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The TL;DR:

• Let’s Chat D2C: The power of podcast advertising for ecommerce brands.

• Building in Public with SCALIS: Hired a VP of Sales!

• What I’m Thinking about this Week: How to prioritize an ever-growing list of tasks as a SaaS founder.

• The D2Z Podcast: In this episode of The D2Z Podcast, I interviewed Casey Cheshire, founder of Ringmaster Conversational Marketing. We discussed Casey's entrepreneurial journey, the transition from running a B2B agency to focusing on podcasting, and the importance of building genuine relationships with podcast guests.

• Upcoming Events: I’ll be in Amsterdam, Porto, and Lisbon this week! Let me know if you’re in the area and want to connect.

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Let’s Chat D2C: The Power of Podcast Advertising for Ecommerce Brands

Podcast advertising is quickly becoming one of the most effective marketing channels for e-commerce brands. Unlike traditional social media ads, podcast ads offer a unique blend of trust, engagement, and audience targeting. Listeners tend to be highly engaged, and when a host they trust recommends a product, it carries significantly more weight than a typical paid ad.

Brands that are winning in this space focus on:

• Host-read ads: These come across as more authentic and blend seamlessly into the content.

• Exclusive discount codes: Incentivize listeners to take action while tracking performance.

• Sponsoring niche podcasts: Aligning with a highly targeted audience can yield better ROI than broad-reach campaigns.

• Long-term sponsorships: Unlike digital ads that disappear quickly, podcast sponsorships build familiarity over time, increasing trust and conversion rates.

• Integrated storytelling: The best podcast ads don’t feel like ads; they tell compelling stories that resonate with the audience.

A great example is brands like Athletic Greens and HelloFresh, which have built massive awareness through podcast advertising. They don’t just run ads—they work with hosts to integrate the brand into natural discussions, making the promotion feel more organic and persuasive.

If you’re looking for a new acquisition channel that offers high retention and engagement, podcast advertising is worth testing. As social ad costs continue to rise, this medium presents a compelling opportunity for e-commerce growth. The key is to find podcasts whose audiences align with your ideal customer profile and work with hosts who genuinely believe in your product.

Building in Public with SCALIS: Hired a VP of Sales!

Big news on the SCALIS front: We just hired a VP of Sales to further build out our go-to-market function and expand upon the success we’ve had with cold outreach. Bringing in sales leadership is a huge milestone, and my focus right now is on getting him up to speed as quickly as possible.

While we don’t have a super formal onboarding process in place yet, I’m working to ensure he has the tools and context needed to ramp up fast. My attention is now shifting towards building out customer success stories, battlecards, and other sales enablement materials that will help support him in his efforts.

Our cold outreach has already been a strong driver of interest, but scaling requires refining our processes even further. That means:

• Creating targeted case studies to demonstrate SCALIS' impact in real-world hiring scenarios.

• Building sales playbooks that outline key messaging, objection handling, and positioning.

• Enhancing our outreach strategies by testing new channels and refining our approach based on data.

• Establishing a repeatable sales process that can be scaled across future hires and new markets.

This is a major step forward for SCALIS, and while we’re moving fast, I’m also ensuring we have the right foundation in place. The next phase of growth will be all about improving our sales motion, increasing conversion rates, and refining our messaging to continue making an impact in the hiring space.

What I’m Thinking About This Week: Prioritization as a SaaS Founder

One of the biggest struggles of being a SaaS founder? Getting pulled in a million different directions and having to juggle everything that needs to get done. From product development to sales, marketing, customer success, and hiring, there are always urgent tasks competing for attention.

The key lesson I’ve learned? Not everything is truly urgent. It’s easy to fall into the trap of trying to tackle everything at once, but understanding what actually moves the needle versus what can wait is crucial.

Lately, I’ve been focusing on distinguishing between high-impact tasks and low-value distractions. It’s a constant balancing act, but being intentional about prioritization is the difference between feeling overwhelmed and making meaningful progress.

For any fellow founders out there: Take a step back, assess what’s truly critical, and don’t let the noise derail you from your bigger vision.

This Week’s The D2Z Podcast

#142 – The Power of Podcasting

🎧 Listen Now 🎧

In this episode of The D2Z Podcast, I interviewed Casey Cheshire, founder of Ringmaster Conversational Marketing. We discussed Casey's entrepreneurial journey, the transition from running a B2B agency to focusing on podcasting, and the importance of building genuine relationships with podcast guests.

Here's What You'll Learn:

❗The transition to podcasting was driven by the need for thought leadership and content.

❗Building genuine relationships with podcast guests can lead to significant business opportunities.

❗The focus should be on the guest, not the number of listeners.

❗Many businesses can benefit from podcasting, especially if they can create valuable connections.

❗Market timing is crucial for business growth and success.

❗It's important to have guide rails in place to avoid scope creep with clients.

❗Podcasting can be a powerful tool for B2B marketing and customer connection.

❗The authenticity of the conversation is key to engaging listeners. ❗Working with professionals can help businesses avoid common pitfalls in podcasting.

Upcoming Events

I’ll be in Amsterdam, Porto, and Lisbon this week! Let me know if you’re in the area and want to connect.

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