode, recorded live at Amazon Live’s NYC studios, Joe Shelerud sits down with Destaney Wishon of BTR Media to explore: The rapid evolution of the Amazon Ads ecosystem How AMC unlocks new insights like path to purchase and ad type overlap Why audience targeting + analytics are reshaping strategy Practical ways brands can prioritize AMC without feeling overwhelmed Destaney is the...

In this episode of The Ad Project , Joe and Maarja discuss the latest Amazon Ads algorithm changes shaking up Sponsored Products Key takeaways: Auto campaigns now account for nearly 40% of impressions, with broad match also climbing. Exact match still drives the highest conversion rates (>20%), but its share is shrinking. CPCs are rising on broad (+20% YoY) while auto remains cheapest. Amazon i...

The holiday season keeps starting earlier and stretching longer. That means brands can’t just focus on Black Friday and Cyber Monday anymore — they need a strategy that carries through continuous deal weeks. In this episode of The Ad Project , Joe Shelerud and Maarja Hewitt walk through a 7-step Q4 checklist: Budget pacing across a longer season Inventory planning and forecasting Creative testing...

DSP can feel like a big leap—but it’s becoming a must-have for growth-oriented brands. In this episode, Maarja Hewitt welcomes Tony Miller , Director of Programmatic Strategy at Ad Advance, to break down what Amazon DSP actually is and how it works. You’ll learn: 🔑 Key Takeaways: What makes DSP different from Sponsored Ads Key benefits like audience targeting and creative flexibility When a...

AI is changing advertising—and fast. In this episode, Joe and Maarja break down how AI is impacting the world of Amazon and retail media, from generative creative tools to AI-driven customer journeys and predictive campaign optimization. They explore what’s real, what’s hype, and what it all means for brands and marketers. 🔑 Key Takeaways: Amazon’s creative tools and generative AI are speedi...

In episode 164 of The Ad Project, Joe Shelerud (CEO) and Matt Wiklund (CTO) break down how to select the right KPIs for your Amazon advertising strategy—whether you’re selling high-ticket one-time purchases or repeat-consumable goods. They explore how ROAS, TACoS, new-to-brand metrics, and customer acquisition costs should flex based on your brand’s goals and product lifecycle. 🔑  Key Takeaw...

In this episode of The Ad Project Podcast, Joe Shelerud and Maarja Hewitt break down Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC) in the simplest terms yet. AMC has become a buzzword in the advertising world — but what is it really, and why should brands care? Joe and Maarja cover everything from what a "data clean room" actually means, to how AMC allows advertisers to unify data across Sponsored Ads, DSP, and ev...

Retail media is having a moment — and facing major growing pains. Joe and Maarja dive into why so many retailers are launching networks, how fragmentation is creating operational headaches, and what advertisers should focus on now. From privacy shifts and first-party data goldmines to the need for standardization and consolidation, they share actionable insights on navigating this evolving space....

Prime Day 2025 is going from 2 to 4 days—and advertisers need to be ready. In this episode, Joe Shelerud and Maarja Hewitt break down what this longer event means for budget pacing, conversion trends, and media planning. They explore performance data from past Prime Days, how the extended format could shift buyer behavior, and what strategies will help brands win this year. 🔑 Key Takeaways includ...

Prime Day 2025 is stretching into four days, opening up huge opportunities — and new complexities — for brands on Amazon. In this special guest-hosted episode, Tony Miller (Director of Programmatic Strategy) and Isaac Shelton (Sr. Account Manager) lay out a tactical, AMC-powered strategy to win across each phase of Prime Day. 🔑 Key Takeaways: Learn from past Prime Day data: 3x impressions, 2.6x s...

The Ad Project Relaunch: Retail Media’s Rapid Evolution & What Comes Next We’re back! After a one-year break, The Ad Project returns with CEO Joe Shelerud and Director of Strategy & Insights Maarja Hewitt kicking off a new chapter — with a new studio, a growing team, and plenty to talk about. In this episode: The rise of Amazon Marketing Cloud: 5-year lookback, audience creation, and SQL G...

Summary In this episode, Joe Shelerud interviews Corey Brown from buffaBRAND Marketing about AI image generation and its potential impact on advertising. They discuss the various tools available, the importance of having a strong creative foundation, and the challenges of using AI to generate realistic and effective images. They also explore the future of AI image generation and how it could chang...

Summary In this episode, Joe Shelerud interviews Dan Brownsher from Channel Key. They discuss the current state of the e-commerce space, the challenges and opportunities for brands on platforms like Amazon, and the key factors that contribute to a brand's success. They emphasize the importance of high-quality products, brand building, and maximizing total lifetime value. They also highlight the ne...

Summary In this episode, Keith from Made In discusses his journey in the e-commerce space and the strategies he implemented to scale the new-to-brand customer on Amazon. He shares insights on testing incrementality, maximizing lower funnel opportunities, expanding search terms, and utilizing Amazon Marketing Cloud. Keith also compares the Walmart Marketplace to Amazon and talks about the potential...