Marketing Speak®

Most entrepreneurs ask: "How do I get my first client?" My answer: Stop asking. Start delivering value—uninvited, uncompensated, and unapologetically. When I dropped out of my PhD program in 1995 (drowning in student loan debt), I had no portfolio, no speaking experience, and no business asking Fortune 500 companies for their money. But I understood something most don't: Your playing small does no...

Most CEOs and entrepreneurs are neglecting their most important asset: their personal brand. Kara Goldin (founder of Hint Water) asked me a great question on her show: "How does SEO vary for a brand versus an individual?" My answer surprised her—and it might surprise you too. In this special crossover episode on Marketing Speak, I explain why most business leaders focus exclusively on their compan...

Most businesses expect AI to cut content costs in half and triple output. That fantasy rarely survives contact with reality. In this episode of Marketing Speak, I sat down with Eric Enge—founder of Pilot Holding, my co-author on all four editions of The Art of SEO, and author of Using Generative AI for SEO—to discuss what actually works with AI in marketing. Eric has built and sold four companies,...

Most entrepreneurs have their calendars backwards—and it's costing them everything. Todd Herman has spent 21 years in high-performance athletics, working with Olympic athletes and billionaire entrepreneurs. His controversial insight is that most entrepreneurs are committing the cardinal sin of business: mistaking activity for achievement. Todd's philosophy is brutally simple: One goal. 90 days. Co...

📉 Losing profit to unclear processes or ghosting clients? In this Marketing Speak episode, Melissa Morris reveals why most agencies leak profit—and how to fix it with better onboarding, clearer deliverables, and data-backed pricing. Whether you're drowning in Slack messages or tired of clients ghosting your team, this episode gives you the tools to fix it—fast. The show notes, including the trans...

🚨Podcasters: If you're ignoring YouTube, you're flushing growth down the algorithmic toilet. In this episode of Marketing Speak, I break down why YouTube is non-negotiable—even if your download numbers are laughably low. 🎯 Inside the episode: • The lazy podcaster's guide to turning transcripts into SEO machines • How to clone your content with the "Evil Twin" strategy • Why your client interview...

While everyone's panicking about AI killing website traffic, one client scaled from 2M to 13M monthly visits. In the latest episode of Marketing Speak, design expert Greg Merrilees reveals how WhatIsMyIPAddress.com achieved explosive growth by building authority—not just pretty websites. Learn the exact architecture that beats AI Overviews and Google's traffic death spiral. This episode is a bluep...

The marketing game has fundamentally changed. While most businesses still chase website clicks, AI is forming opinions about your brand before anyone visits your site. In my latest Marketing Speak episode, Dixon Jones (CEO of InLinks and former Global Brand Ambassador for Majestic) reveals why traditional SEO metrics are becoming obsolete. Dixon, who's earned the Queen's Award for Enterprise and U...

What if putting yourself first actually grew your business instead of hurting it? Sagi Shrieber, first designer at Fiverr and SimilarWeb, scaled his design agency to seven figures while working LESS hours. His secret? The "Nine to Twelve Rule" - blocking 9 AM to 12 PM daily for personal time before any client meetings. The counterintuitive result: Higher productivity, better client relationships,...

Most entrepreneurs are using AI completely wrong and missing massive growth opportunities. Danny Iny, founder of Mirasee and Harvard Business Review contributor, reveals why the difference between AI as a "junior assistant" vs. "senior strategist" isn't about the technology—it's about the context you provide.  In our latest Marketing Speak conversation, Danny shares his contrarian framework for tu...

AI is reshaping how content gets discovered, and many publishers are watching their traffic disappear. But here's what most don't realize: Google Discover now accounts for 65% of publisher traffic with CTRs 4x higher than traditional search. John Shehata, founder of NewzDash and former global audience growth leader at Condé Nast (60+ brands), reveals the survival strategies publishers need right n...

🚀 Most authors waste thousands chasing vanity metrics like Amazon "Best Seller" tags. In this Marketing Speak episode, Alex Strathdee takes a different approach—helping authors get their books into the right hands to generate leads, build authority, and drive real business growth. With 1,000+ nonfiction books marketed, Alex shares why giving away free copies can sometimes be your smartest move —a...

💡 "Don't try to be like Apple unless you have Apple's brand authority" - Greg Merrilees This insight from Episode 515 explains why so many premium service websites fail to convert. Greg Merrilees, founder of Studio1 Design, just walked us through a case study that every business owner needs to hear. We transformed Quintessa (a high-end cosmetic surgery center) from a sparse, "clean" website into...

While everyone's worried about AI replacing them, Dustin Riechmann built a $1M business by doubling down on what AI can't replicate: human connection and shared values. Dustin's journey from traffic engineer → marriage ministry → meat stick entrepreneur → seven-figure business coach proves that relationships trump tactics every time. His unconventional strategies: 🎯 Using podcast guesting for "re...

💡 The marketing game isn't just changing—it's being completely rewritten. Lauren Pawell returns to Marketing Speak with a reality check: if you're not experimenting with AI in your marketing, someone else will take your clients. From professional ballet to medical device sales to generating quarter-million dollar campaigns, Lauren's unconventional path led to breakthrough AI strategies that are t...

🎯 Your website is never finished. It's your silent sales machine working 24/7. Greg Merrilees just shared the blueprint that took Firefly Legal from outdated to industry-leading in our latest Marketing Speak deep dive. Here's what most service businesses get wrong: They treat their website like a digital brochure instead of a conversion-focused sales tool. Greg's systematic approach fixes this wi...

🎯 What if the ONE thing blocking your business growth isn't what you think it is? Israel Duran went from a child who couldn't speak without stuttering to empowering thousands of entrepreneurs worldwide. In our latest Marketing Speak episode, he reveals his "Beach of Abundance" model that identifies the critical business leaks preventing exponential growth. His insight? Most entrepreneurs keep try...

🚀 How a law firm increased conversions by 12x and signed 60 new cases in just 3 months... I just released a powerful case study episode with Greg Merrilees from Studio1 Design, breaking down the complete transformation of Yosha Law - from generic to sophisticated, conversion-optimized powerhouse. Most websites look identical with cookie-cutter templates and autoplay videos that KILL conversions....

💡 "Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat" - Sun Tzu This quote perfectly captures what Greg Merrilees and I discovered when analyzing failed website redesigns. Too many businesses jump into design changes without understanding the psychology behind what actually converts visitors. Greg, founder of Studio1 Design, just shared the exact methodology his team used to transform Primal Tr...

After 25 years in business, Meny Hoffman discovered the secret to scaling culture in remote teams isn't technology—it's intentionality. As CEO of Ptex Group, Meny transformed his Brooklyn-based agency from 100% in-office to a thriving hybrid model by appointing "culture ambassadors" who "burn calories every week," strengthening team connection. His approach? Core values that trigger daily conversa...

🚀 How a children's book company increased sales from 4 million to 6 million copies with a strategic website redesign Just dropped an incredible case study with Greg Merrilees, breaking down the complete transformation of Tuttle Twins' website. Here's what moved the needle:  ✅ Leveraged "common enemy" strategy (CNN criticism actually DROVE sales)  ✅ Implemented side cart upsells for instant AOV...

Kevin Indig dropped mind-blowing insights on Marketing Speak about how AI is reshaping everything we know about search and marketing. His exclusive user study reveals that Google's AI overviews are causing click-through rates to plummet by more than half. But here's the counterintuitive truth: To compete with AI, you need to become MORE human, not less. Kevin's research shows that users now apply...

🎯 Most entrepreneurs struggle with selling because they feel "too salesy" - but what if selling could actually be joyful? My latest Marketing Speak guest, Lisa Bloom, has cracked the code. After 15+ years as a story coach, she's helped hundreds of entrepreneurs sell naturally through authentic storytelling. One client made two sales at a single networking meeting, covering her entire program inve...

From laid-off architect to 1.5M YouTube subscribers and $415K Kickstarter launch—Pat Flynn's journey proves that authenticity beats perfection every time. His secret? The "just-in-time learning" approach helps you avoid information overload while accelerating skill acquisition. Instead of consuming everything "just in case," Pat teaches focusing only on what's needed for your next step. This strat...

🎯 The #1 mistake local service businesses make with their websites? Copying their competitors. Greg Merrilees just shared this game-changing insight on Marketing Speak: "You don't know what's working on their website and what's not. Why copy them?" Instead, Greg's Studio One Design uses a systematic approach: → Deep competitor analysis (to differentiate, not copy) → StoryBrand framework for messa...