Your Digital Marketing Coach with Neal Schaffer

Jaksot

• 
  Stop Treating LinkedIn Like Social Media: Introducing the 4-Cylinder LinkedIn Business Engine 20.04.2026 16min

  LinkedIn in 2026 isn't social media — and if you're still treating it like Instagram's boring cousin, you're leaving the biggest opportunity in B2B marketing on the table. Four out of five LinkedIn members drive business decisions, but only about 5% of them post strategically. That's not a crowded room. That's a wide-open one. In this episode, I share the most engaging parts of the keynote I am delivering this week at the Digital Marketing Summit at Nova Southeastern University — including th...
• 
  10 Social Media Principles That Work for MrBeast's Beast Games, Lord of the Rings, and Your Business 16.04.2026 43min

  Most businesses treat social media like a task to check off. Post something, hope it performs, repeat. But according to today's guest, that's exactly why most businesses are getting mediocre results — because social media isn't a task. It's a craft. I sit down with Jon-Stephen Stansel — social media manager turned entertainment industry freelancer and author of The 10 Principles of Effective Social Media Marketing — for a conversation about what actually works on social media in 2026. Jon-Ste...
• 
  People Not Prompts: The Marketing System AI Can’t Replicate 11.04.2026 22min

  Two years ago, 60% of consumers said they were fine with AI-generated content. Today that number has dropped to 26%. Consumers are rejecting AI content faster than marketers can create it — and the brands that ignore this are paying a steep price. In this episode, I'm sharing the full breakdown of the keynote I delivered at DigiMarCon West in Hollywood — a presentation called People, Not Prompts. It's built around the SES framework from my book Digital Threads: Search, Email, and Social worki...
• 
  The Biggest Mistake Marketers Make with Visual Content (And the Simple Fix) 06.04.2026 39min

  I've been saying for years that marketing is increasingly visual — whether it's social media, YouTube, websites, or even AI-generated content. But most of us aren't designers, and we're winging it when it comes to visual branding. My guest today is Jim MacLeod, author of The Visual Marketer, and he's someone I've known for about a decade — back when I co-founded the Social Tools Summit and invited him to speak about visual social media from a B2B perspective. Jim has a rare combination of gra...
• 
  Stop Using AI Like a Search Engine — Build a Flywheel Instead 25.03.2026 24min

  You're using AI every day — but is it actually getting smarter about your business? For most marketers, the answer is no, because they're treating AI like a search engine instead of a workspace. In this episode, I break down the AI Workflow Flywheel that I have developed for my own business — a compound-momentum system that makes every AI conversation build on the last, so your output gets better and faster over time. If you've ever wondered why some marketers seem to get 10x more value from ...
• 
  From Funnels to Pinballs: A Human-First Framework for Building Brand Trust in the Age of AI 19.03.2026 40min

  In a marketing world increasingly driven by AI-generated content and data dashboards, it's easy to start treating customers like data points instead of people. Phil Treagus-Evans — founder of UK social media agency Giraffe Social and author of Human First Marketing: The Art of Being Seen, Trusted and Remembered — makes a compelling case for why human-first marketing isn't just a philosophy. It's a competitive advantage. In this episode, Phil and I dig into what it really means to understand ...
• 
  How AI Forced Me to Rewrite My Entire LinkedIn Strategy 06.01.2026 19min

  Note: This is Episode 442, published January 6, 2026. You published a book, it hit #1, and the reviews were phenomenal. In the digital marketing world, that’s usually where you take a victory lap. But then the AI revolution happened. Over the last year, the fundamental ways we build relationships and create content on LinkedIn have shifted so dramatically that I knew a simple "tweak" wouldn't cut it. I’ve spent the last several months obsessively updating Maximizing LinkedIn for Business Grow...
• 
  Agentic AI: Build Your "Micro-Agency" of One 02.01.2026 54min

  Most people are still "chatting" with AI. They put in a prompt, they get an answer, and they move on. But while the rest of the world is dabbling, the top 1% of marketers are building Agentic Workflows. They aren't just using AI to write; they are using it to act. Today, I’m joined by Matt Collette, founder of Sequencr.ai. Matt has a background at Ogilvy and Edelman, and he’s here to show us how to move from being an AI novice to an AI architect. We’re talking about the "Micro-Agency of One"—...
• 
  AI Slop and the Long-Long-Tail: Your Biggest Missed Opportunity 08.12.2025 24min

  Most marketers and creators agree on one thing: “AI slop” is bad for the internet. From hallucinated facts to soulless clickbait, low‑quality AI content is blamed for ruining search results and polluting the web. But what if that narrative is missing the bigger strategic picture—and quietly putting your business at risk of becoming invisible in an AI‑first world? In this solo episode, digital marketing author and consultant Neal Schaffer makes a contrarian case: a specific, ethical form of AI...
• 
  The Storytelling Framework Your Digital Marketing Is Missing (And How to Fix It) 04.12.2025 40min

  Most marketers and experts don’t have a conversion problem—they have a messaging problem. Their websites, emails, and content are packed with facts, features, and “I help…” statements that never touch the emotional brain that actually decides to buy. In the age of AI-generated content and endless noise, it’s the human story behind your offer that cuts through and converts. In this episode of Your Digital Marketing Coach, I’m joined by Aurora Winter—Hollywood-trained storyteller, entrepreneur,...
• 
  Ranking in ChatGPT & AI Overviews: The Ultimate AEO vs. GEO Guide 01.12.2025 34min

  Is your business ready for a world where 50% of search queries involve AI? The digital landscape is shifting fast. We are moving from a world of traditional Google rankings to a "Zero-Click" environment dominated by AI Overviews, ChatGPT, and Voice Search. If you are still relying solely on old-school SEO playbooks, your content is at risk of becoming invisible. In this episode I break down the confusion between AEO (Answer Engine Optimization) and GEO (Generative Engine Optimization). I reve...
• 
  Custom GPTs vs. Projects: The New AI Workflow You Need 29.09.2025 42min

  Are you feeling the pressure to build a "Custom GPT" for every aspect of your business? You might be wasting your time. While the hype cycle tells us we need complex bots, the reality for most small business owners is that we just need better organization. In this episode, I sit down with Phil Pallen, Brand Strategist and author of AI for Small Business. We strip away the enterprise-level jargon and focus on the practical, "boring" ways AI can save you 10+ hours a week. Phil explains why he p...
• 
  STOP Using ChatGPT Prompts! The "3-Pillar" AI Content System 25.09.2025 21min

  Are you frustrated that your AI-generated content sounds robotic, generic, or just "off"? You might be suffering from the "Vending Machine Syndrome"—feeding ChatGPT a coin (a prompt) and hoping for a gourmet meal. In this episode, I share the insights from my recent workshop at Chapman University, where I taught future entrepreneurs how to create targeted, compelling content in under 30 minutes. The secret isn't finding a "magic prompt" on Twitter; it's about building a robust Context Framewo...
• 
  Stop Posting Daily: The 4-Post Social Media Strategy That Generates More Leads in Less Time 22.09.2025 32min

  Are you stuck on the social media hamster wheel? Most entrepreneurs feel the pressure to post constantly, chase trending audio, and "feed the algorithm" daily—often with little ROI to show for it. But what if you could cut your content creation time by 80% while actually increasing your leads? In this episode of Your Digital Marketing Coach, I sit down with agency owner and strategist Katie Brinkley to dismantle the "more is better" mythology. We dive deep into her signature 4-Post Strategy, ...
• 
  Why 90% of Marketers Fail on YouTube (And How to Fix It) 19.09.2025 20min

  Most marketers treat YouTube like Facebook or LinkedIn - posting content and hoping to drive traffic back to their website. This approach fails because YouTube is fundamentally different. It's a recommendation engine, not a traditional social platform. In this episode, you'll learn why successful YouTube creators think differently than marketers, discover the research strategy that reveals what content YouTube actually promotes in your niche, and get the framework for creating videos the algo...
• 
  How Derek Hales Replaced His Agency Salary in 2 Months Testing Mattresses 16.09.2025 50min

  Ever wonder how someone goes from frustrated agency employee to building a trusted content empire? Derek from NapLab shares his remarkable journey of turning a terrible mattress shopping experience into a business that replaced his salary in just two months. In this episode, you'll discover Derek's "create what you wished existed" approach to content strategy, why he started testing mattresses in a cramped one-bedroom apartment with nothing but a cell phone and lamp lighting, and how this hum...
• 
  I Just Solved Marketing's Biggest Time-Waster (12 Curated Marketing Agency Directories) 04.09.2025 21min

  Tired of spending hours researching agencies only to end up more confused than when you started? In this episode, I reveal my solution to one of marketing's biggest time-wasters: finding the right agency partner. After years of getting asked "Neal, who would you recommend?" for everything from SEO to video production, I decided to do something about it. I partnered with Clutch, the leading B2B service provider platform, to personally curate 12 specialized directories of agencies I actually re...
• 
  Why CMOs Are Being Replaced by Chief Revenue Officers (And How Marketers Can Survive) 01.09.2025 33min

  Sales and marketing teams at war? You're not alone. While most companies treat these as separate functions fighting for resources, the winning businesses have cracked the code on true revenue alignment. In this eye-opening episode, I sit down with A. Lee Judge, author of "CASH" and founder of Content Monster, who reveals the uncomfortable truth about why some companies are eliminating CMO positions entirely and replacing them with Chief Revenue Officers. But it's not what you think. Lee, who ...
• 
  The $0 Content Strategy That Generated 2.5 Million Reach (Employee Creator Secrets) 28.08.2025 20min

  Struggling to compete with content creators for attention on social media? What if I told you that one innovative company decided to turn their entire team into creators instead of hiring expensive influencers? In this revealing episode, I break down how Buffer revolutionized employee advocacy by moving beyond "please share our company posts" to "please build your own personal brand." The results? 90% participation, over 2.5 million total reach, and a cultural shift that's making competitors ...
• 
  How $25 Cookies Generated $200 Million in Sales (Gift-Based Marketing Strategy) 25.08.2025 37min

  Tired of cold emails that get ignored? What if I told you that sending gourmet cookies could be more effective than your entire digital marketing budget? In this eye-opening episode, I sit down with Corey Quinn, former CMO at Scorpion and author of “Anyone Not Everyone,” who reveals how gift-based outreach became their company’s #1 sales channel - outperforming a $6 million marketing budget that included ads, content, and 100 annual events. Corey shares the exact strategy that helped close...