Jason Hu, founder and CEO of NexAd, joins to unpack the next generation of advertising: ad placements inside AI chatbots (think DeepAI, Character.ai, Liner) and fully automated ad ops via AI agents. We cover why chatbots behave like “answer engines” (higher intent than search), how conversation context supercharges targeting while preserving privacy via embeddings, and the real-world impact for agencies—automated onboarding, creative generation, campaign setup/management, and client comms. Jason also reflects on TikTok’s ad scale, the AI “bubble” vs. dot-com era, and the infrastructure (GPUs, energy) behind this wave. If you run paid media or build media products, this is your map of what’s coming—and how to benefit first.

Guest
Jason Hu — Founder & CEO, NexAd: https://www.nex.ad/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/qitian-hu/
X: https://x.com/onjas_6

Key Takeaways

• Answer Engines = Higher Intent: Chatbots compress “search → click → compare” into a single answer flow; ad units embedded in that context convert.
• Contextual Targeting Without PII: Using embeddings preserves privacy while capturing ultra-specific intent (“car broke down at X & Y in SF”).
• AI as Staff: Treat agents as virtual employees for 80–90% of repetitive work—onboarding, creatives, campaign builds, budget iteration, reporting.
• Cost & Speed Gains: Agencies Jason works with report up to ~95% reduction in operational cost with better or equal performance.
• The Infra Is Real: This isn’t just software—GPUs, data centers, and energy provisioning are the new constraints (and opportunities).
• Ad Market Expands (Not Shrinks): Like the shift to social/search, AI ads are likely to grow the pie by improving the product.

Timestamps

00:00 – Why “Answer Engines” Beat Search — Chatbots return the answer, not just links; intent is off the charts.

02:00 – Ad Inventory Inside Chatbots — Live on major bots; conversation history enables precise, moment-of-need targeting.

06:00 – Privacy Approach — No raw chat storage; use of embeddings/anonymized intent signals.

08:30 – Workflow Automation for Agencies — AI as “virtual employees” for research, creative, campaign setup, budget iteration, reporting, and even client comms.

13:30 – Why Jason Picked Ads (TikTok lens) — The sheer scale of digital ads and how AI is changing it.

18:00 – Agencies vs. Platforms — It’s a partnership: platforms still chase advertiser performance and feedback.

22:30 – Is AI a Bubble? Lessons from Dot-Com — Revenue reality, who bears risk, and why utility outlives valuation cycles.

28:00 – The Physical World of AI — Data centers, GPUs, and energy constraints; macro tailwinds from infra build-out.

33:30 – Case Studies & Ops Impact — Small ecom wins; agencies cutting ~95% of ops costs with NexAd’s agents.

37:00 – How to Try It + Closing — nex.ad and direct email.

Sponsor
Opal — the spend platform built for performance marketers: https://opalspend.com/

Win on one channel—not eight. Oliver Brocato, Founder & CEO of Bustem, breaks down how to weaponize creator flywheels, pressure platforms to remove fakes, and turn an authentic personal brand into millions in pipeline.

After scaling Tabs, the viral “sex chocolate,” through a creator-led content engine, Oliver faced counterfeits, stolen ads, and fake listings firsthand. Those challenges inspired Bustem, a pay-per-takedown service that helps brands find, document, and remove scammers across Amazon, Shopify, paid social, and beyond. We get into:

• When one great acquisition channel beats eight mediocre ones
• The DMCA → platform → host/registrar → payments → Google delist escalation ladder
• Why marketplaces aren’t incentivized to protect you… until you push them
• How to build a creator swarm (hundreds of daily posts) without buying followers
• The personal brand flywheel that drives inbound deal flow for B2B

Time-Stamps

00:00 — “You only need to win on one channel.” Why focus beats “be everywhere.”
00:38 — Who is Oliver; why he built Bustem for e-com brands getting ripped off.
02:00 — From fidget spinners at 14 → Tabs → AI side projects → Bustem.
03:40 — The problem: stolen ads, dupe sites, fake marketplace listings.
07:03 — Case studies: why ingestibles/supplements get hit hardest; safety risk.
08:40 — How platforms actually work: Brand Registry, Transparency, APEX/arbitration; malicious takedowns and proof.
10:45 — When platforms stall: escalate to hosts, registrars, processors, and Google.
12:05 — Tabs’ creator flywheel: hundreds of branded accounts, 1–3 posts/day each.
14:30 — Compensation: small retainers + performance; Discord of thousands of clippers.
18:00 — When paid ads (Meta/Google/CTV) are the better, durable path vs clipping.
21:00 — The obvious growth lever founders ignore: hire proven sellers with your ICP.
22:06 — Bustem growth stack: SDR/appointments, Meta, cold email, LinkedIn.
23:05 — Personal brand playbook: be loud, be consistent, own a micro-niche.
25:00 — “Be the house, not the affiliate.” Turning audience into your own B2B offer.

Guest

• Oliver Brocato — Founder & CEO, Bustem 
• X/Twitter: https://x.com/oliver__b1

Sponsor

Opal — the spend platform built for performance marketers. - https://opalspend.com/

From jobless in 2020 to building a profitable podcast-first agency, Ben Albert (Real Business Connections) breaks down how a simple local show became a national lead engine for high-ticket clients—without paid ads. We cover booking bigger guests with social proof, repurposing every episode for long-tail ROI, and why treating your show like a public diary compounds trust, reach, and revenue.

What You’ll Learn

• Podcast → Pipeline: Turning conversations into high-ticket retainers (and why trust beats clicks).
• Guest Booking System: “Nominate” > referrals > name-drop social proof to land bigger guests.
• Repurposing Flywheel: Full episode → trailer → shorts → graphics → show notes → blog.
• Community-Led Growth: Using a free community to nurture, then upsell to a paid inner circle.
• Positioning Shift: Ditching low-ticket services to sell premium, recurring podcast ops.
• Diary-Style Content: Publish the journey, not just the highlight reel—compound returns over time.

Key Takeaways

• A podcast is a networking, brand, and content system—not just a media product.
• High-ticket > high volume: One right client can beat a thousand tiny offers.
• Stack social proof: press mentions, past guest list, reviews, testimonials—do all of it.
• Consistency compounds: Evergreen episodes keep working long after release.

Guest

Ben Albert — Real Business Connections: https://realbusinessconnections.com/
 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/realbenalbert/

Resources Mentioned

• Ben’s community: https://WeAllGrowTogether.com
• Sponsor — Opal (spend platform for performance marketers): https://www.opalspend.com/

In this episode of The Agency Hour, we sit down with Brad Smith, longtime agency owner and marketing innovator, to unpack how he scaled a $3M business by focusing on relationship-driven marketing, patient growth strategies, and systems that actually work.

Brad shares his wild journey from running a health and fitness business to pivoting into digital marketing after a life-changing accident. He breaks down his unique ad strategy on X (Twitter) that helped one client turn $3,600 in ad spend into $3M in annual revenue—all without sending a single click to a landing page.

We also dive into:

• Why most agencies fail at follow-up (and how to fix it)
• How to run hyper-effective profile visit ads that build trust before selling
• The magic of combining organic content with paid amplification
• The patience required to build lasting brand equity
• The power of staying focused instead of chasing shiny objects
• Lessons from scaling YouTube, X, and referrals into million-dollar channels

Key Takeaways

• Follow-up is everything. It now takes an average of 24 touches across 3 platforms before someone buys.
• Ads aren’t for selling upfront. Brad uses ads to drive profile visits, not clicks, building long-term trust through organic content.
• Be ready to pivot. Brad’s agency started after a devastating accident forced him to rethink his future.
• Content compounds. Eight years, 900+ YouTube videos, and $1M+ ARR later—consistency pays off.
• Focus wins. Agencies get stuck by chasing too many services. The winners get known for one thing.

Links & Resources

• Guest: Brad Smith: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hylthlink/

• Brad’s Agency: AutomationLinks.com

• Sponsor: Opal – Spend management for performance marketing teams: https://www.opalspend.com/ 

In this episode, we sit down with Christopher Kennedy, CEO of Astrafuse, a performance-based lead generation agency specializing in the home improvement space. Chris shares the story of how he and four co-founders bootstrapped their company after being laid off just weeks before Christmas 2023, and why they all took pay cuts to chase equity and build something of their own.

What You'll Learn:

• How Astrafuse landed major clients through simple LinkedIn outreach and organic content
• The power of building a visible personal brand (even with zero followers)
• Their hybrid model combining web leads and phone calls for home improvement companies
• How they built a marketplace to resell excess leads
• Balancing CTO and CEO roles as a technical founder
• Using podcasting to build trust and credibility over time
• Why consistent content creation is still the best growth strategy in 2025

Key Takeaways:

"Just show that you have a pulse - be a real person by consistently posting. It doesn't have to be elaborate, just be consistent because people will research you." Our best buyers came from doing outreach on LinkedIn, and bigger clients often have more friction upfront, but once you smooth that out, everything else flows.

Guest: Christopher Kennedy, CEO of Astrafuse
Connect: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chkennedy/

Sponsor

Opal — spend management for performance marketers
Get the ad-spend + back-office stack built for agencies: https://www.opalspend.com/ 

This episode is brought to you by Opal, the spend management platform built for performance marketing teams. Learn more at opalspend.com.

In this episode, we're joined by Yara Abaza, founder of YA Graphix, a neuromarketing agency. Yara evolved from a solo freelance designer into the creator of Instinct Intelligence, a proprietary neuromarketing system currently being clinically tested at the University of Toronto.

Yara discusses the emerging field of neuromarketing, which is projected to grow significantly in the coming years. She explains how her agency utilizes neuroscience technology, including EEG brainwave data, eye tracking, and biometric feedback, to help brands optimize their marketing strategies with a 100% success rate in segmentation, targeting, and positioning. The conversation also covers her journey in building the agency, the challenges of managing a remote team, and the importance of networking and follow-up in landing high-profile clients like Google.

Guest

Yara Abaza — Founder & CEO, YA Graphix (Neuromarketing Agency)
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yaraabaza/
Website: https://www.yagraphix.com/ (YA Graphix)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yagraphix/ (Instagram)
Press/Newsroom: https://pressroom.prlog.org/yagraphix/ (pressroom.prlog.org)
Research (Academia): A Comprehensive Neuromarketing Study… via Instinct Intelligence™ — https://www.academia.edu/143546098 (Academia)

Sponsor

Opal — spend management for performance marketers
Get the ad-spend + back-office stack built for agencies: https://www.opalspend.com/ 

Timestamps

• 00:00 — Cold open: “Neuromarketing will grow to $2.62B…” (industry momentum & bold claims)
• 00:22 — Host intro + welcome to Yara / YA Graphix
• 01:16 — What is neuromarketing vs. “the algorithm”? EEG, eye tracking, biometrics explained
• 03:32 — The origin story: design → marketing → why neuromarketing
• 04:45 — Inside Instinct Intelligence™: octagon model & eight consumer categories
• 06:10 — Running a study: ICP selection, stimuli, devices, data integration
• 08:05 — Evidence & differentiation: case studies, university collaboration, publishing results
• 10:12 — Operations: team makeup, contractors, global time zones
• 12:00 — Pricing levers: sample size, scope, confidentiality, retainers
• 14:05 — Biz dev: in-person networking, cold outreach, and the follow-up habit
• 16:20 — Founder life: long hours, family reactions, choosing your city
• 19:00 — What’s next: more trials, more research, productizing IP

Key Takeaways

• Yara’s path: freelance designer → traditional marketing → neuromarketing agency founder.
• What neuromarketing actually measures (EEG, eye tracking, biometrics) and how that differs from social algorithms.
• How Instinct Intelligence™ works (octagonal scale, eight consumer drivers/categories) and how trials are run with ICP-matched participants.
• Building IP inside an agency: partnering on studies, creating case-study proof, and using evidence to speed sales cycles.
• Remote research teams, recruiting participants, and the pricing knobs that change study size/scope.
• The reality of founder hours, perseverance, and choosing cities (Denver, NYC, Austin) for network and operations.

Resources & references mentioned

• YA Graphix (Neuromarketing agency): https://www.yagraphix.com/ (YA Graphix)
• Instinct Intelligence™ overview (brand channels): https://www.instagram.com/yagraphix/ (Instagram)
• Recent study by Yara Abaza (Academia.edu): https://www.academia.edu/143546098 (Academia)
• Neuromarketing & EEG — recent scholarly overviews:
  • A systematic review on EEG-based Neuromarketing (2024): https://braininformatics.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s40708-024-00229-8 (SpringerOpen)
  • Technological advancements & opportunities in Neuromarketing (2020): https://braininformatics.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s40708-020-00109-x (SpringerOpen)

Notable Quotes

• “We decode the subconscious—EEG and biometrics tell us what surveys can’t.”
• “Instinct Intelligence™ lets us measure competitors on an emotional scale, not just clicks.”
• “Case studies + clinical-style trials are our sales engine.”

Jennifer Mancusi, Co-Founder & CEO of Growgetter, joins Agency Hour to share how she transitioned from CRO at Voxpopme to running her own B2B growth agency. We dig into the realities of founder life, the hidden weight of sales, and why customer-centric marketing always wins. Jennifer also breaks down the right way to use AI (restructure and repurpose your own ideas—don’t replace them), how referrals and one great content download built her client base, and why disciplined CRM habits keep pipeline honest. This episode is packed with actionable insights for agency leaders, marketers, and founders who want to scale smarter.

Guest

• Jennifer Mancusi — Co-Founder & CEO at Growgetter

• Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-mancusi/

Sponsor

This episode is brought to you by Opal
 — spend management for performance teams.

Timestamps

• 00:00 – Why yesterday’s tactics won’t win today; AI in marketing
• 01:00 – What Growgetter does & who they serve
• 02:30 – From CRO to founder: admin shock & commitment shift
• 06:10 – The selling reality of agency life
• 09:00 – CRM discipline & pipeline honesty
• 12:30 – Landing the first clients: referrals + one content download
• 15:30 – Balancing client work with your own marketing
• 18:30 – Podcasting’s compounding effects
• 21:00 – Rapid change cycles: AI, Google updates, shifting trends
• 23:00 – Using AI: research, restructure, repurpose
• 27:00 – Targeting evolution: demographics → behaviors & intent
• 31:00 – Lululemon’s “Ocean” persona & customer-first strategy
• 35:00 – Timeless principle: start with the customer, channels follow
• 38:00 – What’s next: educating the market & building community

Key Takeaways

• Marketing playbooks transfer, but tactics must evolve.
• The founder’s #1 job is selling—clients, talent, and retention.
• Use AI daily for research, restructuring, and repurposing.
• Referrals + niche focus = the first wave of clients.
• CRM discipline and pipeline honesty are non-negotiable.
• Deep customer personas win over demographic targeting.
• Balancing client delivery with your own brand marketing is hard—but critical.

Links & Resources

• Growgetter: https://www.growgetter.io/

• Jennifer Mancusi (LinkedIn): https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-mancusi/

• Voxpopme: https://www.voxpopme.com/

• Opal (sponsor): https://opal.com

• Guy Kawasaki: https://guykawasaki.com/

• Andy Crestodina (Orbit Media): https://www.orbitmedia.com/blog/author/andy/

• David Ogilvy Bio: https://www.ogilvy.com/people/david-ogilvy

Quotes

• “If you’re not using AI tools, you’re doing something wrong.”
• “Measure meticulously so you can experiment freely.”
• “Delivery seemed like the hard part—turns out selling is the founder’s real job.”
• “Start with your own source content. Use AI to restructure and maximize it.”

In this Agency Hour episode, James Williams, founder of Traffic & Bridges, breaks down 14+ years in paid media: landing enterprise and state contracts, building a referral-only pipeline, and why most founders outsource the wrong things. James explains the extension agency model—becoming the execution partner for small/mid agencies that can’t staff every ad platform—and why over-communication beats over-promising. We dig into compounding focus, common hiring traps, when to outsource (and when not to), and the simple formula: deliver the goal + communicate clearly = more referrals.

⏱️ Chapter Timeline

• 00:00 — Cold open: “Stop chasing quick money—master one core skill.”
• 00:40 — Host intro + guest setup: James Williams, Founder of Traffic & Bridges.
• 01:05 — $2M in the first six months; big-brand pedigree (Chevron, Kaiser, Tropicana, state gov).
• 03:20 — Career path: SDSU → agency internship → co-building to $100M sales.
• 05:45 — Why contracts end & starting over with a leaner model.
• 06:30 — Extension agency model: partnering with small/mid agencies for execution.
• 08:15 — Referral engine > outbound; 80%+ sales via relationships.
• 10:05 — Stop “outsourcing your superpower”; outsource your weaknesses.
• 11:50 — Over-communication vs. over-promising; hitting pacing/performance goals.
• 13:30 — Hiring mistakes: too late, wrong role, expectations mismatch.
• 16:40 — Culture fit, standards, and “raising the bar” as a manager.
• 20:00 — Building employee funnels alongside sales funnels.
• 22:30 — Why focus compounds; the anti-shiny-object lesson.
• 28:40 — Value first: over-deliver today, earn contracts tomorrow.
• 29:30 — Wrap & takeaways.

🔑 Key Takeaways

1. Master one thing: Depth in a core skill compounds more than trend hopping.
2. Be the extension, not the everything: Partner with agencies that need elite execution.
3. Referrals are earned: Deliver the stated goal and over-communicate progress.
4. Outsource your weaknesses, not your strengths: Protect your highest-leverage work.
5. Hire with timing + standards: Don’t hire too late or too early; set clear performance bars.
6. Operate on pacing/performance: In media buying, success = spend delivery or target performance—be transparent which you’re optimizing.

💬 Notable Quotes

• “Stop chasing quick money. Become an expert in your one core area.” — James Williams
• “If you want to succeed in business, over-deliver and give value first.” — James Williams
• “Over-communication beats over-promising—every time.” — James Williams

🧰 Playbook Mentioned

• Extension Agency Model: Sell to an agency once → execute across 5–10 of their clients.
• Two Goal Posts: Hit pacing or performance; set which one upfront and report honestly.
• Referral Flywheel: Relationships with media planners → they win contracts → send paid media to you.
• Hiring Rule: A great manager in the domain must manage specialists—otherwise the bar drifts down.

🔗 Resources & Links

• Guest: trafficandbridges.com
• Sponsor: Opal — spend management for performance marketers

👤 Guest

James Williams — Founder, Traffic & Bridges (media buying across placements, formats, and devices; audience targeting for awareness & sales).

In this episode, we're joined by Andrew Gottlieb, founder of No Typical Moments, a digital agency driving purpose-led growth for mission-driven brands. From working with conscious companies to launching media campaigns that prioritize mindfulness and ROI, Andrew has built a boutique agency that aligns values with performance.

He unpacks how his journey from corporate cubicle to conscious entrepreneurship wasn't just about profits—it was about purpose. We dive deep into hiring with intentionality, why firing your biggest client can actually be a blessing, and how scaling an agency doesn't have to mean abandoning your ideals.

Andrew shares his framework for landing enterprise clients, building strong remote culture, and evolving your leadership style as the agency grows. If you've ever wrestled with how to build a profitable business without losing your soul in the process, this one's for you.

🔑 Key Topics Covered

Agency Evolution & Business Model

• Journey from Facebook content creation in 2011 to full-service digital marketing
• Transition from "Gandhi quote" posts to performance-driven campaigns
• Evolution from Facebook ad expert to business owner and team builder
• Current service offerings: fractional CMO consulting, paid advertising, sales funnels, and social media management

The ROI Challenge in Early Social Media

• Clients constantly asking "What's the ROI of social media?" in early Facebook days
• How this drove the shift toward more measurable, P&L-correlated offerings
• The challenge of justifying brand marketing vs. direct response advertising

AI and Content Marketing Revolution

• Andrew's experimentation with Gemini for animated video creation
• Discussion of viral AI-generated content (WAP Grand Theft Auto ad, dentist gorilla video)
• The power of organic content creation vs. paid advertising
• How AI is democratizing high-quality content creation

Long-form Content Strategy

• The trust-building power of podcasts and long-form video content
• Case study: How Nick Bear's YouTube content converted Andrew from skeptic to customer
• Gary Vaynerchuk's B2B podcast strategy: invite ideal clients as guests
• The "getting a cup of coffee" approach to relationship building

Brand Marketing vs. Direct Response

• Real-world examples of brand marketing effectiveness (Pacific Life insurance decision, Lululemon bags, Viore hometown loyalty)
• The challenge of measuring brand marketing ROI
• When brand marketing works vs. when startups need direct response focus

Agency Culture Evolution

• Andrew's journey from family-oriented culture to more performance-driven approach
• The challenges of mixing friendship with business accountability
• Lessons learned from lost friendships during business difficulties
• Finding balance between relationships and results

Leadership Development

• Andrew's evolution as a leader through training and mentorship
• Learning to give effective feedback without being defensive
• The challenge of transitioning from "friend mode" to accountability
• Balancing respect with approachability as CEO

Client Management & Collections

• Payment policies: never putting ad spend on agency credit cards
• 30-day payment rule with work stoppage consequences
• Collections strategy and the economics of pursuing late payments
• When to fire clients vs. when to show grace

Work-Life Integration

• Balancing agency growth with family life (both hosts have young children)
• 4:30 AM workout routine and structured daily schedule
• Saying no to social commitments to prioritize family time
• The reality of startup life with young families

💡 Key Insights & Quotes

🛠 Actionable Takeaways

1. Content Strategy: Invest in long-form content that builds genuine relationships and trust with your audience
2. Payment Policies: Establish clear 30-day payment terms with automatic work stoppage for late payments
3. Culture Definition: Choose either relationship-focused or performance-focused culture—don't try to mix both
4. Leadership Development: Invest in feedback training and leadership mentorship as you scale
5. AI Integration: Experiment with AI tools like Gemini for content creation to stay competitive
6. B2B Podcasting: Start a podcast and invite ideal clients as guests for relationship building
7. Client Boundaries: Never put client ad spend on your agency credit cards—let clients handle their own payment methods

🎧 Guest Information

Andrew Gottlieb
Founder & CEO, No Typical Moments
📧 andrew@notypicalmoments.co
🌐 notypicalmoments.com

📖 About the Guest

Andrew Gottlieb is the Founder & CEO at No Typical Moments, a highly specialized digital marketing agency that works exclusively with purpose-driven and social impact focused businesses to collectively advance humanity. Andrew founded No Typical Moments in 2011 as an idea to explore ways to make a tangible, positive difference to humanity and the planet. Today, NTM is a benefit corporation that provides highly specialized digital marketing solutions for clients. This includes media buying campaigns and full-service marketing for the info product space.

Some of the clients NTM had the honor of working with include the likes of Lisa Nichols, best selling author and mentor and Mama Gena's School of Womanly Arts. NTM executed Mama Gena's Facebook ad-campaign for her new book that went on to become a New York Times bestseller. The agency has also worked with conscious companies like Mindvalley and Chopra Global.

🎙 About The Agency Hour Podcast

The Agency Hour explores the challenges, strategies, and insights of building and scaling digital agencies. Each episode features conversations with agency owners, entrepreneurs, and industry experts sharing practical advice for growing profitable agencies.

📌 Connect & Subscribe

• Subscribe to The Agency Hour on your favorite podcast platform
• Follow us for more agency growth insights and strategies
• Share this episode with fellow agency owners and entrepreneurs

Episode Sponsor: Opal - The spend management platform built for performance marketers. From seamless payments to automated ad spend ...

In this episode of The Agency Hour, we sit down with William Russell, founder of Nerife, a lead generation agency serving commercial solar and roofing companies.

Will shares his journey from a steady tech sales career to running a thriving eight-person agency with a pay-per-appointment model. From grinding through cold outreach to building a global team, his story is full of lessons for agency owners at every stage.

We dive into:

• 🎯 Why he walked away from a “safe” career path in tech sales
• 🚀 The scrappy early days of cold outreach, Upwork connections, and niching down into commercial solar
• 🧠 The mental shift that pushed him to go all-in on agency life
• 🩺 How a sudden heart surgery reshaped his perspective on health, stress, and work-life balance
• 📈 Building a distributed team of 8 across multiple countries (and why fun lunches matter more than you think)
• 💡 The pros and cons of retainer vs. pay-per-appointment pricing models
• 🐢 Why slower, thoughtful growth often beats aggressive scaling

This conversation blends real talk on risk, resilience, and revenue with practical systems for scaling an agency without burning out.

If you’re bootstrapping, scaling, or rethinking your agency model, this episode gives you a raw look at what it takes to grow — and sustain — a service business in 2025.

Chapters

00:00 – Why slowing down can save your agency
 02:00 – From tech sales to entrepreneurship
 05:00 – Health, family, and redefining success
 08:00 – Cold outreach as the growth engine
 13:00 – Early agency lessons (and mistakes)
 18:00 – Building a remote team of eight
 22:00 – Niche shift: from gyms to commercial solar
 28:00 – Pricing models: retainers vs. pay-per-appointment
 35:00 – Work-life balance, travel, and social life
 40:00 – Building culture through “fun lunches”
 45:00 – The grind vs. freedom trade-off

Connect with William Russell

🌐 nerife.com

AI has officially tilted the playing field. Cody Schneider breaks down why verticalized, productized agencies can now operate at enterprise output with tiny teams—using voice agents, UGC ad automations, and “vibe analytics” that turn raw data into decisions in minutes, not months. We get into real examples (med spas, restaurants, law firms), margins (60–70% possible), and how his new product Graphed turns connected sources (Shopify, GA, Klaviyo, ads) into instant reports, dashboards, and insights.

Guest
Cody Schneider — Serial entrepreneur, trend spotter, and founder of Graphed, an AI analytics platform for fast, contextual reporting.

Guest Links

• X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/codyschneiderxx
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/codyxschneider
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/codyschneiderx
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@codyschneiderx
• Graphed: https://www.graphed.com/

Sponsor
This episode is brought to you by Opal — spend management built for performance marketers: seamless payments and automated ad-spend control.

What we cover

• Why “one-person agencies” win: automations, productized deliverables, and vertical focus
• Real margins today (and why 60–70% is doable with the right stack)
• Building AI ad workflows: script research → UGC video generation → editing → launch
• Voice agents as SDRs: replying, qualifying, and booking via Calendly 24/7
• Client-facing chatbots trained on your delivery docs to reduce CS time
• “Vibe analytics”: asking broad questions of your data and getting actions back
• Graph’s thesis: data → insight → action without the BI learning curve
• Go-to-market: start vertical, then expand horizontal once the ICP is nailed

Tools, platforms & examples mentioned

HeyGen, ArcAds, Make UGC, CapCut, Stormy AI (influencer outreach + negotiation), Adam Robinson’s voice agent, EverBee (Etsy research + new ecom store), Shopify, Google Analytics, Klaviyo, CMSs, CRM agents, Jane (clinics), Clio (law), Shopify (ecom), Square case study.

Timestamps

• 00:00 Intro + why agencies aren’t “dead”
• 03:45 Med-spa marketing surge and productized services trend
• 06:50 The one-person agency stack for Facebook ads & UGC
• 09:50 AI production velocity: 10-person/2-week output in hours
• 12:00 Voice agents that cold email, reply, and book for you
• 14:45 Healthcare, restaurants & law firms: phone agents that convert
• 18:50 Client portals: turning delivery docs into an always-on chatbot
• 20:55 When AI shines: fixed scopes > bespoke one-offs
• 23:20 Launching Graphed: charts, dashboards, insights, data-scientist chat
• 26:55 Broad questions → targeted data pulls → instant analysis
• 30:10 Positioning that sells: “data to insights fast with AI”
• 33:00 Pricing power, urgency, and selling outcomes vs. process
• 36:15 Personalization, brand voice, and dialect in AI phone agents
• 38:20 Why specialization/verticalization is the ultimate edge
• 41:10 Vertical software playbooks (Jane, Clio, Shopify)
• 42:50 Square’s lesson: unlock the “unserved” part of the market
• 43:40 Wrap + where to find Cody & try Graph

Call to action

• Try Graphed (AI analytics for fast reporting & insights).
• If this episode helped, share it with a friend building an agency and leave a quick rating. 🙌

Join me as I chat with AI‑agency phenom Jacob Klug about scaling Creme Digital from a hustle he started at 17 to $170K‑MRR success.

Timeline:

00:00 – Niche > everything
00:42 – Meet Jacob Klug & Creme Digital
01:00 – Teen hustle → 7‑figure agency
01:29 – RFP hack: landing F500 clients
02:15 – Organic LinkedIn/X posts that print $$
03:02 – Sponsor: Opal spend card
03:35 – Starting at 17: origin story
04:10 – First $80K month (year 2)
04:54 – Revenue split: content, ads, referrals
06:05 – Bali nights & time‑zone juggling
07:12 – Profitable ads when you’re the product
08:35 – Biggest mistake: serving everyone
09:50 – Consistency beats “secret sauce”
10:40 – Drake’s “one‑more‑step” founder mantra

Key Points
 • Niche hard: be the biggest fish in a tiny pond and charge premium rates
 • RFP listings + one viral LinkedIn post = early rocket fuel
 • Organic social is still wildly underrated for agencies
 • $170K MRR today: ~60% content, 30% paid, 10% referrals
 • Luck matters—but showing up daily multiplies it
 • Hiring? Go 100% in or 100% out—no half‑measures
 • Consistency compounds; overnight success ≠ overnight

1. Niching Down — Verdict: Underrated
   • Smaller market = clearer messaging, higher fees
   • Easier to dominate SEO & community mindshare
2. Organic Content — Verdict: Untapped Goldmine
   • Daily LinkedIn/X posts drove the first Lovable deals
   • Builds trust long before cold emails land
3. RFP Listings — Verdict: Quick‑Win Growth Hack
   • Bubble RFP page vaulted revenue from $30K → $60K in 30 days
   • Less competition; higher intent buyers
4. Paid Ads Mix — Verdict: Only After PMF
   • Facebook ads profitable once case‑studies proved ROI
   • Keeps pipeline steady but scales cost

Notable Quotes
 — Jacob: “You want to be the best for a very small pocket—those clients pay more and stay longer.”
 — Alex: “Every business sucks at first; stick around and it eventually works.”
 — Jacob: “Nobody has it figured out. Even Drake wakes up thinking: ‘One more step.’”

SPONSOR
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FIND ME ON SOCIAL
 LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/opal/
Site | https://www.opalspend.com/
X | https://x.com/alexsteeleopal

FIND JACOB ON SOCIAL
 X | https://x.com/Jacobsklug
LinkedIn | https://ca.linkedin.com/in/jacob-klug-37b254156