The Mark Mason Show: AI for Small Business

Mark Mason
  • 4.9 (102)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Weekly

AI for small business, made practical: how to use AI in the business you already run. You have a ChatGPT account. It hasn't changed how your business actually works yet. That gap is what this show is about. I'm Mark Mason. I lead engineering teams, including AI engineering, at a Fortune 500 semiconductor company, I've run online businesses since 2007, and I've been podcasting since 2009. This show was the Late Night Internet Marketing Podcast; it is now The Mark Mason Show. Every week I take one real problem out of a real business: what actually works, what I'd skip, and when the honest answer is to hire someone instead of building it yourself. No hype, no agency pitch. These episodes are the audio of the weekly video on YouTube (youtube.com/@MarkMasonCom), edited so they work without a screen. The sung stinger is AI-generated music; every word you hear is my own voice. This is for small business owners and professionals who are past experimenting and want AI to work. Growth by design, not by grind. More at markmason.com.

  1. 22h ago

    Claude for Business: How to Make It Remember Your Business [MM284]

    Send us Fan Mail Claude for business: give Claude one document about your business, and put it where Claude reads it every session. Watch the video: https://youtu.be/vyCx9YBTu30 Every new Claude or ChatGPT session starts from scratch: it doesn't know your business until you tell it. Mark Mason shows the business context file he gives Claude, where it goes so Claude reads it at the start of every session, and two times it kept him on message: a search phrase worth about 137,000 searches a month (vidIQ's estimate) that Claude left out because it would have brought in the wrong people, and a contradiction between two of his videos that Claude caught. Then three audits that keep the file current, which Claude app to use, and what to do today. For small business owners who use ChatGPT or Claude mostly like a search engine. In this episode: What is a business context file, and why does Claude need one?Where do you put it so Claude reads it in every session?How does Claude keep you on brand and on message?Which Claude or ChatGPT app should a small business use?The sung stinger is AI-generated music. Every word you hear is Mark's own voice. Where the file goes: a document sitting in a folder isn't enough on its own. Claude Code reads its CLAUDE.md file at the start of every session, so point that file at your business context file. Open Claude Code (the Code tab in the Claude desktop app) in the folder that holds your business document and say: Hey Claude, turn this document into a CLAUDE.md file at the top of this folder, so you read it at the start of every session. Then start a new session and ask: "What do you know about my business?" The three audits, ready to paste: Brand audit: Read my brand document and ask me 10 questions to check that it's still accurate, or to figure out how it needs to change. Voice audit: Read my last 10 blog posts and compare them to my brand voice document. Show me where they don't match. Offer audit: Assess all of my product offerings against my avatar and show me where there's a mismatch. What to do today: Read every page of my website, starting from this sitemap: [your sitemap URL]. List any pages you couldn't read. Then show me the gap between what's on my website and what's in my business context document. After that: Interview me one question at a time, and ask me 10 questions that would make my business context document richer. Mentioned in this episode How to make your business context file, the previous video: https://youtu.be/fJ67eI_4wbQTreat AI like a smart new intern (the Excel expert): https://youtu.be/Iu7aaq4T-N4How CLAUDE.md and memory work in Claude Code: https://code.claude.com/docs/en/memoryClaude Code in the Claude desktop app: https://code.claude.com/docs/en/desktopChatGPT Work and Codex: https://help.openai.com/en/articles/20001275-chatgpt-work-and-codexAbout Mark Mason Mark Mason leads engineering teams, including AI engineering, at a Fortune 500 semiconductor company. He has run online businesses since 2007 and has been podcasting since 2009. This channel is practical AI for the business you already run: growth by design, not by grind. More at https://markmason.com?utm_source=buzzsprout&utm_medium=podcast Disclaimer: This episode is for educational and informational purposes only. It isn't legal, tax, accounting, financial, investment, HR, or cybersecurity advice, and watching it doesn't create a professional or client relationship. Talk to a qualified professional before you make decisions for your business. Any income, revenue, savings, time saved, or other results mentioned are examples or my own experience, shared for reference only. They aren't typical, and they aren't a promise or a guarantee: your results depend on your business, your market, your effort, and many other factors. AI tools can be wrong, incomplete, or biased, can make things up, and change often. Check their output before you rely on it, and follow each tool's terms, your privacy and data-protection duties, your client agreements, and the law, especially before you put customer, employee, or confidential information into any AI tool. Tools, features, and prices were accurate when recorded and may have changed since. Product names are trademarks of their owners, and mentioning a product doesn't mean its maker endorses this channel. Any sponsorship or affiliate link is disclosed. Opinions are my own and don't represent my employer. You use this information at your own risk; Mark Mason and markmason.com accept no liability for any loss or damage that results from using it.

    Claude for Business: How to Make It Remember Your Business [MM284]

  2. Nov 3

    Claude for Small Business: How to Set It Up With No Coding [MM283]

    Send us Fan Mail Claude for small business, with no coding: tell Claude about your business first, then hand it real jobs. Watch the video: https://youtu.be/fJ67eI_4wbQ The very first thing to do with Claude is tell it about your business. Mark Mason runs two small businesses and doesn't write a line of code in them. He shows where a Claude beginner should start, the 20-question interview that teaches Claude your business in about an hour, and three real jobs: writing and checking YouTube descriptions, catching a broken contact link on his wife's website and watching Facebook ads, and running a whole video process in an app Claude built. If you use ChatGPT or Gemini, the same first step applies. In this episode: Where should a Claude beginner start?What should you tell Claude about your business first?Do you need to know how to code to use Claude for business?What can Claude do in a real small business, and what still needs checking?The sung stinger is AI-generated music. Every word you hear is Mark's own voice. The 20 questions, ready to paste into the Claude app on your phone (use voice mode and talk for two or three minutes on each one): I run [what kind of business]. I want you to really understand it. Interview me: ask me 20 open-ended questions about my business, one at a time, and wait for my answer before you ask the next one. Cover my business goals, my customers, my biggest business problems, my competition, and my challenges. I'm answering out loud, so expect long, messy answers. When we're done, write a detailed summary document that describes my business. Mentioned in this episode: - Claude plans (Pro was $20 a month when this was recorded): https://claude.com/pricing - The Claude desktop app and its Code tab: https://code.claude.com/docs/en/desktop-quickstart - Voice mode in the Claude app: https://support.claude.com/en/articles/11101966-use-voice-mode - Anthropic's Small Business plugin (Mark hasn't tested it yet): https://claude.com/plugins/small-business - Treat AI like a smart new intern, the earlier video: https://youtu.be/Iu7aaq4T-N4 My previous video, on what AI can't copy: https://youtu.be/GPYRhlCwn4Q About Mark Mason Mark Mason leads engineering teams, including AI engineering, at a Fortune 500 semiconductor company. He has run online businesses since 2007 and has been podcasting since 2009. This channel is practical AI for the business you already run: growth by design, not by grind. More at https://markmason.com?utm_source=buzzsprout&utm_medium=podcast Disclaimer: this episode is for educational and informational purposes only. It isn't legal, tax, accounting, financial, investment, HR, or cybersecurity advice, and watching it doesn't create a professional or client relationship. Talk to a qualified professional before you make decisions for your business. Any income, revenue, savings, time saved, or other results mentioned are examples or my own experience, shared for reference only. They aren't typical, and they aren't a promise or a guarantee: your results depend on your business, your market, your effort, and many other factors. AI tools can be wrong, incomplete, or biased, can make things up, and change often. Check their output before you rely on it, and follow each tool's terms, your privacy and data-protection duties, your client agreements, and the law, especially before you put customer, employee, or confidential information into any AI tool. Tools, features, and prices were accurate when recorded and may have changed since. Product names are trademarks of their owners, and mentioning a product doesn't mean its maker endorses this channel. Any sponsorship or affiliate link is disclosed. Opinions are my own and don't represent my employer. You use this information at your own risk; Mark Mason and markmason.com accept no liability for any loss or damage that results from using it.

    Claude for Small Business: How to Set It Up With No Coding [MM283]

  3. Oct 27

    How to Stand Out From Competitors: What AI Can't Replace [MM282]

    Send us Fan Mail How to stand out from competitors when every one of them has the same AI: find the human part AI can't copy. Watch the video: https://youtu.be/GPYRhlCwn4Q Every business owner is getting the same AI tools, so what still sets yours apart? Mark Mason found his answer at Pat Flynn's Card Party, a Pokémon card event in Dallas with about 10,000 people, in a moment between a kid and a total stranger. He shows what AI can already copy (your voice, your video, even your expertise), what it can't, and how to use AI for everything that doesn't need you, so there's more of you for the moments that do. In this episode: How do you stand out from competitors when everyone has the same AI?What AI can't replace in your business, and what it already canA prompt that finds the human moments your customers would noticeThe sung stinger is AI-generated music. Every word you hear is Mark's own voice. The prompt from the video (copy it into ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or whatever AI you use): I run [what kind of business] in [town or market]. My customers are [who they are]. (If your AI already knows your business, skip this line.) Soon every one of my competitors will be using AI. I want to use AI to run leaner and serve customers faster, and I want to win on the human parts of my business that AI can't easily copy. Before you answer, ask me up to 5 questions about my business, one at a time, and wait for each answer. Then: 1) Split the work in my business into two lists: work AI could do or speed up, and work where people, taste, relationships, or face-to-face moments are the reason customers choose me. 2) Give me a short SWOT on human connection versus AI in my business. 3) Recommend three specific ways to add human moments my customers would notice, including one I can start this week. Be specific to my business. No generic advice. Sources mentioned Therapy and companionship as the top use of gen AI: Harvard Business Review, 2025 (summary: https://www.forbes.com/sites/lanceeliot/2025/05/14/top-ten-uses-of-ai-puts-therapy-and-companionship-at-the-1-spot/)About 1 in 10 adults use chatbots for emotional support: APA Monitor, 2026, https://www.apa.org/monitor/2026/01-02/trends-digital-ai-relationships-emotional-connectionAbout 85% would rather talk to a real person: AnswerConnect, May 2026, https://www.answerconnect.com/blog/news/consumers-turning-away-from-ai-customer-service/Klarna rehires people for the hard calls: https://www.customerexperiencedive.com/news/klarna-reinvests-human-talent-customer-service-AI-chatbot/747586/The "how you made them feel" quote: earliest version on record, Carl Buehner, 1971Pat Flynn's book: SuperfansMy previous video, on which AI subscription to keep: https://youtu.be/ZVAF525Tp54 About Mark Mason Mark Mason leads engineering teams, including AI engineering, at a Fortune 500 semiconductor company. He has run online businesses since 2007 and has been podcasting since 2009. This channel is practical AI for the business you already run: growth by design, not by grind. More at https://markmason.com?utm_source=buzzsprout&utm_medium=podcast Disclaimer: this episode is for educational and informational purposes only. It isn't legal, tax, accounting, financial, investment, HR, or cybersecurity advice, and watching it doesn't create a professional or client relationship. Talk to a qualified professional before you make decisions for your business. Any income, revenue, savings, time saved, or other results mentioned are examples or my own experience, shared for reference only. They aren't typical, and they aren't a promise or a guarantee: your results depend on your business, your market, your effort, and many other factors. AI tools can be wrong, incomplete, or biased, can make things up, and change often. Check their output before you rely on it, and follow each tool's terms, your privacy and data-protection duties, your client agreements, and the law, especially before you put customer, employee, or confidential information into any AI tool. Tools, features, and prices were accurate when recorded and may have changed since. Product names are trademarks of their owners, and mentioning a product doesn't mean its maker endorses this channel. Any sponsorship or affiliate link is disclosed. Opinions are my own and don't represent my employer. You use this information at your own risk; Mark Mason and markmason.com accept no liability for any loss or damage that results from using it.

    How to Stand Out From Competitors: What AI Can't Replace [MM282]

  4. Oct 20

    Best AI Subscription for Business Owners: ChatGPT vs Claude [MM281]

    Send us Fan Mail The best AI subscription for business owners: I pay for ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini, and here's the one I'd keep for $20. Watch the video: https://youtu.be/ZVAF525Tp54 If you're paying $20 a month for ChatGPT and wondering whether to upgrade, or switch to Claude or Gemini, this is the bottom line from someone who pays for all of them. Mark Mason leads engineering teams, including AI engineering, at a Fortune 500 semiconductor company, and he pays for these tools out of his own pocket: ChatGPT on two accounts, Claude's top plan, Gemini, and OpenRouter to test the rest. The short answer comes first: if you already use one and you're happy, stay with it, because switching has a real cost. If your business runs on Google, Gemini makes sense. With his own $20, Mark picks Claude, and he explains why. Then comes the part that matters more than which one you pick: moving AI from answering questions to doing the work. Two real examples from his wife's photography business show how: blog posts drafted in her voice from her social media and pushed to WordPress, and quarterly sales tax prepared for a human to check before anything is filed. In this episode: ChatGPT vs Claude vs Gemini: which $20 plan to keep, and when not to switchHow to get AI to do the work, not just answer questionsIs Microsoft Copilot worth it for a small business?Is the $20 plan enough, and when does the $100 or $200 plan pay for itself?Why the AI model you pick matters less than how you use itThe sung stinger is AI-generated music. Every word you hear is Mark's own voice. Prices checked October 18, 2026: ChatGPT Plus, Claude Pro, and Google AI Pro are $20 a month ($19.99 for Google). The bigger plans (Claude Max, ChatGPT Pro, Google AI Ultra) run $100 to $200 a month. Check the current price before you buy. My previous video, on what the research actually says about AI and jobs: https://youtu.be/snsV4Ydb26E About Mark Mason Mark Mason leads engineering teams, including AI engineering, at a Fortune 500 semiconductor company. He has run online businesses since 2007 and has been podcasting since 2009. This channel is practical AI for the business you already run: growth by design, not by grind. More at https://markmason.com?utm_source=buzzsprout&utm_medium=podcast Disclaimer: this episode is for educational and informational purposes only. It isn't legal, tax, accounting, financial, investment, HR, or cybersecurity advice, and watching it doesn't create a professional or client relationship. Talk to a qualified professional before you make decisions for your business. Any income, revenue, savings, time saved, or other results mentioned are examples or my own experience, shared for reference only. They aren't typical, and they aren't a promise or a guarantee: your results depend on your business, your market, your effort, and many other factors. AI tools can be wrong, incomplete, or biased, can make things up, and change often. Check their output before you rely on it, and follow each tool's terms, your privacy and data-protection duties, your client agreements, and the law, especially before you put customer, employee, or confidential information into any AI tool. Tools, features, and prices were accurate when recorded and may have changed since. Product names are trademarks of their owners, and mentioning a product doesn't mean its maker endorses this channel. Any sponsorship or affiliate link is disclosed. Opinions are my own and don't represent my employer. You use this information at your own risk; Mark Mason and markmason.com accept no liability for any loss or damage that results from using it.

    Best AI Subscription for Business Owners: ChatGPT vs Claude [MM281]

  5. Oct 13

    Will AI Replace Your Job? What the Research Actually Says [MM280]

    Send us Fan Mail Is "AI won't replace you" actually true? I checked the research on AI and jobs, and it's better news than the quote. Watch the video: https://youtu.be/snsV4Ydb26E The line is on posters and all over LinkedIn, and almost nobody has checked it. Mark Mason leads engineering teams, including AI engineering, at a Fortune 500 semiconductor company. Here he reads the economists instead of the hot takes: the ATM and bank teller story (with the part most people leave out), an AI-run drive-through he ordered from, and studies in four fields: customer support, consulting, writing, and software engineering. The finding is the same every time: the biggest gains from AI go to the people who are furthest behind, not the people already best at their job. If you've been reading about AI replacing jobs, or wondering what jobs AI will replace, the better question is whether AI automates a task inside your work or removes the reason anyone needs that work. Mark also covers the honest complication (no measurable wage bump yet in government pay data, while job postings already pay more for AI skills), the study where AI users did worse, and three moves for this week, even if you don't feel technical. In this episode: Did ATMs replace bank tellers? What happened, and what came nextWhich jobs shift instead of disappearingWho gains the most from AI, according to the researchWhen AI makes you worse, and the "trust, but verify" habitThree moves for this week if you feel behind on AIThe sung stinger is AI-generated music. Every word you hear is Mark's own voice. The intern framework from the previous video: https://youtu.be/Iu7aaq4T-N4 Sources Santiago (@svpino) on X, January 5, 2023: the earliest dated version of the quote we foundBessen, Finance & Development (IMF), 2015: https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2015/03/bessen.htmAutor, Journal of Economic Perspectives, 2015: https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/jep.29.3.3BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, Tellers: https://www.bls.gov/ooh/office-and-administrative-support/tellers.htmBrynjolfsson, Li, Raymond, NBER w31161 (customer support): https://www.nber.org/papers/w31161Dell'Acqua, Mollick, Lakhani et al., Organization Science (BCG consultants): https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2025.21838Noy and Zhang, Science, 2023 (writing): https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adh2586Cui, Demirer et al., Management Science (software developers): https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2025.00535Humlum and Vestergaard, NBER w33777 (Danish pay data): https://www.nber.org/papers/w33777PwC Global AI Jobs Barometer, 2025 and 2026: https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/issues/artificial-intelligence/ai-jobs-barometer.htmlRonald Reagan, "Trust, but verify," December 8, 1987 (Reagan Library): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fI-ekVtjOxQAbout Mark Mason Mark Mason leads engineering teams, including AI engineering, at a Fortune 500 semiconductor company. He has run online businesses since 2007 and has been podcasting since 2009. This channel is practical AI for the business you already run: growth by design, not by grind. More at https://markmason.com?utm_source=buzzsprout&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=02-ai-wont-replace-you Disclaimer: this episode is for educational and informational purposes only. It isn't legal, tax, accounting, financial, investment, HR, or cybersecurity advice, and watching it doesn't create a professional or client relationship. Talk to a qualified professional before you make decisions for your business. Any income, revenue, savings, time saved, or other results mentioned are examples or my own experience, shared for reference only. They aren't typical, and they aren't a promise or a guarantee: your results depend on your business, your market, your effort, and many other factors. AI tools can be wrong, incomplete, or biased, can make things up, and change often. Check their output before you rely on it, and follow each tool's terms, your privacy and data-protection duties, your client agreements, and the law, especially before you put customer, employee, or confidential information into any AI tool. Tools, features, and prices were accurate when recorded and may have changed since. Product names are trademarks of their owners, and mentioning a product doesn't mean its maker endorses this channel. Any sponsorship or affiliate link is disclosed. Opinions are my own and don't represent my employer. You use this information at your own risk; Mark Mason and markmason.com accept no liability for any loss or damage that results from using it.

    Will AI Replace Your Job? What the Research Actually Says [MM280]

  6. Oct 6

    How to Use AI in Your Business: Treat It Like a New Intern [MM279]

    Send us Fan Mail How to use AI in your business when you're just starting: treat it like a smart new intern on day one. Watch the video: https://youtu.be/Iu7aaq4T-N4 Most business owners aren't stuck with AI because they're not smart enough. They're stuck because nobody onboarded it. Mark Mason leads engineering teams, including AI engineering, at a Fortune 500 semiconductor company, and in this episode he explains the mental model that fixes that: AI is smart, fast, and capable, and it knows absolutely nothing about your business until you tell it. Then the twist. Ethan Mollick, the Wharton professor who coined "treat AI like an intern," has since moved on and now calls AI a coworker. Mark explains why, if you're just getting started with ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini, the intern model is still the right first step, and what changes once your AI intern is doing good work. Free prompts to onboard your AI intern (no email needed): https://markmason.com/ai-intern-prompts/?utm_source=buzzsprout&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=01-smart-intern In this episode: Why 82% of the smallest businesses not planning to use AI say it doesn't apply to them, and why that's an onboarding problem, not a courage problemThree moves to onboard AI like a new hire: brief it on your business, give it one concrete task, and ask it what it needsWhy the person who invented "treat AI like an intern" moved on, and why you shouldn't yetWhat the research says about trusting AI too much, and the "trust, but verify" habit that fixes itWhat the best interns (and your AI) do that you didn't ask forThe sung stinger is AI-generated music. Every word you hear is Mark's own voice. Sources mentioned SBA Office of Advocacy, "AI in Business: Small Firms Closing In" (September 2025): https://advocacy.sba.gov/2025/09/24/ai-in-business-small-firms-closing-in/Ethan Mollick, "On-boarding your AI Intern," One Useful Thing (May 2023): https://www.oneusefulthing.org/p/on-boarding-your-ai-internHarvard Business Review, "Research: Why You Shouldn't Treat AI Agents Like Employees" (May 2026): https://hbr.org/2026/05/research-why-you-shouldnt-treat-ai-agents-like-employeesRonald Reagan, "Trust, but verify," at the INF Treaty signing, December 8, 1987 (Reagan Library): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fI-ekVtjOxQAbout Mark Mason Mark Mason leads engineering teams, including AI engineering, at a Fortune 500 semiconductor company. He has run online businesses since 2007 and has been podcasting since 2009. This channel is practical AI for the business you already run: growth by design, not by grind. More at https://markmason.com?utm_source=buzzsprout&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=01-smart-intern Disclaimer: this episode is for educational and informational purposes only. It isn't legal, tax, accounting, financial, investment, HR, or cybersecurity advice, and watching it doesn't create a professional or client relationship. Talk to a qualified professional before you make decisions for your business. Any income, revenue, savings, time saved, or other results mentioned are examples or my own experience, shared for reference only. They aren't typical, and they aren't a promise or a guarantee: your results depend on your business, your market, your effort, and many other factors. AI tools can be wrong, incomplete, or biased, can make things up, and change often. Check their output before you rely on it, and follow each tool's terms, your privacy and data-protection duties, your client agreements, and the law, especially before you put customer, employee, or confidential information into any AI tool. Tools, features, and prices were accurate when recorded and may have changed since. Product names are trademarks of their owners, and mentioning a product doesn't mean its maker endorses this channel. Any sponsorship or affiliate link is disclosed. Opinions are my own and don't represent my employer. You use this information at your own risk; Mark Mason and markmason.com accept no liability for any loss or damage that results from using it.

    How to Use AI in Your Business: Treat It Like a New Intern [MM279]

  7. May 20

    Reboot: When Everyone Has AI What Still Makes You You [LNIM278]

    Send us Fan Mail The name change is the easy part. The hard part is admitting the old rules of online business just broke, and then building something better anyway. After hitting an anniversary milestone of 35 years at my day job, I’m rebooting the podcast as The Mark Mason Show and using it to document the next chapter: building markmason.com into a sharper, more flexible personal brand. A big driver is artificial intelligence. For years, the “technical stuff” created a moat for creators and solo entrepreneurs: video editing, landing pages, websites, affiliate tracking, podcast production, and all the behind-the-scenes work most people never wanted to learn. Now AI tools are collapsing that barrier fast, which raises the real question for every small business owner: how do you create a differentiated business when your competition has the same AI horsepower? I share my approach: keep the value human and automate the busywork. I’ll show up as me on the mic, bringing my experience, my opinion, and the parts that live in my zone of genius. Then I’ll lean on AI for the tasks I do not want to do, like transcripts, SEO support, blog formatting, clip creation, and marketing ops. You’ll also hear how I’m using AI “24/7,” from enterprise workflow automation at work to silly but useful personal automations, plus why I even named my AI assistant Donna. If you want to build an AI-powered lifestyle business without losing your voice, subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a quick review so more builders can find the show.

    Reboot: When Everyone Has AI What Still Makes You You [LNIM278]

  8. 05/05/2025

    Crawfish, Cold Beer, and Converting Clients: A Southern Marketing Tale [LNIM277]

    Send us Fan Mail Ever felt like you need to become a social media star to succeed in your business? During a recent crawfish boil in Texas, I met a debt coach we'll call "Jill" who perfectly embodied this common struggle. Despite having incredible expertise and genuine passion for helping people escape the devastating cycle of debt, Jill was hitting a wall with client acquisition because of her strong aversion to social media platforms. This conversation sparked a powerful question worth considering: If you had the cure for a serious problem (like cancer, or in Jill's case, debilitating debt), but disliked Facebook, would you simply refuse to use an effective channel to reach those who desperately need your help? The reality is that marketing discomfort often creates an unnecessary barrier between skilled professionals and the very people they're meant to serve. The good news? You don't need to dance on TikTok or expose your personal life to build a thriving client base. The tiny offer strategy provides an elegant solution for the social-media-averse professional. By creating a small, low-risk product (typically $7-$17) and promoting it through minimal ad spend, you can build a list of actual buyers who have already demonstrated their willingness to invest in solutions. These buyers are far more likely to convert to higher-ticket coaching services when appropriately followed up with. What makes this approach particularly valuable is its flexibility. You can build your business behind a brand identity rather than your personal image—using a cartoon avatar or focusing on the transformation you provide. The goal isn't to make significant profit from the tiny offer itself but rather to break even on advertising while creating a bridge between cold traffic and high-ticket sales. Perhaps most importantly, this strategy forces us to examine what's really behind our marketing resistance. Are we taking a principled stand, or are we simply afraid of failure, criticism, or visibility? Understanding these underlying factors can help us make more intentional decisions and potentially overcome limiting fears that keep us from fulfilling our mission to help others. Ready to start? Create a simple yet valuable tiny offer based on expertise you already possess, test it with minimal ad spend, measure results, and continually refine your approach. Need support? Join our free VIP forum at vipmarkmason.com where I'll personally answer your questions.

    Crawfish, Cold Beer, and Converting Clients: A Southern Marketing Tale [LNIM277]
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About

AI for small business, made practical: how to use AI in the business you already run. You have a ChatGPT account. It hasn't changed how your business actually works yet. That gap is what this show is about. I'm Mark Mason. I lead engineering teams, including AI engineering, at a Fortune 500 semiconductor company, I've run online businesses since 2007, and I've been podcasting since 2009. This show was the Late Night Internet Marketing Podcast; it is now The Mark Mason Show. Every week I take one real problem out of a real business: what actually works, what I'd skip, and when the honest answer is to hire someone instead of building it yourself. No hype, no agency pitch. These episodes are the audio of the weekly video on YouTube (youtube.com/@MarkMasonCom), edited so they work without a screen. The sung stinger is AI-generated music; every word you hear is my own voice. This is for small business owners and professionals who are past experimenting and want AI to work. Growth by design, not by grind. More at markmason.com.

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